Above: Christ Healing the Man with the Withered Hand
Image in the Public Domain
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The Collect:
O God, mighty and immortal, you know that as fragile creatures
surrounded by great dangers, we cannot by ourselves stand upright.
Give us strength of mind and body, so that even when we suffer
because of human sin, we may rise victorious through
your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 46
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The Assigned Readings:
Ezekiel 20:1-17 (Monday)
Ezekiel 20:18-32 (Tuesday)
Ezekiel 20:33-44 (Wednesday)
Psalm 109:21-31 (All Days)
Hebrews 3:7-4:11 (Monday)
Revelation 3:7-13 (Tuesday)
Luke 6:6-11 (Wednesday)
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Let them know that yours is the saving hand,
that this, Yahweh, is your work.
–Psalm 109:27, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
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Ezekiel 20 is a stinging indictment of an intergenerational, societal pattern of infidelity to God, who has done so much and required mere obedience in return. In the Hebrew Bible keeping the Law of Moses is a faithful response to God. Not observing that code, with its timeless principles and culturally specific applications thereof, leads to negative consequences in the Old Testament. In contrast to Ezekiel 20 is Revelation 3:7-13, in which the church at Philadelphia has remained faithful in the midst of adversity. The text encourages that congregation to remain faithful amidst hardship, a message also present in the lection from Hebrews.
Keeping the Sabbath is a related theme in some of these days’ readings. I covered that topic in the previous post, so I will not repeat myself here. In Luke 6:6-11 Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath. Certain critics of our Lord and Savior accused him of having acted inappropriately, given the day. Jesus replied that all days are good days to commit good deeds.
As I understand Jewish Sabbath laws, Jesus acted consistently with the best spirit of them. I have heard, for example, of Jewish doctors and nurses whose work in emergency rooms (including on the Jewish Sabbath) is an expression of their faith. As for the account in Luke 6:6-11, our Lord and Savior’s accusers were especially strict and represented one part of the spectrum of opinion regarding the question of how to keep the Sabbath. According to a note in The Jewish Annotated New Testament (2011), the Law of Moses forbade work on the Sabbath without defining “work.” Germane texts were Exodus 20:10; Exodus 31:14-15; and Leviticus 23:3. Previous study has revealed to me that, at the time of Jesus, strict Jewish Sabbath regulations permitted providing basic first aid and saving a life on that day. If saving a life was permissible on the Sabbath, why not healing on that day?
I suppose that our Lord and Savior’s accusers in Luke 6:6-11 thought they were holding fast to their obligations to God. They erred, however, by becoming lost in details and losing sight of compassion and kindness.
May we avoid the opposite errors of caring about the wrong details in the name of piety and of not caring enough or at all. May we act out of compassion and kindness every day of the week.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 24, 2016 COMMON ERA
MAUNDY THURSDAY
THE FEAST OF THOMAS ATTWOOD, “FATHER OF MODERN CHURCH MUSIC”
THE FEAST OF SAINT DIDACUS JOSEPH OF CADIZ, CAPUCHIN FRIAR
THE FEAST OF OSCAR ROMERO, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF SAN SALVADOR, AND THE MARTYRS OF EL SALVADOR
THE FEAST OF PAUL COUTURIER, ECUMENIST
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Adapted from this post:
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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