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Speaker 1: The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

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Speaker 1: Mark 2.27 Dear Lord Jesus, You are our ultimate source

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Speaker 1: of rest and comfort. The rest You offer isn't bound

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Speaker 1: by rules or ordinances, but freely given through grace. Thank You, Lord,

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Speaker 1: for designing rest as a gift today. a divine invitation

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Speaker 1: to lay down our burdens and find peace in your presence.

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Speaker 1: In a world that often values busyness over well-being, remind

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Speaker 1: us that our true rest is found not in the

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Speaker 1: observance of rituals, but in the embrace of your grace

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Speaker 1: and love. Thank you for offering us relief from our

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Speaker 1: striving and a place of refuge for our weary souls.

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Speaker 1: Help us to enter into your rest daily, trusting in

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Speaker 1: your provision and care. In the name of Jesus, our

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Speaker 1: peace and rest, we pray.

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Speaker 2: Amen.

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Speaker 1: The sun's gentle rays scattered over the road. Jesus and

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Speaker 1: his disciples walked beside the barley fields, dragging their feet

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Speaker 1: through the dirt. They had been walking for a long time,

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Speaker 1: and hunger pains were beginning to set in.

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Speaker 3: How much further to the synagogue?

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Speaker 1: John asked with a low whine and wince of pain

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Speaker 1: in his voice. He held his stomach and breathed.

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Speaker 3: I'm not sure how long I can go without a meal.

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Speaker 1: Peter slid his hand through the grain as they sauntered

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Speaker 1: beside it. Taking an ear of grain in his hand,

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Speaker 1: he plucked it and tossed it to John.

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Speaker 4: Eat!

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Speaker 5: Eat!

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Speaker 4: I don't want to drag you the rest of the way.

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Speaker 1: John removed the seeds quickly and scarfed them down. Peter

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Speaker 1: laughed and plucked one for himself. The men were hungry,

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Speaker 1: and the outer layers of the grain fields was okay

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Speaker 1: for eating. The law of Moses made provisions for travelers.

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Speaker 1: Everything on the outskirts of a field was available to

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Speaker 1: pluck and eat. The twelve continued to pluck, eat, walk,

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Speaker 1: and laugh. Jesus enjoyed their laughter. He enjoyed the camaraderie

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Speaker 1: developing between his disciples. They would need it in the

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Speaker 1: struggles that awaited them. However, their joy was swiftly interrupted

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Speaker 1: by the presence of Pharisees.

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Speaker 3: What are you doing with that barley?

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Speaker 1: One of them shouted. Peter quickly tossed his grain away,

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Speaker 1: and John stuffed the rest in his mouth. Jesus chuckled.

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Speaker 1: seeing how they became flustered children when the Pharisees arrived.

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Speaker 2: Shabbat shalom, friends.

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Speaker 4: It's Shabbat for some of us.

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Speaker 1: They jabbed. They gestured to John with his mouth full

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Speaker 1: of barley.

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Speaker 4: Are you going to do anything about your followers, Jesus? Look,

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Speaker 4: they are harvesting grain on the Sabbath.

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Speaker 1: The Pharisees had a talent for creating unnecessary rules. The

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Speaker 1: law of Moses commanded people to rest on the Sabbath.

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Speaker 1: but the Pharisees had taken that to an extreme. They

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Speaker 1: added extra rules and regulations on top of God's law.

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Speaker 1: Dragging a chair through the dirt was considered plowing. Lifting

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Speaker 1: jewelry onto your neck was considered work. They even ruled

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Speaker 1: that you couldn't lift anything heavier than a dried fig leaf.

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Speaker 4: They are desecrating the law of Moses!

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Speaker 1: Jesus looked back at John, whose mouth was full of grain.

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Speaker 3: Did you hear that, John? You're desecrating the law.

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Speaker 1: Jesus smiled and winked. John swallowed and gave a nervous grin.

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Speaker 1: Jesus turned to the Pharisees and plucked a piece of grain.

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Speaker 3: You claim to be men who know the scriptures, but

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Speaker 3: it's clear that you've missed a few things.

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Speaker 1: He rolled the grain in his fingers, removing a few

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Speaker 1: seeds and bouncing them in his palm.

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Speaker 3: Don't you remember how David ate bread designated for the

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Speaker 3: temple when he was overcome with hunger? Bread, although meant

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Speaker 3: for ceremony and not for eating, was used well. It

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Speaker 3: fueled God's anointed hero for the struggles ahead.

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Speaker 1: The Pharisees were insulted by the insinuation that they hadn't

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Speaker 1: read the story. Jesus tossed a piece of grain in

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Speaker 1: his mouth.

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Speaker 3: I tell you, something greater than the temple is here.

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Speaker 3: I suggest you go back to your scrolls and read more.

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Speaker 3: Maybe then you'll find the meaning behind the words of

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Speaker 3: God when he says, I desire mercy. Over sacrifice. If

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Speaker 3: you truly knew what that meant, you wouldn't come here

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Speaker 3: badgering my friends who've done nothing wrong.

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Speaker 4: We have laws for a reason, Jesus. You're setting a

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Speaker 4: dangerous precedent.

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Speaker 3: The Sabbath was given to us for a purpose.

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Speaker 4: Rest.

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Speaker 3: The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

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Speaker 3: And remember this, dear friends. The Messiah, not you, is

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Speaker 3: Lord over the Sabbath.

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Speaker 1: Jesus passed them. His disciples held back smiles as they

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Speaker 1: continued walking toward the synagogue. A faint snicker could be

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Speaker 1: heard from them. They had never heard anyone speak to

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Speaker 1: the Pharisees that way before. No one dared challenge their

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Speaker 1: unreasonable and unattainable standard. Jesus wasn't a smug man, nor

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Speaker 1: did he enjoy embarrassing the Pharisees. However, their pious and

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Speaker 1: hypocritical rules distanced people from God. They had added so

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Speaker 1: much to the law that people couldn't keep up or track.

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Speaker 1: They were intent on adding to the law, but Jesus

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Speaker 1: had come to fulfill it.

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Speaker 5: Do you view Christianity as just a set of rules

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Speaker 5: to follow? Does it feel like following Jesus is a

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Speaker 5: constraint on your life? The gospel message is one of freedom.

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Speaker 5: Jesus frees us from the bondage of the law of

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Speaker 5: Moses and gives us a new perfect law of liberty,

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Speaker 5: a law of love, a law of endless possibilities. Those

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Speaker 5: who live according to the law will be judged by

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Speaker 5: the law. But we read in Romans 6, for sin

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Speaker 5: shall no longer be your master because you are not

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Speaker 5: under the law, but under grace. Understanding God's heart is

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Speaker 5: crucial for us to live out our faith as obedient disciples.

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Speaker 5: Welcome to the Jesus Podcast. A year of stories showcasing

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Speaker 5: the depth of Christ's love and the glory of God's truth.

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Speaker 5: I'm Zach, your host from Pray.com, and I'm so happy

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Speaker 5: that you're here with us. As we look at more

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Speaker 5: miracles of the Messiah, be sure to follow the podcast

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Speaker 5: on whatever platform you're listening to as we continue to

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Speaker 5: advance the gospel message together. Our story today falls on

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Speaker 5: a Sabbath, a Jewish day of rest. But this Sabbath

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Speaker 5: would be unlike most. What would have started out as

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Speaker 5: a quiet day for most eventually stirred into unrest. Now,

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Speaker 5: it wasn't unrest caused by Jesus who freely allowed his

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Speaker 5: disciples to pluck grain and to satiate their hungry bellies,

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Speaker 5: or who healed a man with a withered hand and

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Speaker 5: the one who loved his neighbor as himself. The unrest

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Speaker 5: on this day formed and flowed from the hearts of

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Speaker 5: the Pharisees and the scribes, the religious leaders who thought

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Speaker 5: they knew all there was about God. As their understanding

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Speaker 5: of God was challenged by Jesus working against their rigid ways,

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Speaker 5: their hearts became cold, hard, and bitter against the one

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Speaker 5: person they needed most to find the righteousness they spent

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Speaker 5: each day striving for. As we listen to our story today,

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Speaker 5: we might even find ourselves challenged too. But challenges can

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Speaker 5: be good if we respond with humility. Humility in receiving

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Speaker 5: the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings.

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Speaker 1: The synagogue was like a palace. with grand archways and

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Speaker 1: gemstones etched into the halls. The floors had bright tiles

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Speaker 1: and rugs sewn into intricate patterns. Incense swirled around Rabbi

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Speaker 1: Yochanan as he read from the Law of Moses, a

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Speaker 1: meditation on the Sabbath.

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Speaker 2: Thus says Adonai, observe the Sabbath day. Keep it holy

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Speaker 2: as the Lord your God commanded you. Six days you

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Speaker 2: shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh

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Speaker 2: day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On

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Speaker 2: it you shall not do any work. You or your

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Speaker 2: son or your daughter or your male servant or your

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Speaker 2: female servant or your ox or your donkey or any

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Speaker 2: of your livestock or the sojourner who is within your gates,

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Speaker 2: that your male servant... that your female servant may rest

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Speaker 2: as well as you. You shall remember that you were

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Speaker 2: a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord

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Speaker 2: your God brought you out from here with a mighty

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Speaker 2: hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore, the Lord your God

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Speaker 2: commanded you to keep the Sabbath day.

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Speaker 1: Rabbi Yochanan closed the scroll and placed his hands on

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Speaker 1: the dais.

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Speaker 2: The Sabbath is a day of pause, a day to

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Speaker 2: reflect on the holy contentment of Adonai and mediate on

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Speaker 2: his goodness. How can we do such things without refraining

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Speaker 2: from all forms of labor? Has the law not been clear?

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Speaker 2: To be holy on this day is to be still.

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Speaker 1: As Rabbi Yochanan spoke, the Pharisees trickled in behind Jesus.

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Speaker 1: Just then, another man entered and leaned against the wall.

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Speaker 1: He held his arm in his tunic. If you looked

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Speaker 1: carefully in the torchlight, you could see that the man's hand...

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Speaker 1: was mangled and withered away. The Pharisees gestured toward the

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Speaker 1: man and whispered to Jesus, So.

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Speaker 4: You think you are an expert on the Sabbath? Tell

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Speaker 4: us then, is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?

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Speaker 1: They were goading Jesus. They knew he was a miracle worker,

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Speaker 1: a healer. They wanted to trap Jesus with his character.

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Speaker 2: If he didn't.

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Speaker 1: Heal the man, he wasn't the compassionate person he claimed

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Speaker 1: to be. If he did heal the man, he broke

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Speaker 1: their Sabbath rules in the sacred space of the synagogue.

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Speaker 1: From their perspective, Jesus lost either way. but they were

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Speaker 1: short-sighted in thinking Jesus cared about what the Pharisees thought

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Speaker 1: about it all. Jesus looked at the man. He had

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Speaker 1: a hand that bent in toward his chest, as though

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Speaker 1: he had been wounded that way for many years and

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Speaker 1: formed with no muscle to support it. It had withered

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Speaker 1: away like a more minor appendage than the rest. Jesus'

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Speaker 1: heart turned, sensing the wound of the man. Jesus sensed

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Speaker 1: his pain, years of pain. The Pharisees saw him as

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Speaker 1: a tool to puff up their pride. But Jesus saw

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Speaker 1: the man.

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Speaker 4: Ah, yes.

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Speaker 1: One of them raised an eyebrow at the wounded man

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Speaker 1: and then back to Jesus.

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Speaker 4: Another poor soul in need of healing. But is it

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Speaker 4: lawful to heal on the Sabbath?

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Speaker 1: The wounded man clutched his frail arm to his chest

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Speaker 1: and sat in a ball on the floor. He pressed

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Speaker 1: his forehead into his arm like he couldn't bear the

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Speaker 1: thought of teachers talking about him. They spoke as though

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Speaker 1: he were half a human, someone people could talk down

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Speaker 1: about openly without worrying that he would hear. But he

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Speaker 1: always heard. Jesus could sense in the wounded man the

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Speaker 1: silent dignity with which he suffered for years, the pain

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Speaker 1: and great agony that he had worn in his body.

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Speaker 1: The tiny flicker of hope in his chest caused him

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Speaker 1: to come here, to the synagogue of all places, hoping

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Speaker 1: that God would have mercy on him, that God would

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Speaker 1: be kind to him. Rabbi Yochanan raised a finger at Jesus,

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Speaker 1: sensing his intentions.

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Speaker 2: Come, come, leave him alone, Jesus. It is the Sabbath.

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Speaker 2: There are other days to help the needy. Today is

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Speaker 2: not a day for actions. but reflection.

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Speaker 1: Jesus took his eyes off the man who was folded over,

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Speaker 1: bent in a contorted way around his head. He addressed

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Speaker 1: the entire room. When Jesus spoke, it was not demanding.

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Speaker 1: It was soft, but firm in such a way that

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Speaker 1: commanded their attention.

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Speaker 3: Let me ask you all something. Which of you who

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Speaker 3: has a sheep, if it falls into a pit on

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Speaker 3: the Sabbath, will not take hold of it and lift

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Speaker 3: it out if it is suffering? Would you not be

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Speaker 3: stirred enough with compassion to help it?

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Speaker 1: He turned and looked between Rabbi Yochanan and the Pharisees.

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Speaker 1: They each averted their gaze from him.

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Speaker 3: Of how much more value is a man than a sheep? So,

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Speaker 3: let me ask again. If it was your sheep in

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Speaker 3: that pit, or it was your sister, your brother, or

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Speaker 3: even your child, is it lawful to do good on

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Speaker 3: the Sabbath?

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Speaker 1: Jesus came forward and knelt beside the man on the

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Speaker 1: ground The man hid his eyes, ashamed that he had

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Speaker 1: become a tool for debate. Jesus spoke as though he

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Speaker 1: was the only one in the room. Nobody else mattered.

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Speaker 1: It was just he and Jesus.

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Speaker 3: My friend, stretch out your hand.

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Speaker 1: It was like asking a lame man to jump. For

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Speaker 1: a brief moment, the wounded man thought perhaps Jesus was

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Speaker 1: mocking him. But when he looked up, his eyes locked

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Speaker 1: with Christ's. His eyes were kind. His voice was compassionate.

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Speaker 1: The man took heart and lifted his arm from his

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Speaker 1: tunic and forward to reach Jesus. Then, somehow, he stretched

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Speaker 1: it to full length. His muscles grew as they stretched,

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Speaker 1: and his fingers extended as they reached, He was being

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Speaker 1: healed right before his eyes.

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Speaker 4: My arm!

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Speaker 1: The man gasped.

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Speaker 3: Adonai, my arm is healed!

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Speaker 1: The man looked at Jesus and began to weep.

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Speaker 4: You really are who they say you are.

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Speaker 1: The priests clutched their amulets. It was real. The words

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Speaker 1: shook the very halls. All went quiet. Heads turned toward

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Speaker 1: the man, who leaped to his feet, beaming.

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Speaker 4: My arm is healed!

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Speaker 1: His voice carried, and he gripped his hand with his other,

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Speaker 1: as though to test that it was not some sort

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Speaker 1: of trick of his eyes.

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Speaker 4: It's real, and it's working!

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Speaker 1: His voice echoed throughout the marble rafters and up into

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Speaker 1: the spires of the temple. It was an unwanted sound,

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Speaker 1: this laughter. The synagogue had never hosted such a sound

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Speaker 1: like it before. The only acceptable sounds were subdued, hushed,

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Speaker 1: and fearful whispers. The temple onlookers shot frustrated glances at him,

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Speaker 1: annoyed by the irreverent presence of this miracle, upsetting their

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Speaker 1: holy Sabbath routines. Jesus smiled and shared in the man's delight.

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Speaker 3: Look at you, as good as new. Be careful not

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Speaker 3: to use it until tomorrow, though. It is the Sabbath,

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Speaker 3: after all.

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Speaker 1: But the Pharisees walked on and turned toward each other.

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Speaker 4: It is not our way.

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Speaker 1: One of them hissed.

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Speaker 4: How dare he?

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Speaker 1: The other pressed. They turned their heads back toward Jesus

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Speaker 1: to check and make sure he wasn't listening. Then pressed

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Speaker 1: in again.

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Speaker 3: He knowingly breaks our rules.

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Speaker 4: He's insolent.

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Speaker 1: He's dangerous. The others nodded. Their heads turned toward Jesus,

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Speaker 1: who now walked side by side with the once wounded man.

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Speaker 1: And the two of them spoke casually, like equals.

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Speaker 4: We must do something about this. Send word to Caiaphas.

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Speaker 4: Jesus of Nazareth is threatening the very fabric of our ways.

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Speaker 4: Sooner or later, everyone who mocks the law of Moses

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Speaker 4: will get their due justice. He will pay for his crimes.

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Speaker 5: The idea of the Sabbath can be found very early

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Speaker 5: in scripture. In Genesis 1 and 2, God speaks his

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Speaker 5: creation into existence, finding delight in each new masterpiece as

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Speaker 5: he declares them good. And at the end of his

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Speaker 5: work on the seventh day, God rests. Not because he

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Speaker 5: needed to, but to enjoy the grand displays of the

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Speaker 5: glory manifested through his handiwork. As an extension of his

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Speaker 5: own rest, God gives man the privilege of Sabbath rest.

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Speaker 5: Six days of work and labor awaiting a seventh day

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Speaker 5: to rest and enjoy Sabbath. God's creation with him. But

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Speaker 5: the Pharisees had long forgotten God's intention for this holy day.

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Speaker 5: Rather than seeing this day as a blessing to spend

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Speaker 5: time with God, they had contorted it by imposing rules

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Speaker 5: and regulations to make the day about themselves. They added

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Speaker 5: to God's law to bolster their sense of self-righteousness. This

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Speaker 5: was a common theme for the religious leaders that we

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Speaker 5: call legalism. The idea was rooted in thinking that they

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Speaker 5: could be more holy not just by abiding by the

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Speaker 5: law of Moses, but showcasing their spiritual discipline by creating

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Speaker 5: even more constraints, more rules, more laws that didn't need

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Speaker 5: to be there. If the law drew a metaphorical line

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Speaker 5: in the sand, the Pharisees would take a step back

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Speaker 5: and draw their own. A good example of this is

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Speaker 5: that the Pharisees of the time said that it wasn't

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Speaker 5: even good to move a chair because you might churn

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Speaker 5: up dust and that's considered plowing or farming. These absurd

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Speaker 5: rules and regulations were just meant to create a tiered

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Speaker 5: system of who's best at obeying God or not. But

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Speaker 5: for all their efforts, the Pharisees' legalism was only leading

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Speaker 5: to more bondage. In their attempts to attain holiness, the

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Speaker 5: religious leaders added to the weight of the law. Not

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Speaker 5: only did this not bring them the righteousness they thought

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Speaker 5: it would, it was actually pulling them away from the

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Speaker 5: heart of God. The problem had gotten so bad that

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Speaker 5: they weren't even able to recognize Jesus as the anointed one.

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Speaker 5: God was right in front of them, and they were

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Speaker 5: so blinded to his heart and character that they didn't

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Speaker 5: recognize that he was incarnate walking right among them. They

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Speaker 5: had added so much to the Word of God that

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Speaker 5: they blocked their own view of who God really was.

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Speaker 5: Some people might be critics of our lifestyle when following Jesus,

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Speaker 5: but we shouldn't let the chains of others' judgment bind

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Speaker 5: us and hold us back from experiencing the freedom that Jesus.

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Speaker 2: Gives to us.

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Speaker 5: As the Pharisees berate Jesus and his disciples for plucking

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Speaker 5: and eating grain in the fields on the Sabbath, Jesus

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Speaker 5: reminds them that the Sabbath was made for man, not

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Speaker 5: man for the Sabbath, and that he was Lord over

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Speaker 5: the Sabbath. He was the one who decided what was

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Speaker 5: lawful and what wasn't lawful on the day of rest.

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Speaker 5: He knew the heart of the Father and encouraged his

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Speaker 5: disciples to enjoy the day for what it was meant

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Speaker 5: to be, a connecting point with God. Frustrated with Jesus

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Speaker 5: and wanting to eventually trap him, they follow him to

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Speaker 5: the synagogue. Their intentions were clear. They wanted to trap Jesus,

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Speaker 5: and seeing the man with the withered hand and knowing

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Speaker 5: his pattern of performing healing miracles, they asked Jesus if

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Speaker 5: it's lawful for him to heal on the Sabbath, arguably

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Speaker 5: the greatest work you could perform on a day meant

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Speaker 5: for rest. It's at this point that Jesus demonstrates God's heart.

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Speaker 5: Using recognizable imagery to their day, he questions the people

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Speaker 5: of the synagogue if they wouldn't rescue a sheep from

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Speaker 5: their flock who had fallen into a pit on the Sabbath.

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Speaker 5: With no response from the people who couldn't dispute Jesus' question,

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Speaker 5: the Lord turns to the man with a withered hand

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Speaker 5: and commands him to stretch it out. At that moment,

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Speaker 5: the hand was healed, just as good as the other.

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Speaker 5: In breaking the Pharisees' Sabbath rules, he was teaching the

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Speaker 5: people about the loving heart of the Father, who wasn't

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Speaker 5: in the habit of allowing man-made rules to interfere with

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Speaker 5: his willingness and desire to care for his children. He

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Speaker 5: was showing them, and shows us, that the law of

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Speaker 5: Christ hinges on loving others and was greater than the

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Speaker 5: law of Moses that would bind people. I think that

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Speaker 5: there's something silly about this whole interaction. The Pharisees are

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Speaker 5: mad at Jesus because he broke the rules, but he

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Speaker 5: broke the rules and healed somebody's withered hand, displaying obviously

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Speaker 5: that he has the power of God. This proves that

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Speaker 5: some people would rather abide by rules than worship the creator.

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Speaker 5: Some people find more comfort in religion and religious practices

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Speaker 5: and institutions than they do in the character and in

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Speaker 5: the will and in the power of God himself. Because

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Speaker 5: let's be honest here, it's much easier to follow a

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Speaker 5: set of moral rules than it is to truly live

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Speaker 5: a selfless and effective and loving life that transforms our communities.

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Speaker 5: It's easy to sit on our hands and withhold from

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Speaker 5: doing anything wrong. It's much harder to be an active

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Speaker 5: member of our community and lifting people up around us.

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Speaker 5: It's a lot easier not to curse than it is

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Speaker 5: to actually speak blessing to someone who's in the throes

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Speaker 5: of depression. It's easier to refrain from listening to bad

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Speaker 5: music than it is to use our God-given talents and

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Speaker 5: creativity to create music that honors Him and blesses the

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Speaker 5: people around us. You see, moving to the heartbeat of

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Speaker 5: righteousness in the Holy Spirit is a much more challenging

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Speaker 5: thing than living a moralistic, self-righteous life. As followers of Jesus,

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Speaker 5: we live by the law of Christ and His love.

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Speaker 5: While we should never purposefully go against God's commands, we

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Speaker 5: also need to be mindful of That where we've added

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Speaker 5: to God's law in our own moral standards that haven't

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Speaker 5: even been set by God. I remember there was a

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Speaker 5: prolific teacher that came to our church. Now this teacher

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Speaker 5: is very famous and he'll remain anonymous for now, but

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Speaker 5: I'll just say this. At his church, he wears a

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Speaker 5: suit and tie. All of his church attendees wear a

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Speaker 5: suit and tie. But when he was at our church,

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Speaker 5: he was wearing a short sleeve button up and some jeans.

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Speaker 5: This is the common garb in our church on a

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Speaker 5: Sunday morning. The comments that we received on YouTube was staggering.

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Speaker 5: Tons of his followers from his church decrying him for

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Speaker 5: compromising his morality by no longer wearing a suit and tie.

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Speaker 5: This is a great example of modern day legalism. Nowhere

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Speaker 5: in the Bible and nowhere in scripture will you find

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Speaker 5: any sort of dress code for what you need to

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Speaker 5: wear in church. But some people place these moral standards

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Speaker 5: that aren't supposed to be there. Jesus was willing to

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Speaker 5: break the religious leader's rules for the sake of breaking

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Speaker 5: us free from the law, live in freedom he offers us,

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Speaker 5: be willing to swim against the current, push back against

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Speaker 5: religiosity to follow God's heart, and love others with the

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Speaker 5: radical love of Jesus.