5 - Power with Wisdom

Luke 13
10. Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.
11. And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. 12. But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity."
13. And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.
14. But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, "There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day."
15. The Lord then answered him and said, "Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or his donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?
16. "So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound think of it for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?
17. And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.
New King James Bible

When Jesus said, "Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity", He dealt with the accusation of Satan which had kept this woman infirm for 18 years.

But cancelling the accusation was not sufficient to restore her health. Verse 13 says He then laid His hands on her. Jesus often did this when He healed people.

When someone has been frozen in an unnatural position for that long, their muscles no longer function the way they ought. Therefore, Jesus needed to restore normal flexibility through the gift of healing.

Evidently, healing alone would not have dealt with this woman's problem. Nor would rebuking Satan's accusation alone be enough for perfect health.
Jesus had all the power to deal with both parts of the paralysis, but He also needed the wisdom to apply the power to get the perfect result.

This incident shows us why we can trust Him. Not only does He have all the power, but He also has the wisdom to use it judiciously.

Prayer:
Father, thank You that You sent Jesus Christ, the all-wise, all-loving Son to show us Your quality of love on the earth.
Lord Jesus, I put my trust in You today. I ask that You not only deal with the accusation of the Evil One against my life, but that You also touch and heal the parts of me that have been messed up by that accusation.
Make me whole, Lord Jesus,
in Your mighty name I pray,
Amen.