A Year in Luke/ActsSample

Jesus gets clever in the next story. In the synagogue, there is a man with a shriveled hand and the religious elite are watching to see if Jesus will heal him so they can accuse Him. This again shows the dire state of those who were supposed to be representatives of God to the people. However instead of Himself reaching out to heal the man, Jesus has the man reach out his hand toward Him, and he is healed. The Pharisees and Scribes have been double-bluffed, and they don’t like it.

This story is key for describing Jesus, His Message, and His Mission. First, it shows that Jesus, by operating in the religious system, wanted the priests, Pharisees, and Scribes to accept Him. However, He knew that they wouldn’t because of the state of their hearts. Second, Jesus was reversing the pure/impure framework. Up until now, anything pure that came into contact with something impure was contaminated. With Jesus, the opposite happened.

On a day that had become about not doing the wrong thing, Jesus shows what the right thing is: someone in need reaching out for healing. We must always remember this image when we are practicing rhythms like fasting or Sabbath, they are a way of us reaching out to Jesus to become more like Him. As soon as it becomes about our own effort, we are missing something.