“And, behold, there was a man which had his hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him. And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift it out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Then saith he to the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it forth; and it was restored whole, like as the other.” [Matt 12:10-13]
In a certain place, Jesus entered a synagogue on the sabbath day. At that time, there was a man which “had his hand withered.” [Mt 12:10] The word withered means that the hand was deprived of its natural fluids; it was shrunken, wasted, or withered. Furthermore, the man, no doubt, was placed there intentionally by the hypocritical Pharisees who wished to catch Jesus in wrongdoing. Mark records that “they watched Him, whether He would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse Him.” [Mk 3:2] However, Luke tells us that Jesus “knew their thoughts.” [Lk 6:8] Jesus was not ignorant of their plans, and as He always did and still does, would surely defeat their lying in wait, even as Proverbs says, “the words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.” [Prov 12:6] And in addition to outsmarting them with logic, the man who was dry and wasted in the hand is completely restored by Jesus.
There is a blessing here for us in this story beyond just the plain account. And it is, that when we forsake God, when we look to other sources of life, other sources of moisture or richness, we will become dry; but through Christ that richness, that moisture in our soul as it were, that dryness, that withered nature, can be utterly restored and transformed into richness, making our souls “as a watered garden.” [Jer 31:12] As it says also in Isaiah,
“And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.” [Isa 58:11]
The LORD warns us in Jeremiah, saying, “all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living waters.” [Jer 17:13] The word “ashamed” in this passage is the same word used in Hosea 13 for “dry,” when Hosea says that on account of Israel’s iniquity, their “spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up.” [Hos 13:15] Israel’s chief sin in this context was their insistence in idolatry – they refused The LORD and went after other sources of life, that is, false gods and other nations. And because they did this, because they sought sources of life other than God, their “fountain [would] be dried up” and they would be “ashamed/dry.” They would become dry and lifeless just like the gods they pursued.
Those who refuse Jesus Christ for life will become dry. Inside they will be dusty and dry, a fountain with no water, because the source they draw from is limited and weak. In fact, we see clearly that apart from Christ there is no life, no satisfaction of the soul, for Jesus Himself plainly said, “I Am…The Life.” [Jn 14:6] And again, “because I live, ye shall live also.” [Jn 14:19]
Jesus offers Himself and this rich life and satisfaction to whomever will accept. Those who view the vastness of His mercy, faithfulness, righteousness, judgments, and lovingkindness, and choose to place their trust under the shadow of His wings, “shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of [His] house; and [they] shalt [be made to] drink of the river of [His] pleasures;” [Psa 36:5-8] they will in fact lay hold of this promised life. But those who reject Him will not.
The Lord offers this complete satisfaction without cost. He urges us, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price…let your soul delight itself in fatness.” [Isa 55:1-2]
We must come to The Father through Jesus in simple, sincere faith and He will take our dryness and reverse it. God is able to take the dry lands of our heart or mind or life and make them fruitful and gorgeous. He promises, “For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour out my Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: and they shall spring up as the grass, as willows by the water courses.” [Isa 44:3-4] Do notice here, though, that this promise is for those who are “thirsty,” even as Jesus said “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” [Mk 2:17] Those who are not thirsty, who do not want Christ; those who do not believe they are in urgent need of repentance nor of Jesus’ life: the offer does not include them for they, through their self-sufficiency and pride, exclude themselves; for it is written that the sinners and the meek are those to whom God teaches “in the way” and will “guide in judgment.” [Psa 25:8-9]
We conclude quite gloriously that just like Jesus restored the withered hand, so too can He restore us! No matter if we are saved or not, Jesus has life for us. Those areas of dryness, of lack, Jesus can surely fill. He is willing; so let us seek Him in humility and submit ourselves to Him.
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