In Luke 13, there was a lady with a spirit of infirmity. What was it?
Let’s read Luke 13:10-13, “And he (Jesus) was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.”
How tragic was this woman’s condition. She had suffered for eighteen years, so much so that she “was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.” She was said to have ‘a spirit of infirmity.’ We also read in verse 16 that “Satan hath bound” her for those eighteen years. We are not told what the infirmity was other than it had bound her up so much that she could not stand up on her own.
The Lord calls this woman “a daughter of Abraham” in verse 16. This indicates that this woman was not only Jewish, but she was a believer for we read in Romans 4:11 that Abraham is “the father of all them that believe.” (Also read Luke 19:9.) While we do not know what exact ailment this lady was suffering from, we can see that the Lord was able to deliver her from it. We find here a believer in the Lord being tormented by the enemy of the Lord…Satan Himself. The Bible gives us great assurance in our battle with Satan in 1 John 4:4 which says, “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN YOU, THAN HE THAT IS IN THE WORLD.” It is the Lord who dwells inside every believer (Ephesians 1:14, Romans 8:9), and He is greater than Satan, the one who is in the world. He is ALWAYS able to defeat Satan in his attacks on us, and He will defeat him ultimately one day as we read in Revelation 20:10, “And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.”
Now, let’s read Luke 13:12-13, “And when Jesus SAW her, he CALLED her to him, and SAID unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.”
What a remarkable order of events! The Lord SAW this woman in all her distress. He CALLED her to Him. He SPOKE to her. He HEALED her. May we, as believers on the Lord Jesus realize that the Lord always sees us (Ps. 34:15). He always calls us to be close to Himself (Hebrews 10:22). He always speaks to us (John 10:27). He always moves to minister to our needs according to His good and perfect will. (1 Peter 5:7).
What a loving savior we have. While this woman’s infirmity was certainly a physical one, an infirmity can refer to a physical or spiritual malady. Whatever it is that troubles us, the Lord can raise us back up. Notice that as soon as this woman was healed, she stood up straight and “glorified God.” She was thankful for the Lord’s ministry to her, and she proclaimed her praises to Him in the midst of a crowd of the Lord’s adversaries. May we be so emboldened by the love and mercy of the Lord that we also glorify Him with our words, our thoughts, and our actions. (CC) (503.4)