Any classroom teacher, especially one with a large number of students, will quickly confirm the importance of rules and regulations in keeping a classroom running smoothly and even in keeping the students happy.  Everyone likes to know how the people around them are going to behave and when things are going to happen.  There is real safety in knowing the people around you will honor the rules.  There is also real security in following a routine and knowing what will happen next.  Rules and routines are an important part in establishing a safe and positive classroom.

However, if you ask any classroom teacher if they ever make exceptions to the rules, you will probably get a resounding YES!  There are always situations that demand a little flexibility.  There are always students who need a second or third chance, a little extra time on a test, or a little special protection now and then.  The teacher might even admit that every now and then one of the other students will object to this rule bending, like the synagogue leader in this text.  Some kids can't stand to see someone else ‘getting away with something.'  One teacher I know diffuses this situation by asking the protesting student, "If you were cut, would you need a band-aid?  If you were not cut, would you need a band-aid?  Sometimes, things happen that require special action….I'm just using a band-aid."

Jesus was, of course, using more than a band-aid in his dramatic healing of a woman who had been sick for 18 years, but his message was the same.  Sometimes the person needs to come before the rule.