Mark 3:1-6, Matthew 12:9-14, Luke 6:6-11

1 Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” 4And 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. 5And 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. 6The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.

Mark 3:1-6

9 He went on from there and entered their synagogue. 10And a man was there with a withered hand. And they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”—so that they might accuse him. 11He said to them, “Which one of you who has a sheep, if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift it out? 12Of how much more value is a man than a sheep! So it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” 13Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And the man stretched it out, and it was restored, healthy like the other. 14But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him.

Matthew 12:9-14

6 On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7And 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. 8But he knew their thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand here.” And he rose and stood there. 9And 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?” 10And after looking around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored. 11But they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus.

Luke 6:6-11

In the previous post we discussed issues of the sabbath and Jesus’ actions.  Today I want to consider Jesus’ heart and example for us regarding those whom seek to impede and derail the work of the Lord in the name of righteousness.  Disclaimer, we need to realize fully that Jesus’ actions were always from a pure heart and motive.  We are stained and burdened with sin that lead us toward wrong motives, perspectives, and actions.  When interpreting passage such as these and then applying these truths to our lives we must always saturate our own hearts, motives, and actions in prayer.  

All three accounts we read speak of Jesus doing the miraculous on the Sabbath.  In all circumstances an individual’s physical impairment is corrected leading to a furthering tension between Christ and the lawfully blinded scribes and Pharisees. Much could be considered in these passage however in this writing I want to place focus on the insight Mark provides for us into the mind of Christ.

“And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart” (Mark 3:5)

The gospel authors make clear that Jesus knows the consequences of his actions in the opinion of the religious elite.  Mark records two specific reactions Jesus has to the situation. Anger and grief.  Because of the blind hard religious heart of Jesus’ opponents He is both sad and angry.

I want to challenge you with this question.  What truly stirs within you anger to the point of deep grief within your heart? Is it the reality of murder, cancer, starvation, or child abuse that are common realities in our community and greater world today.  

Jesus actions combined with Mark’s insight into His heart provide for us an important perspective on anger and grief and one we should spend sometime in prayer over.  Jesus knew there would be a negative consequence to Himself that would occur because of His help to another yet He did not stop.  He also did not flaunt His power to His accusers.  Instead He was grieved at the sin infecting their decisions and He continued to act in righteousness despite negative consequence to Himself.  

How might God be stirring you like Christ in our world?  Does a great concern for your own well being cripple your ability to act? Today’s text provide for us a great example to consider.