Matins Devotion: February 23, 2026

Mark 3:1-19

“Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” This is the question Jesus asks those who are jealous of His power and popularity. It’s what he asks those who want Him to heal a man on the Sabbath not because they want the man to be healed, but because they want to get rid of the One who is able to heal. And it’s a marvelous question.

So in other circumstances, Jesus will ask this crowd, “is it lawful to heal on the sabbath?” But here his question is more cutting. He’s essentially saying to them, “no one can do nothing on the sabbath. You either do good or evil. Whether you rest or work, you’re still choosing one over the other. And if you have the power to heal someone, it would be evil to refrain from doing so. You don’t have that power. I do. So you tell me, which should I do today, good or evil?”

And in all of this, we get to the heart of the Sabbath. God gave His people the sabbath not so that they could impress their Lord with how willing they were to let others suffer on the seventh day. He gave them the sabbath so that they might rest from their labor and remember His promises, that they might hear His word–the same word that promised them that the greatest work of all would be done by our Lord before, during and after the Sabbath. On Good Friday, Jesus did the good work of dying for your sins, of destroying your iniquities with His blood. On Holy Saturday, Jesus did the good work of descending into hell and boasting of His victory over Satan. On the third day, Jesus did the good work of rising from the dead, walking out of His tomb and wrapping us in the promise of eternal life. On and around the Sabbath, Jesus chose to do good. Every day of the week, choose likewise.