Back
LESSON 2 - MOVED THROUGH COMPASSION (LUKE 13:10-17)
Copr. 1997, Bruce N. Cameron, J.D. All Scripture references are to
the NIV unless otherwise noted. Suggested answers are found within
parentheses. The lesson assumes the teacher uses a blackboard.
INTRODUCTION: This week our study is the motivation for Jesus'
healing as revealed through the healing of a woman.
I. WHY?
A. Why do you think Jesus' healed?
1. What motivated Him to heal the sick while He was here
on earth? (Let's look at a story of healing to see if we
can find out.)
II. THE HUMPBACK
A. Turn with me to Luke 13:10-17. While I read this, I ask you
to put yourself in this story. Read.
B. Tell me what is wrong with this woman? (Her back was bent
so that she could not stand up straight.)
1. How would this disability interfere with your life?
(Difficulty reaching up. Hard to carry things.)
2. Do you think it was painful? (Back problems generally
are painful.)
3. Was this a birth defect? (No. The fact that v.11
specifies 18 years makes it appear that it was something
that came on her.)
4. Just how did this bent back "come on her?" (Both v.11
and v.16 say that Satan was responsible for her back
problem.)
5. Was she a sinful woman? (It seems that, like last
week, we have a person who is thought to be under the
sway of sin. However, note that she is in the synagogue
on Sabbath.)
6. Let's look at our composite picture of this woman. She
was probably in pain, had a hard time doing her daily
activities and was thought to be in her situation because
of her sin! Would it be reasonable for someone in her
place to think she had a lousy life?(Yes!)
C. Did this woman rush in to be healed by Jesus? Or was she
a worshipper?
1. Had she come to worship or be healed?
2. How does she compare with the 4 guys last week and the
paralytic? (Nothing like them. Instead of forcing her way
into the attention of Jesus, v. 12 says that Jesus "saw
her" and "called her forward.")
D. Notice the timing in vv. 12-13. Jesus first says, "You are
set free from your infirmity." Next, He puts his hands on her
and she straightens up.
1. What was her infirmity? (Obviously her back was one.)
What about (v.11) "being crippled by a spirit?"
2. Remember last week in the parable of the paralyzed guy
who went through the roof, Jesus first said, "Your sins
are forgiven." Is this like that?
E. What motivated Jesus to heal her?
1. Jesus tells us (Luke 12:6) that God remembers even the
sparrows. How is it that God "did not notice" this woman
at any time in the past 18 years? How is it that she
gets "noticed" only when Jesus is in the synagogue that
Sabbath?
a. Our lesson suggests that Jesus healed because of
compassion. Does this show that something more
important is at work than compassion? If it was
just compassion, and God knew about her for the
past 18 years (because He even knows about small
birds), wouldn't compassion require an earlier
healing?
(1) If you are in pain, would you say I was
showing compassion if I waited 18 years to
relieve your pain?
(We are going to have to unravel more of this story before we can
answer this question. So let's push on.)
III. THE AUTHORITY
A. Let's read v.14 again. Is the synagogue ruler yelling at
Jesus? (Not directly. He is yelling at the people for coming
to be healed on Sabbath. The message is for Jesus.)
1. Is the ruler right? Is there any reason why this
woman needs to be healed "in church" as opposed to on
Friday? Is this some kind of emergency?
B. Jesus answer calls the ruler a hypocrite for being willing
to water his animal on Sabbath, but not willing to allow Jesus
to heal the woman on Sabbath.
1. Isn't Jesus missing an important difference? Don't
animals need to be watered every day? Fed every day?
2. This woman's need to be healed is not a daily
requirement is it? The healing problem could have been
fixed once for all on Friday -- and she would not have
needed to be healed again on Sabbath, right?
IV. UNTIED
A. Let's look at Jesus' reproof to the Synagogue ruler from
another angle. Is there any way that the ruler could have
watered his donkey without untying it and taking it down to
the water on Sabbath? (I am no farmer, but I have a dog. (My
dog is one of those "fluff dogs" -- so maybe she does not
qualify as a "real dog.") My vast knowledge of animal
husbandry, gained from my fluff dog, is that if you wanted to
avoid working on Sabbath you would bring the water in a bowl
over to the dog!)
1. Why not put water in a bucket by the animal on Friday
so that it could drink on Sabbath without breaking the
Sabbath?! Do they need us to think of everything?!
B. Is Jesus' point the watering of the animal? Is that
the focus of His illustration? (No! The focus of the
illustration is the UNTYING! Look at this carefully. The
untying of the animal allowed it to drink on its own. The
untying of the woman allowed her to straighten up.)
C. How was the woman "untied?" (Satan's power was broken.)
1. Which was the focus of Jesus' miracle for her? The
straightening of her back? Or the defeat of Satan's power
over her? (Defeat of Satan.)
2. Can you think of any reason now why God waited 18
years to heal her? (Jesus came to this earth to defeat
Satan's power. He came to "untie" you and me. This
lady's curved spine was quite secondary to Satan's grip
over her.
--That is why Jesus could wait 18 years.
--That is why Jesus FIRST said to her "You are set
free from your infirmity.
--That is why Jesus first said to the paralyzed guy,
"Your sins are forgiven.")
D. Remember that I started out asking about Jesus' motivation
to heal? What do you say now was His motivation?
1. Is it compassion?
2. Do you see compassion in His waiting 18 years? (Jesus
has the intelligent approach to compassion. Straightening
her back was not the root problem. Untying her from sin
attacked the root problem. Untying us from sin is the
main goal. The bent back was just one (of many) symptoms
of sin. Jesus gave His life to "untie" her from sin.
Talk about compassion! Talk about sacrifice! That is the
ultimate compassion to give up your life to free
another.)
E. What can we do today to "untie" people from Satan?
1. Are indiscriminate handouts to homeless people
"untying" them?
a. Are temporary fixes helping or hurting the
"tying" situation?
(1) Consider last quarter's parable of the
prodigal son. Would a "temporary handout"
have helped him when he was in "pig city?"
b. Turn with me to 1 Timothy 5:9-13, 15. Read. Does
this appear to be harsh?
(1) What is Paul's point? (He understands the
most important part of helping someone is the
"untying" part. If you were to help the
"younger" widows, you will enable them to be
idlers and thus cause them to be more tied to
Satan (v. 15) instead of freeing them from
being tied to Satan.)
c. Do we, like Jesus, have to give up our lives to
help those in need? Is that the only true
compassion? How can we do that? (You have to take
your time to learn about them and their situation.
This means that just giving out money is not the
best answer and may not even be the right answer.)
d. Notice Jesus healed in the synagogue. We (I) am
fearful about tromping downtown to "give up my
life" for the needy. Is it OK to wait for them to
come to me? (Hope so. Cannot help everyone, but can
help those in your path. The idea that we must take
the steps that will "untie" the individual from sin
strengthens the idea that your obligation is to
those who cross your path, those whose situations
you can know -- and not everyone in the world.)
F. What can we say in conclusion is Jesus principal goal in
healing? (To help break the bondage of sin.)
1. Does that help us to get a little illumination into
the question of why Jesus heals some people today in
response to prayer and does not heal others? (We may have
a different goal. Our goal is to give our friend life.
Jesus' goal is to break the bondage of sin for our friend
and all those involved in the situation.)
V. NEXT WEEK: "His Healing Touch." Study!