Luke 13:10-17
We often encourage others to “stand up for themselves” when they encounter a difficult situation. What we mean is that they should take their own side or support their own cause with confidence, that they should be more assertive. Our gospel reading from Luke for today offers an interesting variation on that expression. “And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, ‘Woman, you are set free from your ailment.’ When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God” (Luke 13:11-13). The woman in question had a horrible condition that left her bent double. But with compassion Jesus healed her and allowed her to straighten her back. Now, in a way, the woman was “standing up for herself” for the first time in eighteen years. But in truth it was God who, through the work of Jesus Christ, had restored the woman by curing her of her disability. God stood up for the woman; God stands up for us as well.
It happens in any number of ways: through a grace-filled act of forgiveness, by way of a calming sense of God’s presence, with healing, in a moment of clarity as to which path we should travel in life. All of these (and so many more) are examples of God placing the divine mark on our lives and freeing us to live into our unique identity. At such times, our response should be like that of the woman in Luke’s account. We should praise God, acknowledging the gifts we have received, which means that when it is all said and done, we should be ready to stand with God, too.
Prayer: Lord, bless us with your grace and mercy that we may stand upright and may praise you in all we do. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
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