Daughter
Delivered and
Hypocrite
Humbled
LUKE
13:10-17
Luke
13:10 And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath.
Susan: It was
Jesus’s habit to be in a place of worship on the Sabbath.
Susie: As an
itinerant rabbi, He was often asked to read and/or teach.
Luke
4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom
was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
Luke
13:11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen
years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
Susie: Although
in artwork this woman is often depicted as elderly, the scripture does not hint
at her age. Her inability to stand up straight was caused by Satan rather than
agedness. She may have been a young or middle-aged woman, for all we know. We
do know that she had been suffering in this manner for eighteen years.
Susan: She
does not appear to be demon-possessed, completely controlled by an evil spirit.
Rather, she seems to be a good woman oppressed, weighed down by spiritual evil
authorized by Satan himself.
Luke
13:12-13 And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her,
Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and
immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
Susie: The
woman did not ask to be healed. Instead, Jesus initiated contact with her by
calling her over to Himself.
Susan: Unlike
in cases of demon possession, she did not scream or resist Jesus in any way. At
the moment Jesus said she was free and laid His hands on the woman, her back was
made as straight as a yard stick.
Susie: The
woman immediately broke out in praise of the Lord, joyously glorifying God.
Susan: In
fact, just like the man who was born blind (John 9:3), God may have allowed her
brokenness for the sole purpose of bringing glory to Himself through her
healing. I hope I am one of those chosen to be a beacon of God’s glory to draw
others to Him through my brokenness and not just despite my cerebral palsy. My
desire is that I bring glory to God through every part of my journey.
Luke
13:14 And the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because that
Jesus had healed on the sabbath day, and said unto the people, There are six
days in which men ought to work: in them therefore come and be healed, and not
on the sabbath day.
Susie: Note
that the president of the synagogue does not rebuke Jesus directly. Instead, he
tells the people they should not come to be healed on the Sabbath. As far as we
know, this woman did not ask to be healed. She just showed up for the service.
Susan: Perhaps,
inwardly, this ruler trembled at the possibility that Jesus might be who He
claimed to be—God incarnate.
Susie: He
also may have realized that even though rabbinic tradition considered healing
on the Sabbath to be in violation of the command to rest and do no work, that
was not in keeping with God’s desire that we do good.
Mark
3:4 And he saith unto them, Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath days, or to
do evil? to save life, or to kill? But they held their peace.
Micah
6:8 He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of
thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
Susan: However,
his tradition was more important to him than a right relationship with God and
people. Tradition is a poor substitute for relationship!
Luke
13:15 The Lord then answered him, and said, Thou hypocrite, doth not each one
of you on the sabbath loose his ox or his ass from the stall, and lead him away
to watering? And
ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo,
these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?
Susie: The
synagogue leader didn’t have the nerve to address Jesus directly, but Jesus had
no problem calling him out as a hypocrite.
Susan: Jesus
points out that the Jewish traditions allowed them to let their animals out for
a drink on the Sabbath. That was commendable, but how much more should they
desire that this woman, a daughter of Abraham, a member of their community, be
freed to drink of God’s grace and be healed?!
Susie: This
reminds me of people who are animal rights activists but support a woman’s
“right” to choose abortion… better not open that can of worms!
Luke
13:17 And when he had said these things, all his adversaries were ashamed: and
all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by him.
Susan: Jesus’s
detractors were embarrassed to the nth degree because they knew the truth of
His words whether or not they would admit it. The truth of His words cut to the
quick.
Hebrews
4:12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged
sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the
joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Susie: While
the leaders were humiliated, the other people in attendance at the synagogue
that Sabbath day experienced true joy to see the glory of God on display in the
healing of the woman.
Susan: The
sincere worshippers in the synagogue had a “happylujah” party with this freed
daughter of Abraham, celebrating the grace and glory of God she had experienced
that morning.
Ponder
this and apply it: Once again, we see that Jesus does not judge
this woman because of her affliction. Even though he attributes it to a “spirit,”
He does not blame the woman. Rather, He heals her, freeing her to glorify His
Father. We need to see people through the merciful eyes of Jesus and pray for
their needs rather than pondering the possibility that they somehow brought
them upon themselves. Father, as the song implores, “Give me Your eyes!”
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