One Sabbath [Jesus] was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, His disciples began to pluck heads of grain. And the Pharisees were saying to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” And He said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?” And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So, the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”
Mark 2:23-28
God gave the Sabbath to His people as the day of rest to restore His people, not to make them slaves to arbitrary rules. Luther comments, “Man was especially created for the knowledge and worship of God; for the Sabbath was not ordained for sheep and cows but for men, that in them the knowledge of God might be developed and might increase” (LW 1:80). Jesus proves the Sabbath was made for man and not the other way around by quoting from Scripture, 1 Samuel 21:1-6.
During the time when Saul was trying to kill David, David and his men needed bread to eat. So, he went to a priest named Ahimelech to ask for assistance. But Ahimelech didn’t have any common bread for them to eat, only the holy bread. “So, the priest gave him the holy bread, for there was no bread there but the bread of the Presence, which is removed from before the LORD, to be replaced by hot bread on the day it is taken away” (v. 6). This might not seem a big deal at first, but Jesus was correct (of course) by saying it was only for the priests to eat (see Exodus 25:30; Leviticus 24:5-9). If Joe Schmo from a random tent in Israel just walked in and ate the bread of Presence, he would’ve profaned the Sabbath. Yet the priest saw it just to give David and his men bread to eat, as did the Lord, for they were starving; for the bread of the Presence was made for them, not them for the bread.
The Sabbath is also for you, which means Christ is for you since He is Lord of the Sabbath. “Come to Me, all who labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30). This is what the Sabbath is for—to find rest in Christ our Lord. And as He is the bread of life that comes from heaven, which is His flesh (John 6:35, 48-51, 53-58), He gives His flesh to you in the Lord’s Supper, the bread of His true Presence to give you rest from your sins.
The Lutheran Column 