Religion or Relationship?
Luke 6:6
On another Sabbath he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled. 7 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath. 8 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there. 9 Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He did so, and his hand was completely restored. 11 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.
Jesus did not respect religion, especially when it prevented people from being blessed.
Choosing between being legalism or helping people in need should have been an easy choice for any person, including the Pharisees. Because religion does not carry the heart of God, it will default to perpetuating itself, even to the neglect of people in need.
Jesus openly defied the religious spirit, and its adherents, by healing a man on the Sabbath day. This infuriated the religious leaders, who could not find it in their heart to rejoice over a man who had been supernaturally healed.
The love of God will always trump religious tradition. Thank God that we have more than religion. We have a relationship with the risen Savior and we carry His heart to people!
