Miracles and Mystery

Bible Passage: Mark 5:21-43

This passage weaves together two stories that each show the compassion and healing power of Jesus in different ways. The first is the story of a powerful religious leader whose daughter is poorly. As Jesus is on his way to the man’s house, he is interrupted by a woman who has had an issue of bleeding for twelve years. Despite the urgency of the first situation, Jesus stops and gives the woman time, and she is healed. Because of the delay, by the time they arrive at the house of the synagogue leader, the girl has died. But Jesus goes to her and commands her to get up, and she does – demonstrating that Jesus even has power over death. Through this sermon we will see the power of Jesus for our needs, however long we have struggled with them or however far gone we might think they are.

Bringing Our Needs to Jesus: By this point in the gospel, Jesus has begun to develop a reputation as a miracle worker, and people are now coming to him with their needs and difficult situations. It is interesting to see here the similarities and differences between the two people highlighted in the story. The synagogue ruler was a powerful and respected person in society, but this status offered him no protection from the illness that was afflicting his daughter. We do not know the exact nature of why the woman was bleeding, but it is likely connected to her period, and she was viewed as ritually unclean in the society of the day and looked down upon. Nevertheless, in telling the story, Mark highlights ‘twelve years’ in the way he describes both: that is how long the woman had bled for, and that is the age of the girl. In this way, he is lining the two together and showing that they were unified by their need of Jesus. In both cases, coming to Jesus was risky. The synagogue leader was putting his reputation on the line amongst colleagues, many of whom were opposing Jesus. For the woman, many people would want to keep their distance from her to guard themselves from being unclean, and even touching Jesus’ cloak risked rebuke and rejection (perhaps this is why she attempted to do so subtly in a crowded space). Despite the risks, both knew they had nothing to lose. The woman had tried many things without success, and the man was on the verge of losing his daughter, so out of desperation they came to Jesus. Whilst they may not be the same as the needs of the people in this story, everyone listening to the sermon will have circumstances in life where they need help, and the story encourages us to bring those needs to Jesus.

The Healing Compassion of Jesus: It is the woman who sees Jesus work in her situation first. Jesus felt power go from him, and asks who it was that touched him. The woman steps forward and explains what she did, and is full of fear as she does so. Her worries may include the impropriety of the situation as a ritually unclean person reaching out to a holy man (why would Jesus associate with someone like me?) and the fact that Jesus was clearly busy with important business (doesn’t he have more important things to do than engage with my need?). These worries may parallel some of our own fears about coming to Jesus, but we see in this story that they are unfounded. Despite his priority engagement, Jesus has time for this lady and stops what he is doing to engage with her. And when he looks upon her, he does not see an unclean person, but someone of faith. Jesus responds compassionately and tenderly to a person’s need, and he brings healing into her situation. As we think about our own needs before Jesus, we should do so in full knowledge that he both cares and has power to heal.  .

The Life-Giving Power of Jesus: Because the journey to the synagogue leader’s house was delayed while Jesus healed the woman, the girl had died before they arrived, and people came out to bring the news and let the man know that there was no longer a need for Jesus to come. The expectation had evidently been that Jesus might be able to do something while she was still alive, but this was beyond his power. Jesus had other ideas however, and the delay was no accident, but an opportunity to reveal that his power even extends over life and death. He went to the house anyway and when he saw the girl, he invited her to get up, and she did! This is one of a few examples in the gospels where Jesus raises the dead, and it both demonstrates the scale of his power and points forward to his resurrection where he will defeat death once and for all.

This text shows Jesus’ power and compassion, but it does not promise that every situation will resolve as quickly or visibly. It does, however, show that His character is trustworthy.

Potential Applications:

• Both of the people mentioned in this story had circumstances of need in their life, and both brought them to Jesus. Invite your listeners to bring to mind what their own needs are and then lead a time of prayer, bringing those needs to Jesus.
• There were potential blocks in both cases why they may dismiss the power of Jesus for themselves – in one case due to the woman’s own status, and in the other because they situations seemed too far gone. You might challenge people to think what barriers we have created in our minds that stop us bringing needs to Jesus, and then consider how this passage brings those barriers down.
• Perhaps it might be appropriate for there to be some healing prayer offered for any present struggling with menstrual issues. Note – it would be wise (especially if you are a male preacher) to allow some of the female leaders in your context to reflect on if this would be appropriate in your context and what it might look like.