Flashback Episode — The Unpopular Miracle: Luke 13:10-17


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One thing I am amazed by when I read the gospels is how Jesus loved and helped people in need regardless of what cultural or society wanted to pressure Him into doing or not doing. It would seem that in Jesus’ eyes, any interpretation of the Law that wasn’t framed in a loving way could be laid aside in favor of doing some type of loving action.

In our walk through the gospels this year, we come to a great example of Jesus doing exactly this: Jesus appeared to set the Law aside in favor of loving someone who needed help. This event can be found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 13, and we will be reading it from the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 10:

10 Jesus was teaching in a synagogue on the day of rest—a holy day. [A quick side-note I’ll insert here is that most translations simply say Jesus was teaching on the Sabbath in this verse.] 11 A woman who was possessed by a spirit was there. The spirit had disabled her for 18 years. She was hunched over and couldn’t stand up straight. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her to come to him and said, “Woman, you are free from your disability.” 13 He placed his hands on her, and she immediately stood up straight and praised God.

14 The synagogue leader was irritated with Jesus for healing on the day of worship. The leader told the crowd, “There are six days when work can be done. So come on one of those days to be healed. Don’t come on the day of rest—a holy day.”

15 The Lord said, “You hypocrites! Don’t each of you free your ox or donkey on the day of rest—a holy day? Don’t you then take it out of its stall to give it some water to drink? 16 Now, here is a descendant of Abraham. Satan has kept her in this condition for 18 years. Isn’t it right to free her on the day of rest—a holy day?”

17 As he said this, everyone who opposed him felt ashamed. But the entire crowd was happy about the miraculous things he was doing.

When reading this event, I am amazed at the mindset of the synagogue leader. From what happens, we can conclude the synagogue leader believed Jesus to be a doctor by trade who also happened to have a great grasp of the scriptures and public speaking. If the synagogue leader didn’t like Jesus, he would not have permitted Jesus to teach at the synagogue that day, but he also didn’t believe Jesus’ occupation to be more than a physician, because when someone appears who needs healing, he classifies this as Jesus’ “work”.

This framing is interesting, because it is about the lowest bar one could have for accepting Jesus. By this point in Jesus’ ministry, the religious leaders could not deny the fact that Jesus could heal virtually any disease. Those in the temple likely were getting tired of unclean people asking to be cleared for entrance back into society – and it probably irritated some of them knowing that Jesus was behind each healing. The religious leaders could not disprove Jesus was a miracle worker – especially with regard to healing others.

However, these religious leaders did not want to take any further steps towards Jesus. They wall themselves off from the truth by simply framing Jesus as a very skilled doctor. Doctors “work” like other professionals do, and that meant that they needed to take the Sabbath off like other professional laborers did.

But when we look at Jesus’ ministry, healing was more like a hobby than a profession. While Jesus healed countless people, and exponentially more people than the Bible had room to include, Jesus seemed to focus equally on teaching the crowds about God’s kingdom, and helping give people opportunities to praise God.

Jesus came to challenge those who thought they had their lives spirituality figured out, and to love those who needed love and help. In the case of this passage, Jesus’ response to those who were upset at His healing frames God’s love perfectly. Jesus frames this healing by saying in verses 15 and 16: “Don’t each of you free your ox or donkey on the day of rest—a holy day? Don’t you then take it out of its stall to give it some water to drink? Now, here is a descendant of Abraham. Satan has kept her in this condition for 18 years. Isn’t it right to free her on the day of rest—a holy day?

This simple challenge elevated this formerly crippled woman’s status not just to the status of healed, but Jesus points out that she is a descendant of Abraham, just like they are, and elevates her status to one of an equal member of society. In contrast, the livestock that the Jews owned probably didn’t carry the same designation. There wouldn’t be any way to truly know or track whether that synagogue leader’s ox or donkey had descended from Abraham’s ox or donkey – and it was hypocritical for the leaders to be kind to their livestock when they were not willing to be kind to one of their own.

But challenging these religious leaders was not the reason Jesus healed this woman. When we look at the context of the story, Jesus only speaks out after they show dissatisfaction for what He did. Unlike some other times we read about in the gospels, there is nothing in this passage to indicate that this miracle was a setup.

Instead, when I read this event and this miracle, I see the reason Jesus performed it hinging on the healed woman’s response to the healing. Verses 12 and 13 frame this miracle and the woman’s response perfectly: “When Jesus saw her, he called her to come to him and said, ‘Woman, you are free from your disability.’ He placed his hands on her, and she immediately stood up straight and praised God.

We discover that the first thing the woman does following being healed is that she praises God. What better reason for healing her could there be? Jesus healed this woman because He knew she would praise God. This woman had the right focus. Jesus didn’t heal her to get credit or to get people looking at Him; He healed her so that those who were present could praise God with her!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As you move through life, look for opportunities where you can praise God. While you might not witness a firsthand miracle on a Sabbath day, there are plenty of other things we can be grateful and thankful to God for. When a blessing from God comes to mind, let’s give God the credit and the glory that He deserves.

Also, be sure to always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your personal relationship with God each day. Regular prayer and Bible study are two of the best ways to grow your relationship with God on a strong foundation, and we make it a personal relationship when we personally study. Pastors or podcasters can give us things to think about, but never let me or anyone else get between you and Jesus.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

Flashback Episode: Year 4 – Episode 28: Discover what happens when Jesus heals a woman in a synagogue one Sabbath. Is this miracle met with praise and thanks or does Jesus receive criticism for working on the Sabbath? Learn how we can apply what Jesus says and does in our own lives 2,000+ years later.

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