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And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save a life or to destroy it?” 10 After looking around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand!” And he did so; and his hand was restored. 11 But they themselves were filled with rage, and discussed together what they might do to Jesus.
Luke 6:9-11 NASB
I think it’s beneficial for us to take a look at the core issue that the Pharisees had with Jesus. On the surface, it would seem that their beef was merely over breaking the Sabbath law. Jesus had been teaching and healing with power and authority up to this point. I believe that in the book of Luke there are six encounters with Jesus “doing something” on the Sabbath and in three of them He is challenged by the Pharisees. Luke 6 begins a turning point in Jesus’ ministry as the Pharisees begin to question Him more intensely. So, was it really the Sabbath law that ruffled their feathers?
I am fascinated by the term used here to describe the Pharisees in verse 11. It says, “they themselves were filled with rage, and discussed what they might do to Jesus.” To them, Jesus was violating not only a law, but the Jewish identity as a nation. This was who they were. It was personal. The Pharisees formed their very identity around the strict observance of the Jewish laws, even if it was a bad interpretation of what God had intended. So what would this look like today? What produces an identity crisis that “fills people with rage” when they are challenged by Scripture?
Many people place their stock on good works. They have committed their lives to being a good person. When challenged with the idea of God’s grace, they simply can’t understand it. It’s so unbelievably offensive that God would allow (in their opinion) a “bad” person into heaven. What’s the real issue here?
Or how about the popular ideology of a personal message from God? There are some people so wrapped up in “God told me to” or “God said to” that they have formed their entire identity around a personal emotional experience. I believe personal experiences happen, but I’ve also met a lot of people who couldn’t care less about actually reading and understanding Scripture. They just want to experience a supernatural, miraculous encounter that makes them appear like a modern-day super apostle.
The point is, the Pharisees built their entire existence on the Law instead of the Word of God. Their loyalty was to the ritual instead of the relationship. In their case, it was the Word in the flesh who stood before them. Jesus was the Word. People today who do not put Scripture as the ultimate authority in their life will become Pharisees. They will continue to justify their behavior and avoid being convicted. Arrogance, pride, and self-righteousness will follow.
Jesus came with a message from God. He was and is the final authority and His story is written clearly in black and white print. If we put our identity in anything else, we will be filled with rage instead of humility when the actual Truth stands directly before us.