August 23, 2010
The sermon on Sunday 22nd August was from Luke Ch 13, vv 10 to 17. In this passage, Jesus is teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath. Jesus noticed a woman who was bent over, crippled and infirm from an illness which had afflicted her for the past 18 years. He placed his hands upon her and healed her. The ruler of the synagogue became very angry and pointed out to the people that there were 6 days in which people should work but no work should be done on the seventh, the Sabbath. Jesus retorted that people would as a matter of course loose their ox or ass from the stall and lead them to water on the Sabbath; why then should the woman not be loosed from the chains which Satan had put around her?
The sermon around this topic gave us a good example why we need ministers to explain the meaning – and why it is doubly beneficial to have someone with a classical background to put the passage into context. At the time in question, the authorities were watching Jesus very closely, looking for any opportunity to charge and to condemn him with some, or any, crime. Then there are the words which Jesus used. He referred to the woman as “this woman, being a daughter of Abraham …” The use of the term “daughter” was significant as it put the woman on an equal footing with everyone else, especially the men. Contrary to the practices of the time, Jesus preached that God’s love treats us all as equals; nobody is above anybody else in God’s eyes.
There’s an interesting footnote to the passage. If you look at an old version of the King James Bible the passage includes the term “this woman, being a daughter of Abraham …”, “daughter” being the literal translation of the original Greek. But in the Good News Bible the words have been changed to “this descendant of Abraham …. “ which does not have the same meaning. Why was the change made?