A GREAT DAY TO BE FREE
Luke 13:11-16 ESV
11 And behold, there was a woman who had had a disabling spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your disability." 13 And he laid his hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she glorified God. 14 But the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the people, "There are six days in which work ought to be done. Come on those days and be healed, and not on the Sabbath day." 15 Then the Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it away to water it? 16 And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?"
Jesus was teaching on the Sabbath when He spotted a woman who had a disabling spirit. This poor lady had been bent over for 18 years and could not stand up straight. So Jesus did something about her situation. She was happy, the people were happy, but the ruler of the synagogue was ticked off.
Jesus saw this woman and spoke to her. Notice he spoke in the present tense. We often see God use a different tense. He says things such as I have made you a father of many nations when Abraham was still childless. Or I have given you this land when it was still inhabited by the Canaanites. Woman, you are freed from your disability when she was still bent over. The wisdom here is to agree with whatever God says as opposed to what it appears to be. Jesus laid hands on the lady, and she stood up straight and glorified God. Please note she glorified God after she stood up straight. It was Satan who put her in the bent over condition, and it was God who freed her from that problem. As we read through the gospel accounts of Jesus' life, we never see Him making anyone sick or putting them in bondage. We do see Him undoing the works attributed to Satan.
Jesus made the ruler of the synagogue angry because He healed this lady on the Sabbath. And Jesus called him on his hypocrisy. It was considered okay for someone to take care of their work animal on the Sabbath. Work animals were valuable. So how was it not okay to take care of one of God's covenant people, this daughter of Abraham, on the Sabbath? Jesus was not saying don't care for animals. What He was saying was helping to free a woman who was bound by Satan for 18 years was even more important.
APPLICATION
I have never understood why people had a problem in Jesus' day with Him healing on the Sabbath. You would think that this ruler of the synagogue knew the lady who had been bent over for such a long time. As a leader, you could also assume he would rejoice when one of the people under his care was helped. But this ruler was more concerned with man-made rules than helping someone who was hurting. Rules before people is not a good thing.
Occasionally, we have had people upset with how some people came dressed to church. I remember when we went casual back in 1998, and some people could not handle the change. Never mind that going casual made it easier for people to come to church. That single moms did not have to worry about having two wardrobes. That casual made it harder to tell who was wealthy or poor. These folks were more concerned with keeping tradition than reaching a community.
We always want people to get help. We don't always get it right as a church, but we are still for people coming as they are and coming to the Lord. These gospel accounts are a good reminder of where Jesus placed His priorities, and we want to emulate Him.