The Devil In The Details

Luke 13:10-17  Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.  (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?”  (17)  As he said these things, all his adversaries were put to shame, and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.

THE DEVIL IN THE DETAILS

Text: Luke 13:10 -17

I read this funny anecdote about halfheartedness. It goes like this…

“These days, not everyone has compassion. Recently I heard about a Psychiatric Hotline. [If you] “…dialed the number …” [you would] “... receive the following options:

“If you are obsessive-compulsive please press 1 repeatedly.

“If you are co-dependent, please ask someone to press 2.

“If you have multiple personalities, please press 3, 4, 5 and 6.

“If you are schizophrenic, listen carefully and a little voice will tell you which number to press.

“If you are paranoid-delusional, we know who you are and what you want. Just stay on the line while we trace this call.” (Edward K. Rowell and Bonne L. Steffen. Humor for Preaching and Teaching. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1996, p. 85). We can see the humor to each of these scenarios. Yet, it is no laughing matter when you or someone you know has suffered for a long time without a healing solution. We don’t want a phone call solution, we want a Savior who can heal us and save us!

The woman in today’s text suffered for eighteen years before she got a healing solution. Many have speculated what it was that made her bend over because she had been troubled by a spirit all of those years. Was it spiritual, mental, physical? Was she abused? Was it scoliosis? Was it osteoporosis? No matter what it was, Satan was the cause of it. This condition caused her not to be able to stand up straight.

Often, when there is something wrong in us and in our world Satan is the cause of it. There are even many today who cannot be free because of how Satan has bound them. Paul reminds us that “… we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12 ESV). How many are bound today by Satan in the darkness of our culture here in America?

Consider 1 Corinthians_14:33  For God is not a God of confusion but of peace (ESV). Jesus had come to bring peace in the midst of confusion. 1 John_3:8  reminds us that “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (ESV). Three things we can glean from today’s text are community, contradiction and compassion.

COMMUNITY

Can communities contradict their purpose? God’s purpose is for us to grow inwardly in our faith and outwardly in our fellowship that we might be fruitful for His kingdom.

1) Inclusiveness: How much unity is there in community? The answer to that question depends on the given community.

2) Exclusiveness: For some, its Jesus and me or Jesus and those just like us.

3) Discipleship: God does wants us to grow inwardly but God also wants us to be fishers of men who lead others to the Lord Christ. Christ called us as disciples to be the light of the world and salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13 -16).

4) Visibility: The light cannot be concealed and the salt must not be contained. How can we share something that we are trying to hide?

Is the Body of Christ a club or a church?

1) Context: When we explore how this text is placed in Luke we see the first part of Luke 13 (verses 1- 5) is about repentance which means to confess, repent and make a 180 degree turn.