A question might crop up in the minds of some people why Jesus was particular to heal on the Sabbath as he could very well do it on the other six days without inviting protests from the Jews. In fact, we see the Jewish authorities themselves instructing the people to come and get cured any other day than the Sabbath indirectly aiming it at Jesus himself (Luke, 13: 14). The particular case was about a woman who was bent double and unable to stand straight, being crippled by the possession of a spirit for 18 years. It was a Sabbath day and Jesus was teaching in the Synagogue where on seeing her, he called her and said that she was rid of her trouble laying his hands on her. Immediately she straightened up and began praising God. At this the president of the Synagogue intervened saying that the people should come and be cured on one of the six working days, but not on the Sabbath. Ordinarily this injunction from a Jewish authority on the observance of the Sabbath should sound quite reasonable a compromise to the needs of the people without violating the holy Law of the Sabbath. However, for Jesus such a solution was not at all acceptable that he proceeded to call them hypocrites in not being able to see the value of a human being over against their domesticated animals. For, who among them, he asked, would not untie their ox or donkey from the stable and take it out to water on the Sabbath? The implication intended here by Jesus is that an ox or donkey has economic value for its owner due to which he or she was ready to overlook the obligation of not working on the Sabbath. They seemed to be unconcerned about the fate of this woman, a daughter of Abraham, who had been kept bound by Satan for 18 long years. How could it be wrong, Jesus argued, for her to be freed of her bonds on the Sabbath? Here again Jesus was trying to uphold the supremacy of the human over every rule and practice imposed by some men for their own self-interest under the guise of even the authority of God.
It was not that Jesus was unaware about the injunctions concerning the observance of the Sabbath as holy since the Lord Himself rested on the seventh day after the work of creation in six days (Exodus, 20:9-10); (Deuteronomy, 5: 13-14). Jesus understood it as given for the benefit of mankind and not for oppression by unnecessary additions of frivolous rules and practices imposed on unsuspecting people by the authorities. Jesus made clear how God has never yet ceased his work, the reason why he too was working even on the Sabbath, God being his own Father (John, 5:17). The occasion was the dispute caused by the man carrying his bed on the Sabbath under instruction from Jesus who healed him on the Sabbath (John, 5: 1-15). Jesus saw that under the prevailing religious practices of the Jews, there was no alternative to shock treatments to bring them back to their senses and make them see the value of human beings above everything else. If he agreed to accept their compromise formula of observing the Sabbath the way they practiced it, abuses would continue and Jesus himself would be a cog in the religious wheel of the time. In order to avoid this consequence, Jesus took steps to bring out the real meaning of the Sabbath that was meant for the well-being of the human by doing good always and everywhere without being prevented by irrelevant practices. The cessation from work by God after the creation of the entire Universe (Genesis, 2: 2-3) was not because God needed rest from work that is always continuous (John, 5:17), but as a model for man to rest and observe the day holy so that he would always be able to keep his humanity in good shape before God and man. Besides, there is a distinction between the original creation by God and the continuous one. The former is once and for all and is not to be repeated, whereas the latter is perpetual and part of making everything new. Anything that went against the true upkeep of humanity had to be resisted by men and women whereby the true meaning of the Sabbath would be revealed and that is what Jesus did by violating the Sabbath Law as practiced in those days. The true followers of Jesus need not be afraid to demand and practice religion in spirit and in truth irrespective of laws and traditional practices as long as these do not aid one's spiritual life in spirit and in truth!
It was not that Jesus was unaware about the injunctions concerning the observance of the Sabbath as holy since the Lord Himself rested on the seventh day after the work of creation in six days (Exodus, 20:9-10); (Deuteronomy, 5: 13-14). Jesus understood it as given for the benefit of mankind and not for oppression by unnecessary additions of frivolous rules and practices imposed on unsuspecting people by the authorities. Jesus made clear how God has never yet ceased his work, the reason why he too was working even on the Sabbath, God being his own Father (John, 5:17). The occasion was the dispute caused by the man carrying his bed on the Sabbath under instruction from Jesus who healed him on the Sabbath (John, 5: 1-15). Jesus saw that under the prevailing religious practices of the Jews, there was no alternative to shock treatments to bring them back to their senses and make them see the value of human beings above everything else. If he agreed to accept their compromise formula of observing the Sabbath the way they practiced it, abuses would continue and Jesus himself would be a cog in the religious wheel of the time. In order to avoid this consequence, Jesus took steps to bring out the real meaning of the Sabbath that was meant for the well-being of the human by doing good always and everywhere without being prevented by irrelevant practices. The cessation from work by God after the creation of the entire Universe (Genesis, 2: 2-3) was not because God needed rest from work that is always continuous (John, 5:17), but as a model for man to rest and observe the day holy so that he would always be able to keep his humanity in good shape before God and man. Besides, there is a distinction between the original creation by God and the continuous one. The former is once and for all and is not to be repeated, whereas the latter is perpetual and part of making everything new. Anything that went against the true upkeep of humanity had to be resisted by men and women whereby the true meaning of the Sabbath would be revealed and that is what Jesus did by violating the Sabbath Law as practiced in those days. The true followers of Jesus need not be afraid to demand and practice religion in spirit and in truth irrespective of laws and traditional practices as long as these do not aid one's spiritual life in spirit and in truth!
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