Our paragraph topic is: (A man with a withered hand) Part 2.
So the Pharisees are offended and the gates of hell are opened and focused on the downfall of Christ. The Pharisees are the rulers. The Pharisees are the enforcers. The Pharisees are the preachers of the Law. They are the ones who keep the people in line. They are the ones who maintain order. They are the scholars and men of wisdom who are known and recognized by the people. But there is Christ who cast out demons. There is Christ who heals the sick. There is Christ who makes the lame walk, the blind see, and the dead to rise again. Never before has there been such a man as this to walk the earth.
The Pharisees are grasping at straws. Any man would save his property from ruin on any day including the Sabbath. So Christ in asking this question appeals to the heart of the issue, do what is good on the Sabbath and every other day as well. So Christ instructs the Pharisees in front of the people in the synagogue to do what is right and good on the Sabbath, which is totally against what the Pharisees want the people to know. They have instructed the people and taught the people that you must not do anything on the Sabbath. And they have used the Law which was given by God to Moses as an instrument to control the people. But Christ tells them otherwise. Christ takes away the power of the Pharisees over the people and gives it to them to follow. He tells them, "How much better is a man than a sheep! Therefore, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
So the Pharisees are offended and the gates of hell are opened and focused on the downfall of Christ. The Pharisees are the rulers. The Pharisees are the enforcers. The Pharisees are the preachers of the Law. They are the ones who keep the people in line. They are the ones who maintain order. They are the scholars and men of wisdom who are known and recognized by the people. But there is Christ who cast out demons. There is Christ who heals the sick. There is Christ who makes the lame walk, the blind see, and the dead to rise again. Never before has there been such a man as this to walk the earth.
The Pharisees do not believe. They have been seated in the halls of power far too long. Their judgment is blind and their knowledge is earthly. So, to deal with Christ they lay traps and plan tricks to accuse him before the people, to shame him before the people, the mock him before the people. But the people love him. The people adore him. The people follow him in large crowds because they believe that this man is different, this man is more than a prophet. They believe that this man is the Messiah. So the Pharisees, coached by the wicked demons of the the evil one lay traps. They question Christ about healing on the Sabbath. Christ responds by telling them how foolish they are by asking such a question that has such a reasonable answer. He says, ''What man is there among you who, if he has a single sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out?"
The Pharisees are grasping at straws. Any man would save his property from ruin on any day including the Sabbath. So Christ in asking this question appeals to the heart of the issue, do what is good on the Sabbath and every other day as well. So Christ instructs the Pharisees in front of the people in the synagogue to do what is right and good on the Sabbath, which is totally against what the Pharisees want the people to know. They have instructed the people and taught the people that you must not do anything on the Sabbath. And they have used the Law which was given by God to Moses as an instrument to control the people. But Christ tells them otherwise. Christ takes away the power of the Pharisees over the people and gives it to them to follow. He tells them, "How much better is a man than a sheep! Therefore, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Christ has raised a central issue. What is good? The Pharisees have been the ones who dictated to the people what was good and what was not. Christ gave that decision back to the people, by telling them that it was lawful to do good on the Sabbath. It was lawful for them to interpret what was good to do on the Sabbath and to not depend on the Pharisees to provide them with that interpretation. For it is God who is the ultimate judge. It is God who will decide who did good and who did not. It is God who sees our inner hearts and who knows our intentions and not the Pharisees.
Do you know God? Do you have a relationship with Him? We are born of the world and are not of the world. Few come to know their true identity. Few come to believe their true belief. And few come to know, here on earth, the true relationship with Christ through the Holy Spirit. Yet that relationship is available to all. Do you seek to have a personal relationship with Christ? Do you want to know Him? Do you want to truly love Him? He will change your life. For you in Him there is no desire for sin. For you in Him there is no desire for the world. For you in Him there is only his love for you and your love for others. Come, know for yourself, Christ. For he calls to you. He wants to know you. He wants to wrap you in his love and his protection and his heavenly riches, that cannot compare to anything that this world has to offer. He awaits you. Come!
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