Then he went back in the meeting place where he found a man with a crippled hand. The Pharisees had their eyes on Jesus to see if he would heal him, hoping to catch him in a Sabbath infraction. He said to the man with the crippled hand, “Stand here where we can see you.”Then he spoke to the people: “What kind of action suits the Sabbath best? Doing good or doing evil? Helping people or leaving them helpless?” No one said a word.
He looked them in the eye, one after another, angry now, furious at their hard-nosed religion. He said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” He held it out—it was as good as new! The Pharisees got out as fast as they could, sputtering about how they would join forces with Herod’s followers and ruin him.
It’s funny how we can sometimes get so wrapped up in church life, we raise funds for the roof, or have coffee mornings or anything like that. We consentrate on the church group and forget about what is going on outside the church and this passage gives me a kick up the bum to remind me and us all that church isn’t just for the churched.
The passage has made me think about how I might step out of my comfort zone and safe religious practices. I wonder if I sometimes get caught up in hard-nosed religion? I am going to do something really radical…I’ll keep you posted!
can’t wait to hear ellen!