It is said that the first speaker, Edward
Everett’s speech was two hours long. He is not the one remembered on that day
in November of 1863. His words have, for the most part, been lost to history.
It was the man who spoke after him who has been long remembered for his speech
that day in Gettysburg. He stood up and began his two minute speech with the
words: “Fourscore and seven years ago…” President Abraham Lincoln gave what is
now one of the most moving speeches of his lifetime let alone ours. In this
speech, he calls the people’s attention to those who have died on the field,
those who gave their lives to preserve the nation. In the end of the speech, he
uses the word “freedom.”
It is in this word “freedom” that we
find our Gospel reading. Jesus is in the temple and he is teaching. This woman
appears who is bent over and cannot even stand up straight. That is all we know
about this woman. There is no back story of who she is or where she comes from.
All we know is that she is afflicted and can’t stand up straight. I wonder why
that is? I would suggest it is because that is not the most important part of
the story. It does not matter where she came from, who her parents were or what
her history is. What matters in this story is two things. She is in need of
healing and it is the Sabbath day. You know, that day in the Ten Commandments
“you shall honor the Sabbath and keep it Holy.” Remember that is the law as we
talked about last week. It is in keeping with this law that is being faithful
to God.
So, let’s talk about that first
issue, her being afflicted. Once again, we don’t know anything this woman, but
we do know that she is suffering. She has been suffering for eighteen years.
That is a pretty big deal because imagine walking bent over for 18 years. I
once knew a woman who was bent over because she had back problems for so long.
She was in constant pain and all she could see was the ground. Something like
this is life-changing. You have to change how you work, sit, eat…this kind of
ailment puts a lot of limitations on everyday life. I cannot imagine the amount
of changes that would be necessary to live that life.
In his typical way, Jesus calls her
over and says, “woman, you are set free from your ailment.” No fireworks, no
trumpets, bells, or whistles. He just does what he is called to do. This woman
no longer has to worry about this ailment. She is made whole and she
“immediately” stands up straight and she starts praising God! She starts
praising God! She uses her words to show her gratitude because now her whole
life is changed! So what is the big deal? She is now healed!
The big deal is not that she is
healed but it is when she is healed. Remember last week, we talked about the
Law and how the people of Jesus time lived by the law. It was their way of
living a life of faith and belief, even though they themselves fell short of
the law…they tried to hold others strictly by the law. The law stated that The
Sabbath was to be honored and kept Holy. That meant NO work was to be done on
the Sabbath. I have been told work in Israel is still not done on the Sabbath;
that elevator operators do not work on the Sabbath and that hotel elevators are
configured to stop on every floor on the Sabbath day. Jesus heals this woman ON
the Sabbath and IN the Synagogue…right in front of the elders. So there is a
problem in that Jesus is going against the law.
Jesus shows us the different side of
that law. First, he points out that the elders have animals to feed and water
every day; so this notion of not doing anything on Sunday is unreasonable
because animals need to be fed in order for them to do what we want them to do.
He goes on to tell them “ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan
had bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath
day.” He is telling us that there is a such thing as Good Work that can and
maybe should be done on the Sabbath day. Jesus is telling us the Gospel: “Why
shouldn’t someone who has been held in the bondage of this ailment be healed on
the day the Lord has made?” Why shouldn’t she be set free?
Fifty years ago, we heard someone
else talk about freedom. Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke of freedom.
He spoke eloquently and honestly about the need for freedom; freedom for a
group of people that had been treated inhumanely, beaten, jailed, tortured
because of the color of their skin. He spoke about his dream for men and women
and the dream for his children. He used the word “freedom.” He used the phrase
“Let freedom ring” over and over has he spoke of where freedom should lived and
experienced. Let freedom ring from the mountain top of Stone Mountain, Georgia,
every molehill of Mississippi.
Dr. King and Abraham Lincoln spoke to
freedom as the ability to live life to the best that one can live it,
experience it, and rejoice in it. Their speeches were to inspire us all that
freedom is something deep within us that can bind us, inspire us, unite and
untie us.
Jesus’ use of the word freedom also
shows what is deep within us. Through this story of this “bent over woman” we
can relate to her situation. Our lives may not necessarily seem like they are
ours. Everyone has a schedule to keep, practices to get to, work schedules,
sports schedules, and let’s face it there are the fun schedules too (wanting to
see a particular movie, show, play). We all have them and sometimes we are held
captive to these schedules. We are held in bondage to these schedules. Then we
begin to get overloaded and where do we find ourselves, bent over and looking
down; or our shoulders shrugged forward walking like we have to and not like we
have a spring in our step.
Jesus tells us and shows us that we
don’t have to be held captive to all that. Jesus frees us from this captivity
that keeps us so bent over. Jesus shows us that we don’t have to be held
captive to the bondage of schedules, timetables, or sin. Jesus shows us that
there is freedom in giving thanks and praise to God for the blessings of love
in the world rather than hate, the peace of being brothers and sisters in
Christ and working together to bring the kingdom of God into this broken world,
the mercy of God who gave his only Son to die for our sake; so that we ARE
free. We are free to love God and show God our thanks and praise; to love God
with all our heart and soul, and giving praise for all that we have been given.
Now, there might be some who interpret
God’s freedom to mean other things. Some may interpret God’s freedom to mean “I
can do whatever I want and God will forgive me OR I will come to God when I
need God because I have freedom of Choice now…thanks God.” God does speak to
everyone differently and we all have a personal relationship with God. I would
suggest to everyone that no matter who you are, you need God. I will give you
an example; when we are asked to watch our grandchildren or nieces and nephews
do we think it is a God thing or God freedom. I would suggest to you that it
is. We don’t HAVE to watch children or take care of them. We don’t HAVE to feed
them…but we do. Why do we do that? We do it out of love, out of the freedom to
love; and who is it that created that LOVE. It wasn’t you or me. It was God!
God created and showed us love and taught us love.
So let God’s freedom ring. Let God’s
freedom ring to speak to us in our times of sorrows and sadness; let God’s
freedom ring to bring us to a place…this place where we can come, sit down, and
leave the bondage of society outside these doors. Let freedom ring in our ears
and minds and hearts when we hear the words “Your sins are forgiven.” Let God’s
freedom ring to hear “this is my body and blood given for you.” Let God’s
freedom ring to tell others about a place where they can come to hear the words
“you matter.” So that when you go out into the world, you know that God's love for us all calls us to share this message with all God's children: AMEN
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