Mark 5:21-43
21 When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him while he was by the lake.
22 Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet.
23 He pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.”
24 So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him.
25 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years.
26 She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.
27 When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak,
28 because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.”
29 Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.
30 At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
31 “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’ ”
32 But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it.
33 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth.
34 He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”
35 While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”
36 Overhearing what they said, Jesus told him, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”
37 He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James.
38 When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly.
39 He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.”
40 But they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was.
41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”).
42 Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished.
43 He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.
I would like to give you a little bit of a behind-the-scenes picture of how I write my sermons I’ve decided about 10 years ago to use the lectionary for my scripture selection and I thought that if I Preached the lectionary calendar every year at about 12 years I would’ve rotated through a good portion of the Bible for those who don’t know the lectionary calendar is a three-year rotational calendar that has a Year A, Year B, and Year C. Each Sunday for this calendar they list four types of scriptures, a Psalm, a New Testament Letter, an Old Testament passage, and a Gospel Passage. So, I thought I could use the lectionary for 12 years rotating each year, without repeating passages, but every year I got this week I seem to always pick this passage from the Gospel of Mark. I relate to this passage; I have had some good times and some not-so-good times. I have had some friends and I have been alone; I have been healthy, and I have been sick. I’ve learned that life is full of ups and downs I am sure I am not the only one who has learned this.
We all have had to go through some life changes, and if you have not God bless you, and as the adage goes keep saying good morning and you will find some changes. There is a saying that goes we are always in one of three places in life, in the middle of a storm, coming out of a storm, or going into a storm. If we took a testimony, I’m sure many could share how things didn’t go exactly as we planned it but we pushed through and made it to the end. Changes are a part of life, no matter how much we don't like it. But even during those life-changing circumstances, a touch from the lord can make it alright. You can touch the Lord, or the Lord can touch you, either way, that touch can make things better immediately.
God shows us this in scripture here in the Gospel according to Mark. Mark the oldest of the Gospels and the shortest. Written by John Mark who spent time walking with Peter, and John Mark wrote about what Peter told him, that is how we get the Gospel of Mark. You can see Peter's personality come out in the text. Peter was short on patience and short on words, Peter let the actions do the talking, and the actions happened immediately, the Gospel of Mark has immediately in it a bunch of times, and the two people in need of healing were healed immediately in this passage. The text starts with Jairus a leader in the synagogue coming to Jesus for help, during the Biblical times, the people of God focused on worshiping in the temple and the synagogues were community-based, the big Temple was destroyed later but the synagogues survived to this day. Jairus was a synagogue ruler, a big fish in a little pond as my family would say but he still needed help once his 12-year-old daughter got sick. He went to Jesus, and he begged him to heal his daughter, it doesn't matter how big you get, how much of a pillar you are in the community, all that can go away in an instant and you lose or almost lose everything valuable to you. Jairus is showing us you must treat people right on the way up, you may need them later, or at least see them on the way down. At least Jairus went to someone that could help him, someone that had the power to make it alright, Jairus saw his baby girl was in trouble and took him to the one that could fix it. Jesus didn't mock Jairus either, didn't ask Jairus to find one of his other Rabbi friends, Jesus did not say he would consider it, Jesus saw the man begging for help and decided to help him.
Jesus and company ended up making a pit stop on the way to heal Jairus' daughter, the woman with an issue of blood for over 12 years pushed her way through for her healing. The text says she had spent all her money trying to find a way to get healed but the situation only got worse. She had done all she could and heard about the man named Jesus and had to get to him. The woman with the issue of blood did not care about social rules either, according to Leviticus 15 she should not have been around other people being unclean, but she knew where her healing was and didn't care what happened as long as she got it, the woman said if I could just touch the hem of his garment. Jairus didn't care about his position the woman didn't care about her social status either, whether you are up or down you still can get something from Jesus. If some of us were to pursue Jesus like we didn't care about what other people thought about us. What if we were willing to embarrass ourselves to get closer to God, I remember when David danced for the Lord they made fun of him, but he said I will become more undignified than this. Worrying about what other people think is stagnating and preventing the church from being what God called us to be what if we were a little more like this woman and Jairus?
Jesus felt power leave him, so he asked who touched him? The people said Jesus it's too crowded to be asking questions like that, everybody touched you. But Jesus knew this touch was something different. This touch immediately healed the woman's issue, and when Jesus found the woman, the text says she told Jesus the whole truth, some translations say the woman told him all.
Have a little talk with Jesus
Tell him all about our troubles
Hear our fainted cry, answer by and by
Feel a little prayer wheel turning
Know a little fire is burning
Just a little talk with Jesus makes it right.
Jesus told the woman that her faith made her well, and he called her daughter. The woman went in with an issue and came out family, went in with no name, and came out being called something Jesus doesn't call anyone else in the Bible. The woman was willing to stick around and received her healing and then some.
Some people from Jarius’ house show up around that time and tell Jairus Don't bother Jesus your daughter is dead. Jesus told Jairus don't be afraid, only believe and they kept going towards Jairus' home. When the entourage got to Jairus' home they were met outside by some professional mourners. People paid to mourn the loss of a loved one almost put on a show at a funeral. I know this was common back in the Bible times, but I can't help but notice these days you have people that will cause drama for free.
Some people like drama some people just aren't happy unless they are seeing some drama or if they can't see some, they will start some. Jesus said the little girl was only sleeping and the people laughed. In response to the drama, and the mess, and the laughter, Jesus put the people out. Jesus touched the young lady, and she was healed immediately, not only healed but healed and hungry. Having been sick before and hospitalized while sick I can appreciate the little girl getting something to eat, that meant she was healed and ready to get back to living life to its fullest.
The woman was someone who was not supposed to be touching people, but Jesus let her, Jairus daughter was dead, people were not supposed to be touching her, but Jesus touched her. In both situations, Jesus did not care about the rules he showed the love of God to the people and healed them both.
What if we were willing to not worry about our titles and positions and put some more effort into getting to know Jesus? What if we were willing to go past the rules to help others get to know Jesus as well? Some things in us could make us untouchable, but Jesus is still willing to touch us and let us touch him.
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