And after the reading of the Law and the Prophets the synagogue officials sent to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, say it.” - Acts 13:15
It’s good to see you all again this morning. Today’s message is titled “A Woman with a Hemorrhage and Jairus’ Daughter.” This is the 14th sermon of our series on “The Miracles of Jesus”. The 2 miracles we’ll discuss this morning are numbers 20 and 21 on our list. Both of them are recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. As always, I encourage you to read all 3 of these accounts in your private Bible study time to gain a fuller perspective. For the sake of our discussion this morning, we will use Luke’s version as our primary text.
I. AN URGENT PLEA (Luke 8:40-42; Mark 5:21-24 Matthew 9:18-19)
Jesus and the apostles departed from the region of the Gerasenes, sailed back across the sea, and arrived in Galilee (presumably in or near Capernaum) where He was welcomed by a large crowd of people who’d been waiting for His return. Among them was a synagogue official named Jairus whose 12 year old daughter was fatally ill. He came up to Jesus, fell at His feet, and began pleading with Him to come to his house and heal the child. As they were going to Jairus’ house the bustling crowds were pressing against Jesus.
Take a moment to consider the past 24 hours or so of Jesus’ life. He had spent all or most of the previous day teaching crowds by the sea shore. At evening time, He and the apostles crossed the Sea of Galilee, which probably took 3 or 4 hours, but He wasn’t able to get much rest because they encountered a windstorm. Upon reaching the other side during the night or early morning, Jesus met a demon-possessed. He healed the man, but the people living in the area urged Him to leave. Jesus and the apostles got back in their boats, returned across the sea again, and landed in Galilee perhaps around midday. Crowds were already there waiting for Him when He arrived. Sometimes I think my life is hectic, but Jesus stayed busy almost all the time! He modeled a life of selfless service.
II. WHO TOUCHED ME? (Luke 8:43-48; Mark 5:25-34; Matthew 9:20-22)
Among those in the rambunctious crowd was a woman who had suffered with a hemorrhage for 12 years. She came up behind Jesus anonymously and touched the fringe of His garment. She had seen many physicians, spent all of her money, and none of them had been able to help her. Nevertheless, she believed that Jesus could heal her. Sure enough, the moment she touched Jesus her bleeding ceased and the hemorrhage dried up. Jesus knew that power had gone out of Him and He turned and asked, “Who touched me?” The disciples stated that many people were touching Jesus, but the woman knew He was referring to her. She came forward, fell before Jesus, and told Him what she’d done and how she’d been healed. Jesus answered, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
I find this miracle fascinating in that Jesus did not “intentionally” heal this woman, nor did she ask Him to. However, she believed He could so she touched Him and was healed. Jesus could have simply let it go and kept walking, but He stopped to find out who touched Him (I’m sure He already knew the answer). By doing so, Jesus made this miracle known to the entire crowd, not just to He and the woman. He used this opportunity to applaud her faith and teach everyone about its importance.
According to the Jewish Law, a woman with an issue of blood was unclean. What's more, anything and anyone she touched became unclean also (Leviticus 15:25-27). She would have been forbidden from entering the temple. This likely added to her desperation. But when she touched Jesus, He didn’t become unclean. On the contrary, she became clean! Amazing. This is similar to when Jesus purposely touched and healed the leper, which we discussed earlier in this series. Our sinfulness doesn’t defile Him, but His righteousness cleanses us. His grace is greater than our sin.
This was a healing miracle. It was performed simply by touch, in this case when the woman touched Jesus. Jesus made the miracle known to the entire crowd so that others might believe in Him as she did. God is more likely to act when we exhibit sincere faith. He is not compelled to do so, as our faith does not override His will, but our faith does have some influence on His will. As the Bible teaches, it “availeth much” (James 5:16).
III. SHE IS ASLEEP (Luke 8:49-56; Mark 5:35-43; Matthew 9:23-26)
As Jesus was speaking, someone came from Jairus’ house reporting that his daughter had died and he no longer needed to trouble the Teacher. But Jesus answered. “Do not be afraid, only believe, and she will be saved.” When they arrived at the house, He told everyone to stop weeping because she wasn’t dead, just asleep. They all knew she was dead, so they laughed at Jesus’ seemingly naive comment. He took only the girl’s parents, Peter, James, and John with Him into her room. He held her hand and called out, “Child, arise!” She immediately came back to life and He ordered that she be given something to eat. Her parents were amazed, but Jesus directed them to keep silent about what had happened.
Did you notice that the messengers called Jesus “the Teacher”? They, like the majority of others, still didn’t recognize Jesus as the Messiah who had come to redeem God’s children. Though Jesus had performed numerous miracles by this point as overwhelming evidence of His divinity, the masses still didn’t get it. No matter how many miracles He performed, they would never be sufficient for some to believe in Him as the Son of God.
Something that stands out to me in this story is the concept of “troubling” Jesus with our requests. There are some who think He is not interested in our concerns, that they are a burden to Him, that He is unable to help, and/or that we shouldn’t trouble Him with our prayers and petitions unless it is absolutely necessary. Friend, nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus wants us to pray in every circumstance, no matter how big (like the death of a child) or small (Philippians 4:6). Your earnest prayers never trouble the Lord. He wants to hear them.
This was the 2nd time that Jesus resurrected a person from the dead. Earlier Jesus had raised the widow of Nain’s son and in this passage He raised Jairus’ daughter. These resurrections display Jesus’ heart for children. Though He took her hand, she rose when He spoke, meaning this was another spoken miracle. Jesus performed this miracle in the child’s room, with only a few witnesses present. Still, I am sure many people found out what had happened. It was another demonstration of His power and divinity.
CONCLUSION
Peter, James, and John were Jesus’ closest apostles. He allowed them to accompany Him on several occasions to places where the other 9 were not asked to go. For example, they went up with Him on the Mount of Transfiguration. They went with Him deeper into the Garden of Gethsemane, but unfortunately went to sleep. And in this morning’s message, these 3 were permitted to enter the girl’s room and see her resurrection firsthand. Peter, James, and John are sometimes referred to as Jesus’ “inner circle”.
In today’s message, Jesus healed a woman and resurrected a little girl. He can do miracles in your life. But there is something far more important than physical healing. Jesus has the power to forgive your sin, to reconcile you to God, and to give you the assurance of eternal life. This is the reason He came, to seek and save the lost. Would you trust in Him today to be your Lord and Savior?
It’s good to see you all again this morning. Today’s message is titled “A Woman with a Hemorrhage and Jairus’ Daughter.” This is the 14th sermon of our series on “The Miracles of Jesus”. The 2 miracles we’ll discuss this morning are numbers 20 and 21 on our list. Both of them are recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. As always, I encourage you to read all 3 of these accounts in your private Bible study time to gain a fuller perspective. For the sake of our discussion this morning, we will use Luke’s version as our primary text.
I. AN URGENT PLEA (Luke 8:40-42; Mark 5:21-24 Matthew 9:18-19)
Jesus and the apostles departed from the region of the Gerasenes, sailed back across the sea, and arrived in Galilee (presumably in or near Capernaum) where He was welcomed by a large crowd of people who’d been waiting for His return. Among them was a synagogue official named Jairus whose 12 year old daughter was fatally ill. He came up to Jesus, fell at His feet, and began pleading with Him to come to his house and heal the child. As they were going to Jairus’ house the bustling crowds were pressing against Jesus.
Take a moment to consider the past 24 hours or so of Jesus’ life. He had spent all or most of the previous day teaching crowds by the sea shore. At evening time, He and the apostles crossed the Sea of Galilee, which probably took 3 or 4 hours, but He wasn’t able to get much rest because they encountered a windstorm. Upon reaching the other side during the night or early morning, Jesus met a demon-possessed. He healed the man, but the people living in the area urged Him to leave. Jesus and the apostles got back in their boats, returned across the sea again, and landed in Galilee perhaps around midday. Crowds were already there waiting for Him when He arrived. Sometimes I think my life is hectic, but Jesus stayed busy almost all the time! He modeled a life of selfless service.
II. WHO TOUCHED ME? (Luke 8:43-48; Mark 5:25-34; Matthew 9:20-22)
Among those in the rambunctious crowd was a woman who had suffered with a hemorrhage for 12 years. She came up behind Jesus anonymously and touched the fringe of His garment. She had seen many physicians, spent all of her money, and none of them had been able to help her. Nevertheless, she believed that Jesus could heal her. Sure enough, the moment she touched Jesus her bleeding ceased and the hemorrhage dried up. Jesus knew that power had gone out of Him and He turned and asked, “Who touched me?” The disciples stated that many people were touching Jesus, but the woman knew He was referring to her. She came forward, fell before Jesus, and told Him what she’d done and how she’d been healed. Jesus answered, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”
I find this miracle fascinating in that Jesus did not “intentionally” heal this woman, nor did she ask Him to. However, she believed He could so she touched Him and was healed. Jesus could have simply let it go and kept walking, but He stopped to find out who touched Him (I’m sure He already knew the answer). By doing so, Jesus made this miracle known to the entire crowd, not just to He and the woman. He used this opportunity to applaud her faith and teach everyone about its importance.
According to the Jewish Law, a woman with an issue of blood was unclean. What's more, anything and anyone she touched became unclean also (Leviticus 15:25-27). She would have been forbidden from entering the temple. This likely added to her desperation. But when she touched Jesus, He didn’t become unclean. On the contrary, she became clean! Amazing. This is similar to when Jesus purposely touched and healed the leper, which we discussed earlier in this series. Our sinfulness doesn’t defile Him, but His righteousness cleanses us. His grace is greater than our sin.
This was a healing miracle. It was performed simply by touch, in this case when the woman touched Jesus. Jesus made the miracle known to the entire crowd so that others might believe in Him as she did. God is more likely to act when we exhibit sincere faith. He is not compelled to do so, as our faith does not override His will, but our faith does have some influence on His will. As the Bible teaches, it “availeth much” (James 5:16).
III. SHE IS ASLEEP (Luke 8:49-56; Mark 5:35-43; Matthew 9:23-26)
As Jesus was speaking, someone came from Jairus’ house reporting that his daughter had died and he no longer needed to trouble the Teacher. But Jesus answered. “Do not be afraid, only believe, and she will be saved.” When they arrived at the house, He told everyone to stop weeping because she wasn’t dead, just asleep. They all knew she was dead, so they laughed at Jesus’ seemingly naive comment. He took only the girl’s parents, Peter, James, and John with Him into her room. He held her hand and called out, “Child, arise!” She immediately came back to life and He ordered that she be given something to eat. Her parents were amazed, but Jesus directed them to keep silent about what had happened.
Did you notice that the messengers called Jesus “the Teacher”? They, like the majority of others, still didn’t recognize Jesus as the Messiah who had come to redeem God’s children. Though Jesus had performed numerous miracles by this point as overwhelming evidence of His divinity, the masses still didn’t get it. No matter how many miracles He performed, they would never be sufficient for some to believe in Him as the Son of God.
Something that stands out to me in this story is the concept of “troubling” Jesus with our requests. There are some who think He is not interested in our concerns, that they are a burden to Him, that He is unable to help, and/or that we shouldn’t trouble Him with our prayers and petitions unless it is absolutely necessary. Friend, nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus wants us to pray in every circumstance, no matter how big (like the death of a child) or small (Philippians 4:6). Your earnest prayers never trouble the Lord. He wants to hear them.
This was the 2nd time that Jesus resurrected a person from the dead. Earlier Jesus had raised the widow of Nain’s son and in this passage He raised Jairus’ daughter. These resurrections display Jesus’ heart for children. Though He took her hand, she rose when He spoke, meaning this was another spoken miracle. Jesus performed this miracle in the child’s room, with only a few witnesses present. Still, I am sure many people found out what had happened. It was another demonstration of His power and divinity.
CONCLUSION
Peter, James, and John were Jesus’ closest apostles. He allowed them to accompany Him on several occasions to places where the other 9 were not asked to go. For example, they went up with Him on the Mount of Transfiguration. They went with Him deeper into the Garden of Gethsemane, but unfortunately went to sleep. And in this morning’s message, these 3 were permitted to enter the girl’s room and see her resurrection firsthand. Peter, James, and John are sometimes referred to as Jesus’ “inner circle”.
In today’s message, Jesus healed a woman and resurrected a little girl. He can do miracles in your life. But there is something far more important than physical healing. Jesus has the power to forgive your sin, to reconcile you to God, and to give you the assurance of eternal life. This is the reason He came, to seek and save the lost. Would you trust in Him today to be your Lord and Savior?