The Commands of Christ - Matthew 12:9-14

"Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue. And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand. And they asked Him, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?"--that they might accuse Him. Then He said to them, "What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? Of how much more value then 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." and he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other. Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him." -Matthew 12:9-14


To whom is this command spoken?


A man who had a withered hand.

What does this command require?


Jesus told the man to stretch out his hand.

What truths do we learn through this command?


Jesus had a specific purpose in this command and this miracle. He wanted to show that it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath, therefore exposing the legalism of the Pharisees. The Pharisees wanted to trap Jesus and have something to blame Jesus for. They just argued with Jesus about His disciples plucking heads of grain and eating them on the Sabbath. What they had chosen to ignore, was that Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath.

Jesus poses two questions to the Pharisees. First, "What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out? Secondly, "Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep?" Jesus sees their trap, and turns it on the Pharisees. The Pharisees prided themselves in their strict observance of the law. So what Jesus did with these questions is show them that they really weren't so strict as they seemed.

A man is of infinitely more value than a sheep. A man is made in the image of God, has a soul, and was created by God to give glory to God. Jesus gives the obvious answer to His rhetoric by healing the man's hand.

What is the blessing of obedience?


Participation in Jesus' teaching. The man is was a living illustration.