Skip to main content

Freed from Ailments

When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said,
 “Woman, you are set free from your ailment.” 
When he laid his hands on her, 
immediately she stood up straight
 and began praising God.

Currently there are a lot of news reports about the law describing various actions, opinions, and projections about what will be the next event. 

Each report about the law seems to be based on a right/wrong principle without any middle ground for discussion.

This scripture from Luke got my attention with the phrase "free from your ailment".

It got my attention because I see the tensions in the news reports as an ailment from which our society needs to be freed.

Consider the woman for a moment. 

For eighteen years, she has viewed the world from waist level, she hasn’t been able to look anyone in the eye for a long time.

Probably, she is a faithful, law-abiding member of this synagogue since she’s there worshipping on Saturday, even with the effort it took attend.

Jesus sees her, stops teaching, calls her to him, tells her she is free from her ailment, and touches her.

She stands up straight praising God.

The well-intended synagogue leader reminds Jesus the healing could be breaking God's law.

Jesus points out that, in this instance, freeing the woman from her aliment takes priority over the law.

While I think God's kingdom may come before the news reports of freedom from our world's ailments, I am confident there is healing taking place.

I am confident of the aliments being healed because I see it every Sunday.

Folks arrive at church needing to be freed from all kinds of ailments weighing down their souls.

People with vastly different points of view, enter the church, and giving Grace priority, worship together.

Jesus touches our lives through singing, prayer, hearing the Word, and breaking bread at the Lord's table.

Because Jesus touches our lives, we stand up straight praising God.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Ruler of All Earthly Kings

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. (from Rev. 1:4-8 ) About 17 years ago I wrote a letter to the people in the United Church of Underhill. The purpose of the letter was to explain I was retiring at the end of the Conference Year. I felt the time had come for me personally to move on and for the church to grow with a new pastor. I secured a moving company while the church formed a search committee as we both prepared for the inevitable. This is the nature of the book of Revelation, as recorded in 1:4: “John, to the seven churches in the province of Asia.” This is Revelation’s context: it was written for the benefit of particular people at a particular time for their particular situation. John’s letter narrates a drama about God’s imminent invasion of the “kingdom of this world” ...

Grantchester's Warning

"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, the owner would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (from Luke 12:32-40 ) I regularly watch Grantchester; a murder mystery set in 1950s England. The main characters are a local detective and an Anglican priest who, as a team, solve mysteries set in the town. Two aspects of Grantchester impress me. First, the simplicity of the 1950’s police communications done by a landline phone and not cell phone. Second, the simplicity of daily life with little television and fewer possessions allowing the characters to focus on their vocation of detective and priest. This simplicity is more than a nostalgic return to the “good old days”. Instead, it’s a Shaker type of simplicity where austerity allows freedom from distractions to focus on worship and community. Today’s distraction-filled world has seemingly countless activ...

Jesus, Deliverance, and Demons

"Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind." (from Luke 8:26-39 ) Astrid is a streaming program I often watch. The plot is a basic cops and robbers action until the criminal is caught. The uniqueness of the program is Astrid, who is on the Autism spectrum, is brilliant at solving puzzles including connecting clues to solve the crime. Watching this program has given me a more profound insight to people living with this condition and their acceptance in society. My first-hand experience with children on the Spectrum was driving a Special Needs school bus for 6 years. With this experience, I can imagine the life the possessed man was experiencing, especially living among the tombs, bound with chains and shackles, having to live in the wilds. It was no wonder he cried for mercy. Jesus, with his power and mercy, cast the demons out and even...