Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
Chapter divisions are not found in the original Hebrew and Greek of the Bible. They were added later to help us find references more easily, and our current chapter and verse designations are most helpful. Sometimes, though, the beginning of a new chapter causes us to overlook the continuity with the previous material. Mark 3:1-6 is much better understood if we note that it immediately follows the discussion of the Sabbath (Mark 2:23-28). What we learn quickly is that the Pharisees refused to learn quickly: “And He entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had a withered hand. And they watched Him whether He would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse Him” (verses 1-2). I have often said that it is not wrong to ask questions of God; however, it is definitely wrong to approach Him with a questioning, critical attitude. A question about fasting (Mark 2:18) could be legitimate. Even a question about work on the Sabbath could be sincere (Mark 2:24). The pattern that emerges, though, is that these powerful religious leaders actively wanted to “accuse” Jesus. They were seeking to discredit Him, for they thought that He was a threat to their authoritarianism. They had created hundreds of rules in order to govern the people’s behavior on the Sabbath; these regulations were just part of the control that the Pharisees exerted on others. Jesus was doing more than demonstrating the absurdity of their positions; He was exposing their base motives. A necessary lesson for us is to avoid this Pharisaical path of presumption. One step on that downgrade way rapidly leads to many such steps, as the negative example of the Pharisees so clearly exemplifies.