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2008-12-04 - Showing Our Pain
Mark 3:3 He said to the man with the withered hand, "Get
up and come forward!" 4 And He said to them, "Is it lawful to
do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to kill?" But they
kept silent. 5 After looking around at them with anger, grieved
at their hardness of heart, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."
And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored. (NASB)
Jesus is in the midst of a confrontation with the Pharisees. They have planted
a man in the congregation to try to trap Him. There is a clear victory for
the Lord and a crushing defeat for the mortals trying to spring the trap.
There is a lesson in that, but there is something much more subtle going
on here too.
Jesus has called a man out of the congregation to come forward. Imagine an
itinerate minister asking you to stand up in the congregation. That would
be uncomfortable enough. This is not your regular minister after all. But
Jesus calls this man not only to stand up but to come to the front of the
room in full view of everyone there. Then, to top it all off, Jesus calls
to everyone's attention a physical problem. The potential for personal
embarrassment is huge.
This gentleman that Jesus called out had a choice to make. He has two hands.
Nothing would stop him from extending his good hand. Would he have missed
this blessing if he had? The Lord had spent the previous moment in direct
confrontation with the Jewish leadership. This may have heartened this man
standing and wondering? It was clear that something intense was going on
between them. Jesus had healed people before and His reputation had likely
preceded Him. The thoughts racing through the mind of the man with the withered
hand are unknown, but they probably were at some notable level of turmoil.
The gentleman took the risk, exposing his feeble hand for all there to see
- exposing his need and his weakness to everyone. And we read, as he reached
out his hand - as he took that simple act of faith - the hand that had been
withered was restored to health and usefulness. The gnarled bones were
straightened and muscles were strengthened as the hand was extended. The
Pharisees had planted the man. There was no refuting the miracle.
This would be no less difficult for any of us to do today. None of us is
perfect. We have some weakness, something we are not good at, something we
are not comfortable doing, something we would rather not let people see.
Most people would rather do almost anything than speak or perform in public.
Some would have refused to even come forward as this man Jesus healed came.
In that refusal he would have missed this unspeakable gift.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Sometimes the risk is worth the reward.
We need to be willing to take off our masks, and let down our guard and be
a little vulnerable. Christ accepted us when we were dead in our trespasses
and sin. While we were literally at war with God He reached down to us and
unlocked the door to Heaven. He could have walked away, but for our sakes
He accepted our weakness and made a way for us. If God asks you to take off
your mask, trust Him. If someone drops their guard and shares their pain,
recognize the risk they are taking in asking for help. In doing this we silence
the critics, and Jesus Christ is glorified.
1 John 3:16 We know love by this, that He laid down His
life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the
brethren. (NASB)
Selah.
Grace & Peace,
Mike
jmhoskins@gmail.com
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