Scripture to Read: Luke 13:14
Jesus had just healed the woman who had been doubled over for eighteen long years. This miracle, like all others, was absolutely mind-blowing. But there was one in the synagogue that day whose heart was so hard that he missed the incredible gift God had given this woman. God had Luke record this in Luke 13:14, “But the synagogue official, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying to the crowd in response, ‘There are six days in which work should be done; so come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day.’” Many might wonder at how a person’s heart could be that cold and calloused. God tells us in 2 Corinthians 4:4, “…the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” Though the woman had been bound by the power of a demon, her bondage had simply been physical. Sadly, the synagogue official was totally unaware of his spiritual bondage, for he had been blinded by Satan so that he could not see Jesus as Messiah nor see the beauty of the woman being set free from her physical bondage. Spiritual bondage and blindness are horrible tools of the spiritual forces of darkness. People who are in bondage don’t know it and think that they are just fine the way they are. God wants us to be His light in their lives so that they might have the opportunity to be set free.
Challenge & Application
What had caused the synagogue official to be so angry and blind to the miracle Jesus had done?
How can you shine the light of the gospel in someone’s life this week?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!