‘Do you see what I see?’

If you were listening to music in the 80’s, a famous rock band called Hunters and Collectors wrote a song called ‘Do you see what I see?’  They screeched those words out, over and over in the song: ‘Do you see what I see?’

These words came to mind when while we explored the Gospel of Luke over the last couple of weeks.  In chapter 13 and 14 of Luke’s Gospel (see reading extracts below), we find Jesus confronting the most religious day of all in his day – The Sabbath!    THE SABBATH: the Jewish holy day.  The Sabbath rituals begins at nightfall on Friday and lasts until nightfall on Saturday. It’s a holy and sacred day that is imbedded in the faith of the Jewish people. 

In chapter 13, Jesus was in the middle of the Synagogue during a teaching moment on the Sabbath (Luke 13: 10-17), Jesus interrupts everything and notices a lady, crippled and broken.  No one noticed her, ignored and isolated, he is calling her out and healed her.  In the blink of the eye lid, he elevated the person above any religious context of the day. People were stunned!

In the 14th Chapter of Luke, Jesus has been invited to the house of a leader of the Pharisees, no doubt a ‘big wig’ in the religious circles of Jesus’ time.  And he was invited to eat a meal, again on this important day of the Lord –  on the Sabbath.  And yet again, Jesus interrupts everything and notices someone that was also being ignored.  A man critically ill, and just like the crippled lady, he called the person over and healed him.  People again were amazed at the priority Jesus was giving to these people, over and above the most holy day of all.

In both situations, the religious imperative was the Sabbath, it was steeped in culture, religious and doctrinal importance, and consequently that was the only thing in focus for those there, including all the leaders. 

‘Do you see what I see’, there are the words of that song again ringing out in my head again!  You see, the religious doctrines and protocols were SO embedded that they couldn’t SEE any-THING or any-ONE else beyond them.  Jesus is not saying the Sabbath is bad, it’s just blinded them! And it’s not that Jesus disliked the Jews, he is one himself…. He knows they love God, he is simply inviting them to SEE what he sees.  In Mark’s [2:27] gospel, it sums up the situation well –  “The Sabbath was made FOR people, not PEOPLE for the Sabbath.” 

In the subsequent parables in Luke  – we find Jesus trying to describe WHO else he sees….the parable of the Lost Sheep, the parable of the Lost Coin, the parable of the Lost Son, the parable of the Good Samaritan.  He scouts the land, not for those who are comfortable and content in the inner circles of what faith looked like.   Jesus is always on the margins, and get PERSONAL with everyone he reaches out to. For Jesus, the expression of faith should encapsulate this focus.

Jesus gives us a lens to see the Kingdom perspective of life on earth.  He sees the seekers and searchers, the lost in all of US, the ones who are here and not here. He gives His priority to EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US, no one is missed. In noticing these people, Jesus is recalibrating what a truly holy day might look like for him.    

SCRIPTURAL READINGS

Luke 14:1-6 New International Version (NIV)

14 On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the sabbath, they were watching him closely. 2Just then, in front of him, there was a man who had dropsy. 3And Jesus asked the lawyers and Pharisees, “Is it lawful to cure people on the sabbath, or not?” 4But they were silent. So Jesus took him and healed him, and sent him away. 5Then he said to them, “If one of you has a child or an ox that has fallen into a well, will you not immediately pull it out on a sabbath day?” 6And they could not reply to this. 

Luke 13:10-17  New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Heals a Crippled Woman on the Sabbath 10 On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, 11 and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” 13 Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

14 Indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, the synagogue leader said to the people, “There are six days for work. So come and be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

15 The Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Doesn’t each of you on the Sabbath untie your ox or donkey from the stall and lead it out to give it water? 16 Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free on the Sabbath day from what bound her?”

17 When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated, but the people were delighted with all the wonderful things he was doing.