Greater than The Law

Place the Bread of the Presence on the table to remain before Me at all times. (Exodus 25:30 NLT)

"You must bake twelve loaves of bread from choice flour, using four quarts of flour for each loaf. Place the bread before the LORD on the pure gold table, and arrange the loaves in two rows, with six loaves in each row. Put some pure frankincense near each row to serve as a representative offering, a special gift presented to the LORD. Every Sabbath day this bread must be laid out before the LORD. The bread is to be received from the people of Israel as a requirement of the eternal covenant. The loaves of bread will belong to Aaron and his descendants, who must eat them in a sacred place, for they are most holy. It is the permanent right of the priests to claim this portion of the special gifts presented to the LORD." (Leviticus 24:5-9 NLT)

I watch the political arena this time every year and I find myself thinking about the issue or rights all the time.  It seems as if we vote for candidates based on what they are going to give us: lower taxes, more money, better security, religious freedom, the right to marry, etc.  We get so caught up on what we have the right to do.  We focus on the constitution, the bill of rights, amendments, laws, and justice appointments.  Since that is the kind of power we are giving our political leaders, I guess it makes sense that we focus on these things.  I think we can forget, though, that there is something greater than the constitution and politician-given rights.

David was running from King Saul - the political leader who was turning corrupt and wanted to kill him.  David needed a place to stay, a way to protect himself, and some food to eat.  He asked a Levitical priest for help.

Now, what is there to eat? Give me five loaves of bread or anything else you have." "We don't have any regular bread," the priest replied. "But there is the holy bread, which you can have if your young men have not slept with any women recently." "Don't worry," David replied. "I never allow my men to be with women when they are on a campaign. And since they stay clean even on ordinary trips, how much more on this one!" Since there was no other food available, the priest gave him the holy bread—the Bread of the Presence that was placed before the LORD in the Tabernacle. It had just been replaced that day with fresh bread. (1 Samuel 21:3-6 NLT)

The priest gave David bread that was supposed to be reserved for the priests alone.  It was set apart as holy for the priests.  They were given the right to hold on to that bread.  The priest saw, however, that there was something more important than his rights at stake here.  David and his followers needed food.  The priest put aside his rights to do something greater.  He fed his future king.

I think we can get so caught up in the discussion about our rights, that we forget a more important principle.  Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.  The government offers me the right to do all kinds of things that I choose not to do simply because they don't honor God or build up His people.  God's plans, His agenda, His desire for our lives is far more important than our rights.

Pharisees in the New Testament era were upset at Jesus because his followers were picking grains of wheat, cracking them open, and eating them on the Sabbath.  The Pharisees laws said that was harvesting crops and, therefore, work that was forbidden.  They asked Jesus why he didn't stop his followers from doing such things.

Jesus said to them, "Haven't you read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He went into the house of God, and he and his companions broke the law by eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests are allowed to eat. And haven't you read in the law of Moses that the priests on duty in the Temple may work on the Sabbath? I tell you, there is One here who is even greater than the Temple! But you would not have condemned My innocent disciples if you knew the meaning of this Scripture: 'I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.' For the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!" (Matthew 12:3-8 NLT)

There are things more important than the law.  Our forefathers understood this.  They approached our independence as a country with great struggle and trepidation.  They were going to be breaking the law in a way that had the penalty of death.  When they wrote their reasons, though, they pointed the world to one greater than the law.  They pointed us to God.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed..."

There is one greater than the law - the Creator of the Heavens and the Earth - of all that is seen and unseen.  He is the one who gives us rights.  He is also the one who teaches us not to use our rights for selfish gain, but to build up His Body and to point people to Him.  Everything else...well...just because we can, doesn't mean we should.