Meditationen am Gnadenstuhl: Friday Easter II - Luke 6:6-11

Friday Easter II

Daily Lectionary Readings: Exodus 31:1-18; Luke 6:1-19; (Sirach 43)

Luke 6:6-11:

[6] On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. [7] And the scribes and the Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse him. [8] But he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. [9] And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” [10] And after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored. [11] But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus. (ESV)

A common occurrence in Luke's Gospel is the juxtaposition of Jesus' teaching in the synagogues and healing, often on the Sabbath. Of course, Jesus once more knows the thoughts of the Pharisees and scribes as they attempt to seek a way to eliminate Him. As the man with the hands stands in their midst, Jesus asks the scribes and Pharisees the same sort of question they had posed before when His disciples were eating grain. "What is lawful on the Sabbath?" In this case, is it permissible on the Sabbath to do good or evil? To preserve life or to allow harm?"

The question is blunt and without varnish, hanging in the air without allowing an opening for discussion. No debate about edge cases or extenuating circumstances. The Pharisees and scribes are backed into a corner. Of course, it is not ever lawful to do evil or destroy life! Sickness is a condition that has resulted from evil entering the world, after all, so how can they condemn Jesus for confronting illness and restoring life on the Sabbath? Of course, they cannot. Jesus' point is that their narrow view of the law ignores a neighbor's need in their midst at the expense of how others view their outward righteousness by showing their piety in public. They are focused on themselves. The Sabbath was created for man, not man for the Sabbath,1 to allow man to rest his body and soul, allowing him to reenter the world and be of service. The Pharisees and scribes cannot see the forest of sacrificial service for the trees of self-righteousness.

So Jesus tells the man with the withered hand to stretch it forth, and as he did so, it was healed. This miracle is a demonstration that Jesus is indeed the Lord of the Sabbath.2 As Jesus said in His sermon in the synagogue on an earlier Sabbath in Nazareth, He must fulfill the purpose for which He was sent.3 A new age of salvation in Him, the Messiah, has arrived, to which such signs as this miraculous healing bear witness. Healing this man's hand is an act of mercy and salvation. Such actions on Jesus' part are not only acceptable on the Sabbath but required. Jesus' actions will lead Him to the cross where the salvation of sinners, like the man with the now healed hand, will be effected. Likewise, Jesus' disciples will be sent to do good and save souls by the proclamation of Jesus' death and resurrection. These actions will lead to their own persecution and martyrdom.

All of this leads us to our own Sabbath, rest from the assaults of the devil, the world, and our own sinful nature. Jesus invites us to His table on the Sabbath to receive the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation He has to offer there as we enter that rest and hear about and receive a foretaste of the eternal rest we are promised by faith in Jesus in the life of the world to come. As we saw yesterday, the Pharisees and scribes were stuck in the old ways, "the old is good."4 We know that their anger leads to Jesus' death on the cross. But we also know that His resurrection on the third day ushers in the era of the new and everlasting Sabbath, promising believers total healing not only of withered hands but all maladies of body and soul.

1Mark 2:27.

2Matthew 12:1–8; Mark 2:23–28; Luke 6:1–5.

3Luke 4:16-30.

4Luke 5:39.