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Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea. And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live." So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him.
Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well." Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction. And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My clothes?" But His disciples said to Him, "You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'" And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction."
While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue's house who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not be afraid, only believe." And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly. When He came in, He said to them, "Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping." And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying. Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, "Talitha, cumi," which is translated, "Little girl, I say to you, arise." Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age. And they were overcome with great amazement. But He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said that something should be given her to eat.
- Mark 5:21-43
On Saturday, we read that Jesus and the disciples came to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, to the country of the Gadarenes. And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with the chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains. And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him. And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore You by God that You do not torment me." For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!" Then He asked him, "What is your name?" And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many." Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country. Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains. So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them." And at once Jesus gave them permission. Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea. So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that had happened. Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine. Then they began to plead with Him to depart from the region. And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him. However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you." And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.
Now when Jesus had crossed over again by boat to the other side, a great multitude gathered to Him; and He was by the sea. And behold, one of the rulers of the synagogue came, Jairus by name. And when he saw Him, he fell at His feet and begged Him earnestly, saying, "My little daughter lies at the point of death. Come and lay Your hands on her, that she may be healed, and she will live." So Jesus went with him, and a great multitude followed Him and thronged Him. My study bible points out here that as Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, has come to Jesus, we can conclude that the Gospel tells us that not all of the religious leadership were opposed to Jesus. We also see evident the great faith of Jairus. Let us remember that He is now back in Jewish territory, the "home" side of the Sea of Galilee.
Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well." Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction. My study bible tells us here that "Jesus never seems to be in a hurry, or ever interrupted from His mission." Here, He attends both to the needs of the woman with the blood flow and also Jairus' daughter. As we observe, Jesus isn't detained. My study bible says that "only God in the flesh brings such things to pass." We notice the condition of this woman: she has suffered many things from many physicians. In some sense, like Jairus, she is at the end of her rope. She also has tremendous faith in Jesus. The root word for suffer here is "pathos" in the Greek: the word from which we derive the English word "passion" -- and the word we give to what Jesus will experience Himself in Holy Week.
And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My clothes?" But His disciples said to Him, "You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'" And He looked around to see her who had done this thing. But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction." My study bible says that "healing takes energy. Jesus is aware that divine energy had gone out of Him when He was touched. The power (Gr. dynamis) is a manifestation of the one, uncreated power of God, 'the power of God to salvation' (Rom. 1:16). . . . God's power or energy is available to people as grace from Him. Jesus says, Daughter, your faith has made you well, showing that while divine power healed her, the woman's faith participated in the healing." When we read in English that Jesus tells the woman her faith has made her well, in the Greek it literally reads that her faith has delivered or saved her.
While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue's house who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not be afraid, only believe." And He permitted no one to follow Him except Peter, James, and John the brother of James. My study bible says, "No situation is hopeless when Christ is present. As the woman needed faith to be healed, so these parents need to persist in faith, even now that their daughter's condition seems past hope." Peter, James and John form Jesus' inner circle of disciples, "on whose faith and understanding Jesus could rely," my study bible tells us. These are the same three who will be present at His Transfiguration. As with the incident of the storm on the sea (see Friday's reading), Jesus contrasts faith and fear.
Then He came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and saw a tumult and those who wept and wailed loudly. When He came in, He said to them, "Why make this commotion and weep? The child is not dead, but sleeping." And they ridiculed Him. But when He had put them all outside, He took the father and the mother of the child, and those who were with Him, and entered where the child was lying. Then He took the child by the hand, and said to her, "Talitha, cumi," which is translated, "Little girl, I say to you, arise." Jesus speaks Aramaic here, the spoken language of the Jews in His time. My study bible says, "Jesus commands demons and they obey, the stormy seas and they obey, and here, the dead and she 'obeys.'" What we note also is the ridicule of the mourners. Their ridicule interferes with the faith of those concerned here; those who are struggling to "not be afraid," but to have faith. They must be put outside.
Immediately the girl arose and walked, for she was twelve years of age. And they were overcome with great amazement. But He commanded them strictly that no one should know it, and said that something should be given her to eat. My study bible tells us, "The daughter of Jairus returns to life to the great amazement of those present. But like all of us, she will die again to await the resurrection of the dead at Christ's return." We note also His command of silence about the healing; He's back in Jewish territory, and messianic expectations get in the way of His ministry and its message.
Once again we note the contrast between fear and faith. It's not that we are supposed to be perfectly fearless, but Jesus seems to indicate here that we are at least to work on this! He complained in Friday's reading to His disciples, "Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?" And He tells the parents in today's reading, "Do not be afraid, only believe." In the two passages, Jesus uses a word with His disciples on the sea in the storm that means to be timid or cowardly; the word He uses with the parents in today's reading relates more to our word "fear." But in both cases, the Greek for "faith" and "believe" is the same. It is a word that is more akin to trust than anything else, and it indicates relationship. It is Christ in whom they must trust. We may believe that the sun will rise tomorrow, but to have faith, or more closely, to trust indicates relationship, an active relationship with a kind of effort or leap of the heart, and to trust is something that also involves a depth of ourselves. It links us -- something of our depth of substance -- with the object of trust. And this is what we have to think about when we talk about faith. We may place our faith in Christ regarding one matter or another, but the outcome isn't necessarily something in our power. This is also an element of trust. Jesus' power will work in a way that is of itself, not of us. So, trusting in Christ is also trusting God's power, trusting our lives, in a certain sense, although we don't necessarily know nor even understand the path He puts us on, His way. When we pray, I think it's important to remember this element of trust, because we are confiding in Someone, we are giving our hearts, and like children, we trust the One who leads us and into whose hands we place ourselves. By placing our trust in Him, we do particular things, we don't just assent to a set of beliefs. It's not a mere intellectual exercise or an assertion of facts. We are actively choosing to place ourselves in Someone's care. We are trusting with our hearts, and that trust also implies a trust that must last through the difficult times, our times of fear or timidity or cowardice, our times of doubt. Like children, we may feel all kinds of things, but we make an effort to place our trust in something, and in return, God's power or energy (as my study bible has put it today) helps us in that faith and helps us to strength in that faith. Mark's Gospel has given us the contrast of fear, of timidity, of cowardice, the fearing and trembling of the woman in today's reading, the ridicule of the mourners. And this is where we begin to today, in this third week of Lent, with the struggle between the doubts we have and all the forms they take, and the trust we place in Christ to take us through the world, to teach us to live in that trust, and to be the disciples we can be. His call is the call to place our trust in Him, to follow as He leads. How do you make an effort to affirm that trust to Him? How does your heart turn to Him?
