«And He entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand» (Mark 3:1)

One Sabbath morning, we spent several hours with a choir in a rural church beside a great wheat plantation. While we were waiting to sing, we entertained ourselves by gathering some wheat spikes and rubbing the grains in our hands. We all recalled the incident narrated in the Bible of that Sabbath when Jesus went with His disciples through a field and ate the grain.

«As the Jews departed from God, and failed to make the righteousness of Christ their own by faith, the Sabbath lost its significance to them…. In the days of Christ the Sabbath had become so perverted that its observance reflected the character of selfish and arbitrary men rather than the character of the loving heavenly Father. . . . It was the work of Christ to clear away these misconceptions. Although the rabbis followed Him with merciless hostility, He did not even appear to conform to their requirements, but went straight forward, keeping the Sabbath according to the law of God» (The Desire of Ages, ch. 29, p. 283).

One Sabbath morning when Jesus entered the synagogue, he met a man who had a paralyzed hand. Even though He knew that He would be considered a transgressor by healing him, He chose to heal him and thus break down the walls of traditionalism. The Pharisees were willing to allow a man to suffer, thus neglecting a duty, but relieve an animal, elevating a rule created by themselves.

Have you ever had a paralyzed hand? Can you imagine how difficult it would be to live like this? How must this man have felt when Jesus, with a simple command, restored him?

How many times do we forget that we can restore “paralyzed” situations, as well, with our actions or words?

God is calling us to live a true religion, not one in which we elevate ourselves above God, but one that exalts Him above ourselves and leads us to care for our neighbor.

How are we living our Sabbaths? I invite you to read this chapter of The Desire of Ages with prayer and humility.

“All the truths of God’s word came from Him. But these priceless gems had been placed in false settings. . . . God desired them to be removed from their settings of error and replaced in the framework of truth»” (ibid, p. 287). Perhaps He is enabling your hands to fulfill that task.  Get ready to do what is lawful tomorrow.