A Woman with a Disabling Spirit

10 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. 

Hello everyone, I am kiki. Chinese name of our second phase of the program is “读经大讲堂”. The English name is “Bible study”.
We will adopt a relaxed also enjoyable learning mode to take you into a new learning world. Each time I will make a personal summary and analysis from the perspective of a learner, and then Sister Ingrid will help me conduct in-depth learning and problem discussions with everybody.
I hope that such an interesting and interactive process can bring new knowledge experience to you all. The following is my interview with sister on related issues. Today is the 38th lecture on the Gospel of Luke.
Everyone is welcome to leave a message in the comment area for discussion!

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2. My Summary of Luke 38th-Time Study

Well, everybody! Firstly, this is my personal study summary for today.

A woman had a problem for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not stand up straight. It was like a bad spirit was causing her pain.

One Sabbath day, Jesus was teaching in a synagogue. He saw the woman. He called her over and said, “You are free from your problem.” Then he touched her. Right away, she stood up straight! She was so happy that she praised God.

But the leader of the synagogue was angry. He said to the people, “There are six days to work. People should come to be healed on those days, not on the Sabbath.”

Jesus answered him, “You hypocrites! On the Sabbath, every one of you unties his ox or donkey and takes it to get water. So why shouldn’t this woman be freed from her suffering on the Sabbath? She is a daughter of Abraham. Satan has kept her sick for eighteen years.”

After Jesus said this, his enemies felt ashamed. But all the people were very happy. They celebrated all the wonderful things Jesus did.

Well, what I think is: Rules are important, but helping people is even more important. Jesus showed that doing good is always right—even on a rest day.

Now let Sister Ingrid give a further summary.

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3. Sister’s Comment on My Study Summary

Hello everybody. Something that stood out to me was that the woman could only come to the synagogue on a Sabbath to be healed.

The argument of the synagogue rulers—that people should come on the other six days—was totally ridiculous, because Jesus was only in the synagogue on the Sabbath to preach. On the other days, he was in the fields preaching or in the homes of suffering people, helping them.

The woman in this text was bent over by an unclean spirit, and the spirit had held her in this condition for 18 years. Eighteen years is the length of a whole childhood, so we can see that this is a very long time.

I am sure that she was not able to walk long distances. That is why she came to the synagogue on a Sabbath to be healed. She had hope that Jesus would be in the synagogue she went to, and indeed he was there, and he called her and healed her.

After the synagogue rulers rebuked her for coming on the Sabbath to be healed, Jesus called them to show mercy to her. Even though she was bound by a bad spirit, she was a daughter of Abraham—in other words, a woman who belonged to the people of Israel and was not a stranger.

The teaching we get from this text is that we may come to Jesus at any time to be healed and to receive help. Above all, he has great mercy and love for us, and it does not matter to him which day of the week it is.

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4. Question List Based on Luke 38

Okay. Based on the Bible study above, now let me ask Sister some related questions.

We hope the following questions can be helpful to our brothers and sisters who have just become Christians.

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1. Why couldn’t the woman stand up straight, and how long had she been like that?

She was bound by a bad spirit and had been in that condition for 18 years.

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2. What did Jesus do to heal the woman?

First, he spoke to her, then he put his hand on her.

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3. How did the woman react after she was healed?

She praised God.

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4. Why was the ruler of the synagogue angry at Jesus?

Because he healed on a Sabbath, and it was not allowed to work on the Sabbath.

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5. What did the synagogue ruler tell the people to do instead of getting healed on the Sabbath?

He told them that there are six days in a week when it is allowed to work, and they should come on those days.

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6. What example did Jesus use to show that the ruler was being a hypocrite?

When you have animals, you give them water even if it is the Sabbath.

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7. According to Jesus, why was it right to heal the woman on the Sabbath?

Because she had been suffering for a long time, and she was also a daughter of Abraham.

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8. What happened to Jesus’ enemies after he said these things?

They were put to shame.

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9. How did the ordinary people feel about all the wonderful things Jesus did?

They praised God that he has mercy on people.

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10. Even if someone commits heinous crimes, would Jesus truly set their soul free if they genuinely repent?

Yes, of course.

Now, during these Easter days, we remember that Jesus died on the cross.

He died there for the sins of all humanity. He does not distinguish between small and big sins. He died for all, and so even those who committed very serious sins will receive forgiveness.

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