As I read our Gospel story, I had this impression that Pharisees were following Jesus and his disciples to notice that they were picking grains in the field. Were they on a random fault-finding journey? I wondered: “Let’s see what they do on the Sabbath! They are bound to break the law at some point.” Pharisees always brought to Jesus a number of arguments and grievances; many of which were a tip of the iceberg, a symptom of a much bigger problem underneath. This argument about what’s lawful on the Sabbath was the tip of the iceberg. God created the Sabbath for our benefit, to rest both physically and spiritually. But for Pharisees, the law became more important than the resting part. They believed they were right in what they thought and did, and needed no correction. Jesus sorted the argument but still, where did we go wrong by turning everything into an argument? Unfortunately, when we are so busy winning arguments, we don’t realize we are distracted from everything else that might be more important. That’s why by healing a man with a withered hand, Jesus was also teaching us, about our own symptoms, with a big iceberg underneath, the burdens we face every day. Our souls get tired from carrying burdens, Jesus demonstrated that his power to heal us from our burdens is available, in the same way that it was, with the healing of the man with a withered hand, which signify absence of God/paralysis of evil.
What was the Pharisees’ burden/iceberg? What were they afraid of? of losing power, or getting their egos bruised? This is a burden that was causing them to argue and to wish Jesus’ destruction. Jesus turned to a man with a useless limb (blood no longer flowed in it). This man had suffered enough. He could not do what all of us take for granted. Now at the center of attention, Jesus hints to us how similar the experience of this physical challenge is to a burdened soul. The Pharisees were debilitated by their burdens. If killing Jesus ensured their success, their burden was debilitating. God’s intention was to reach out to the world through Israel, but they were distracted, arguing and misunderstanding the law’s intention, therefore missing their calling. I see this often when we argue about things that don’t necessarily matter, things we don’t fully understand. We lose sight of our God-given purpose.
We learned that Jesus was grieved at their hardness of heart. It’s true that Jesus’ heart grieves, when we become self-absorbed, and more addicted to being right.
We end up missing what the Lord is actually calling us to do. Then truly, what does the Lord require of us? SIMPLE: Micah 6:8 “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Note that it does not say, to win an argument. I know we believe we don’t have those tendencies, and so did Israel, and yet they still argued with Jesus until the end. He told them how the Son of Man is the solution; He is the Lord of the sabbath, He is the ultimate doctor/ a healer that not only can cure the man with a withered hand but also a healer looking to cure our minds from self-absorption, from our burdens; our huge icebergs that many of us carry inside of us.
Paul goes further to tell us that those who have the light of Jesus Christ in their hearts, have experienced this extraordinary power of God to hold the life of Jesus within themselves. That’s where lies our healing, because Jesus took on himself all the world’s burdens, illnesses, disfigurements, and if he lives in you; you will live. Your healing is hidden in Christ who lives in you! True rest is in Christ! We become unburdened and free!
What is your biggest burden? What’s the iceberg that weights you down. Bring it to Jesus today. He is fixing to free you, so you can live as a child of God uninhibited, and ready to serve Him. Look at the most recent arguments and ask yourself: what am I afraid of? Bring it to Jesus.
Amen.
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