Sermon Snippet – A Person That You Should Know – and Some That You Should Not
INTRODUCTION – Luke 6:6-11 presents the account of a man in clear need of healing. It also provides a sobering warning about the hardness of the human heart that refuses to be softened by the Savior, Jesus Christ. As the renowned preacher John Jasper used to say, “May God be praised, and sinners be warned.”
1. JESUS HEALS A MAN
Verse 6 tells us that this man’s “right hand was withered.” The exactness of the details reminds us of the absolute accuracy of the Word of God. The infirmity was obvious for all to see; but so that no one could later claim that a miracle had not occurred, Jesus said, “Stretch forth thy hand.” In plain view of everyone there, the man’s “hand was restored whole as the other” (verse 10). When Jesus healed, there was no need for rehabilitation or physical therapy: the leper “was cleansed” (Mark 1:42), the paralyzed man “arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all” (Mark 2:12), and the deaf-mute “spake plain” (Mark 7:35). Jesus, of course, is blessedly consistent and thorough. What He does in the physical realm is a picture of His greater spiritual work: “’Come now, and let us reason together,’ saith the LORD: ‘though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool’” (Isaiah 1:18). Isaiah 38:17 adds, “Behold, for peace I had great bitterness: but Thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for Thou hast cast all my sins behind Thy back.” Micah 7:18-19 similarly uses powerful poetry, ending with these words of comforting completeness: “Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” The New Testament likewise employs memorable imagery: speaking of all of our sin, Colossians 2:14 pictures Jesus “nailing it to His cross.” When Jesus heals, there is healing indeed!
2. JESUS IS OPPOSED BY MEN
Verse 7 indicates that the religious leaders were zealously looking to find fault in Jesus. Part of the background of their animosity is found in verses 1-5, which took place on a previous “sabbath” (in the Jewish faith, a Saturday). We now meet on Sunday, the day of Christ’s resurrection, but the principles of worship that Jesus taught are applicable to us. First, worship is not constrictive; rather, it is freeing. The lesson of David and his men eating the consecrated bread of the tabernacle (verses 3-4) is that Jesus is more interested in our hunger than in holy bread, more concerned with people than in what people think, more solicitous of us than we are of Him. Second, the day of worship was made for us: “The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27). Third, a day of worship is not something that we do for God; it is something that He gives to us (verse 5). This insightful instruction, however, did not penetrate the callous hearts of the religious elites. In fact, their response to this man’s miraculous healing was vicious: “They were filled with madness; and communed one with another what they might do to Jesus” (verse 11). When we will not heed spiritual truth, we will become cold. These men did not care about this man’s life of hardship, and they could think only of evil against Jesus. They no longer had place in their hearts for “good” (verse 9).
CONCLUSION – These men went to a worship service, but they did not worship. They were filled with “madness” when the reasonable response would have been one of joy. What an extraordinary day! What a true tragedy that some, perhaps many, refused to join in the joy! That day should have been “the day of salvation” (II Corinthians 6:2, quoting Isaiah 49:8) for all of them. We cannot change their benighted hatred, but we can change our lives right now by trusting in Jesus for His eternal salvation. Each one of us needs Him as Savior. When our faith is in Jesus, we will find that His healing of our souls is complete.