Hi, my name is George Sinclair. I'm the lead pastor of Church of the Messiah. It is wonderful
that you would like to check out some of the sermons done by Church of the Messiah, either
by myself or some of the others. Listen, just a couple of things. First of all, would you pray
for us that we will open God's Word well to His glory and for the good of people like yourself?
The second thing is, if you aren't connected to a church and if you are a Christian, we really,
I would really like to encourage you to find a good local church where they believe the Bible,
they preach the gospel, and if you have some trouble finding that, send us an email. We will
do what we can to help connect you with a good local church wherever you are. And if you're a
non-Christian checking us out, we're really, really, really glad you're doing that. Don't
hesitate to send us questions. It helps me actually to know, as I'm preaching, how to deal with the
types of things that you're really struggling with. So God bless.
I'm going to introduce our guest speaker, just very briefly, and then do you want me to pray
for you or do you want to pray for yourself? Please pray for me.
Okay, you can come a bit closer here so you're in the camera. We want those people online to be
able to see you. This is my brother, John. He grew up in Scarborough, and he became a Christian.
Was it the wheel that had just been invented or was it fire that had just been invented? One of the
two, right? A few years ago now. 1972. 1972. So he became a Christian in 1972, and after a variety of
adventures, et cetera, he married a wife somewhere in this whole process. Him and his wife, Andrea,
who's with us today, they went to the mission field in the Philippines for 10 years. He was the
pastor of a large church in Scarborough, Morningstar Christian Fellowship for a few years, more than a
few years, and then 18 years, and then West Highland Baptist Church in Hamilton for how long?
15 and a half.
15 and a half years, and he retired about a year ago.
Less than.
Actually, you should know, just before he retired, he broke 75 years of church history by allowing an
Anglican to speak at church, and then shortly after that, he retired. That was sort of what it was. I was
the Anglican, by the way, that he had speak at his church, and he's been the speaker this weekend on
demonology, basically, and we're really blessed that he will open the word for us this morning.
So let's just bow our heads in prayer. Father, we thank you for this. Our brother, John, who is your
servant. He is a pastor and elder. Thank you that he is here today with us, that he is here with his
wife, Andrea. Thank you for the children that you've blessed them with, the grandchildren that you have
blessed them with. Father, we ask that your Holy Spirit would anoint him as he speaks, and that your Holy
Spirit would anoint us as we listen, and we ask, Father, that your word would enter into our hearts
and would form us at a very, very deep level. And we ask these things in the name of Jesus,
your Son and our Savior. Amen. Welcome, John.
Thank you.
Well, thank you very much, Pastor. It's good to be with you all today. And you may not be aware of this,
but your church has been on my heart for a number of years. George has shared with me the story of
the Church of the Messiah. And it was about 12 years ago that we were actually gathered in the offices of
your church. And it was then that the Gospel Coalition in Canada got formed. And so I've had a
deep appreciation for this ministry for years and the part that it has played in forming a movement
that is nationwide. And praise God for that. Well, as was mentioned, I was the speaker at the Dig and
Delve conference this past weekend. And it was my privilege to do so, to be there. And I'm grateful to
God for the opportunity to speak then and for the opportunity to share with you this morning from
God's Word. The passage of Scripture that was read, Luke chapter 13, is the text that I would like to
speak to you from. And if you have a Bible or you have a Bible app on your phone, you may want to just
turn there at this point in time. Luke chapter 13, verses 10 through 17. There's a short verse in
Luke chapter 6, which refers to Jesus healing people who were troubled by evil spirits. Sometimes
that's translated tormented by evil spirits. The word torment is a bit strong. The word troubled is
probably something that we can all imagine. We can all get our heads around that. To be tormented by
evil spirits would be to suffer in an incredible way. But either way, these were individuals afflicted
by the demonic. And interestingly, this is a theme. It's a theme in the Gospel of Luke, one of Luke's
themes. As Dr. Luke sat down, inspired by the Holy Spirit to write this, this is one of the themes that
the Holy Spirit guided him to speak on or to write on. We know that there are a number of stories in the
three Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, in which Jesus is involved in casting out or driving out evil
spirits out of people. There are actually 22 references to this in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Now, seven of
those are just general summaries of what Jesus did. They just simply said that this is what he was doing,
and he was also healing people and preaching. But there are another seven more specific accounts
where a little bit of a story is there concerning the individuals out of whom he cast spirits.
And there are four where we have a very detailed analysis of what actually happened. And Luke chapter 13
is one of those four. Here we have a very specific account of what Jesus did. Now, interestingly,
this is the only record of this story, and it's recorded by Luke. Some of the other Gospel writers
pick up on the same stories, and they give their slant or their perspective on what Jesus did. But this
one is found only in the Gospel of Luke. And interestingly, it is the last account in the Gospels
of Jesus casting out demons. Now, Luke, as we know, was a physician. He had a medical mind. And so he was
very interested in the healing miracles of Jesus. He actually gives a diagnosis. He describes the healings
in a way that only a doctor could. And this one is different in that this is a healing that involves
an evil spirit. And Luke mentions that here. Now, here's what I want to do today. I want to approach
this passage in three different ways. First of all, as I speak, you will notice I'm going to make some
what I would call observations. In other words, we're going to see what actually happened.
In the midst of the observations, the second thing I'm going to do is to give some explanations,
to share some interpretation, or we might call them insights as to what we are observing in the
passage. And then right at the end, we're going to go to the application piece. And I want to give
you three takeaways that I think we can apply to our lives today from this passage. So I want you to see
here first of all what I'm calling the binding work of Satan, the binding work of the evil one. Now,
this is an ugly, ugly truth, that Satan has the ability to afflict the human body, to bind the human body.
In other words, to incapacitate a human being from a lesser to an even greater degree. And he does this
through evil spirits, through demons. This is exactly what it says here in verse 11. There was a woman
when Jesus was there in the synagogue teaching, who had been, it says in my translation, the New International
Version, crippled by a spirit for 18 years. In the passage that was read, which we had on the screen from the
English Standard Version, it says that she had a disabling spirit. The New American Standard Bible says it was a
sickness caused by an evil spirit. And the old King James Version of the Bible refers to this as a spirit of
infirmity. Now, what I want you to do, this is an important thing. I want you to, it's important that
you allow right now this ugly truth to settle into your minds. Don't allow this ugly truth to pass you by.
I don't know how you're like when you're watching the news, but when Russia initially invaded the Ukraine,
I was on the news constantly hearing everything that was going on. When this horrific attack happened
in Israel, and now the fighting that's happening in Gaza, I was focused on the news constantly. I wanted
all the information of the ugliness of what was going on. But I'm at the point now where I just kind
of turn it off. Don't want to hear it anymore. So I don't want you to do that now. I want you to allow
this truth, this ugly truth to settle into your mind. Don't let it pass by. Satan is able to bind
and incapacitate human beings. I want you to notice also in the passage that
Luke identifies this not as a sickness or an illness only. To put it this way, she did not have
just an infirmity. She did not just have an illness. She did not just have a debilitating physical
condition. That's not what Luke focuses on. Luke tells us, and he stresses this, that this was a spirit
that crippled her. It was something outside of her body that had entered her body. It was attached to her body.
Now, I'm emphasizing that because there are a number of paraphrases that have been written on this passage
or written on the whole Bible. And unfortunately, those paraphrases of the Bible actually lead us
astray and don't give us accurate information as to what happened here. For example, the J.B. Phillips
paraphrase of God's word is a paraphrase that I have used for years. I love to read it.
It brings some incredible insight into what actually happened in more modern words. But on this text,
the Phillips translation is inaccurate and misleading because it refers to this woman as suffering from a
psychological cause. All in the mind. The Living Bible does the same thing and says that she was
seriously handicapped. And that's all it says. And so that gives to us the impression that this was just a
physical ailment that the woman had. This was just something mental. But Luke makes it clear that the
root is not physiological and the root is not psychological. The root of her difficulty was
spiritual. And we have to underscore this truth that the Bible actually makes a distinction between
illnesses that are physical or mental and those that are spiritual in nature. For example, in Mark
chapter 1, verses 32 through 34, we have one of those little summaries of what Jesus did. And it refers to
him healing people of diseases. And then it says, and he cast out demons. In other words, there were people who
were just physically, psychologically sick. And then there were people who were spiritually sick. They had demons.
And Mark makes it clear that Jesus healed both groups. The same thing as we find in Matthew chapter 10,
where Jesus gives authority to the disciples to go and to cast out demons and to heal the sick. And in Matthew 10,
it's very, very clear. It says they had authority to cast out demons. And, and it says, and every kind of disease and sickness. So the Bible makes a distinction between the two. And Luke, as a physician,
was able to discern that there is a difference also. So here in chapter 13, we see Satan's work.
And this work is done through evil spirits. Now, it says here she was, she was crippled by a spirit.
And I'm going to pick up on the old authorized version phrase, a spirit of infirmity. In other words, this was a particular
kind of demon. This was a demon that specialized in this particular work. And I emphasize that because in Mark
chapter 9, we have another story of, of a little boy who has a demon, and the father is distraught over the, over the state of his son.
And he brings his son to the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, first, he brought his son to the disciples of Christ.
Jesus was up on the mount of transfiguration with Peter, James, and John, and the other nine disciples had
remained below. And it was these nine that the man approached. And he asked them to deal with these evil
spirits. And they tried, but they couldn't. Then Jesus came down off the mountain. And immediately, he was
able to set this little boy free. The disciples went to Jesus afterwards and said, Lord, why couldn't we do it?
And it's, it's a good question that they asked because Jesus had already given them prior to this
authority to drive out demons. But this time they were stumped and couldn't do it. And Jesus said to
them, this kind comes out only by prayer. Meaning there are different kinds of demons and some are more
stronger than others. Just as we know that some human beings are stronger than others. There are different
kinds of demons. Just as we know there are different kinds of angels. We know that God's angels are,
some of them bring a message. Some of them protect. Some of them are warriors. They are described in
different ways and sometimes given different names. And the same is true in the spirit world when it comes
to demons. Sometimes demons are called evil or unclean spirits.
Which speaks of their essential nature. That's what they really are. They are evil. And everything
they do is evil. And everything they produce is evil. Sometimes the Bible refers to evil spirits as being
familiar spirits. And this is normally associated with an occultic work of consulting the dead, a spiritist
or a medium who is going to help you to speak to the dead, the so-called dead. And this is a familiar
spirit. People who do that kind of thing have familiar spirits. In Matthew 9, there was another man and he
had a deaf and a mute spirit. Another kind of spirit. And in Ephesians 6, the apostle Paul tells us
that our struggle is not against flesh and blood. It's not a physical battle that we're engaged in as
believers. But it's against the rulers, the authorities, the powers, and the spiritual forces of this world.
I used to think that Paul was just sort of using different words to explain the same kind of
beings. But I think he's actually describing a hierarchy of evil spirits and the spiritual forces
of evil that are on this earth. Now Luke records this for us and he gives special attention to it
and he diagnoses what the problem is. And he makes it very, very clear that this was not a physiological
or a psychological issue. The reason why this woman was crippled, bent over, literally bent over
physically was because of an evil spirit. Now if we were to see someone like this today,
we would probably look at them and think, well they need an operation. There's some kind of a
physical deformity. Perhaps there was an accident. Perhaps the person was born that way. We would
think they need a chiropractor at least or an operation at most. And most of us would conclude
immediately that this is just a physical issue. But Luke tells us it was an evil,
spirit. Now I want you to notice verse 17 because in the discourse that takes place between Jesus
and the synagogue ruler, Jesus says concerning this woman, verse 16, then should not this woman,
a daughter of Abraham whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years. So at the beginning of the story,
Luke says it was a spirit. At the end of the story, Jesus says it is Satan. Now this gives us some
help. It gives us some information about who the devil really is or what the devil is really like.
And we need to say this, that he is not omnipresent. Satan cannot be everywhere at all time like God can.
Some of us make the mistake of thinking that Satan has equal attributes to God, but he doesn't.
He is not omnipresent and he is not an omnipotent being. He is a limited being. Even though the Bible
calls him the God of this world, but we need to keep this in mind. When Paul describes Satan,
the devil, as the God of this world, he does not mean that Satan is in control of everything in our
world because our God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords. And the world is in his hands. That
old chorus, he's got the whole world in his hands is true. But what it does mean is that the whole world
is following the way of the devil because he is, according to Paul in Ephesians 2, the spirit
who is now working in those who are disobedient, those who do not believe in Christ. He's the spirit
who works in them. He is, in that sense, the deceiver of the whole world. But keep this in mind.
He can only carry on his deceiving work and his so-called godlike work through his demons. And yes,
his work is worldwide. But it is only through evil spirits who are posted and planted throughout
the world. His binding work is through demons. He uses evil spirits to fasten onto the bodies
of individuals and to cause this type of problem in their lives. Evil spirits are nothing more than
representatives of Satan. And it is his work, Satan's work, that evil spirits do.
Now in our second reading today, there was an identification of demons with Satan. And this
man who was possessed by a demon that caused him to be blind and to be mute. And Jesus delivered
the man of that demon and healed him. The Pharisees get all upset. Jesus is casting out demons by the
prince of demons by Beelzebul. That was the accusation that they brought against the Lord Jesus Christ.
And Jesus said, if Satan drives out Satan, he's divided against himself. In other words,
to cast out Satan is to cast out demons. To cast out demons is to cast out Satan. Because demons are
nothing more than representatives of Satan himself. Now there's another thing here I want you to see
in this text. Another very important thing concerning the binding work of Satan. Excuse me.
This woman was still able to attend the synagogue and worship. She was there. That's very clear in verse 10 and 11.
She was physically hindered, there's no doubt. Probably there was a lot of pain associated with what she was,
with her condition. But she was able to get out. She was able to attend. She was able to be there and hear the scriptures read.
She was able to worship God. She was able to function to some degree in her life.
And I think this is a very, very important observation that I'm trying to make to you this morning.
Because many of us have stereotypes in our minds as to what a person with evil spirits looks like.
How they behave. How they act.
But the Bible gives us a very, very different picture.
You see, we think if people have demons, then they only go out when there's a full moon.
Or there's really bizarre kinds of behavior.
They dress and look like vampires.
Or they're social recluses and they want to get away from everyone.
And there's always bizarre behavior.
But the Bible gives us a very different picture.
And experience tells us the same.
Again, I make reference to the story in Mark 9 with the father, with the son.
And he says that, he said about his son, he says,
Sometimes, he said, the spirit seizes him.
And throws him into fire and into water.
Sometimes he acts in a suicidal way.
When the spirit seizes him.
Meaning, the spirit doesn't seize him all the time.
Meaning there are times when my son is normal.
There are times when I enjoy him.
And my father-son relationship with him.
Because he's a normal little boy.
But then it seizes him.
Again, we have to get out of our mind this stereotype that it's always bizarre.
But even this little boy was able to function like a little boy from time to time.
The same story we have in Mark chapter 1.
That after Jesus was tempted by Satan for 40 days.
Jesus begins his public work.
And one of the first things he does is he goes into a synagogue.
And there's a man with a demon there.
And immediately the man cries out.
It's actually the demon crying out inside of the man.
And the man cries out.
What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth?
Son of the living God.
Son of the most high God.
Have you come to torment us before our time?
What does that tell us?
Well, first of all, it tells us that the man was able to go to the synagogue.
He was able to go to church.
He was able to worship.
And he was able to hear the scriptures read in the synagogue service.
He was able to function.
But it also tells us that the demons know who Jesus is.
And we'll come back to that in a moment.
Friends, there is actually only one incident in the Bible recorded in Mark chapter 5.
Where we have an individual who, in our thinking at least, fits all the stereotypes of what a person would be like if they have demons.
A man who was locked away, as it were, in chains because of superhuman strength.
And cast out to live in a cemetery among the tombs.
But we need to understand this, that most people who have evil spirits are not troubled like that.
They are able to function rather normally in life.
Nonetheless, they are troubled.
And there is some incapacitating work in them because of evil spirits.
They know.
And you may be someone who knows in your heart, there is something wrong with me.
I do sense there's something evil with me.
That something has access to my life and to my heart.
And even to my body.
A number of years back when I began my ministry at West Highland, there was a woman who came to our church.
And she had gone to a fortune teller.
She was very involved in fortune telling.
Gone to fortune tellers many different times.
She would go to psychic fairs.
She would have her palms read.
She would play with tarot cards.
It all got started with a Ouija board when she was a child.
And she was into all kinds of psychic stuff.
And she came to Christ.
And when she did, she began to feel at times that there was something inside of her.
That there was something wrong.
And she said, I had feelings of agitation.
I had feelings of upset.
I had emotions at times which I began to recognize these are her words.
They were not entirely my own.
That's what we have here in this story.
And that's what is often the case in those who are troubled by evil spirits.
Let me make another observation here about the binding work of Satan.
I want you to notice that there was a definite time in which this binding work happened in this woman's life.
Verse 11 says, she had been crippled by a spirit for 18 years.
Jesus makes reference to that again in verse 16.
When he says, whom Satan has kept bound for 18 long years.
Now what is that telling us?
It's telling us that there was a moment in time when this spirit entered her.
When this spirit came upon her.
When this spirit fastened itself to this woman.
There was a particular moment in time when it happened.
So we know that there was a time in which it happened.
Do we know how it happened?
Does the passage tell us?
And if the passage does not.
We know that when it happened.
But we don't know how it happened.
We are not told what exactly happened.
Or how it happened.
But we are told that it did happen.
There's no getting around that fact.
So we know when this happened.
When this binding work of Satan occurred.
But not how it occurred.
So immediately then we have to step back from the text.
And ask a question.
Of what this passage is saying.
What was the cause for this to happen?
If it happened in a moment of time.
There must have been a reason.
She wasn't just walking down the street one day.
And bang like that.
It happened.
There must be more to it than meets the eye.
And so it's important for us to ask questions.
And like.
Did she 18 years ago.
Get involved in the occult in some way?
Did she like the woman I mentioned.
Get involved with fortune telling.
And fortune tellers.
At that point in time.
Or perhaps there was something very grossly immoral.
That this woman did.
Or maybe.
Maybe someone did witchcraft against her.
Like voodoo.
And placed a curse or a spell on her.
18 years back.
Or maybe.
Maybe in her past.
In her family line.
There were grandparents.
Or great grandparents.
Who were involved in the worship of false gods.
And they made spiritual dedications.
Of their offspring.
To the devil himself.
And perhaps 18 years ago.
Her mother or her father.
Who were already infested with demons.
Died.
And the demon then was transferred to her.
We don't know.
The scripture doesn't tell us.
But we know that she suffered for 18 years.
Now.
Can I just share something personal with you now.
Just an observation.
Not from this text.
But just a personal observation.
About being a pastor.
And being a Christian.
For 52 years now.
About 45 of those years.
As a pastor.
And as a missionary.
In Asia.
My experience as a Christian.
As a pastor has been.
And I hear it all of the time.
All the time.
I used to hear it much more.
Than I hear it now.
But it was something along this line.
Oh yes.
Yes.
This is true.
This is real.
This happens today.
But it happens way over there.
It happens in places where.
We send missionaries to.
Oh yes.
It happened in Jesus day.
And it certainly happened.
In the days of the apostles.
Because we read in the book of Acts.
That the apostles too.
Cast out demons.
But it doesn't really happen today.
Today.
But the binding work of Satan.
Does happen today.
It is a part of our contemporary world.
It's a part of our broken world.
It happens in our country.
And it happens in your city.
And people are incapacitated by Satan.
To a lesser or to a greater degree.
Remember Jesus.
Referred to Satan as a thief.
And he said the thief comes.
To steal.
To kill.
And to destroy.
And perhaps the binding work of Satan.
Is not seen exactly like this woman.
Not in the same way.
But it still continues to this day.
And it can still happen exactly.
As it happened in Luke chapter 13.
13.
Friends.
This story is recorded for us by Luke.
Not so that we can sit back and say.
Oh yeah.
That's what happened in Jesus' day.
Oh yeah.
That's the power that Jesus has.
Well certainly it's recorded for that reason.
But the scriptures are written.
The things that have been in the past.
Are recorded for us today.
So that we can be enlightened.
And we can be aware.
And we can be educated.
And we can be equipped.
To confront the binding work of Satan today.
Now here's the second thing I want you to notice.
Or focus in on me with now.
And that is the freeing work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Friends this is really an incredible story.
It's wonderful what Jesus does.
We see his mercy and his grace.
And we also see his authority and power.
And here's an interesting observation.
There is no request from the woman.
For this to happen.
At least not a recorded one.
Now that is a little strange.
Because usually.
In the gospel accounts.
When people wanted to be set free.
When they wanted to be healed.
When they wanted to be liberated.
From disease or illness or oppression.
They normally ask the Lord.
To do this.
In Mark chapter 9.
The father comes about his son.
And he says to Jesus.
If you can.
Please have pity on us.
And help us.
And we have so many accounts.
Of people crying out and say.
Jesus son of David.
Have mercy on me.
But there's no recorded request here.
Not in words at least.
Now perhaps.
There was just in the fact.
That she was present there.
That she would have made it a habit.
To go to the synagogue.
On a regular basis.
We can't know for sure.
Or perhaps she's like many.
Perhaps of you here today.
Many people who come to church.
On a regular basis.
Never going to say anything.
About that trouble.
Never going to share it.
With anyone else.
Never going to speak to the pastor.
About what you're feeling inside.
But in your heart.
There's a request.
And you're here.
In worship.
And you're saying to the Lord.
Without words.
Oh Jesus.
Please touch me.
The wonderful thing.
Is that Jesus saw her need.
He saw her plight.
And he decided.
That he would act.
And in verses 12 and 13.
He acts.
And I want you to notice.
There are two things.
That Jesus did.
Perhaps we could call this.
Jesus method.
In dealing with people.
Who had unclean spirits.
The first thing he did.
Was he employed.
A word of command.
Woman you are set free.
He said to her.
And the second thing he did.
Was that he.
Touched her with his hand.
Immediately.
He put his hands on her.
He called her forward.
Said to her.
Woman you are set free.
From your infirmity.
Then he put his hands.
On her.
He employed a word of command.
And he employed a touch of his hand.
Now I want you to notice.
That these were not simultaneously.
They were not simultaneous.
They were sequential.
The first was his word of command.
The second was the touch of his hand.
Look at verse 12.
He gives this command.
And in this command.
We see his authority.
And his power.
He just speaks.
And it happens.
Woman you are set free.
He just speaks.
It reminds us of God.
In the creation.
Let there be light.
And there was light.
In the majority of the encounters.
That Jesus has with evil spirits.
There is something recorded.
Of a command.
That Jesus brings.
He commands the spirit.
To be silent.
Or he commands the spirit.
To know its name.
Or he commands the spirit.
To come out.
Of the person.
And in the other accounts.
As I have already pointed out.
The evil spirits cry out.
Jesus of Nazareth.
The holy one of God.
Have you come to torment us.
Before our time.
They know who Jesus is.
And they know his power.
Over them.
So brothers and sisters in Christ.
Here's a truth.
That I want you to just.
Focus on for a moment.
I want this truth.
This is not an ugly truth.
This is a glorious truth.
I want this truth.
To just settle down.
In your thinking.
Right now.
Let it sink into your heart.
Your savior.
Jesus Christ.
The son of God.
Has power.
Over demons.
Hallelujah.
He has power.
Over Satan.
He has power.
Over demons.
The enemy of your soul.
Who is always.
Walking around.
Seeking whom.
He may devour.
Jesus has power.
Over him.
The evil spirits.
Are subject.
To Jesus Christ.
When Jesus was.
Tempted in the wilderness.
Area for 40 days.
He defeated the devil.
He began the defeat.
Of the devil.
He began to crush.
The serpent's head.
And he triumphed.
Over Satan.
And over all of the principalities.
And powers.
Over all the spiritual forces.
Of evil.
Through his death on the cross.
And his resurrection.
From the grave.
And just as he freed.
This woman.
Whom the scripture says.
Was a daughter.
Of Abraham.
So he can free you.
And now we see.
The touch of his hand.
He reached out.
And he touched her.
He put his hands.
On her.
And notice what happened.
Immediately.
She straightened up.
And praised God.
If the word of his command.
Shows his authority.
And power.
Then the touch of his hand.
Shows his love.
And his care.
His everlasting love.
For those.
Upon whom he has placed.
His love.
He loved her.
Just as a woman.
Just as a human being.
Someone made in her image.
But he loved her also.
As a daughter.
Of Abraham.
A woman.
Who had entered.
Into covenant relationship.
With our covenant.
Keeping God.
And with the demons.
Gone.
He touched her.
And he restored her body.
Immediately.
Life flowed.
From her.
Into him.
Or from him.
Into her.
And it says here.
That she praised God.
She praised God.
Now this takes us.
To the third thing.
I want us to just.
Focus on today.
And that is the reaction.
Of the religious people.
In the synagogue.
As to what happened.
Particularly.
The synagogue.
Ruler.
Now it says here.
That she praised God.
And now.
Luke doesn't tell us.
That she.
Made a lot of noise.
Praising God.
But I mean.
Friends.
Come on.
You can only imagine.
If this was you.
Would you say this.
Under your breath.
Oh thank you Lord.
No.
It reminds me of the man.
In Acts chapter 3.
The crippled man.
Who sat at the gate.
Remember.
He got up.
Walking.
And leaping.
And praising God.
18 years.
She wasn't able to walk.
She was literally.
When it says bent over.
It means she wasn't just like this.
She was just literally like this.
Bent over.
And now.
She straightened up.
And you can imagine.
The commotion.
That that would have caused.
In that worship service.
In the synagogue.
On that Sabbath day.
And the loudness of her praise.
Added to the agitation.
And the anger.
Of the synagogue ruler.
Look at verse 14.
Indignant.
Because Jesus had healed her.
On the Sabbath.
Indignant.
He was mad.
The synagogue ruler said to the people.
There are six days for work.
So come and be healed on those days.
Not on the Sabbath day.
And it wasn't just him.
It wasn't just his indignation.
If you go down to verse 17.
It says.
When he said this.
All his opponents.
Were humiliated.
There was.
Indignation.
And there was.
Opposition.
And it came.
Essentially.
Primarily.
From the synagogue ruler.
But there were some in the midst.
Who aligned themselves.
With him.
Perhaps.
There was jealousy.
On the part of this ruler.
I mean.
It was.
It was clear.
As the synagogue ruler.
He would have.
He would have asked Jesus.
As the visiting rabbi.
To read from the scriptures.
Scroll.
And then to teach.
And.
And now Jesus.
As it were.
Took.
A little bit more freedom.
Than.
Than the synagogue ruler.
Gave him.
Perhaps.
He was jealous.
Because.
He was never able.
To do anything like this.
When he read.
Or preached.
But it was clear.
That this day of gladness.
Was marred by a complaint.
And the synagogue.
Synagogue ruler.
Was upset at Jesus.
Notice.
He.
He didn't.
Exactly.
Speak directly.
To Jesus.
He spoke to the.
The people.
But he.
Clearly.
He was personally slighted.
He had a specific complaint.
Here's another observation.
The man.
Doesn't deny.
That a miracle happened.
The man.
Can't deny.
That a miracle happened.
He's only upset.
About the impropriety.
Of doing something like this.
On the Sabbath day.
And he interpreted.
What Jesus did.
As labor.
As work.
And friends.
His interpretation.
Was dead wrong.
Home.
And so he attacked Jesus.
Not in a direct way.
But in a circuitous way.
He got the people.
On his side.
Or tried to.
Any way.
And he said.
Listen.
You can do this.
On any other day.
Why don't you come on some other day.
Come to this synagogue.
And experience some healing here.
Do you really think.
That that's what was happening.
Six days out of seven.
In the synagogue.
That he was the ruler of.
I don't think so.
This was a feigned invitation.
And friends.
Here we see.
The evidence.
Of a hard.
Hearted.
Religious.
Person.
This is a warning.
To all of us.
And finally.
I want you to see the rebuke.
That the Lord Jesus gives.
Jesus did not defend himself.
For his actions.
Jesus knew.
That he had not broken.
The Sabbath in any way.
Whether in letter.
Or in spirit.
But what Jesus did.
Is in his words.
He presented to the.
The synagogue ruler.
And to all the people.
Who were there.
He presented.
Both a parallel.
And a contrast.
What do I mean by that?
Well look at verse.
15.
This is where.
This is where we see.
The parallel.
That Jesus presents.
The Lord answered him.
You hypocrites.
Doesn't each of you.
On the Sabbath.
Untie his ox.
Or donkey.
From the stall.
And lead it out.
To give it water.
Interesting.
We know.
That the Jews.
Had all kinds of rules.
Concerning the Sabbath.
The Sabbath day.
Here's an interesting take.
On this.
If a Jew.
On the Sabbath day.
Were to go down.
To the water source.
And grab a bucket.
And put the bucket.
Into the well.
Or into the pool.
Or into the river.
And carry that.
Back bucket.
Back.
To where his animal.
Was tied up.
That was a violation.
Of the Sabbath day.
Because.
It involved.
Labor.
Of carrying that water.
All the way.
To your ox.
But.
If the same man.
Were to simply.
Untie his ox.
In the stall.
And walk him down.
To the water source.
And let the ox.
Drink from the water source.
And then walk the ox.
Back.
And tie him up.
Again.
That was not.
A violation.
Of the Sabbath day.
Now that's what we have.
Happening here.
In this text.
You know what Jesus.
Is saying to her.
To them.
He's saying.
All this woman did.
Was come to the water source.
And I am the water source.
That's what Jesus.
Is saying.
Now there's a contrast.
That Jesus makes also.
And it's found in the.
Sixteenth verse.
Then should not this woman.
A daughter of Abraham.
Whom Satan has kept bound.
For eighteen long years.
Be set free.
On the Sabbath day.
From what bound her.
Notice.
He refers to her.
First of all.
As.
A woman.
A real bonafide human being.
Someone made.
In the image.
Of God.
He's talking about.
Their animals.
And then he says.
Now there's.
Here's a woman.
Here is someone.
Made in the image of God.
Here is someone.
Way.
Above.
In the created order.
Than animals.
This is not your ox.
This is not your donkey.
This is.
A real woman.
Then he adds.
That she is a daughter.
Of Abraham.
She's not just.
An image bearer.
Of God.
She is one.
Upon whom God.
Has set.
His covenant love.
And redeemed her.
She is a daughter.
Of Abraham.
Meaning.
She has the same.
Kind of faith.
That Abraham had.
She.
Is an heir.
Of the promise.
That was given.
To Abraham.
Now he takes this.
Contrast further.
And he says.
Whom Satan.
Is bound.
For eighteen.
Years.
In essence.
Here's what he's saying.
To the synagogue ruler.
And to the others.
Who were.
With.
With him.
Listen.
Your animals.
Are bound.
By a rope.
Overnight.
She.
Was bound.
Not by a rope.
But by Satan.
Himself.
By an evil spirit.
You tie up your animal.
For eight hours.
At the most.
Overnight.
This woman.
Has been bound.
In chains.
For eighteen.
Long.
Years.
You know.
What he's saying.
Do you care more.
For animals.
Than you care.
For an image bearer.
Of God.
Are your pets.
More important to you.
Than your neighbor.
Shouldn't she find rest.
On the Sabbath day.
Isn't Jesus saying.
This is the very reason.
Why the Sabbath.
Was given.
To find rest.
Jesus is saying.
I have not violated.
The Sabbath.
I have fulfilled.
The Sabbath.
And given her.
Rest.
And that's all.
Jesus said.
With the parallel.
And with the contrast.
That he gave.
It was sufficient.
And the story ends.
Okay.
We've done some.
Observing.
We've done some.
Explaining.
Some insights.
Some.
Interpretation.
Of what actually.
Happened here.
So now.
How do we.
Respond.
So I want to.
Give you three.
Applications.
I'd like to call them.
Takeaway points.
Something that you can.
Take home.
Something that you should.
Be thinking about.
In the coming days.
And what are those three.
First of all.
An application.
To anyone here today.
Who may be bound.
By Satan.
To those of you.
Who feel you are bound.
You may be puzzled.
Perhaps.
At some things in your life.
You know yourself pretty good.
You.
You know yourself better than anyone else.
Because you.
Are yourself.
But you may be struggling.
Because there's something.
You have been bound with.
For a long period of time.
And it.
It doesn't seem normal.
It doesn't seem like.
It's just a physical thing.
Or just.
A mental thing.
There may be.
Something that you discern.
Or question.
That there may be something.
Spiritual here.
Not.
Not just.
The sinfulness.
Of my own heart.
But.
But something.
Sort of.
Yeah.
Attached to me.
In me.
Around me.
Something harassing me.
Something troubling me.
And you're not really sure.
But you suspect.
It could be an evil spirit.
If that's the case.
Then call out to the Lord.
Call out.
To the Lord.
The Bible tells us.
Whoever calls.
In the name of the Lord.
Will be saved.
You'll be rescued.
Call out to the Lord.
That's.
That's where the.
Deliverance starts.
That's where the freedom begins.
Calling out to the Lord.
Is the first step.
Toward being.
To experiencing.
The freeing work.
Of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Secondly.
Seek out a pastor.
Or a spiritual leader.
Perhaps you're going to have to open up.
And share what's really going on.
So that someone else can help you.
Just like this woman.
Could not help herself.
No doubt.
She would have called out.
To the Lord.
But.
She needed.
Other help.
And there are other spiritual leaders.
Who can help you.
And I would be willing to talk with you.
Even after worship today.
Secondly.
To those of you.
Who have been set free.
Perhaps you.
And probably most.
This would be true.
Of most of us.
We didn't have an evil spirit.
But some of us.
Who have come to faith.
In Jesus Christ.
We have been set free.
You can.
You can look back.
On your past life.
And you may have been bound.
By addictions.
Whether it was.
It was alcohol.
Or drugs.
Or porn.
Or whatever it was.
And you know.
That when Christ came into your life.
He set you free.
And so today.
I would say to you.
Praise him.
Worship him.
Thank him.
As we come and get involved in the Lord's table today.
Remember what Jesus Christ has done for you.
And praise him.
That his blood has cleansed you.
And he has taken away your sins.
And now to all of you.
To the church.
There's something in this story.
That the synagogue ruler represents.
It's almost.
As though he is sort of.
Almost stereotypical.
Of people who.
Who get involved in church life.
Some of us develop the same kind of attitude.
That the synagogue ruler had.
You know.
We.
We get all caught up with the rules.
And.
And we love the rules.
More than we love the Lord.
Lord.
Or we have.
Developed.
As it were.
Some unworthy loves.
We're not loving the image bearers.
Of God.
We're loving other things more.
Than women like this woman.
We're loving other things.
And placing more importance.
On.
On these other loves.
And in essence.
In doing so.
We are no longer loving our neighbor.
As we should love ourselves.
We need to repent.
Of that kind of attitude.
Secondly.
We need to return to the Lord.
We need to come back to him.
And ask him to restore in our hearts.
That first love that we once had.
To ask the Lord to.
To rearrange.
Our priorities in life.
So that our focus in life.
Is no longer just.
On.
On those.
Things like pets.
And.
And what makes me happy.
But on.
How can I minister to others.
To help them.
And third.
To rededicate ourselves.
To the cause of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The cause of loving his people.
In all of their struggle.
And of reaching out to those.
Who need the freeing power.
Of Jesus Christ.
May God.
Help us all to respond.
As the Holy Spirit speaks to us.
In Jesus name.
Amen.
typ
Amen.