Wednesday in the Eighteenth Week of Ordinary Time

Luke 13:10-21

Our Liberation Shall Surely Come

Today’s passage focuses on a woman healed of a “disabling spirit” in which she was “bent over and could not fully straighten herself.”  We do not read that she went to the synagogue for the purpose of being healed.  It seems that she was merely in attendance and Jesus saw her and called her over and healed her.  Moreover, she had been this way for eighteen years.  It is truly a marvelous picture of our Lord’s care and concern for human suffering.  And she immediately glorified God for being “freed from her disability.”  But such is human pettiness that the ruler of the synagogue took offense at our Lord’s display of compassion on the Sabbath day, breaking what he thought was a mandate from the Mosaic Law – which it was not – that no one should be healed on that day as such constituted work.  Our Lord quickly dispensed with such a twisted interpretation of his commandments and noted the hypocrisy of placing animals above people, untying an ox or a donkey on the Sabbath day for watering while complaining about loosing a “daughter of Abraham” from Satan’s bonds on the same day.  God has called us to greater matters than quibbling over such niceties, namely the Kingdom.  The Kingdom of God is about releasing people from the bonds of Satan, and rejoicing over the liberty that such breaking of chains brings.

And so it is after this event that our Lord then begins to describe the Kingdom of God to us.  In this case, a poor woman was suddenly healed of a long-lasting infirmity, but the Kingdom of God doesn’t ordinarily work this way.  This woman’s freedom is only one hard won battle against Satan and his dominion, for the Kingdom grows slowly and is not easily perceived.  It begins small, perhaps with the slow prodding of the teacher in a preschool Sunday School class, where one wonders if a seed has been planted at all amid the chaos.  But years later we see the fully-grown man or woman of God ready to take their place in the Kingdom.  Perhaps it begins with the sudden regeneration of the drug addict, but who wins the battle against addiction only after years of struggle that brought him to his knees on so many occasions.  Human sin is such that it is not easily overcome in this life, but overcome it will be, and God’s people shall be released.

We have need of patience in this life.  We know how it all ends, but we often grow weary with the struggle.  This woman was bound eighteen years with her disability.  But the day came in which she experienced God’s liberation in an instant.  We too are being delivered and await our complete liberation which shall surely come (1 John 3:2-3).

Author: The Reformed Baptist

My name is Stephen Taylor, ordained Baptist minister of eighteen years pastoral experience with a Ph.D. in Historical Theology from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Better than that, I am married to a godly woman, Karla, who has been very patient with me since 1989. I have two daughters, both of whom I homeschooled for extended periods of time, who became godly young women, and who ran off and married godly young men, all of which is very proper. The oldest daughter has even seen fit to bless me with a grandson and a granddaughter, and my youngest daughter with a grandson, all three of whom are bundles of exceeding joy. As you can see, I am quite blessed. This website is dedicated to helping people grow in the wisdom and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ through the gift of writing that the Lord has given to me. It is specifically about helping His people grow in godliness, the theme you see repeated above. I write devotions with this aim and hope that they might be of some help to God’s people. Full disclosure: I am of a Reformed bent, meaning that my understanding of Scripture is primarily informed by the Reformers and their successors of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. However, as a student of church history and theology, I strive to remain true to that teaching handed down once for all unto the saints through every age of the Church. I like to think of myself as a “catholic” Christian, as the Reformers thought of themselves. At any rate, feel free to read, pray, and contact me if you wish, or correct me if need be. As you can see, I tend to follow the church year. Of course, I make no special claims about these devotions. I know very well that others have written better and plumbed the depths of God’s word with greater insight. But if my musings help someone draw closer to the Lord, well then, I have my reward. Blessings to you and may the God and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ speak to you that word which He knows you especially need to hear. Grace & peace, Stephen Taylor View all posts by The Reformed Baptist