Jesus Revealed - Reflecting the Glory of GodSample

Jesus Explains the Sabbath  

Thoughts on the Passage

There is lots here.

I am going to focus on the man’s response today and I will deal with the response of Jesus to the religious leaders tomorrow. 

There are several things to point out here:

First, this man did not know who Jesus was. Still, he listened to Jesus when Jesus told him to carry his bed. It did not matter that it was the Sabbath – and it would make people angry. He was healed, he was told to carry his bed, and he would not put it down for anyone.

Second, this man was found in the temple. We can pass over that quickly except that he was not allowed by the Jewish leaders to go to the temple and make sacrifices because of his lameness. Now, he could go -and he was not going to miss the chance to say “thank you” to God for healing him. We would do well to imitate this man.

Third, this man told the Jewish religious leaders that Jesus was the one who healed him. I think it was out of honor to the position held by these leaders (they asked him, when he found out, he told them). I do not criticize him for this. Still, there are times when it is best to just be quiet. This would have been one of them. It ended up causing a lot of problems for Jesus. Jesus was willing to deal with the challenge, but Jesus left the man without revealing His name to him – for a reason. In situations like this, it is best to ask leaders before you go broadcast it to people. There may be a reason for quiet.

Fourth, Jesus addresses an issue that is important. There are things worse than living with physical problems, or financial problems or even relationship failures and problems. That is when we ignore spiritual problems. Jesus warns this man to make sure that he understands that he needs to live as God wants him to live. To risk losing out of eternal life is much, much greater than living life with serious physical problems. Often our problems keep us from being able to do things we would like – but those things often draw people away from God. Watch out! Good things/blessings can keep people out of heaven.

Application

How many times have we listened to people rather than do what God told us to do? It is very easy to do. Take time today and think of times when we stopped because people criticized us rather than finished what God told us to do. You may need to seek forgiveness from God. You may want to go back and see if you can finish it now!

Time to Pray

Father, I am impressed with this man. He honored people – because their position required honor. He honored God when he had the opportunity. He walked in boldness even when it offended people – because he would not stop doing what Jesus told him to do. Yes, he made mistakes, but my goodness, what an example to us. Father, today I want to walk in boldness, walk honoring people with a tenacity that this man showed. What an example for me today. So strengthen my heart I pray. In Jesus’ name, Amen.