ON THE VANGUARD

WITHERED HAND
“Then He said to the man, ‘Stretch out your hand.’ So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other.”
Matthew 12:13

We read of the many healings that Jesus performed throughout the Gospels, but today I want to focus on just one of them. I want us to look specifically at the man who had the withered hand. The muscles, joints, bones, veins, and tendons had been lacking their abilities, and as such the man’s hand was unable to be used. Why it was withered and for how long it had been is not found within the text, but we are told it was on a Sabbath day that Jesus saw the man. Jesus saw him through eyes of compassion, as if he was an injured sheep in His flock.
Matthew 12:10 points out that the temple priests were looking for a reason to find Jesus guilty. This indeed could be that time, they thought. As they waited on Jesus, He asked them a question that was never answered. Jewish law states that no work should be done from dusk on Friday to dusk on Saturday, in honor of the day rest that God, Himself, took (Gen 2:2). Work was defined as anything that caused a sweat. However, if life was on the line, the greater sin was not working on the Sabbath, but rather not helping. Jesus posed this scenario to those watching by asking how much more valuable was a person in need of help verses an animal. Following these words, Jesus asked the man to stretch forth his hand.
I want us to look at what a hand represents. The obvious is a hand, right or left, it does not matter. But, the hand represents power and authority. When Jesus is said to sit on the right hand of the Father, not only is He sitting on the right side, but He is sitting next to the right power – God. Therefore, this man’s power was withered. He was looked down on not only because there were actions he could not do, but also because he was no longer seen as having authority. In the end, not only did his body suffer, but his status suffered, and eventually his faith suffered.
But Jesus, having compassion on him, looked at him as a sheep needing help. Jesus, caring not that it was the Sabbath, reached out and extended the hand of life to this man, this sheep. With only a few words, Jesus asked the man to extend his hand. In this extension, however, Jesus was asking him to extend his physical hand, his faith, and his hand of authority. Jesus was asking him to allow Himself in, through faith, to sit as the authority in the heart of this man. As the man reached out with his, he also reached out in faith and in so doing allowed Christ to have authority in his life.
I want to ask you, while the year is still so young, have you reached out your hand and allowed Jesus to heal your withered hand? Physically you may be fine, but remember the hand signifies power and authority. Have you given all power and authority over to Him? If not, why not do it now? Reach out to Him in faith and allow Him the power and authority in your life. Perhaps your withered hand is your finances, smoking, drugs, porn, or any other plague that keeps you down. Do you want to be healed of this? Then the answer is simple although the action may be tougher. Jesus is saying even now, “Stretch out your hand.”