Divine Diversion 際遇, 偶遇, 神遇 2011-1-23

Mark 馬可福音5:21-43

INTRODUCTION

I believe most people do not entertain distraction, especially when you have something important at hand. If you are about to leave home for an important appointment you may hope that no one will call you at that moment and spend some quality time with you on the phone. You may get frustrated when you get to the highway just to learn that the traffic piles up because of a major accident. You may even be fuming if your car breaks down when you are just a few blocks away from your destination. We often see distraction打岔as a nuisance, something we do not expect and try to avoid. What about Jesus? How does He see distraction? The fact is that Jesus encountered distraction all the time. When He was about to go somewhere or in the middle of a conversation with someone other people in need popped in uninvited. But why did Jesus come to the earth anyway? He came to proclaim the good news of God’s Kingdom through showing mercy and love to those who were in need. Therefore as we discuss how we can care for one another let us learn from Jesus’ example to see how He cared for those who are uninvited.

The context of the current passage consists of a series of three miracles. The calming of the stormy sea displayed Jesus’ authority over nature. The casting out of demons from a man in Gerasenes displayed Jesus’ authority over the devil. In today’s story the healing of Jairus’ daughter and the woman with twelve years of bleeding displayed Jesus’ authority over disease and death.

EXPLANATION

I would suggest that we divide the passage by highlighting three action words related to the hand. There is the laying of hand, then touching with hand and finally the grabbing by hand.

1. Laying of Hand 按 (vv. 21-24)

Our story begins when a synagogue ruler by the name Jairus kneeled at Jesus’ feet and pleaded for Him to lay hand on his dying daughter. Verse 23 reads “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.” At that time synagogue rulers are people who took care of the administrative matters of the synagogues. They might not be Pharisees but they were people well respected by the community. We can imagine that it took much humility for people with such recognition to beg Jesus for help. Asking for help from someone requires much courage not to mention falling down on both knees. Such expression reflects the urgency of the matter. Jairus’ daughter was dying and he hoped that Jesus could come and help. The laying of one’s hand on a patient most likely implies an act of prayer. It is a very common practice at that time and even in our own means of caring for the needy. Jesus did that all the time too. An example is found in Mark 6:5 - He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.

Very often we have limited faith like Jairus. Jairus thought that if Jesus could go to his home before his daughter passed away and lay hands on her she could be healed. We figure in our mind that if God can do certain thing through a certain means by a certain time then our problems can be solved. But as we will see as the story develops Jesus built up Jairus’ faith by first breaking up his paradigm. The passage tells us that Jesus accepted Jairus’ request and went to his house.

2. Touching with Hand 摸 (vv. 25-34)

The trip to Jairus’ house came to a diversion when a woman got on the scene from nowhere. Mark tells us that this woman had suffered from a bleeding problem for 12 years. This woman said to herself in verse 28 that “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” What she suffered from was probably a medical problem with her menstrual period. To the Jews it was more than a disease but also a ritual hindrance. Leviticus 15:25 tells us that “When a woman has a discharge of blood for many days at a time other than her monthly period or has a discharge that continues beyond her period, she will be unclean as long as she has the discharge, just as in the days of her period.” The passage goes on to explain that such woman is declared ceremonially unclean. Anything she sits on or anyone who has contact with her will also be unclean. When the discharge finally stops she has to wait for another week and then brings animals to the priest to offer sacrifice on her behalf. In those days uncleanness was more than an issue of hygiene but also whether a person was eligible to worship God. We can imagine that this woman was cut off from her social life altogether because of her disease.

Worse still this woman had spent all she had and tried every means to get well. We love to give advice to people who need help. Not so long ago someone in our church was coughing unceasingly for months. People who heard the news started giving all sorts of folksy remedies. Everyone claimed that his or her recipe really worked. But Mark tells us that after trying everything this woman did not get well but only got worse. Can you identify with this woman to certain extent? Perhaps you have been struggling with some sort of physical illness. You may have a relational issue with your spouse, children, parents or someone in the church. You may be wrestling with certain sin. You might have a temporary victory in the past but you keep falling into the same pit. Is there any hope? The answer is very clear cut – our hope is in Jesus and Jesus only.

That was exactly what this woman had in mind. She might be ashamed to cry out to Jesus for help like Jairus did. But she had faith that if only she could get close to Jesus and touched His cloak she could be healed. Such belief in itself carries a mystical element. Nevertheless, as the story continues to unfold, Jesus honored her faith. The woman was healed instantly. She is the only person in the gospel record who took the initiative to claim miraculous power from Jesus. No wonder Mark adds an interesting comment in verse 30 - At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. Jesus could have let the woman walked away so that no one knew what problem she had and no one knew how she was healed. But He called her back in order to strengthen her faith. Jesus wanted the woman understand that she was healed by the power of Jesus and not by His cloak. Many a time we hear people said that if you have enough faith then you can ask God for anything and it will come true. Doing so will be brainwashing one to have faith in faith itself. Our faith is not in some magical elements. Jesus’ cloak had healing power only because Jesus was wearing it. The so called Shroud of Turin created much hype in history. Whether or not that piece of linen cloth bears the image of Jesus is up for debate. But I have no doubt in my mind that the church in Italy can make a lot of money if it collects a nominal fee for people to see it and touch it. Before long the business will become broke from the excessive touching of the shroud. That is just some crazy idea from me, but you get the point. It is no coincidence that the Christian church does not have any emblem of faith. We do not even encourage people to wear a cross around the neck lest any religious symbol becomes substitute for our worship to Jesus. Our faith ought to be in Jesus alone, who has mighty power to bring about whatever is in His will.

3. Grabbing by hand 拉 (vv. 35-43)

To the woman it was a happy ending. Her disease was healed and her faith has been strengthened. But the problem has not been solved. Remember how the story begins? Jairus’ daughter was dying and Jesus was on the way to make her well. As we will see in a moment Jesus will grab this girl by her hand and make her live again.

But let us just go back to the current scene to ponder on some important lessons. A miracle just happened and God’s power was manifested on a woman who had been sick for 12 years. Do you notice that the passage says nothing about the reaction of the crowd? Shouldn’t there be a big applause or an eruption of praise? It was as if no one cared about the healing of this woman. Most likely what people had in mind was Jairus’ dying daughter. What would you feel if you were Jairus when Jesus stopped in the middle of the trip to chat with a woman? I would have been very impatient. I would think: “I don’t want to know what kind of problem this woman has. Even if she has a bleeding problem she can wait in line. After all it has been twelve years already and so she would not bleed to death on the spot. But my daughter can die at any moment.” You see, God’s agenda and timing are very often different from ours.

At this moment the most terrifying news arrived – Jairus’ daughter had passed away. Someone from the house of Jairus conveyed the message, with a comment added in verse 35: they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?” When our eyes are focused on the here and now our heart can easily despair. The doctor announced that based on his years of experience and statistics there is no hope for this kind of illness. The bank account indicates that the balance cannot sustain another month of living expense. Your spouse or your rebellious kid does not love you anymore and has already packed his or her bag. What do you believe – the reality, or God? Jesus knew for sure that Jairus’ faith faltered at the bad news. Therefore, He encouraged Jairus in verse 36: Don’t be afraid; just believe. Seemingly Jesus was telling Jairus: “Don’t let your faith slip away with the death of your daughter. You have just witnessed the miracle of God performed on a hopeless woman. Put your faith in Him!”

When Jesus and the crowd arrived at Jairus’ home they were met by a group of mourners. In those days it was common to hire professional mourners to express sorrow for the person who just passed away. The richer the family the more mourners will be hired. The Jewish Mishnah requires that even the poorest man to hire two flute players and one professional mourner at the death of his wife. But interestingly enough, when Jesus told the crying bunch that Jairus’ daughter was not dead their wailing immediately turned into laughter toward Jesus’ declaration. That proves how superficial their grieving was. Jesus then chased away the crowd and allowed only the daughter’s parents and three of His disciples to be present when He performed a miracle to bring back her life. Jesus grabbed her by her hand and ordered her to stand up. There is no magical power in Jesus’ Aramaic words “Talitha cumi.” Perhaps Jesus has been talking in Aramaic all along. The more important thing is who uttered those words. It was from the Creator and Sustainer of life. In a similar situation recorded in John 11 when Jesus brought back Lazarus to life He said to Lazarus’ older sister Martha: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.” (John 11:25) Our lives is in the hands of God.

When Jairus’ daughter was brought back to life Jesus gave a solemn order that no one on the scene should spread the news about the miracle. Why was that so? One possibility is that at this point in time Jesus was not ready to fully disclose His identity as the Messiah. He did not want people to follow Him simply because He could perform miracles. We could imagine that the fact would speak for itself, namely, that Jairus’ daughter was dead but now alive. But unless the people present shared the detail no one would know how the girl could live again. Jesus and the disciples could then easily slip out of the scene and moved on to the next mission.

CONCLUSION

To most of the people in the story the woman was an unnecessary distraction. But to Jesus she was someone worthy of His time and needed healing just like anyone else. Jesus did not disregard her because of her uncleanness. He called this anonymous woman daughter. She is like the one sheep Jesus shared in a parable which God was willing to forsake another 99 sheep just to seek and restore the lost sheep. Do you know such people in your surrounding or even in this church? Pastor Chou reminded us last week that we have to care for the more honorable as well as those less honorable brothers and sisters in our midst. It is natural for us to draw our attention to the problems of those people who hold more prominent position in the church. But we should not forget to care for those who are less prominent too. In my simple mind I would love for everyone to share their problems to everyone else so that we can bring all the requests to the Lord in prayer as a family. But for all sorts of reasons that is not the norm. Some people may feel too shameful like the woman in our story to tell others about their issues. Some others may not have the courage to tell people that they have need. Yet some others may fear that people would use the information they share as materials for criticism and rumor. But sooner or later you will meet someone like the woman in our story. Our responsibility is to take these people by their hands, say to them: It is okay that you do not want to share your needs openly. I don’t have the solution but God does. Why don’t we come together to the Lord in prayer? We put their hands into the hand of our Lord. When we talk about caring for one another very often we do not have to do anything spectacular. All it takes is a caring heart and a prayerful heart. Ultimately it is Jesus’ hand that can heal and restore.

On August 1, 2007 the renowned Taiwan Christian Mountain Children’s Home Aborigine Choir visited St. Louis and had a wonderful performance in our church. Their songs touched many of the audience deeply. We were moved by compassion toward those children because they are all orphans. But on the other hand we rejoiced with them because they found Jesus as their Lord. The Heavenly Father is their father. “The Invisible Hands” is their trademark song. The lyrics say that though the hands of our Lord are invisible but they are always there to strengthen us, to heal our deepest wounds and to satisfy our deepest hunger. Let us conclude our time together by singing this song.