Enjoying the Trinity

Luke chapter 8, we're going to read from verse 22 to the end of the chapter,

Luke 8 · chapter mention

a day in the life of Jesus.

So page 1037, as we look at this day in the life of Jesus.

So let's hear God's word together.

One day, Jesus said to his disciples, let's go over to the other side of the lake.

So they got into a boat and set out.

As they sailed, he fell asleep.

A squall came down on the lake so that the boat was being swamped and they were in great danger.

The disciples went and woke him saying, master, master, we're going to drown.

He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters.

The storm subsided and all was calm.

Where is your faith?

He asked his disciples.

In fear and amazement, they asked one another, who is this?

He commands even the winds and the water and they obey him.

They sailed to the region of the Gerasenes, which is across the lake from Galilee.

When Jesus stepped ashore, he was met by a demon-possessed man from the town.

For a long time, this man had not worn clothes or lived in a house, but had lived in the tombs.

When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell at his feet, shouting at the top of his voice,

what do you want with me, Jesus, son of the most high God?

I beg you, don't torture me.

For Jesus had commanded the evil spirit to come out of the man.

Many times it had seized him, and though he was chained hand and foot and kept under guard,

he had broken his chains and had been driven by the demon into solitary places.

Jesus asked him, what is your name?

Legion, he replied, because many demons had gone into him.

And they begged him repeatedly not to order them to go into the abyss.

A large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside.

The demons begged Jesus to let them go into them, and he gave them permission.

When the demons came out of the man, they went into the pigs,

and they heard rust down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

When those tending the pigs saw what had happened,

they ran off and reported this in the town and countryside,

and the people went out to see what had happened.

When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out,

sitting at Jesus' feet, dressed and in his right mind.

And they were afraid.

Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured.

Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them,

because they were overcome with fear.

So he got into the boat and left.

The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him,

but Jesus sent him away, saying,

return home and tell how much God has done for you.

So the man went away and told all over the town how much Jesus had done for him.

Now when Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed him, for they were all expecting him.

Then a man named Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, came and fell at Jesus' feet,

pleading with him to come to his house,

because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying.

As Jesus was on his way, the crowd almost crushed him.

And a woman who was there had been subject to bleeding for twelve years,

but no one could heal her.

She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak,

and immediately her bleeding stopped.

Who touched me?

Jesus asked.

When they all denied it, Peter said,

Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.

But Jesus said, someone touched me.

I know that power has gone out from me.

Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed,

came trembling and fell at his feet.

In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him

and how she had been instantly healed.

Then he said to her,

Daughter, your faith has healed you.

Go in peace.

While Jesus was still speaking,

someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler.

Your daughter is dead, he said.

Don't bother the teacher anymore.

Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus,

Don't be afraid.

Just believe, and she will be healed.

When he arrived at the house of Jairus,

he did not let anyone go in with him

except Peter, John, and James,

and the child's father and mother.

Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her.

Stop wailing, Jesus said.

She is not dead, but asleep.

They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.

But he took her by the hand and said,

My child, get up.

Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up.

Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat.

Her parents were astonished,

but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.

Amen.

We're continuing with this study,

enjoying God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,

thinking about how the way the three persons of the Trinity relate to us

and how we relate to them can help us in our walk of faith.

And today we're going to think about the truth

that in every pain and trouble we experience,

we can enjoy the Son's presence.

It was probably about this time last year,

I think, that as a church,

we thought about the fact that God is eternal and unchanging,

and that's good news.

This evening we're thinking about the fact that Jesus is unchanging,

that as Hebrews 13 says,

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

And I want us to think about why that's particularly good news for us

when we find ourselves walking through pain and suffering.

And it's good news for us as we remember that what Jesus was then,

as we encounter him in the Gospels,

Jesus is now and always will be for his people.

It's good for us to remember that while we are always changing,

that while our response to others is affected by all kinds of things,

by our own personal circumstances,

by our physical well-being or otherwise,

by the emotions or stresses that we go through,

the same is not true of Jesus.

That while our ability to help others has limits,

there are those drains on our resources.

We have our own stuff to deal with.

People talk about compassion fatigue.

We see so much suffering on our screens

that we can become immune to feeling pain

and expressing sympathy.

When we do invest in others,

there's an emotional drain that makes it hard for us sometimes

to do that for the long haul.

And again, that's not like Jesus.

So Jesus is like us in that he became one of us,

in that he experienced weakness and suffering,

and so is able to sympathize with us.

But he is unlike us in that he is eternal God,

in that he has unlimited resources.

And here in this context,

that means he has unlimited resources for caring for you and for me.

And we meet in Jesus someone who is never too busy,

never too tired,

never too preoccupied to care for us.

We find in Jesus someone who never becomes desensitized

to our pain and suffering.

Jesus knows everything that's happening all around the world,

and yet he cares for each one of us.

We are precious to him.

So it is good news for us to recognize that Jesus is unchanging.

The character of Jesus we discover in the Gospels

is the character of the Jesus who sits in heaven for us.

So I want us to do this evening

is just to look at a few hours in the life of Jesus

that we find here in Luke chapter 8

Luke 8 · chapter mention

in order to give us hope,

to remind ourselves that in every pain,

we can enjoy the Son's presence.

So we're going to look at verse 40 to verse 56.

And we're going to discover there,

as we have already,

two very different people,

but they have one shared need.

Now one of the things about the way

the Gospel writers put their Gospels together

is that they typically move from one person's story

to another person's story,

to some teaching of Jesus,

and it can feel very busy.

I think we all appreciate Jesus lived a very busy life,

but sometimes it can seem quite well-ordered

and structured from here to here to here.

But Luke, in this little section,

it shows us Jesus in his extreme busyness,

but also these different complex needs

pressing in at once.

And what we see at the same time

is Jesus showing compassion, love, and power

for whoever comes to him,

making time for them,

serving, healing, saving.

So let's meet these two people

with one shared need who come to Jesus.

First of all, let's think about Jairus.

Who is Jairus?

Verse 41, we discover something of him.

Then a man named Jairus,

a ruler of the synagogue,

came and fell at Jesus' feet,

pleading with him to come to his house,

because his only daughter,

a girl of about 12, was dying.

So he's a ruler of the synagogue.

So we're presented with somebody

who is part of the religious elite,

somebody who had a reputation for godliness,

somebody who is able to understand

and to teach the Bible.

And in that day,

to be part of the religious elite

meant you had high status in society.

But we know something else about Jairus.

Despite all of that privilege

and status and standing,

he is also in a desperate nightmare situation.

Ask any parent their worst fear,

and this is it.

This is Jairus' experience.

And so what we discover about Jairus

is that he forgets his status

to come to Jesus,

to fall on his knees,

to publicly beg and plead for help.

Jesus is his only hope,

and he knows it.

So that's Jairus.

But he's not the only person we meet.

As Jesus walks towards Jairus' house,

we also meet a woman unnamed.

Verse 43, what do we learn about her?

A woman was there who'd been subject to bleeding

for 12 years,

but no one could heal her.

In other accounts,

we discover she spent all her money

going to different doctors,

but nobody could help.

But we certainly know this lady

is on the other end of the social spectrum.

For 12 years,

she has been suffering physically with bleeding.

The same length of time

that Jairus' daughter has been alive,

she has suffered from bleeding.

And because of that bleeding,

she is regarded as being religiously unclean.

Jairus, worship leader,

this woman denied access to worship.

Jairus at the center of society,

this lady socially isolated.

Nobody wants to come into contact with her

lest they too become unclean.

So she is penniless,

she is hopeless,

but she comes to Jesus in her need.

So they're different in so many ways,

in terms of gender,

in terms of class,

in terms of religious worship,

even in terms of how they approach.

Jairus comes publicly,

this woman comes privately, secretly.

But they're the same in this one crucial way.

There is a situation they are facing

that lies beyond human help.

And they both make the same response.

They turn to Jesus.

It's interesting,

as Luke presents us with these two stories,

he's also at the same time

pointing us towards the fact

that there were large crowds present.

It seems like wherever Jesus went,

there were lots of people who would gather

who seemed to be there,

at least in part for the show.

What will Jesus do next?

But not these two.

These two came in their need

and they came with faith.

And as we read their stories,

we're also discovering

the unchanging Savior, Jesus.

He is the one who will help them both.

He is not distant.

He is not disinterested.

He makes time for them both.

And we are invited to learn from them

to run to Jesus

in our pain,

through our tears,

with the shame that we carry.

When we think about our own circumstances,

what is that pain?

What is that burden that you carry?

Jesus says,

Jesus says,

come to me,

take your burden to me,

find rest from me.

And remember this Jesus,

his heart is as big as ever it was.

He sympathizes,

and he draws near,

and he is strong to comfort,

and he is mighty to save.

Or maybe like this woman,

it's shame that we wear.

Perhaps because of failures in our past.

Perhaps because of addictions that we wrestle with,

patterns of sin that we struggle with.

Jesus knows our shame,

and he can give us peace.

He can clothe us with his honor.

Maybe we come with doubts and fears this evening

when we think about our situation and our struggles.

I don't think anyone else would understand

what I'm going through.

Perhaps we feel overwhelmed,

and we find ourselves,

I can't face this alone.

Where can I turn?

As we think about these stories,

and as we think about our unchanging Savior,

we're invited to see Jesus as the answer for our fear.

To think of him in heaven,

that unchanging Savior,

still for his people,

wanting to love us.

So let's think of these two different stories.

Let's think of these stories of faith,

and let's think some more about our strong Savior.

It's interesting,

when Luke has written his account here,

we're invited to see two healing stories,

but the word for healing in the Greek

is literally saved.

When the woman is healed,

in verse 43 and 44,

and then in the presence of all the people,

verse 47,

she told why she touched him

and how she'd been instantly healed.

And Jesus says in verse 48,

your faith has healed you.

Those healed words are the same as the word saved.

And same when Jesus raises Jairus' daughter

from death,

healing and salvation.

Why combine the two?

Because in these healing stories,

we're being shown a window

into the kingdom to come.

And we are being invited to see

in all of the miracle stories,

here is how the world was meant to be,

and here is how the world will one day be.

Remember that rich and glorious promise

at the end of Revelation?

The hope for the people of God

is a renewed world.

Will there be no more pain or tears

or sadness or death?

Jesus is giving us a window

into that great hope.

These miracle stories are a lens

through which to view Jesus, the Savior,

to see that he truly is

the resurrection and the life,

to see that he is the one who has come

to make everything new,

including us.

In the time of Jesus,

it happened then,

often for us,

our hope of healing and deliverance.

Maybe lands in eternity,

but still we trust in this same Savior

who has come as the servant of the Lord

in order to give the hope

of new and perfect life.

So let's take a look at these two stories

of faith and salvation.

We'll begin with the woman.

So in verse 44,

we discover that she comes behind Jesus,

secretly touches the edge of his cloak,

and immediately her bleeding stopped.

Who touched me?

Jesus asked.

Master, the people are crowding

and pressing against you,

but Jesus said,

someone touched me.

I know that power has gone out from me.

That question, who touched me,

may or may not be similar

to the question that God asks

in Genesis chapter 3.

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

As Adam and Eve,

in their sin,

in their sense of shame,

try and hide from God,

God comes into the garden

and asks Adam and Eve,

where are you?

In that case,

God is not ignorant of the situation.

He wants to draw them out for their good.

It may very well be that Jesus

is doing the same thing here.

Jesus wants to draw this woman out

to speak to her for her sake

and for the sake of the crowd

to make it clear that her faith,

as Jesus says in verse 48,

has healed her.

But maybe it might be helpful for us to think,

well, why has she come secretly to Jesus?

Why hasn't she done what Jairus did,

fall on her knees and beg?

Most likely because of these 12 years

of being isolated and unclean.

Most likely because of a fear of rejection.

People may have been offended

by her attempt to get close to Jesus

and by extension getting close to them.

She may have worried about humiliation,

so she came privately.

But yet she came with faith.

Jesus can identify the touch of faith.

And so as he's dealing with

the critical situation of Jairus,

he still makes time to stop.

So let's think, why does Jesus stop?

One thing that becomes clear

is Jesus stops,

so this woman can give clear testimony

to the work of Jesus in her life.

She has moved from being

a secret believer in Jesus

to being a powerful public witness

for Jesus.

Here she is before Jesus

and before the crowds,

and she's saying,

well, here was my life before Jesus.

This is what has brought me here.

I came in my needs

and my uncleanness

and my suffering.

This was my identity.

Isolated, unable to worship.

I came with faith

and I stand before you

healed and saved

by Jesus' power

and by Jesus' grace.

So by Jesus stopping,

he has allowed this woman

to publicly share her story

and to share it in such a way

that glory is given to God

and honor is given to Jesus.

Jesus.

That's a wonderful moment

for her life.

I wonder if you and I

have had that privilege

of telling our own story

in that same way.

This is what I was like.

This was my past.

Then I met Jesus

and this is the difference

that he has made.

It can be a very useful piece

of homework

to think for ourselves.

If I had two minutes,

three minutes to talk

to a friend

or a family member

about what my faith

is all about,

how would I do that

in such a way

that like this woman,

glory is given to Jesus.

So Jesus stops

so this woman

can give testimony.

Jesus stops also

so that we can get

an understanding

into the transfer

that has taken place.

So normally,

and you find this

all through the Old Testament laws,

if a person

who is unclean

touched another person,

and then the uncleanness

transferred to them.

But here,

what we discover

rather is that

Jesus' cleanness

flows to her.

She is instantly healed.

She is instantly

made clean.

In this battle,

I'm at the stage

where we think

about superheroes

and battles.

Here is Jesus

and his power

is greater.

The force of uncleanness

is no match

for the perfect holiness

of Jesus,

the Savior.

In the Old Testament,

all those laws

about uncleanness

were because uncleanness

represented sin.

So in this wonderful

little moment,

Jesus is reminding us

his grace,

his power,

his love

is greater than

our sin.

It has the power

to deal with

to remove

sin.

And ultimately,

we see that

at the cross

where Jesus dies

and he disarms

the powers

and authorities

that were

against us.

He cancels

the record

of our debt

against God

that stood

against us

so that by faith

we too

become clean

through contact

with Jesus

and that transfer

that takes place.

Then one other

significant thing

about this

stopping of Jesus

is that it confirms

to this woman

a change

of relationship.

See how Jesus

speaks of her

in verse 48.

Then he said

to her,

daughter,

your faith

has healed you.

Go in peace.

Wonderful message.

Somebody who's lived

in isolation

for 12 years,

now Jesus

calls her

daughter.

The grace

of God

that adopts

people

into his family

is a glorious

thing.

To remember

Jesus,

our elder brother,

our strong

savior,

who's always

present,

the one who's

brought that

change of

relationship

is a wonderful

thing.

Philip Riken,

the Bible teacher,

said,

Jesus had

called this

woman

not to

humiliate her,

which perhaps

she was used

to,

but to save

her,

to heal

her,

and to love

her as God's

own dear

child.

And nothing

has changed

because Jesus

hasn't changed.

We can come

to him in our

chaos.

We can come

near to him

through our

tears,

and we too

can leave

with his

peace,

knowing his

strong presence

with us

when our

faith is in

Jesus,

the one who

died and

rose to

rescue and

to restore

and to be

present with

his people

always.

That's the

woman's story

of faith and

discovering a

strong savior,

but what of

Jairus?

Something of

an emotional

rollercoaster

for Jairus

these few

minutes of

his life.

He comes

with desperation

to Jesus.

This is his

last chance

for his

daughter,

so he falls

on his

knees and

he begs,

and they're

on the move,

so hopes are

raised,

and then there's

this delay.

What was Jairus

thinking at that

point?

But then perhaps

hope bloomed

again as he

saw Jesus,

by his grace,

working this

miracle in

the woman's

life, but

then his

hopes appear

dashed by

the message

of verse 49.

As his

servants come,

your daughter

is dead.

Don't bother

the teacher

anymore.

I read an

account last

week of a

mum talking

about the

anniversary of

the loss of

her daughter,

and she said

it was like

someone pulled

out my heart,

my battery,

had been

taken out.

It's almost

impossible to

imagine what

Jairus is going

through at this

moment, the pain

that he experienced,

but where is

Jesus?

He is present in

this pain,

and he calls to

Jairus in verse

50,

have faith,

do not fear,

don't be afraid,

just believe,

and she will

be healed.

From anyone

else.

These words are

just cruel,

hurtful,

heartless,

but from an

unchanging,

all-powerful

son of God.

From this

Jesus who has

just healed

someone from

12 years of

pain,

there is solid

hope that he

can bring new

life to a

12-year-old

girl.

And so we

see Jairus

holding on,

keeping his

faith in

Jesus,

continuing that

journey.

The commandment

most frequently

mentioned in

the Bible is

do not fear.

Faith and fear

are like oil

and water,

they just do

not mix,

they're like

opponents in

a battle.

And Jesus

says to Jairus

and Jesus

says to us,

fight to

hold on to

faith,

don't give

in to fear.

Here is Jairus

confronted with

our deepest

fear,

the fear of

death itself.

And we're

being reminded

that with

faith in

Jesus,

death is not

the end.

We're being

reminded that

our greatest

enemy is

powerless

compared to

Jesus.

Jesus,

the one who

offers eternal

life,

who is our

only hope

in life

and in

death.

And we

see that

in the

healing,

the saving

that he

does.

Verse 44,

Jesus took

the girl

by the

hand,

the crowd

knows she's

dead,

but he took

her by the

hand and

said,

my child,

get up.

Her spirit

returned and

at once she

stood up and

Jesus told them

to give her

something to

eat.

moment in

this power,

in this story

of resurrection,

power in this

story of a

strong saviour,

that there's a

signpost to

his own

resurrection,

a reminder that

Jesus is

stronger than

death.

Death has no

claim on him

and death has

no hold on

him.

He is our

sinless

saviour.

And there is

too hope for

our

resurrection,

a resurrection

that will be

permanent and

that will be

glorious.

For this

little girl,

she would die

once again,

but for us,

when our faith

is in Jesus,

death is the

gateway to

eternal life,

to resurrection

life that is

permanent and

that is

glorious.

So in these

few hours,

we are

reminded and

encouraged as

God's people

that in every

pain, we

can enjoy the

Son's presence.

Whether that

pain and

suffering that

we endure is

private or

public,

whether it is

long-term or

temporary,

whether it is

physical,

emotional,

or spiritual,

we know

that Jesus is

not disinterested.

We know that

Jesus is not

distant in

heaven.

in our tears,

hear him say,

I am with you

always.

I will never

leave you or

abandon you.

In our pain,

in our struggles,

like Jairus,

like this woman,

come to him

with faith.

Experience his

grace,

experience his

healing,

experience his

peace,

knowing that

he will draw

near to us.

Sacrifice latae C

grace,

access x

peace,

peace,

코로나19,

Different

uhanح

and

öyle 운�

empl Iz

果然

ń

miraculous

healing,

הע

tempor

一點

wang

Fried

és

Gesicht

ini

heard