Freely Give
Another time he went into a synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath … He looked around at them in anger … deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts. Mark 3:1,2,5
If someone today was transported back 50 years, and it happened to be a Sunday, one of their first comments about what it was like would be, “everything was shut.”
It’s true. If you went back 50 years on a Sunday you’d find just about every shop closed. Back then it wasn’t because everyone was a Christian but more that the social norms followed Christian observances more closely. Not so now.
What did Sabbath observance mean to a Jew in the time of our story above? The Sabbath was the badge of “Jewishness.” It looked back to creation and the Exodus and forward to the great day to come when God would liberate Israel from pagan oppression. It was a defining mark of God’s chosen, special and hopeful people, deeply embedded into their scriptures.
So why does Jesus confront the Pharisees (Mark 3:6) over the issue of the Sabbath? The Sabbath celebrated creation and redemption but to most in the synagogue it had become their mark of separation and vindictive judgement against those outside of themselves.
God had blessed Israel to be a blessing to the nations (Genesis 12:3). She was to be the light of the world (Isaiah 42:6) displaying her God to the nations (Deuteronomy 4:5-8). Instead, Israel had become exclusive and critically rejecting of those she was meant to reach out to. Like the man who hid his talent in the ground she had failed the Master (Matthew 25:24-28). The heart of the nation had become like the heart of most in the synagogue – stubborn and hardened ((Mark 3:5).
Is there a parallel with the church today? Undoubtedly we are blessed. We have access to Bibles, Christian books and messages by tens of thousands of different churches and leaders at the press of a button.
Why are we so blessed? Like Israel we are blessed to bless others. Freely you have received, freely give (Matthew 10:8).
Failure to give others what God has freely given us is copying Israel’s hard and stubborn heartedness. We might look for Jesus’ commendation but instead face His condemnation.
Take a long, hard look at all God has given you and then begin to ask Him how you can share His lavish provision with others.
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