Withered Offerings

Withered Offerings

Read: Luke 6:6-11

“Stretch out your hand.”

Luke 6:10

“We have no power from God unless we live in the persuasion that we have none of our own.”

—John Owen

IN WORD A man with a withered hand had come to the synagogue. We’ll never know this side of heaven how his infirmity had affected his relationship with God. Was he angry? disillusioned? content in the midst of suffering? We can only guess. We do know, however, that he was in the local place of worship on the regular day of worship. And that’s where Jesus met him.

Jesus asks surprisingly little of the man with the withered hand. His purpose was to create a stage for Himself in front of unbelieving Pharisees. He does not wait for a demonstration of faith, as He does with other supplicants. He does not even wait for the man to approach Him. Jesus singles out the recipient of His mercy and gives him only two instructions: “Stand in front” (v. 8) and “Stretch out your hand.”

Isn’t this how God has dealt with many of us? We had very little to offer Him other than a desire to worship God. We had no great demonstration of faith, no noble and zealous pursuit of the Master, no clear awareness of His power. We were just there. He saw us and He told us what to do.

Even though we have so little to offer Him, He still requires something of us—a withered hand. We must take this sin-racked limb—the epitome of our fallen nature—and stretch it out to Him. Though we are wholly corrupt, withered in body and soul, we must nevertheless reach for Him at His call. Fallenness is all we have; in His mercy, it’s all He asks of us.

IN DEED Do you strive to offer your good hand to Jesus? He won’t accept it. It’s not the stuff of miracles. No, remember where He found you. Perhaps you’ve been overestimating your offerings to Him. When you do that, you are conversely underestimating His power in your life. You are contributing far too much. Own up to your withered hand, and let His strength be demonstrated in your weakness. It’s the only way He’ll show an unbelieving world the power of God.