Lent.

Luke 13:10-17 RSV.

Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And there was a woman who had had a spirit of infirmity for 18 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 on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God.

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.“

Then the Lord answered him, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his ass from the manger, and lead it away to water it? And is not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for 18 years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?“

As he said this, all his adversaries were put to shame; and all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by him.

The Sabbath day was one of the few ways in which the Jews of Jesus’ time were able to distinguish themselves from other peoples on earth. Their strict observance of the Sabbath was an outward demonstration of their devotion to the one true God, Jehovah. Over the decades, they had developed many rules for observing the Sabbath.

All of these rules came about with the best intentions possible. They were honoring God. They needed to be observed. But eventually, the rules themselves had become sacred, particularly to the religious leaders of the nation.

They were so sacred that they blinded the leaders of the synagogue to the good deeds that Jesus was doing and to his ultimate purpose on earth. Jesus was a rule-breaker, especially when the rules would prevent him from establishing the kingdom of God on earth.

This passage reminds us in this Lenten season that while rules, practices, and customs are important, none of these good things should get in the way of expressing our love for God and our fellow human beings. None of them should stop us from showing that love when and where we have the opportunity. The greatest commandments are to love God and to love our neighbors as ourselves. The rules, however good they are, should follow far behind those two commandments.

Let’s pray:

Our father, help us in our daily lives to see beyond the rules that we have set for ourselves and for others, and to catch a glimpse of your love and grace. Amen.

This devotion was written and read by Jim Stovall.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.