Ox-idently Missing Worship Services

John M. Buttrey II

One of the constant conflicts Jesus had with the scribes and Pharisees was in regard to what one could do on the Sabbath. There was the time they questioned Jesus when His disciples were picking and eating grain on the Sabbath (Matt. 12:1-2ff). Jesus responded by rebuking the nitpicking Pharisees for chewing out the innocent (Matt. 12:7).

The Pharisees were again upset when Jesus healed a blind man on the Sabbath (John 9). Based on this action of Jesus, they blindly concluded, “This man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath” (John 9:16). On another Sabbath, Jesus healed a man who had been sick for thirty-eight years (John 5:1ff). This upset the Jews. John tells us,

“And for this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath” (John 5:16).

Luke records a Sabbath on which Jesus healed a woman who had been sick for eighteen years! This frustrated a synagogue official who told the people,

“There are six days in which work should be done; so come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day” (Luke 13:14b).

Over and over we find situations like these where Jesus did good on the Sabbath. Of course, these are just the ones that are recorded for us. There may have been many more (cf. John 21:25). As a part of all these Sabbath confrontations with the religious leaders, Luke records an occasion when Jesus questioned them, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” (Luke 14:3). To this question they gave no response. So, Jesus pointed out their obvious hypocrisy.

And He said to them, “Which one of you will have a son or an ox fall into a well, and will not immediately pull him out on a Sabbath day?” (Luke 14:5)

Matthew records the time when the Pharisees asked Jesus this same question.

And behold, a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned Jesus, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might accuse Him (Matthew 12:10).

Jesus answered their question, with a question, to help them see the obvious answer to their inquiry.

And He said to them, “What man is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? (Matthew 12:11).

On still another occasion, Jesus was even more direct in His approach to this constant criticism He received concerning doing good on the Sabbath.

But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites, does not each of you on the Sabbath release his ox or his donkey from the stall and lead it away to water it? (Luke 13:15).

While the Sabbath was to be a day of rest, God recognized that there would be circumstances when one would have to do “work.” Rescuing a son, a sheep, an ox, or doing some other “work” of good on the Sabbath was not a violation of what God set forth as a law.

As it relates to us today, there are any number of applications that can be made from these examples, one being in regard to our attendance to worship services. A sick child, an unavoidable work conflict, military service, an unsafe circumstance, or some type of illness may prevent someone from assembling with the saints. We might think of these as “ox in a pit” situations. They prevent us from fulfilling the instruction to not forsake the assembly (Heb. 10:25). Life has its share of such unavoidable circumstances. All of us have had Sundays when our “ox was in a pit.” God understands such things. He knows when we ox-idently miss a service.

However, when it comes to our being absent from the assembly of the saints, let us make sure it is never because we have deliberately pushed our ox into the pit! This happens when we have misplaced our priorities.

Let’s keep our oxen (the things of this life) properly fenced in. Make sure God is the top priority in your life, not oxen.