Jesus Angers the Pharisees and Selects His Disciples

But some Pharisees saw them and said to Jesus, "Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath." The religious leaders had enacted a multitude of laws concerning the Sabbath that God never intended. They were picky things such as killing a flea on the Sabbath was illegal unless it bit you. God intended people to judge for themselves. Everyday work, including heavy food preparation is wrong, of course, but the Pharisees' rules were a great burden on the people.

Jesus replied to the Pharisees, "Haven't you read in the scriptures what David did when he and his men were hungry? David went into the House of God and asked Abiathar the high priest for food. The only thing he had was the showbread that's unlawful for anyone but the priests to eat. He gave it to them anyway and they were guiltless.

"Aren't you also aware that the priests work hard in the temple each Sabbath and are guiltless? I tell you, One greater than the temple is right here.

"If you only understood the scripture, 'I desire mercy and compassion, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned those who are guiltless.

"The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath - the Son of man is Lord and Master of the Sabbath."

On another Sabbath Jesus was teaching in a synagogue and there was a man there whose right hand was withered and shriveled. The Scribes and Pharisees there were closely watching Him to see if he would heal on the Sabbath, another of their laws, but not God's, so that they could condemn Him for breaking the Sabbath.

Jesus, knowing what they were plotting, told the man to stand before them. He then asked the Scribes and Pharisees, "Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do evil? Is it lawful to save a life or to kill?" But they refused to answer.

Then he asked, "Is there a man among you who would not pull his sheep out of a pit it had fallen into on the Sabbath? How much better is a man than a sheep? It is indeed lawful to do good on the Sabbath!" And he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." and when he did it was restored totally, as sound as the other hand.

But the Scribes and Pharisees were insanely angry, He had broken their unjust rules and had humiliated them in front of everyone. They left the synagogue and immediately met with the Herodians to try to find some way to destroy Jesus. It was very difficult because of the great admiring crowds that always were around Him.

A man possessed with a demon was then brought to Him. The demon had made him blind and dumb, and Jesus healed him. All the people were amazed, and said, Isn't this the son of David?

But when the Pharisees heard of it they said, "This man is casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub the prince of demons."

But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How shall then his kingdom stand? If I cast out devils by Beelzebub, by whom do your sans cast demons out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God is come to you.

"How can someone enter into a strong man's house, and steal his belongings unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can steal everything in his house. Anyone who is not with me is against me; and anyone that doesn't gather with me scatters abroad.

"So I say unto you, all sins and blasphemy will be forgiven men when they repent. But the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven men. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in the world to come."

Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is knowingly saying that good things done through the power of God were actually evil things done by Satan.

"You generation of vipers, how can you who are evil, speak good things? Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good things in his heart speaks and does good things. An evil man out of the evil things in his heart speaks and does evil things. I tell you, in the day of judgment people will give account of every idle offhand word that they speak. By your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Then He went up a mountain and prayed all night and when day broke, He called His disciples to him and chose and ordained twelve of them to be His apostles whom he could send out to preach, and to have power to heal the sick and to cast out demons.

They were Simon whom he surnamed Peter, James and John the sons of Zebedee whom he surnamed Boanerges, meaning The sons of thunder. These were the leading three, the others were: Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Canaanite and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Life of Christ Part Fourteen - The Sign of Jonah

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