Getting In Trouble

Tuesday January 13, 2015

One day during class, Adrianna Harris noticed something disturbing - one of her young classmates cutting himself with a small razor. As she perceived it to be a grave situation, she did what she thought was the right thing to do - stepped in, took the razor from him and threw it away. But instead of receiving praise, her compassionate act earned her a 10 day suspension. Asked if she would do it again, Adrianna replied : "Even if I got in trouble, it didn´t matter because I was helping him... I would do it again even if I got suspended."

Just as Adrianna´s act of compassion sparked controversy in her school, Jesus' compassionate act sparked a religious feud with the Pharisees.

Always jabbing at Jesus and looking for an opening for a knockout punch, the Pharisees used a man with a deformed hand as a way to bait the Saviour into breaking their law (Matthew 12:10). Jesus told them that if Jews were allowed to care for animals in dire situations on the Sabbath, how much more should they set aside rules and codes to care for people (vv. 11-12).

Jesus is Lord of the Sabbath, so He could regulate what is and isn´t permitted on that day (vv.6, 8). Knowing that it would land Him in hot water with the religious leaders (and it did), Jesus restored the man´s hand to wholeness (vv. 13-14).

Even if we get in trouble, sometimes we´re compelled to go against traditions and preferences to help people in need. When we help them, we imitate God (Ephesians 5:1), reveal the genuineness of our faith (James 2:14-17) and share our brothers' and sisters' burdens (Galatians 6:1). - Marvin Williams

Read
Matthew 12:9-14
Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, they asked him, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"
He said to them, "If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable is a man than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."
Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus

Esther 4:8-16
He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to urge her to go into the king´s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people.
Hathach went back and reported to Ester what Mordecai had said. Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, "All the king's officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law : that he be put to death. The only exception to this is for the king to extend the gold scepter to him and spare his life. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king."
When Esther´s words were reported to Mordecai, he sent back this answer : "Do not think that because you are in the king´s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father´s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"
Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai : "Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my maids will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish."

Question to Ponder
When was the last time you asked and acted on the question : Is there anyone who I can show kindness to today?
Even if you get in trouble, what rules and rituals do you need to ignore in order to help someone in need?

**Article taken from ODJ (Our Daily Journey with God) Dec 2014 - Feb 2015