21 When Jesus went in the boat back to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him there. 22 A leader of the synagogue, named Jairus, came there, saw Jesus, and fell at his feet. 23 He begged Jesus, saying again and again, “My daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so she will be healed and will live.” 24 So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed Jesus and pushed very close around him. 25 Among them was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. ~ Mark 5:21-25
Today, we return to our study of Mark 5 where the Lord Jesus delivered a man of demon possession. As a result, the Lord Jesus gave this once out of control man a life changing story that was useful in sharing the Gospel with others. The life changing story the Lord Jesus gave this formerly demon-possessed man screams at us that the Lord Jesus is not repelled by us, no matter how messy we are, and regardless of how messed up our lives are or have been.
When we recognize that the Lord Jesus is not put out by our messed up condition, we are naturally moved deeply. This is largely what changes the hearts of all who encounter Him. Once we begin seeing that He is not turned off by our messiness, and, that He doggedly pursues us, no matter what, it is as if our eyes are seeing for the first time. Those to be pitied in this world are not the formerly demon-possessed, those to be pitied are those who have eyes that are yet closed to the wonderful person who chose to go through hell to be our Savior.
Jairus was the official in charge of the synagogue. In the first century, the ruler of the synagogue was the one who was in charge of maintaining the building and organizing the synagogue services. Jairus was the highest standing spiritual authority in the city of Capernaum. He was probably a Pharisee, and, they were not that fond of the Lord Jesus. So, it's interesting that a man of this stature and standing, came to the Lord Jesus to ask for his twelve year old daughter to be healed.
Jairus, given his position, had to overcome his prejudice toward the Lord Jesus. In order to do so, he had to overcome his pride. But, he was desperate because the life of his daughter was at stake. And when we are desperate, we are more prone to embrace the very valuable characteristic of humility. Suffering always involves a certain measure of desperation. And, it is out of such a context that we are most likely to look up to the Sovereign One.
Until we are in these types of conditions, we typically live our lives looking inward or outward, but rarely upward. But when something happens like this, we are more prone to call upon the Lord. That's why C. S. Lewis said, "God whispers to us in our pleasure, but he shouts to us in our pains."
Obviously, Jairus had heard of the Lord Jesus and His power to heal, so he reached out to Him. Jairus risked his position, as the ruler of the synagogue, when he went to the Lord Jesus for help. According to v.22, Jairus bowed down before the Lord Jesus which was an act of worship. Jairus was the kind of Jew least likely to seek out the Lord Jesus for help, but he was desperate and he loved his daughter so much.
Undoubtedly, Jairus was thinking the Lord Jesus had healed others before, maybe He could heal my little girl. What a picture of a loving father who is most willing to do anything for the good of his daughter. In fact, according to v.23, Jairus came to the Lord Jesus "begging." There is that word again. How humiliating was this moment for this proud religious leader. And yet, he embraced it. God responds to such displays of humility. In James 4:6 we read, "... God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."
In this case, the request of this hurting father was specific. He requested that the Lord Jesus "come and put Hs hands on her so she would be healed and would live." Life, he desperately hoped, was to be found in the touch of the Lord Jesus. As we study the Gospels, we often see the Lord Jesus reaching out with his hand to touch people. In Matthew 8:14-15, He touched Peter’s wife’s mother and took away her fever. According to Matthew 9:27-31, He touched the eyes of two blind men and gave them sight. In Mark 7:31-35 we learn that He touched the ears and the tongue of a deaf mute and gave him the ability to hear and speak. And, according to Mark 1:40-42, He touched a leper and made him whole.
In v.24-25 of today's passage we read, "24 So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed Jesus and pushed very close around him. 25 Among them was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years."
The emphasis in this story which will be interrupted by a woman with a health issue of twelve years, is that of desperation. Here, we find a fascinating contrast, and I believe it's here by design. Jairus had a twelve-year-old daughter, and, this woman had a twelve-year-old disease. For twelve years this daughter brought nothing but joy to Jairus, and, for twelve years this disease brought nothing but torment to this woman.
The emphasis in this story which will be interrupted by a woman with a health issue of twelve years, is that of desperation. Here, we find a fascinating contrast, and I believe it's here by design. Jairus had a twelve-year-old daughter, and, this woman had a twelve-year-old disease. For twelve years this daughter brought nothing but joy to Jairus, and, for twelve years this disease brought nothing but torment to this woman.
These stories are our stories. We all, at various times, have been confronted with situations that made us desperate. It has been my experience that when I dig down deeper in my walk with the Lord that I discover real reality. It has been my experience that when, on the heels of some of the most desperate moments in my life, that I have learned to entertain the right questions. And, as a result, I have discovered that it is the Lord who has the right answers to those questions.
When we are desperate for the Lord, we are in a good spot. Our desperation causes us to throw aside the dumb stuff in life that we tend to value more than we should. In the end, our desperation serves us, causing us to ask the right questions and to invest in the right kingdom ... His kingdom and His definitions for the life that we all long for.
