Mark 5:21-41

Let me begin this afternoon by asking you all a question. How much of your faith do you really think that Jesus Christ is worth, if any at all?

Just think of life being rocked by a disaster. How far can we really go in trusting him? Where could the limit of your faith be tested? What's the worst that could happen to you? And in that moment, how much faith is Jesus really worth?

Well, it's been a couple of weeks, hasn't it, since we've looked at Mark's Gospel together. And you may remember we're in a section here where Mark puts together for us a collection of three miracles in a group performed by the Lord Jesus.

And the big call, the big challenge, in humanly impossible circumstances, has been for faith in Jesus Christ and the power of his word. The calming of the storm, the healing of the demon-possessed man, and now at the end of chapter 5, the resurrection of a dead 12-year-old girl.

Daddy, the father, the synagogue leader, Jairus, is the main figure here. And as he comes to terms with this grave situation of his little daughter's illness and subsequent death, there's a question that he must wrestle with here.

Verse 35.

Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further? Why trouble the teacher any further? What reason can you give Jairus to trust in Jesus now? Hope is lost. So why bother Jesus further?

Is Jesus still worth trusting? Surely the death of your daughter Jairus should challenge the limit of your faith in him.

And the challenge Mark puts to us in this account is whether we believe only in the circumstances and what seems possible, or in the God who can do the impossible.

And as with the other two miracles in this section, there's the interplay, isn't there, between fear of a situation and faith.

Have a look at verse 36 there.

Overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, do not fear, only believe.

In that moment of the grave news, Jesus says to him, yes, even now Jairus, don't fear, but believe.

You can trust me. You can trust me and the power of my word all the way, Jairus.

Trust me. This is how much faith you can put in me.

That even when death itself comes, trust me. Trust me.

And of course it's not only Jairus who has to learn this lesson, is it?

Ever since chapter 3, Jesus has spent particular time teaching his own followers, his disciples,

about faith in his power and in his word.

Like a little seed, do you remember?

That word is imperceptible. It's so small.

And yet it's so powerful.

And the disciples themselves must learn, commissioned by Jesus himself,

to go out and preach his word later on,

they must learn the authority that they go with as Jesus sends them.

The power and authority to bring life from death.

They're still learning the answer to that vital question, aren't they, at the end of chapter 4.

Who then is this, Jesus?

How much faith is he really worth?

So I've got three headings this afternoon, as is often the case, isn't it?

To take us through this miracle account that Mark gives us.

First of all, we see here a prayer of faith.

A prayer of faith.

The great Ormond Street Hospital treats severely ill children.

There's a programme on TV about it, isn't it?

And I don't know about you, but when I watch that programme,

it is such a saddening thing to see children that young, so ill.

And if this were a modern day account here, a modern day history,

there's no doubt that this young girl in the story, the daughter,

would be in the intensive care unit there.

Jairus, we're told, sees Jesus and, verse 23, falls at his feet,

imploring him earnestly, saying,

My little daughter is at the point of death.

Lord, come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be well.

At the point of death.

These are the last few moments of this little girl's precious life.

You could translate what he says to Jesus there as,

Lord, she's sinking fast.

Or, she's at death's door.

It's truly a heartbreaking scene, isn't it?

A horrible, horrible thing.

This man is torn apart by what's happening.

And just imagine the room in the hospital.

The girl is unconscious.

Perhaps she's hooked up to various apparatus.

And all is quiet, apart from the regular beep of the heart monitor.

Perhaps there's one or two family there sat at the bedside.

Her favourite teddy snuggled up to her.

But this is it.

At the point of death.

A doctor comes in.

He says, you know, there is nothing more we can do.

And so dad, he faces his worst nightmare, doesn't he?

Watching his girl about to perish.

Just a desperate situation.

But how much faith is Jesus actually worth?

There is a glimmer of hope, isn't there?

As Jesus approaches.

He approaches Jesus.

And perhaps this incredible man can heal his daughter like he healed the leper or the paralytic.

Earlier in Mark's Gospel.

It's worth a shot, isn't it?

So dad implores Jesus.

He has a certain measure of faith in Jesus to be able to do something about this situation.

He offers a prayer to him.

Lord, come and lay your hands on her.

A prayer offered perhaps in desperation.

But it's no less a prayer, is it?

In that situation.

Sometimes it is true, isn't it, that we can treat Jesus a bit like the fourth emergency service.

As a sort of last resort.

When things go wrong.

We don't pray or contact him at any of the time.

Apart from when disaster hits.

But that doesn't mean, does it, that he will refuse to listen.

Just out of spite.

That doesn't mean that he will refuse to listen to us when and if disaster does come.

Sometimes that's what it takes for us to pray, isn't it?

Some desperate situation.

For us to realise that all along we were so weak.

And we relied upon God.

And this otherwise powerful and influential man could have let Jesus pass him by, couldn't he?

Maybe confident in his own position.

But as the circumstances arise, he offers Jesus this simple prayer.

This simple request.

Showing a desperate faith.

Lord, I'm powerless here.

Can't do anything.

Please come and lay your hands on her.

Now isn't it so encouraging here?

But given the terrible reception Jesus has had from the religious leaders so far,

he is willing to deal with this Jewish synagogue leader.

So you remember a few weeks ago we saw, didn't we,

the rejection of Jesus by the Jewish religious leaders

has brought the rejection by Jesus upon the old faithless Israel.

But even amongst a rejected, rebellious people,

he listens to and helps individuals who break that mould.

The mould of faithlessness in Jesus.

Those who come to him in faith and desperation.

Just a simple prayer.

Offered in great need and desperation.

You and your faith may be terribly weak.

But Jesus listens.

Even if you come from a people, if you come from a background

that has rejected Jesus.

There's always a new start.

Prayer is always open to us today.

So Jairus shows some faith, doesn't he?

He goes to Jesus on the verge of a personal tragedy,

a prayer of faith.

But just how much faith is Jesus really worth here?

Now Mark really loves putting things in sandwiches in his gospel.

He puts things out in sets of three.

So you've got the bread in the centre.

He often does that to help us to see his point.

And he does that here, doesn't he?

He stops in verses 24 to 34.

He stops the story of the ill dying daughter

with what looks like an unrelated case

of an ill woman with a long-term illness,

a bleeding problem.

There she is in verse 25.

There was a woman who'd had a discharge of blood for 12 years.

Now it just seems like here, doesn't it,

that Mark is a poor editor.

He's gone away, had a cup of coffee,

forgotten that he was talking about Jairus' daughter,

and now he's talking about this woman.

But actually this woman is here

as the filling of a sandwich,

designed to show us an exemplary faith.

In the context of the dying daughter,

this woman is an example to Jairus,

and to all of us, and to the disciples,

of how much faith Jesus is really worth.

So we've heard the prayer of faith,

but Mark secondly interrupts Jairus' story

with an exemplary faith.

Now the two incidences are put closely together

as a comparison.

So Jesus calls both the young girl

and the woman daughter.

We'll see that a bit later on.

The girl is 12 years old, we're told.

And the woman coincidentally

has had a discharge of blood for 12 years.

Both of them are, according to Levitical law,

ritually unclean in some way.

The woman from the discharge

and the girl later on as a corpse.

Both of them receive a touch from Jesus

and receive an immediate healing or resurrection.

So Mark lays these two closely together

to show us something particular.

To show us how much faith Jesus is really worth.

To show us how far we can trust in him.

Now I hope that you can see here

the chances of the woman receiving anything from Jesus

are actually much, much lower

than the synagogue ruler's chances.

So look at the comparison.

Rather than a pillar of society,

she was ostracised by others.

She would have been kept from temple worship

because of her condition.

Mark is emphatic about her condition, isn't he?

In verse 26.

She'd had this discharge for 12 years

who had suffered much under many physicians,

had spent all that she had

and was no better,

but rather grew worse.

Now although we don't know

whether this woman's condition is life-threatening,

the feeling is there, isn't it,

that her life really feels like

it isn't worth living.

It is a living torment.

Suffered much.

Many physicians.

Spent all she had.

Was no better.

Just grew worse and worse.

No answers.

No improvements.

No signs of hope.

For 12 long years.

The doctor's fees.

The dirty looks.

The isolation.

And the humiliation.

Of this particular illness.

But in the midst of this thronging crowd

around Jesus,

she manages, doesn't she,

to force her way to Jesus

and to touch his garment.

In verse 28.

28.

If I touch even his garment,

I'll be made well.

Now after that,

there is a funny moment,

isn't there?

It probably took us by surprise

as Steve read it,

where Jesus turns around

and says in verse 30,

Who touched my garments?

Who touched my garments?

Now the disciples think

that this is some kind of joke,

don't they?

Come on Lord,

you see this crown

pressing around you here,

and you're asking

who touched your garments?

Ridiculous.

Jesus looks around,

doesn't he,

to see who's done it.

Now the point Mark

is trying to make there,

he's trying to show us

that this woman

was different in some way

to all the other people

who were touching Jesus.

There was something about her

that was unique.

Something that Jesus felt

that he noticed.

Her touch of his garment

was different.

Just look at verse 34

for a second.

He said to her,

Daughter,

your faith

has made you well.

Go in peace

and be healed

of your disease.

See the woman

is highlighted

because of her

exemplary faith.

The woman

who had the least chance

of getting anything

from Jesus,

who was ritually

unclean,

who has to even

violate the law

to go near Jesus,

she has no position

or status

unlike Jairus.

As a woman,

that was probably

made even worse

in those days.

She's nameless,

isn't she?

We know Jairus' name,

we don't know her name.

We only know her

as the woman

who had this

bleeding issue.

She approaches

Jesus in shame.

Notice,

she approaches

Jesus from behind.

Whereas Jairus

can come straight

to him

and fall at his feet.

You see,

the woman's faith

stretches beyond

what circumstances

for her

make possible

to the God

of the impossible

who thinks

all I have to do

is touch

his clothes.

She has

an exemplary

faith

in him.

She knows

all of the factors,

doesn't she?

That humanly

speaking mean

that nothing

can be done

for her.

She could have

easily asked

at that moment,

couldn't she,

why bother

Jesus

further?

Why bother

Jesus?

Yet,

she forces

her way

through the crowds

to him

and she

believes.

Now,

isn't it

a lovely thing

that Jesus

isn't prepared

to simply

dispatch

a healing miracle

to this woman?

She's immediately

healed,

isn't she?

But he's not

happy to just

simply dispatch

that to her.

No,

he searches

out the person

herself.

Jesus

wants her

to have

the most

important thing

which is a

personal encounter

with him.

Not just to

receive his

healing.

He searches

her out.

And you

get the sense,

don't you,

of the shame

she felt

coming to Jesus

in the first place.

Just look at

verse 33 there.

The woman

knowing what

had happened

to her

came in fear

and trembling

and fell down

before him

and told him

the whole truth.

told him

the whole truth.

She came in fear

and in trembling

and she bared

her soul

to Jesus.

The whole truth

of her situation,

her uncleanness,

the past 12 years,

shamed.

Shouldn't she

at that point

in the first place?

Shamed that she was

even there,

unclean.

Shame,

perhaps,

is the barrier

sometimes,

isn't it,

for us to put

our faith in

Jesus,

to go to him.

But she bears

all to him.

She tells him

the whole truth.

She confesses

it all.

The unclean

woman

comes clean

to Jesus.

She tells him

her whole life.

Opens the flood

boats.

And it's great,

isn't it?

It doesn't shock

Jesus.

That puts

Jesus' power

above the shame

and circumstances

in our life.

It is a faith

that knows

no limits

here.

An exemplary

faith.

And so we come

lastly,

don't we,

here,

to the lesson

that Jairus

has to learn.

How much

faith is Jesus

really worth?

Mark brings us

back to the story

of the dying girl,

doesn't he?

John's gospel

tells us that

there was a delay

here,

long enough

for the girl's

condition to

deteriorate

and eventually

for her to die.

Why bother

the teacher

anymore?

They say.

Your daughter

is dead.

It's a prayer

of faith,

an exemplary

faith,

but we close

with a lesson

in faith.

Now one writer

sums this passage

up really well

by saying that

the story

swings on the

pendulum

of human

despair

and divine

possibility.

So true,

isn't it?

What little hope

Jairus has

is surely

snatched away

here,

isn't it?

The report

comes to him

of his

daughter's

death.

But Jesus'

perspective on

the situation

is totally

different,

isn't it?

Look at verse

36,

just over the

page.

Overhearing

what they

said,

Jesus said

to the ruler

of the synagogue,

Do not

fear,

only believe.

He overhears

the message.

Do not

fear,

only believe.

Now Mark

is masterful

here in

his word

overhearing

there.

It's kind

of lost

in our

English

translation,

but in the

original Greek

it's an

interesting

word.

It can

mean several

things.

It means

to overhear

and yet

to discount

the truth

or to

ignore it,

to eavesdrop

and decide

to forget

what you've

heard.

It's to

disregard

the words

that you've

accidentally

heard.

So Jesus

hears this

report of

death,

and even

though it

may be

true,

so great

is Jesus'

power

that the

one certainty

in life,

death,

he has

the liberty

to simply

ignore.

How much

faith is

Jesus really

worth?

Jesus'

power is

so great,

he can

afford to

disregard

this report

and say,

don't fear,

only believe.

death.

And then

notice what

he says

to the

wailing

crowds

outside the

house in

verse 39.

If you look

there.

He entered,

he said to

them,

why are you

making a

commotion and

weeping?

The child is

not dead,

but asleep.

So great

is Jesus'

power that

death can

be disturbed

like an

afternoon nap.

And of

course it's

ludicrous,

isn't it,

to say such

a thing at

the graveside

at a funeral.

Why bother

the teacher

any more?

But those in

the house are

overwhelmed,

they are

overcome with

amazement.

He takes

the girl

by the

hand and

he says,

little girl

or daughter,

I say to

you,

arise.

This is no

longer the

hospital,

is it?

This is in

the morgue.

I say

to you,

arise.

And Mark

says,

immediately

she got

up and

walked.

Jesus

suspends

time with

the woman,

not instead

of Jairus,

but for

the sake

of Jairus.

Don't

fear,

only

believe.

Now Jairus

wasn't a

man with

no faith

at all,

was he?

He'd come

to Jesus

with a

prayer of

faith.

It wasn't

that he

only feared

and had

no faith,

but there

came circumstances

which put

his faith

on the

line.

And Jesus

delays,

as if to

say to

him,

yes,

even now

Jairus,

trust me.

So this

isn't about

us believing

enough so

that Jesus

will heal

us.

And if he

hasn't healed

me, then I

haven't got

enough faith.

We get in a

mix of that

sometimes,

don't we?

Now actually

it's about

believing Jesus

even when he

doesn't heal,

even when

there is a

delay,

even when

the circumstances

say to us,

why bother

the Lord

anymore?

How much

faith is

Jesus really

worth?

This isn't

just about

physical healing

either.

actually the

words used

for the

woman healed

in verse

28 and

verse 34,

you can look

at later,

can also

mean the

word to

be saved,

to be healed,

to be saved,

to be rescued

from uncleanness,

bearing the

whole truth

of our lives

to him,

and receiving

his resurrection

power,

being brought

from death

to life.

And the

lesson for

Jairus is

that when

circumstances

make it

impossible,

be like

the woman.

Be like

the woman

who trusts

Jesus,

the God

of the

impossible,

a faith

that knows

no limits.

And on

the day

of death

itself,

and even

after death,

Jesus says

to those

who trust

in him,

yes,

even now,

trust me,

trust me,

let's pray.