Devotional:

“1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2 And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” 4 And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.” — Mark 3:1-6

This is a very emotional moment for Jesus. The religious leaders wanted Jesus arrested and destroyed. He had been going around healing people, delivering them from evil spirits and comforting those in need; He fed the hungry and even raised people from death. And they despised Him for it. He opposed their religious standards and laws. Their hearts were hardened, and no matter what Jesus did, they would not believe He was the Son of God, the Savior of the world, the Messiah. Even though Jesus repeatedly proved His divine power to them, they refused to believe it.

Everything Jesus taught was the opposite of the Pharisee’s religious laws and rules. They taught that works would save you and earn you religious status and Jesus taught that works weren’t a prerequisite for salvation, but were a result of our salvation. Jesus was teaching that He was their salvation and all they had to do was believe, which was blasphemy, punishable by death.

Jesus was in the synagogue on the Sabbath and the Pharisees had come to watch Him with every evil intention. They wanted to find something to use against Him, to catch Him in the act, so that they could bring that to the officials and have Him arrested. They wanted Him silenced and were on a mission to make that happen. Jesus knew this, and of course, being the Sabbath, according to the law of the Pharisees, any healing or miracle would have been forbidden. So, the Pharisees were looking to corner Jesus for violating their law. Jesus is well aware of why they were there, and still, He tells the man with a withered hand to come to Him. So, I imagine the Pharisees perk up at this moment, ready to pounce as soon as Jesus heals the man.

But Jesus looks around, He makes eye contact with the men who were there to destroy Him and asks a straightforward question. He asked if it was lawful on the Sabbath to do good or harm or to save life or kill. This is clever of Jesus. They know what Jesus is asking because He once again saw into their hearts and minds and knew their intentions. What Jesus was asking was, “Which is better? Me healing this man’s hand on the Sabbath or you plotting my death on the Sabbath? Here I am, trying to do good and give this man a better life, while you are trying to destroy me.” They obviously couldn’t answer that question because it would condemn them. This angered Jesus, but seeing such hatred and bitterness toward Him broke His heart even more. They were supposed to be an example of good behavior to the people and here they were, plotting Jesus’s destruction. 

Jesus healed the man’s hand even though He knew the repercussions. Jesus knew what was coming and His goal was not to try to escape it. He had to do these things, these very public and controversial things, to fulfill His mission.

Jesus felt both anger and grief for the Pharisees. He knew they would never believe and that brought Him great sadness. But He also felt angry because of their hardened hearts and desire to plot against Him and eventually sentence Him to death.

When I see the protestors outside our church, looking to destroy and bring destruction to Eleven22, I feel 99.9% anger and .1% sadness. But really, I should feel more grief and sadness at the hardness of their hearts, just as Jesus did in the synagogue that day. Their religiosity should sadden me more than anger me, because it keeps them from truly experiencing a movement that is changing hearts for Christ in our city and so many places around the world. 

They take what is good and try to turn it to look evil, but Jesus takes what is meant for evil and makes it good. Nothing can stop the movement of God. And I must pray daily and seek the Lord with everything in my being, so that I don’t cast judgment or condemn those who are not like me or don’t believe what I believe. My job is to love God and love others. There is no room for judgment, ill intentions or hardened hearts in my job description as a follower of Christ.

When do you find yourself being judgmental toward others?

How can you turn those judgmental thoughts and feelings into light in a dark place, hope in a hopeless situation or fervent prayer for the ones you tend to ignore, despise, look down on or turn away from?

God, help us see others the way You see them. Keep our anger in check and make us grieve for others who need You. Stir something in us to get up and do something about it. Lord, let us look past religion and rules, so that we can see Your work, do Your work and be the hands and feet of Jesus. Amen