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| Going Against the Grain. |
Luke 6:1-11English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus Is Lord of the Sabbath
6 On a
Sabbath, while he was going through the grain fields, his
disciples plucked and ate some heads of grain, rubbing them in their
hands. 2 But
some of the Pharisees said, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to
do on the Sabbath?” 3 And
Jesus answered them, “Have you not read what David did when he was
hungry, he and those who were with him: 4 how he entered the house of God and took and
ate the bread of the Presence, which is not lawful for any but the
priests to eat, and also gave it to those with him?” 5 And he said to
them, “The Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath.”
A Man with a Withered
Hand
6 On another Sabbath, he entered the synagogue and was
teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was withered. 7 And the scribes and the
Pharisees watched him, to see whether he would heal on the
Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse him. 8 But he knew their
thoughts, and he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come and stand
here.” And he rose and stood there. 9 And Jesus said to them, “I ask you, is it
lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to destroy it?” 10 And after looking
around at them all he said to him, “Stretch out your hand.” And he
did so, and his hand was restored.11 But
they were filled with fury and discussed with one another what they might
do to Jesus.
As I write this I have reviewed an article on social media
that has raised my blood pressure as well as my interest in responding to the
post. In a recent post a colleague in ministry posted that spend time on
Pastoral Care and tending to one’s flock are actually doing themselves as well
as the congregation a disservice.
To fully speak of the post, the pastor was stating that if a
congregation wanted to grow over Two-Hundred people in membership, a pastor
could not truly care for all and feel adequate about their pastoral care
ministry.
In the text from Luke, we see people telling Jesus what he
could not do because it was the Sabbath. Jesus in this text truly speaks to the
fact of what “going against the grain” is about. Jesus is telling us that caring for, healing,
and feeding of others can never be against the Law of God, even if it is
against the law of man.
Maybe this post against pastoral care has me angered because
it was a class that I received an “A” on in seminary, or maybe it is because I
pride my ministry on taking care of my flock. Whether it is home visits,
hospital visits, work visits, or the occasional phone call. I have even been
known to drop off ice cream after a church member has surgery, or going through
a dark moment in their lives.
Mark 16:15 states: And he said to them, “Go into all the
world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
What the
writer of this post neglects to state is that scripture states to go out and
proclaim the good news, it does not state to go out and fill pews. Often
pastors who condemn good pastoral care are often lacking in that area, so it is
an area that they often proclaim has little or no value.
Beloved, we share the Gospel of Christ in which Jesus was
all about Pastoral Care and tending to His Father’s sheep. The sheep that Jesus
speaks about are not just within the walls of a congregation. When one is
called to ministry we must realize that the world that God created is our
flock, so we should always be prepared to care for more than two-hundred souls.
If God calls pastors to love and care for others, He also calls all of His
children to care for one another (not just pastors).
Never be afraid to go against the grain for God in the care
of others. He Truly Loves That!
Pastor Tim.
