Miracles of Physical Healing— Man With Shriveled Hand
Matthew 12:9-14; Mark 3:1-6; Luke 6:6-11
What is more important? The Sabbath or people?
Who in your family was (or is) always checking on you to see if you “do it right”?
------------------
Jesus Heals on the Sabbath
Mark 3 Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand. 2 Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus’ enemies watched him closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath.
3 Jesus said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.” 4 Then he turned to his critics and asked, “Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?” But they wouldn’t answer him.
5 He looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! 6 At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus.
------------
“Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?”
-------------
Questions of Discovery
Seeking God’s Message Then and Now
1. What causes the tension in the synagogue. What concerns are shared by the leaders? By Jesus By the man with the shriveled hand? (Mark 3:1-6)
2. How does Jesus show that he is the authoritative interpreter of the law? (Matthew 12:12)
3. As Jesus was teaching in the synagogue on Sabbath, there was a man with what problem? (Luke 6:6)
4. What were the scribes and Pharisees doing? (Luke 6:7)
5. After Jesus told the man with the shriveled hand to rise and stand in the midst, what did He tell the scribes and Pharisees? (Luke 6:8-9)
6. Why does Jesus provoke the Pharisees' wrath by healing on the Sabbath? Why not wait a day?
7. What did He then tell the man? What was the result? (Luke 6:10)
8. What prompts Jesus' anger? (Mark 6:5)
9. What did the Pharisees then do? (Matthew 12:14
----------------
Questions for
Personal Reflection
1. From this section of scripture, how important are your needs to God?
2. When have you felt tension between obeying religious principles and helping people? What causes that tension? What relieves it?
3. To prove His right to heal on the Sabbath, what example did Jesus give to those in the synagogue? (Matthew 12:11)
4. What was his conclusion of the matter? (Matthew 12:12)
5. As you try to follow Jesus, are you becoming more free to love others, or becoming more constrained by religious rules? Why?
6. When have you fallen into the trap of "offering sacrifice" but "neglecting mercy"? How can you work to reverse that this week?
No comments:
Post a Comment