20-Jan-16

Gospel MK 3:1-6
Jesus entered the synagogue.
There was a man there who had a withered hand.
They watched Jesus closely
to see if he would cure him on the sabbath
so that they might accuse him.
He said to the man with the withered hand,
“Come up here before us.”
Then he said to the Pharisees,
“Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil,
to save life rather than to destroy it?”
But they remained silent.
Looking around at them with anger
and grieved at their hardness of heart,
Jesus said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”
He stretched it out and his hand was restored.
The Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel
with the Herodians against him to put him to death.
Reflection:
When Jesus began His public ministry, he first took His message to the synagogue, a place where Jewish men met on the sabbath to discuss and debate the meaning of the law of God as it had been given to Moses.
"Jesus entered the synagogue.
There was a man there who had a withered hand.
They watched Jesus closely
to see if he would cure him on the sabbath
so that they might accuse him."
Jesus knew He was dealing with people who believed in strict, merciless, application of Moses' law, and that they were watching him "closely" so that they "might accuse him."
He said to the man with the withered hand,
“Come up here before us.”
Then he said to the Pharisees,
“Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?”
The Pharisees' hearts were hardened against him and "they remained silent."
Jesus Christ felt "grieved" at their lack of compassion and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.........and his hand was restored."
Although Jesus had been raised under Moses' law and was a good Jew His first religion was "the love of his fellow man" as He had learned it from God, His Father.
As followers of Christ, we recognize this as a central question of our faith: Is it right to do good or evil, save life or destroy it, to be forgiving or condemning?
May the heart of Jesus Christ be filled with joy as we "stretch out" our hands to restore those in need through acts of compassion, love and mercy for those who are suffering.
"Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, in truth and love." 2 John 1:3