Theology and Apologetics Podcast

Jesus, the Sabbath, and the Pharisees (Matthew 12): Lord of the Sabbath & Greater Than the Temple
In this episode we will study Matthew 12 (with parallels in Mark) where Jesus and His disciples face Pharisaic confrontation over Sabbath regulations when the disciples pluck grain, an act permitted by Deuteronomy 23:25 but condemned by extra Pharisaic rules. • Jesus defends them using David eating consecrated bread (1 Samuel 21) and the priests working on the Sabbath • Jesus declares “something greater than the temple is here” and “the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath” • Jesus exposes legalism by healing a man with a withered hand in the synagogue, showing it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath • Mark highlights Jesus’ anger at their hardness of heart and the Pharisees conspiring with the Herodians to destroy Him • Matthew connects these events to Isaiah 42, emphasizing Jesus’ Spirit-anointed, merciful ministry and Gentile hope.

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Luke 5 Explained: Jesus Calls Levi (Matthew), Dines with Sinners & the New Wine/New Wineskins

Continuing the Life of Messiah series in Luke 5, Thomas Fretwell revisits Jesus’ healing of the paralytic in Capernaum and then focuses on Jesus calling the tax collector Levi (Matthew), highlighting the scandal of a rabbi welcoming an ostracised Roman collaborator and the cost of discipleship as Levi leaves everything to follow Christ. Levi hosts a banquet for Jesus with tax collectors and “sinners,” prompting Pharisaic criticism, to which Jesus replies that the sick need a physician and that He came to call sinners to repentance. The episode then provides historical background on the rise of Pharisaic/rabbinic “oral law” and the fence around Torah, explaining how this context clarifies Jesus’ illustrations about fasting, patching old garments, and new wine in new wineskins as a refusal to fit His mission into Pharisaic tradition and a call to bring people to Jesus.

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This is the audio version of an article posted on ezrafoundation. org website.

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Luke 5:17–26 — The Paralytic, Forgiveness of Sins, and Jesus’ Divine Authority
Dr Fretwell continues a Luke 5 study in Capernaum as Pharisees and teachers of the law, including a delegation from Jerusalem, gather to investigate Jesus after the messianic healing of a leper. Jesus teaches the word, and four friends lower a paralysed man through the roof to reach him, demonstrating visible, active faith. Jesus first declares, “Your sins are forgiven,” intentionally echoing Leviticus’ sacrificial language to claim God’s authority, prompting accusations of blasphemy. Knowing their thoughts, Jesus challenges them and heals the man to prove the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. The man obeys, walks home glorifying God, and the crowd responds with astonishment, fear, and praise, emphasising humanity’s greatest need: forgiveness through Jesus.

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