Can You Live Without…?

10On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, 11and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity." 13Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

Luke 13:10-13 NIV

Have you ever play a sport and the coach tells you or everyone practices with his or her weak hand? Does he tell you that to make fun of you or just for kicks? No everyone knows that to be good you have to be able to use both your left and right, so you can use both on the court or field.

Have any of you been forced to maybe not use a limb (arm, leg, etc…) maybe broken it or something along those lines? Was it your strong or weak hand?

Well recently I fractured the radius on my dominant arm, which cause me to change many routines and do things in different ways. It cause a lot of problems at first, and still does from time to time, but you learn to overcome and do things differently without using your arm. Now I didn’t have to have a sling or anything and I could still use it to maybe write and draw with after a few days, but it has started to help me truly understand this verse and another that I’ll get to in a second.

Jesus has the power to Heal, to bring back your life, as you know it. Now I know my arm will heal soon, but it still makes it tough in the mean time. Jesus could just say a word and it would be healed… We need to rely on him for healing, but we also need to be patient an dlet him work in his own time. And in the mean time maybe I’ll learn something or see something in a different way.

But it has also made me think about other things…

7"Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to sin! Such things must come, but woe to the man through whom they come! 8If your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. 9And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

Matthew 18:7-9 NIV

Self-sacrifice is something Jesus also called us to. We have to be willing to tear away anything that will hinder us from his way weather it’s our dominate hand or leg, our tongue, family, TV, or even friends…

To me, my dominant hand is my whole livelihood for the rest of my life. Being an art major loosing my right arm could have serious consequences, but it may also have a better outcome if something were to happen to it. I may be able to spend my time doing something more important or do something better with my left hand who knows. We have to be willing to give up anything, and leave the decisions to him and make the best of every situation.

As Christians we have to keep our minds open and our heart focused and with him we accomplish anything and everything and without we will do nothing but hinder those trying.

Be a child, one of God. Focus not on the past, the future, but the present, and hold nothing back.

2He called a little child and had him stand among them. 3And he said: "I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

5"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me. 6But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.

Matthew 18: 2-6 NIV

The Cleansing

“The priest is to take some blood of the guilt offering and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the to be cleansed, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot.”

Leviticus 14:14 NIV
(Also see) Leviticus 8: 23,24

But before both of these:

“Slaughter it, take some of the blood and put it on the lobes of the right ears of Aaron and his sons, on the thumbs of their right hand, and on the big toes of their right feet. Then sprinkle blood against the altar on all sides.”

Exodus 29:20 NIV

But why the right ear, thumb and ear lobe? What does that mean? Have you ever truly looked at the text, wondering? Well don’t stop their dig deeper.

What is this passage for? It is located in the section of consecrating the priest of Israel.


What can we understand about the specific body parts…
The notes located at the bottom of the passage of my NIV study bible say this:

29:20 right ears. Symbolizing sensitivity to God and his word. Right hands…. Right feet. Symbolizing a life of service to others on God’s behalf.

But is that right that’s on person’s interpretation. What do I believe? I think that is right, but I think we may be able to take it even another step farther.

What is the ear used for? Listening. What has God called us to do?

“He said, ‘If you listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, who heals you.’”

Exodus 15:26 NIV


“Then a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and a voice came from the cloud: ‘This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!’”

Mark 9:7 NIV

We are called to just be doers of the earth, but to listen to the voice of God, no matter how soft the whisper. WE need to tear the distractions away from our lives and take a moment to listen. Which is one reason I believe he created the Sabbath for the Israelites. They have little to do but to listen and think and ponder, something we do not do enough of in our fast paced society.

Last of all he puts blood on the feet., or the big toe. Once again, yes serving, but what else. The Foot is used for what? Well walking and holding us up. Jesus tells us in the Great Commission to:

“(16) Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. (17) When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. (18) Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. (19) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’”

Matthew 28:16-20 NIV

We are called to walk, to reach others, to teach and preach the name of Jesus to the world. Now today you do not necessarily have to walk, but back then to get anywhere or talk to anyone you had to walk and use you feet.

The foot is also used to hold us up. I do not know if you’ve ever thought about that. But foot is a solid foundation and a limb that keeps us upright just like God keeps the world upright. He keeps things going, and also gave us something to stand on: the Word of God and his Son Jesus.

So what about the Hand? The notes say service as well. Yes the foot and hand do many of the same things. They help reach people and hold us up and all that, But the hands do something even greater.

Have you ever meet an animated talker? The one who talks, but has to move their arms to tell the story? Or a deaf person who uses sign language? Or maybe a couple that holds hands? There are numerous examples of this, but the hand is a tool for communication. We help communicate and do things with our hands, and God calls us to do that in a Godly manner.

So what doe that all mean to us? Well this was what was done to cleanse, the body to be clean before God. That is what many of the rules in the books of Moses are for. The rules are for safety, health and to keep the body clean of pure, before God.

But we also need to be clean before God. Now we don’t go through this elaborate ritual to accomplish it, but we can focus on the elements and keep them in mind.

The ear – listen for/to God
Hand – Godly and serving in our communications
Feet – serving others by reaching out, going places, taking that extra effort

And by doing these things we will cleanse ourselves, before God. And it will help us to stop think, reflect, and separate ourselves from the world.