Why did Jesus heal on the Sabbath?
Posted by: forthrightmag <forthrightmag@...>
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COLUMN: FIDELITY
Why did Jesus heal on the Sabbath?
by Mike Benson
tinyurl.com/924f8js
"Now it happened on another Sabbath, also,
that He entered the synagogue and taught.
And a man was there whose right hand was
withered" (Luke 6:6).
While inspiration limits many of the details of this
occasion, we do know the identity of at least some of
those who were present in the assembly.
The scribes and Pharisees were present (Luke 6:7). They
had set themselves up as the authorized police of
Jesus' behavior and doctrine.
A man with a withered hand was also present./1 Was this
poor fellow essentially planted by the lawyers in order
to trap Jesus? There's no definitive answer to that
question, but the evidence forces us to raise a curious
eyebrow.
In any case, the religious leaders were obviously
anticipating Jesus' arrival. Their question, "Is it
lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" was not due to any
desire to witness a miracle, nor to express compassion
for the unfortunate man with the shriveled hand. They
only wished to ensnare the Lord in his actions and
discredit him before his peers.
Jesus could see through the façade of his antagonists.
They had gotten so caught up in the day of the calendar
that they overlooked the identity of the Messiah and
the fact that the Son of God literally stood in their
midst.
He had performed miracles on other occasions, but all
they could see was a breach of their man-made
traditions.
I find it fascinating that Jesus knew their ungodly
motives and went to the synagogue anyway. And he could
have healed the man with the withered hand on any other
day of the week, but he chose to express mercy on the
Sabbath–this Sabbath.
Milquetoast peacekeepers would have no doubt warned
Jesus to quietly avoid the controversy all together.
"Lord, don't upset these guys–just leave
them alone and wait to heal this guy
tomorrow. You've got enough grief and stress
without another fuss with these
troublemakers."
But Jesus didn't back down. He was confrontational and
in their faces. He knew the only way to melt their
frozen hearts was to expose their duplicity for all to
see.
He hated hypocrisy more than all other sins and
therefore chose to "work," at least as they interpreted
it, in order to reveal their true spirit and motives.
He told the man to step forward so that all could watch
the drama unfold. He then asked the scribes and
Pharisees, 'Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or
to do evil, to save life or to kill?"
As he had done on other occasions, Jesus turned their
own question against them–and then Jesus healed. The
handicap was removed, the man was whole, and perhaps
most telling of all, his opponents were silenced, yet
again.
Yes, the Lord knew the scribes and Pharisees were
waiting. He knew the twisted question they were going
to ask. He knew they would hate him–(and ultimately
kill him) for what he would say and do.
However, Jesus went in the synagogue, laid bare their
stubborn, blinded hearts, turned their own question
against them, and healed the man with the withered hand
anyway.
Jesus healed on the Sabbath because rabbinic tradition
had turned the God-ordained day of rest into a day of
incredible burden. Jesus healed on the Sabbath because
those who demanded certain behaviors of others failed
to carry out and live them themselves.
Jesus healed on the Sabbath because he despised
pharisaical insincerity at its very core.
Just a thought, brethren. When error is deliberately
taught and practiced by those who claim to know Jesus
today, how should we respond?
Should we wait and heal on another day? Should we wait
until the Sabbath is past?
_______________
1/ The Greek word for "withered" is xeros and means
dry. This appendage, for whatever reason, had been
deprived of the normal moisture afforded the rest of
his body.
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