“Eighteen LONG years” (Part 3)

Luke 13:10 On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, 11 and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, “Woman, you are set free from your infirmity.” 13 Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.

So let us conclude here.   This woman had been bent over for eighteen years. Eighteen long years. Jesus did not forget her experience of year after year of shuffling along, most likely in pain and definitely with lost dignity.  Jesus cared.

Our response today would be to organize a special bus to get her to church on Sunday to hear why God doesn’t heal anymore.  For the deaf, our response would be to hire a “signer” so they can follow along with the sermon on how miracles died out with the last of the apostles.

Man’s idea of compassion is not Jesus idea of compassion.  In their fear, pastors preach their experience and avoid any topic that actually involves them exercising their faith.  Shame. Shame.  Jesus said we would do greater works.  Now we lay on buses and learn to sign.  We would rather drive the old lady to church for 20 years than have the courage to pray until she gets relief…

Don’t misread me.  I’m not churlish.  I’m not against buses and signers.  Use them if you need them. Especially if healing takes time.  But Jesus showed us He has something better than pity.  Its called healing.

No wonder the world largely ignores the gospel.  Why?  Because there is no power.  Paul came with power.  Philip came with power (and no, Philip wasn’t an apostle, so let’s stop that silly line of thinking before it starts!).  Know what happened whan Philip came to Samaria with power?

^Acts8:5 Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. ⁶ When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. ⁷ For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. ⁸ So there was great joy in that city.

It was when they heard Philip AND saw the signs he performed that they paid attention to him and there was revival. Perhaps that’s why few pay attention to the Christian message today.  Perhaps too few signs are performed.

In the case of the old woman bowed over eighteen years, I believe Jesus teaches us a thing about true compassion here. We seldom have true compassion anymore, just something that passes for it in our minds.  We won’t pay the price to see the greater works, so we delight in the works of our hands.

The legalists as usual, were concerned about Jesus healing on the Sabbath.  So Jesus poses the question to those hard-hearted ones… after suffering for 18 years, should Jesus have had to wait for the Sabbath to heal her?

Glory to God, she should be healed immediately. If she was your mother or sister or daughter, your answer would be yes!

So if you are sick, Jesus, who never changes, says: You should be healed! The mind of God would not have us sick a single day longer.

The minute we renew our minds with the Word of God and not the ways of men, and we begin to believe and act this way, that is the time we allow the Holy Spirit within us to move us unto “greater works”.