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Wednesday 20 April 2016

Luke 14:1-6: A provocative healing

Yesterday Jesus announced to the fox, Herod, that he would keep on healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day accomplish his objective.

Luke gives this chapter the setting of a meal with a prominent pharisee. This feels like the earlier days, when the religious inspectors were examining Jesus, trying to make up their minds about him. Perhaps they are giving the iconoclastic rabbi one final chance. There is a lot about him that is admirable, after all. One cannot deny that he has a certain ... power.

Jesus sees a sick man present, and challenges the experts, "Is is legal to heal on the sabbath?" They decline to give a judgement, and Jesus makes it clear where he stands, performing the healing and sending the man away.

You help your animals on the sabbath, don't you? If your beast has fallen into a pit, you don't leave it there, do you? So why shouldn't I give this man a hand out of his pit of sickness?

No comment.

What are they thinking? Do they secretly agree with Jesus? Do they feel that he is provoking them?Are they willing to accept that he is not a wicked man?

No, yes, and no.

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