Public Reading: Luke 8:40-56
The Story
• This is a story about two women who needed a touch from the Living God
o While their stories and ours may be separated by time and distance
o I believe their experiences with Jesus can influence and change our lives
• The first women
o She don’t know how old she was, but we do know that she had been bleeding (internal hemorrhage) for twelve years
* During that time she had spent all her money on doctors
* Yet no one was able to find a cure
o Because she was bleeding, she was concerned ‘unclean’ by Jewish ritual rules (Lev 15:19-30)
* Everything and everyone she touched became ceremonially unclean
* Meaning that she was most likely on the outside of the social structure.
• Someone living on the edge of society
• In all likelihood, seeing how Capernaum wasn’t that big, folks know about her without ‘knowing’ her
o Being ‘unclean’ would normally prevent her from contact with anyone else
* Especially those who were religious (non-religious people where more likely not to care about ceremonial cleanliness
* Yet on this day, she pushes into a crowd of religious people trying to see Jesus
o Why?
* Because she had heard about Jesus and the miracles he had done
• Most likely the ones he did before crossing and re-crossing the Sea of Galilee
* Both Mark and Matthew record her saying that “If I only touch His cloak I’ll be healed”
o Social Taboo
* In wanting to touch Jesus – to be close to Jesus – she became willing to break social taboos and be open to ridicule
* She was scared, but did not let that stop her
• She tried to remain hidden
• And when she did come up, it was with fear and trembling
o Lessons for us
* How many of us want to touch Jesus?
• To somehow saddle up beside Him and reach out our hands and touch Him?
* Yet too often we stop short of this goal….
• Not because we don’t want to
• or because we think he is not around physically.
* But because of fear, guilt, or blind eyes (we don’t recognize him),
• Fear
o It is scary to break out of one’s social norms
o To go places where Jesus is calling us to go
* Especially if we spend a life time ignoring or avoiding those places
o The unknown is sometimes worse than the known
o Failure
* What if touching Jesus doesn’t help?
* After all, we have spent years and all of our money looking for a cure with no success
* It could be that folks are telling you that your ‘sickness’ is all in your head
• Guilt
o We are not worth enough to be seen by Jesus
o There is no way He would see us or care about us…we are nothing
o Unclean
* Being unclean, we don’t want to burden Jesus with our sins or problems
* He has bigger stuff to worry about then “little old me”
o Jesus came to bring life not death (John 10:10)
* He came to bring healing not condemnation
o Luke 8:48
* “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”
* Terms of endearment => love from Jesus
• Blindness
o Sometimes we just don’t recognize Jesus when he comes to town
o We get too busy looking for things to happen in a certain way instead of listening to the Spirit
o Think about it
* There were many people pressing up against Jesus that day
* Yet we only hear about one lady getting healed
* Why?
• I think it was because why they ‘saw’ Jesus, they didn’t really ‘see’ him
• They saw on the surface level
o that a prophet of God had come to town
• But they failed to see deeper
o That Jesus came to heal and release folks from the prison of sickness, death and sin
o We do the same
* We look for signs and wonders the way that we were taught growing up
• We want to see the same things happening as those were road markers for us telling us when Jesus was here
* Yet things don’t always look the same
• We have to ‘know’ Jesus
• We have to watch the dancing hand of the Spirit and see what He is doing at this time and in this place
• The Second women
o A young girl
* The daughter of Jairus, the leader of the local synagogue
o She was dead
* No life was to be found in her
* She couldn’t watch for Jesus or go out to meet him
o Advocates
* She needed someone to fight on her behalf
• Someone to bring Jesus to her
* In this story, her father was the man who did this
• He went and ‘begged’ Jesus to come
• On his hands and knees
o No shame
o No hiding from the face of the public
o Just a burning need to bring Jesus to the one he loved
o Jesus came
* Even when it looked like all hope was gone
• It is never too late for Jesus!!
o Jesus set the professional mourners and naysayers away
* With just a few folks
• Peter, James and John
• The girl’s parents
* Jesus restored life into the little girl
o Lessons for us
* It is never too late
• Hang on to hope
• Trust Jesus even when everything looks impossible
* Let us be advocates
• Let us be the ones to bring Jesus to others
• Let us not be afraid to fall to our knees and beg Jesus to come with us as we love people
• Closing
o Where are you?
o We talked about two women who were touched by Jesus
* Two different stories that can influence our lives
o No matter where you are on the journey, know that Jesus is King
o Prayer
* Pray for boldness or for advocates for those who are stuck in fear, guilt, or blindness
* Pray that we become advocates
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