Why Did Jesus Heal on the Sabbath?

 Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John record about six occasions when Jesus healed people on the Sabbath. We know, of course, that Jesus, as the Son of God, did only what was right and proper on the Sabbath. He never broke the Sabbath, He never broke any of God's laws, He only broke manmade traditions.

Remember, Jesus Christ is also God (John 5:18; Phil. 2:6), and He and His Father are of one mind and one spirit (John 10:30; 14:9). The very idea of Jesus breaking His Father's law — which is also His own law — is ludicrous.

Still, the question remains, Why did Jesus heal on the Sabbath so often? God never does anything haphazardly; He does everything for a reason.

In this case, there are several reasons, the most obvious being that those people needed healing. But there's one reason in particular that I'd like to focus on today, one which I find most fascinating!

We know from Hebrews 4 that the Sabbath represents God's Kingdom. The physical Sabbath that we celebrate each week is a foreshadow of the eternal Sabbath — God's soon-coming Kingdom!

And what will Jesus do when He returns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords? Healing! Lots and lots of healing. Not just physical healing, but — most important of all — spiritual healing. He will heal the hearts of human beings.

We learn in Rev. 22:1-2 that God's Kingdom will include the following: "And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations."

We're also told, “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Rev. 21:4).

The Old Testament echoes the same things.

God tells us in 2 Chron. 7:14, "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land."

We're further told in Isa. 35:1-7 that when Christ returns, 

1 The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose;

2 It shall blossom abundantly and rejoice, even with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the LORD, the excellency of our God.

3 Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.

4 Say to those who are fearful-hearted, “Be strong, do not fear! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you.”

5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

6 Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.

7 The parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water; in the habitation of jackals, where each lay, there shall be grass with reeds and rushes.

Isa. 58:12 adds, "Those from among you shall build the old waste places; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; and you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, the Restorer of Streets to Dwell In." Tellingly, the very next verse, Isa. 58:13, goes on to talk about the Sabbath!

Hos. 14:4 adds this Divine promise, "I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, for My anger has turned away from him [Israel]." 

Jer. 30:17 says, "'For I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds,’ says the LORD, ‘Because they called you an outcast saying: “This is Zion; No one seeks her.”’" A few chapters later, in Jer. 33:6, we find, "Behold, I will bring it [Zion] health and healing; I will heal them and reveal to them the abundance of peace and truth."

God also promised, in Isa. 19:22-25, to heal Israel's traditional enemies, Egypt and Assyria. The point is that God will heal all humanity, everyone who's willing to receive Him!

Isa. 11:6-9 paints a wonderful picture for us:

6 "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.

7 The cow and the bear shall graze; their young ones shall lie down together; and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. 

8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.

9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea."

So we can see that when Jesus Christ returns, He will heal the hearts of men and cleanse the earth of wickedness. He will heal on a scale that we simply cannot comprehend, a scale that we can only dream of!

This is why Jesus healed on the Sabbath. It was a foreshadow of the healing that He will do on the Sabbath to come, the eternal Sabbath rest.

Some of the specific healings that Jesus performed on the Sabbath are also fascinating.

In Luke 6:6-10, Jesus healed a man "whose right hand was withered." A man with a withered right hand would have a difficult time working, especially if he was right-handed. What do we do when God heals us of our sins? We stop living in sin and do the works of righteousness (Isa. 32:17; Jam. 1:14-26).

In Luke 13:10-17, Jesus healed "a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up" (v. 11). The woman could only look downward to the earth, she could not raise her eyes to the heavens. What did she do when Jesus healed her? "She was made straight, and glorified God" (v. 13)! Likewise, the unconverted are concerned only with the things of this world, but when God heals us, we are able to look up from this earth and glorify Him.

In John 5, Jesus healed a man who had never been able to walk. When we live in sin, we do not walk in God's ways, but when He heals us, we walk in His ways.

In John 9, Jesus healed a man who had been blind from birth. Again, the unconverted are blind to God's truth (Deut. 29:4), but when God heals us and opens our eyes, we can see and understand.

When Jesus performed these healings on the Sabbath, He was not only in perfect harmony with the spirit of the Sabbath, He was actually teaching us about His eternal Sabbath, His Kingdom! One day, He will heal all who are willing to receive Him. 

Happy Sabbath, brethren!