AGAIN we find Jesus dealing with the corruption which had crept into the understanding of the 4th commandment, through the added rules and regulations brought in by the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. I looking at these verses I propose to go through it and make comments, and hopefully the meaning of the verses will become more clear.

Jesus continues to show up the legalism of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law. On this occasion Jesus was in the synagogue on the Sabbath, and he was doing what he always did, which was to teach the people. We have noted before that teaching for Jesus was more important than healing and came before it. It is only by hearing the word of God that we are saved and grow in grace.

In the congregation was a man with a withered hand. This man became an illustration or visual aid for Jesus to teach a proper understanding of the law of God concerning the purpose and keeping of the Sabbath.

The next thing we read is that the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were watching Jesus intently. They were there not to be taught, but to find some occasion to criticise and condemn Jesus. By this very fact they declare the corruption in their hearts. Outwardly they were very religious, but inwardly was much corruption. God is more interested in the state of our hearts before him, than our actions. If the heart is right the right actions will follow. As we are told that the Pharisees were present in order to see whether Jesus would heal the shrivelled hand of the man before him, this suggests that perhaps the Pharisees had introduced him into the congregation. If this is true we can see how virulent the Pharisees were against Jesus.

The next thing we are told is this amazing revelation concerning Jesus, which speaks of his deity. We are told Jesus could read the minds of these Pharisees. We are told that Jesus knew what they were thinking. He saw the reason why they were present; he saw their hypocrisy; he saw what they wanted to be able to do, which was to find some occasion to condemn Jesus. Jesus saw the corruption and hate which was deep in their minds.

With this inner knowledge of the Pharisees thought he turns to his visual aid, the man with the shrivelled hand. He told him to stand up so that everyone could see him, and so no one would miss the lesson. The man obeyed and stood up before everyone present.

Then came the lesson. Jesus taught by involving the people present by asking a question. By this means Jesus claimed their attention, and made them think. In the same way Jesus involved the Pharisees and made them think, instead of just remaining imprisoned by their own thinking and understanding of the law.

The teaching was founded on a great principle in understanding the teaching of the Bible and following it. The principle is using other principles to bring light of the thing that is being questioned. In this way Jesus throws out his question and challenges the people and the Pharisees. He says is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do evil. Of course the answer is to do good, and in the context of the man with the shrivelled hand it was a good thing to bring healing and so blessing to the man's life, and it follows from this that although the teachers of the law said by their rules that healing on the Sabbath was working and so breaking the fourth commandment, to heal this man on the Sabbath being a good thing was not breaking the law concerning the Sabbath. The Pharisees never seemed to ask the question why Jesus gave to the fourth commandment. If they had they would have seen the spiritual wisdom behind the command which was not transgressed by helping people in need and doing them good. The reason behind the fourth commandment is twofold. In the first place we should have time to honour God and worship him. The everyday need of feeding and clothing the body occupies all our time in the week, leaving little time for God, so God gave one day for us to give time to him. This is was what we need. God has created us to find purpose and satisfaction in him, and without such worship we are depriving ourselves of something that is essential to our being. This is true without the prime obligation of us as God's creatures to honour God. Then God gave us the Sabbath so that we may meet the need of our body and mind for rest and recreation.

When the whole congregation, including the Pharisees, remained silent, because the question put by Jesus left them speechless, Jesus healed the man in a way that showed Jesus to have power which revealed his deity. A simple command to the man to stretch out his hand which was impossible because it was paralysed, brought faith in the man, and he found that in believing and acting, his hand was healed of its impotence.

So Jesus powerfully showed the Pharisees that their teaching and perception of what was right for the Sabbath was wrong and needed correction, and at the same time taught the people to deliver them from the bondage of legalism by which the Pharisees had bound them.

It is by these illustrations of Jesus that we can come to a right understanding of how we as believers in Jesus should treat Sunday, and honestly before God apply the teaching, so that we use Sunday as God meant, and not allow the teaching of Jesus to excuse neglect of Sunday. For the Pharisees such was the hardness of their hearts that the teaching of Jesus only made them hate more.