As disciples of Jesus, we've been called to follow him by claiming his example and learning from his teachings. From June to October, we're going to focus on the Gospel of Mark so that we might better understand how we might follow our Savior and live as his community.
Mark 5:21-43 [Contemporary English Version]
Once again Jesus got into the boat and crossed Lake Galilee. Then as he stood on the shore, a large crowd gathered around him. The person in charge of the Jewish meeting place was also there. His name was Jairus, and when he saw Jesus, he went over to him. He knelt at Jesus’ feet and started begging him for help. He said, “My daughter is about to die! Please come and touch her, so she will get well and live.” Jesus went with Jairus. Many people followed along and kept crowding around.
In the crowd was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. She had gone to many doctors, and they had not done anything except cause her a lot of pain. She had paid them all the money she had. But instead of getting better, she only got worse.
At that moment Jesus felt power go out from him. He turned to the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?”
His disciples said to him, “Look at all these people crowding around you! How can you ask who touched you?” But Jesus turned to see who had touched him.
The woman knew what had happened to her. She came shaking with fear and knelt down in front of Jesus. Then she told him the whole story.
Jesus said to the woman, “You are now well because of your faith. May God give you peace! You are healed, and you will no longer be in pain.”
Jesus heard what they said, and he said to Jairus, “Don’t worry. Just have faith!”
Jesus did not let anyone go with him except Peter and the two brothers, James and John. They went home with Jairus and saw the people crying and making a lot of noise. Then Jesus went inside and said to them, “Why are you crying and carrying on like this? The child isn’t dead. She is just asleep.” But the people laughed at him.
After Jesus had sent them all out of the house, he took the girl’s father and mother and his three disciples and went to where she was. He took the twelve-year-old girl by the hand and said, “Talitha, koum!” which means, “Little girl, get up!”
The girl got right up and started walking around.
Everyone was greatly surprised. But Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened. Then he said, “Give her something to eat.”
Active Faith
Now there’s an old joke about these two guy just talking, when one of them mentions something about faith. And immediate the other guy says, “I don’t want you telling me anything about faith and all that other religious stuff. It’s all a lot of baloney. You know, I’ve had some financial issues that were really keeping me awake at night. Well, I made my mind up to do what all you church people say; I decided to trust that God would get me out of this mess by letting me win the lottery. Man, I even prayed about it. But that was six months ago, and what has it gotten me: squat. So keep that faith business to yourself.” Now after he’d finished his little rant, the other guy pauses for just a moment and says, “It might have helped if you bought a ticket.”
And I’ll tell you, that’s what we’re going to talk about this morning. You see, we’re going to use the two stories we just read to consider how our faith can become a little more engaged. As a matter fact, I believe that this story within a story points to three very clear and definitive characteristics of what I’m calling an active faith. And so, that’s what we’re going to look at for the next fifteen minutes or so. And hopefully, by the end of our time together, we’ll all have a better understanding of exactly what an active faith is all about. And like I said, I believe we can see these three characteristics in the story of the woman who’d been bleeding for twelve years and the story that surrounds it, and I’m talking about the one about Jarius and his twelve-year-old daughter.
And like I said, I believe we can see that in the two stories we just read. I mean, just think about the woman who’d been bleeding for twelve years. Now in my opinion, she knew exactly what she wanted, didn’t she? Not only had she been bleeding for over a decade, according to Mark, “She had gone to many doctors, and they had not done anything except cause her a lot of pain. She had paid them all the money she had. But instead of getting better, she only got worse.” [Mark 5:26, CEV] Man, she knew exactly what she wanted. But more than that, she was also crystal clear about the one she believed could help her. Again, Mark wrote, “The woman had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him in the crowd and barely touched his clothes. She had said to herself, “If I can just touch his clothes, I will get well.’” [Mark 5:27-28, CEV] I’m telling you, this woman was focused. And I’ll tell you something else, so was Jarius, you know, the guy with the sick child. And I believe that’s why “he knelt at Jesus’ feet and started begging him for help” and that’s why “he said, ‘My daughter is about to die! Please come and touch her, so she will get well and live.’” [Mark 5:22b-23, CEV] You see, like the woman, as it related to his trust, this guy was focused.
And you know, our faith can be focused too. And it starts when we’re honest about who we are and clear about what we need, you know that we’re kind of this mixed bag of strengths and weaknesses and of hopes and fears. And because of that, we really could use someone to make us well and whole, you know, to still the storms that bring us down and to help us feel closer to God and to one another. Now that’s what I mean by honesty and clarity. And along that, we can also focus our attention on the who can address our needs, and right now I’m talking about Jesus Christ. And I’ll tell you, even though he was really clear that following him wasn’t going to be a cake walk and that discipleship really wasn’t for wimps, he also said, “If you are tired from carrying heavy burdens, come to me and I will give you rest. Take the yoke I give you. Put it on your shoulders and learn from me. I am gentle and humble, and you will find rest.” [Matthew 11:28-29, CEV] And personally, I believe that’s exactly what will happen, when we’re clear about who we trust and why we trust him. You see, an active faith is focused. That’s one.
And I’ll tell you, again, I think we see that in both these healing stories. I mean, this business about boldly stepping beyond our comfort zone, man, that was certainly the case with the woman, wasn’t it? Personally, I think it was pretty bold to step out and to touch Jesus’s robe. But her courage didn’t stop there. You see, when “...Jesus felt power go out from him. He turned to the crowd and asked, ‘Who touched my clothes?’” [Mark 5:30, CEV]; man, she was anything but timid wasn’t she? According to Mark, “The woman knew what had happened to her (namely her bleeding had stopped). [And instead of blending into the crowd,] she came shaking with fear and knelt down in front of Jesus. Then she told him the whole story.” [Mark 5:33, CEV] Now, to me, that showed courage. And I’ll tell you, so did Jarius, a major league community leader, a man of power and influence, a guy who was respect by others. In my book, it took guts for him to ask a traveling preacher for help. But more than that, his courage was put to the test after he got news that his daughter had died and after Jesus said to the mourners, “Why are you crying and carrying on like this? The child isn't dead. She is just asleep” [Mark 5:39b, CEV], something that caused everybody there to laugh. My gosh, in their minds, Jesus was either a fake, a flake or not the sharpest knife in the drawer. Now just imagine the strength it must have taken to go with Jesus with into his daughter’s room. And yet, that’s what he did, because his active faith was courageous.
And my friends, ours can be too. You see, we don’t have to be timid. And we don’t have to be hesitant. And we sure don’t have to stand around like silent dummies when confronted with opposition. Instead, we can muster up the courage to face a world that sometimes seems confused and chaotic and threatening. And we can stand firm in the face of all the distractions that try to divert our attention, because we believe that the one in whom we trust can still storms and can heal sicknesses and can even raise the dead. And I know for me, when I compare what he can do with the kind of stuff that threatens to sink me, man, I have good reason to step out and to stand firm. You see, an active faith is courageous. And that’s two.
For example, with the woman, remember how the bleeding stopped when she touched Jesus’s clothes? Well, after she’d been physically healed, if she’d just pretended that, when Jesus said, “Who touched my clothes?”, he was talking to somebody else, if that’s she what she did and then tried to blend into the crowd, she may have missed something that was even greater than the physical healing itself. I mean, after she fested up, she had the opportunity to hear Jesus say, “You are now well because of your faith. May God give you peace! You are healed, and you will no longer be in pain.” [Mark 5:34b, CEV] You see, because she was open to possibilities that were greater than she had initially imagined, she received not only a physical healing but also wellness and peace and comfort. And as to Jarius, he initially came to ask Jesus to heal his sick daughter. Man, that was all he needed. But because he was open to all the possibilities, after he heard that she’d passed, he got to see Jesus take the twelve-year-old girl by the hand and say, “Little girl, get up!” And then he saw his daughter get right up and start walking around. He’d have missed all that if he’d decided to limit both his vision and his faith.
And you know, I don’t think we should limit ourselves either. You see, we can be open to the miraculous all around us. And we can be ready to enjoy the peace and the comfort offered by God. In other words, if we work as hard as we can to keep our eyes and our ears and our hearts open, I believe we’re going to see and hear and feel amazing things. You know, a little later in the gospel, Jesus is going to say this to his disciples: If you have faith in God and don’t doubt, you can tell this mountain to get up and jump into the sea, and it will. Everything you ask for in prayer will be yours, if you only have faith. [Mark 11:23-24, CEV] Wouldn’t it be sad if we decided to close ourselves off and to limit the power of God? Just think of what we’ll miss. I’m telling you, an active faith is open. And that’s number three.
You know, although it wonderful to make a decision to trust God, if we want to win the lottery, we really should buy a ticket. And I’ll tell you, if we want our relationship with God to move beyond a decision, we really need to recognize that it was never intended to be passive, you know, vague and timid and closed. Instead, we can live out what we believe by being focused, engaged and involved; and by being courageous, willing and able to step out and to stand firm; and by being open, ready to accept and ready to respond to the possibilities that God has put before us. In other words, we can take the decision we’ve made and develop an active faith.
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