Good Shepherd Lutheran

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord
Ever hear the term “bent out of shape”? When we’re upset about something we say we’re “bent out of shape” about it. Being that way seems pretty common in today’s crazy world.
In the story of the healing of the woman who had been bent over for eighteen years we see two people who were bent out of shape. One was a woman who was physically bent out of shape and the other was a rabbi, a legalist, who was spiritually bent out of shape. Jesus was able to help one of them, but the other one chose to cling to his affliction.
Luke 13:10-16 tells us that Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath when a woman appeared who had been crippled for eighteen years. She was bent over and was unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called to her and said, “Woman, you are set free from your ailment.” And when he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, “There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day.” But Jesus answered him saying, “You hypocrites! Don’t all of you untie your ox or your donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water even on the Sabbath Day? And shouldn’t this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day, too?”
This story of healing should touch every one of us. We may not be bent out of shape like the crippled woman, but maybe we’re bent out of shape like the man bound and crippled by his rules and legalism. Whatever our affliction, Jesus wants to set us free today.
Whatever is broken in your life, Jesus can fix it. If you’re bent out of shape by suffering, Jesus sees you and calls you. He came to set you free from bondage, and once He touches you, you’ll never be the same again! Whether you’re bent out of shape by physical disability or by your enslavement to a legalistic interpretation of religious rules, Jesus can free you from your affliction. But only if you’re willing to accept his gift of healing and grace.
So, how will you respond? Will you just keep blindly following rules like the synagogue leader? Or will you stand up like the crippled woman and join her in heartfelt praise?
Jesus is walking toward you, reaching out to touch you. He’s ready to heal you of your brokenness, to restore you to wholeness and claim you as his own. How you respond is up to you.
All I can say is, ‘Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!’