Reading: Mark 3, Psalm 37:28

“For the LORD loves justice, And does not forsake His saints; they are preserved forever, But the descendants of the wicked shall be cut off.”

In our reading from Mark, we see the dark clouds of opposition begin to gather against Jesus and His ministry. In this chapter Jesus faces opposition from demons (v. 11), false accusations (v. 22)), and even His own family (v. 21, 31). But of all the enemies Jesus faced there was none as fierce or spiteful as the one he encountered first - a religious spirit.

There is a difference between being spiritually disciplined and being religious. Jesus calls all of us to lives of self-control. But religion is something else altogether. The Latin word for religion is religare and it literally means “a return to being bound”. Religion is a binding set of rules and behavioral hoops through which one must jump in order to be accepted by God. The Gospel, however, offers the gift of eternal life through simple faith in the finished work of Jesus on our behalf. These two couldn’t be more different. .

At its core, religion is focused on our efforts to comply with outward performance standards. It is a works-based method of becoming united with God. The end result of human religion is always the same. It produces either pride or despair.

For those who measure their relationship with God by law-keeping, it produces pharisees - individuals whose pride is measured by how much better they are than others who don’t keep the rules.

For those who realize they cannot keep the laws, a religious spirit produces despair and condemnation.

The Pharisees defined themselves by their strict adherence to laws. They did not merely seek to keep the Law of Moses. By the time of Christ, the rabbinical system produced hundreds of additional “bumper laws” that were added to keep the people from breaking the “big” laws. For example, Moses said, “Honor the Sabbath and keep it holy…” (Ex. 20:8-10). But the Pharisees added all kinds of additional regulations around the abbath restricting everything from how far you could walk to restricting any kind of medical practice. And they were ready to condemn all those who broke them.

As Jesus entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, He noticed a man with a withered hand. He also knew that the Pharisees were waiting to trap Him. “So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him. (3:2). If Jesus healed the man He would be breaking the “bumper” laws of rabbinical Judaism - and the Pharisees would condemn Him publicly. If He had bowed to the religious pressure, the crippled man would not have been healed. Instead, Jesus uses this moment to expose the cruelty and heartlessness of religious oppression.

“...And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward." Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they kept silent. And when He had looked around at them with anger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he stretched [it] out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.” (3:3-5)

Notice the emotions of Jesus around this oppressive religious spirit, “He looked around at them with anger being grieved…”. Here are the real feelings of Jesus towards those who use religion to judge others. It grieves Him and it angers Him. Jesus went on to demonstrate the power of love over the power of law, by healing the man. The Pharisees immediately responded,

“Then the Pharisees went out and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how they might destroy Him.” (v. 6)

A religious spirit is always seeking to invade the grace-based message of Jesus. There are “christian pharisees” in every church. They define themselves by their performance and judge others who do not measure up. Churches with a religious spirit are more focused on compliance than compassion; maintaining order than reaching the broken. They never seem to have room for those who are struggling to be honest about their struggles. In churches like this, people wear smiling masks to hide the condemnation they feel inside. When this occurs, the only way to break this religious spirit is for Jesus to show up and demonstrate a love that break men’s rules.

It's important to remember that it's “...not by works of righteousness that we have done, but according to His Mercy He has saved us…” (Tit. 3:5). Jesus is the only one who ever lived in perfect harmony with the Law. He has saved us by His mercy, not by our performance. As followers of Jesus, we show our love and gratitude to God by loving without condition those others who need Him.

Especially those who don’t keep all the rules.

As you sit before the Lord today, reflect on how many times He has blessed you when you didn’t deserve it. Consider the incredible gift of eternal life and sonship that is yours by the grace and mercy of God.
In your journal, list some of the things He has done for you that you didn’t earn or deserve. Then write a prayer of thanksgiving to God for His grace in your life
As you go throughout your day, actively look for an opportunity to do something good for someone who doesn’t deserve it. Jesus will be smiling.

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