May 7, 2023
Evening Service

A Man with a Withered Hand

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

Mark 3:2  So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. 

Mark 3:3  And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward." 

Mark 3:4  Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they kept silent. 

Mark 3:5  And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. 

This man with the withered hand was a heart-breaking situation; his hand was weakened and diminished in strength; which left the man disabled from working for his living; and people that have conditions of the body such as this are the most genuine objects of compassion and relief. Another way of saying this is that Jesus was helping someone who could not help themselves! However, the Jewish people witnessing what Jesus would do wanted to see if He would heal on the Sabbath or not to accuse Him. Even when Jesus presented the truth to them about the Sabbath, to save life or to kill, to do good or to do evil, they remained silent and could not answer anything, yet they still did not yield their hearts to the truth. The commentary I read on this verse referred to these Jews present as infidels or unbelievers, pagan, and idolaters. We can hear what is said that is inappropriate, and we can see what is done that is inappropriate; but Jesus looks at the root cause of the malevolence in the heart, the refusing to see truth and yielding of the heart, and it grieves our Lord and angers Him. Think of how the hard-hearted, unyielding, and non-repentant sinners will shake in their shoes to think of the anger with which Jesus will look upon them when the Day of Judgment comes. Jesus was trying to get them to understand that the Sabbath is the day of healing and the place for healing is in the house of prayer or church; but the healing power does not come from man, but from Christ our Lord. The gospel message is so similar to the event of the man with the withered hand: if our hands were withered, and we fail to stretch them out, it is our own fault that we are not healed. However, if we do receive healing, we must acknowledge the power and grace of Christ Jesus and that He receives all the glory.

Mark 3:6  Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him. 

A Great Crowd Follows Jesus

Mark 3:7  But Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea. And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea 

Mark 3:8  and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him. 

Mark 3:9  So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him. 

Mark 3:10  For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him. 

Mark 3:11  And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God." 

Mark 3:12  But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known. 

God will always be angry when He looks upon the sin that man does in the flesh, we can discern that some illnesses and misfortunes may come our way if sin is prevalent in our lives. Through our faith in the blood of Jesus, we may have some of them removed from us, or they can become a blessing. However, the serious conditions of plagues and diseases are the ones that apply to our souls and hearts; yet He can also heal them by just His word. The blood of Jesus shed at Calvary was for the healing of all these plagues and afflictions of the heart. All we have to do is ask Jesus to come into our heart and let His blood be applied to our infirmities of the heart and soul. When Jesus has a home in our heart, He can deliver us from the enemies of our soul!

The Twelve Apostles

Mark 3:13  And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. 

Mark 3:14  Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, 

Mark 3:15  and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: 

Mark 3:16  Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; 

Mark 3:17  James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; 

Mark 3:18  Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; 

Mark 3:19  and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. And they went into a house. 

Mark 3:20  Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. 

Mark 3:21  But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind." 

Christ called the apostles whom He chose for His will; for His grace is His own. He had called the apostles to separate themselves from the crowd and they came unto Him. He now gave them powers to heal the sick and to cast out demons. We know of the twelve that Jesus chose Himself, but He as Lord may have sent forth more of those who have been with Him, and have learned of Him to preach His gospel, to be instruments in his blessed work and the spreading of the gospel. In verse 3:21 the words, “He is out of His mind" is said “He is beside himself” in the KJV. People of the Lord whose hearts are so engrossed in the work of God, can very easily become negligent to the needs of themselves and choose to not tend to themselves rather than missing an opportunity to do good. Those who devote themselves in the work of God with great enthusiasm and excitement must expect stumbling blocks, both from enemies of the Word, and misinterpreted familiarity of friends. Sometimes our friends believe they know what is best for us as if we are somehow blind to our own actions. We need to guard against both the enemy of the Word and the one who tries to quiet our Spirit in the Lord. Jesus was so devoted to His work on earth, that the people said, “He is out of His mind” because of the lack of sleep the night before and no food taken in the following day that His mind must have become unhinged, because he continued in healing and teaching without respect to Himself and His own needs. They thought he must be out of kilter because He was driven and failed to rejuvenate.

Blasphemy Against the Holy Spirit

Mark 3:22  And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons." 

Mark 3:23  So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: "How can Satan cast out Satan? 

Mark 3:24  If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 

Mark 3:25  And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 

Mark 3:26  And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. 

Mark 3:27  No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house. 

Mark 3:28  "Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; 

Mark 3:29  but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation"— 

Mark 3:30  because they said, "He has an unclean spirit." 

The teaching and healings of Christ had a direct result in breaking the devil's power; and it was no mystery that casting of him out of the bodies of people, confirmed that principle; therefore, Satan could not corroborate an objective that casts Satan out of people that he purposely possessed. Christ gave a stern warning against speaking such dangerous words about Jesus having an unclean Spirit. When anyone blasphemes the Holy Spirit, they never have forgiveness, and this is the unforgivable sin. Jesus clearly says it is true the gospel promises, because Christ has purchased, forgiveness for the greatest sins and sinners; but by this sin, they would contradict and attack the gifts of the Holy Ghost after Christ's ascension. This sin is the hatred and opposition of the heart, that unbelieving men pretend believers are doing Satan's work, when sinners are brought to repentance and newness of life through Christ Jesus.

Jesus' Mother and Brothers

Mark 3:31  Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him. 

Mark 3:32  And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You." 

Mark 3:33  But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" 

Mark 3:34  And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! 

Mark 3:35  For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

What a comfort to all believers in Jesus that they are more beloved to Christ than mother is, brother is, or sister would be in the flesh. Relations in the flesh are no more important to Jesus as His followers are to Him. We are blessed that He loves us like this today in our time. We may not have been privileged to be around when Jesus was here in the human body, but we have His spiritual presence in our hearts every day! Praise God!