“And there was a woman who had had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God.”
Luke 13:11-13 (RSV)
We’ve all heard of cases where a person has had symptoms for years, with no guaranteed treatment or cure. The woman in this story had a severely bent spine, walking crippled and bent over for 18 years. I occasionally see an elderly person walking severely bent over, which reminds me of this story. Even today, once the problem persists for that long, surgery would be a risk with no guarantee of healing. God knows what the past years have brought into everyone’s lives, and He has compassion for everyone’s situation.
Being severely bent over could also be a metaphor. One may walk straight and healthy, but have a soul that is bent over and crippled. Something that happened in their past could leave them crippled spiritually. I’ve known two people in my life who have had a negative experience as a child with a church minister. They are resistant to going to church or seeking a relationship with God, ever since. They are bent over spiritually and will not look to Jesus, but my hope is that they will listen to His words one day and be saved. Jesus spotted the woman in the crowd, bent over and suffering. She was too bent over to look at His face, so she settled for just hearing Him speak. Jesus had His eyes on her, and called her over to Him. He called her to come to Him, instead of walking to her.
There is an element of faith that requires action, even the smallest act of bringing oneself to Jesus. When she came to Jesus, He spoke to her before ever laying His hands on her. Jesus told her she was set free from her infirmity. This is why I see this particular healing as a metaphor for something deeper involving the healing of the mind, soul and spirit. After He declared her free, Jesus laid His hands on her and she immediately straightened up and was healed. This story illustrates that an inner healing precedes a physical one. It can be any area of our lives, in which we restrict our faith, and allow ourselves to remain bent over. Whatever it is physical, emotional, psychological or spiritual, or all of the above, Jesus is always calling people forward to Himself. He wants every believer to live a fully abundant life and only He can free us of anything that holds us down. God has always known what has hurt us, what we need, who we need to forgive, and He is our only hope for true freedom and inner healing.
Listen to Jesus calling us forward to Him, instead of looking downward, dwelling on who or what has hindered our freedom. He will replenish whatever we were robbed of, and restore and straighten whatever has grown crooked over the years. Surrendering to Jesus breaks all the invisible chains and He has declared us set free. He invites us all to a more abundant life than we currently have.
Lord Jesus, help us to hear you calling us forward, so that we will look up to you, no longer restricted by any wounds from our past. You have declared us free and your hands are laid upon us to abundantly restore our mind, body, soul and spirit. Amen