In our previous lesson, we began talking about the Sabbath day and how God created it as a day a rest and worship, knowing that as mortals, we would need to take time for such things. God directed His people, in the Ten Commandments, to observe this day every week for their own good (Ex 20:8-11, 23:12). I would like to suggest to you, also, that observing the Sabbath is a way of putting our trust in God. We know that He can meet our needs, and we must trust Him to do so, even when we take time away from our work responsibilities to worship Him and to care for ourselves. And we make this time, each week, out of obedience to God.
Today’s text tells us of another time Jesus showed that He was Lord of the Sabbath. Read Matt 12:9-14. It was a Sabbath day, and Jesus had gone into the synagogue. There were many people there that day… Pharisees and scribes as well as a man with a deformed hand. Matthew and Luke’s account of this incident tell us that the scribes and Pharisees there were watching Jesus closely, hoping to find a reason to accuse Him.
Mark 3:2 tells us that they were watching Jesus to see if He would heal the man with the deformed hand. Isn’t it interesting that, hoping to catch Jesus doing something wrong, they were watching and expecting Him to heal someone. They believed that He could, and hoped that He would, in fact, heal the man, so that they could accuse Him of healing on the Sabbath. They opposed Jesus, and wanted to show that He was going against God’s Law, but just whom did they think was giving Jesus the power to heal?
Remember from our previous lesson that the Pharisees were dedicated to ritualistic and legalistic religion. The adherence to rules and practices meant so much to them, and they were so dedicated to policing everyone’s behavior, that they were unable to see what God was doing among them. Sometimes, our religion can get in our way and get between us and God. Satan uses anything available to confuse our intentions and cause us to miss the beauty of God’s love and truth.
Jesus knew what the Pharisees were thinking and he asked the man with the deformity to stand up in front of everyone. Then He confronted the Pharisees and asked which was lawful on the Sabbath… to do good or to do evil? …to kill or to save life?? Jesus addressed the unspoken challenge head on. He knew what was going on under the surface in these men’s hearts, and He gave them the opportunity to bring it into the open, but they remained silent.
The Pharisees’ hard hearts were on display that day. Jesus made it plain that, while they would be willing to rescue their livestock which had fallen into trouble on the Sabbath, they were not willing to allow for a human being to be taken care of on the Sabbath. They would make an exception to protect their livelihood, but not to help another person. Jesus, once again, demonstrated that it is always God’s will that we do good, and that doing good should not be confined to certain days. It is always good and right to show God’s love to others. Do we have a heart that cares for others in this way?
Mark 3:5 tells us that Jesus was angered and grieved at their stubborn hearts. They were not at a teachable place in that moment. Jesus then asked the man to stretch out his arm, and when the man stretched it out, it was completely healed. The hard-hearted Pharisees then went out and plotted with the Herodians on how they might kill Jesus.
It is hard to imagine that religious leaders, such as the Pharisees, could so oppose a man being healed that they would want to kill the healer. But this was about religious rules and practices, and Jesus had healed on the Sabbath. Jewish Law had very strict rules about what could or couldn’t be done on the Sabbath and the Pharisees believed that Jesus had violated the Sabbath, a crime worthy of the death penalty. Luke 13:14 gives us some insight into what they believed would have been the right course of action instead. What was it? These religious leaders were so angry that Jesus’ teaching went against what they were teaching and they were not used to being questioned in religious matters, that they were willing to ally themselves with the Herodians… a group who believed very differently than they did.
So, who were the Herodians? They were a secular, political party, at that time, who supported Herod’s dynasty and favored accepting Roman rule in order to obtain political stability in the area. This, at a time when most Jews were awaiting the coming Messiah, expecting that He would come as a conqueror and deliver Israel from Roman rule. This political group is well known for being fierce opponents of Jesus and became allies with the Pharisees in seeking His death. We will see them again, from time to time, as we continue to study the life of our Lord Jesus.
Responding to God: Worship Jesus as the Son of God and acknowledge His authority over all things. Praise God for His exceeding goodness and His love. Thank Him for your health and seek His healing for yourself and others, where needed. Ask Him to fill you with His goodness and create in you a love for others. Pray for clear wisdom to keep religious rules and rituals from getting in the way of doing God’s good will. Commit to a time of rest and worship each week.
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