In Judaism, the Sabbath (Saturday) is the most important day of the week. It's the first thing G-D made holy or sanctified. It's the day G-D rested. We are told in the Decalogue (Ten Words/Commandments) to keep it holy. Jews take that VERY seriously, and one of the questions to ask oneself is how do we make a day holy.
In Jesus' day this was a big discussion, but of even more importance was which commandments are greater than others. In other words, should one break the Sabbath (work on Saturday) in order to fulfill the commandment of circumcision? Or sacrifice? Or healing? Or eating?
This story looks different in the Synoptics, but the basics are the same. The Pharisees are questioning whether it is ok to do what the disciples are doing - picking heads of grain on the Sabbath. I am not sure what Jews follow today (whether or not it is ok/legal to pick heads of grain), but Jesus soon points out that this practice is ok on the Sabbath and does not desecrate it.
And we know that Jesus obeyed the 4th commandment - He kept the Sabbath holy. Two question, however, remain: what does that mean and should we be doing likewise?
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