Spiritual Hiccups - Come Back Later

I've probably written about this before so I apologize in advance if you've already heard this.  One Sunday as I was preaching, I observed an usher speaking to someone in the narthex.  (Glass windows in the back of the sanctuary give me a pretty good view.)  I recognized the fellow talking to the usher, though I doubt the usher knew who he was.  He stops by the church every now and then, looking for some food or a bus pass.  From what I could tell, the usher was polite and kind to the man, but pretty quickly he escorted the fellow out of my field of vision, headed toward one of our main doors which are located on either side of the narthex.

I learned later that the usher had told the man to come back later.  We were in the middle of worship and it was not the appropriate time.  The congregation never was never aware of any of this.  It happened, quite literally, behind their backs.  But I imagine that many of them would have approved.  We were in the middle of worship, and later would be a better time.

That's essentially the same argument offered by the synagogue leader in today's gospel.  He doesn't object to Jesus healing the woman, but her condition was chronic and not life threatening.  It could have waited.  "There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the sabbath day."

At the heart of this conflict is how people of faith live appropriately before God.  What sort of things should we do to honor and please God?  What are the rules to live by if we want our ways to conform to God's ways?  What sort of things take precedence over others?

The Bible frequently encourages worshiping God.  It also speaks of refraining from work on the Sabbath.  Jewish rules in Jesus' time allowed exceptions to the work prohibition if a life was in danger or if it was a real emergency, but this woman had suffered for 18 years.  What would one more day hurt?  But Jesus seems to think that helping someone in need is sufficient cause to make a Sabbath exception. 

21st Century American Christians typically aren't all that big on Sabbath regulations, so the synagogue leader's actions look like arbitrary, religious legalism to us.  But I suspect that nearly all of us who are serious about our faith have our share of arbitrary, religious notions about what is appropriate, how things should be done, etc.  And I wonder how often I might find myself trying to prevent Jesus from offering someone healing and restoration, saying, "Come back later.  Now is not the appropriate time."

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