Luke 6:1-11, “One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels. Some of the Pharisees asked, ‘Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were
hungry? He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is
lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.’ Then Jesus said
to them, ‘The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.’ On another Sabbath he went into the
synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. The
Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they
watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath. But Jesus knew what they
were thinking and said to the man with the shriveled hand, ‘Get up and stand in front of
everyone.’ So he got up and stood there. Then Jesus said to them, ‘I ask you, which is
lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?’ He looked
around at them all, and then said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ He did so, and his
hand was completely restored. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.”
Jesus knew once he healed the man’s shriveled hand it would cause discord with the
Pharisees and teachers of the law. They “were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus” to
begin with. Jesus was bold in showing who he was as the Son of God. He was bold in
leading others to the saving knowledge of forgiveness of sin and restoration.
Picking apart our memory verse, he lived out boldly each phrase. “Judge not, and God
won’t judge you” – he could have harshly judged the man with the shriveled hand. Infirmities were considered a sign of sin. Jesus said nothing regarding the sin of this man. The teachers had hardened hearts, but Jesus showed them compassion instead of telling them how awful they were to others. Conviction at it’s best.
Jesus wasn’t hard on them. He was honest with them. Jesus brought to their attention
that the Sabbath was for doing good. It was day to save life. In verses 1-5, he set the record straight, letting them know he was Lord over the Sabbath, something they wouldn’t fully understand yet.
He didn’t condemn them for replacing worship with rules and regulations. He was compassionate towards their accusations and for the hunger of his disciples. Harkening to the Old Testament when King David and friends were hungry, their physical needs needed to be met when they went into the temple. Jesus forgave the teachers over and over for their accusatory and bad-intentioned attitudes.
Proverbs 10:9, “People with integrity walk safely, but those who follow crooked paths will
be exposed.” Proverbs 11:13, “A gossip goes around telling secrets, but those who are
trustworthy can keep a confidence.”
Walking in Jesus’ footsteps—not judging, not condemning, forgiving others, loving others, bearing with one another—allows us to walk with integrity and be trustworthy.
Continue your devotional time today or tomorrow by reading Romans 14:12-14, Ephesians 4:29-32 and Ephesians 5:15-21. Study these passages and how they show bold faith and commitment of our time, talents and treasures.
Final devotional for this memory verse, “Judge not, and God won’t judge you; don’t be hard on others, and God won’t be hard on you; forgive others, and God will forgive you;” Luke 6:37.
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