Do not be afraid; only believe

 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

Yesterday, we read that after crossing a stormy Sea of Galilee, Jesus and the disciples came to the other side of the sea, 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 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 all 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 their 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.  We see the faith put into Christ, even by someone well-known and respected, the ruler of the synagogue in Capernaum.  He makes a desperate plea for Christ to save his daughter's life.  This is a very public event, with a great multitude following Jesus which 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."  My study bible says that the healing of this woman demonstrates Christ's power to cleanse and heal.  In the Old Testament, hemorrhage caused ceremonial defilement, which meant impositions of religious and social restrictions.  Contact with blood was strictly forbidden (Leviticus 15:25).  But this woman, who accounted herself unclean, approached Christ in secret but with tremendous faith.  Jesus tells her, "Your faith has made you well."  We note that she comes before Him and confesses the whole truth.  This is the fullness of a person who, in faith, comes to the light.  She neither is able to hide her touch from Him, nor is excluded from Him because of her illness.  He also blesses her with peace -- and she is brought before all as a way of teaching others to imitate 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.  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.  The power of life and death belongs to God alone; here is another sign of the divinity of Jesus Christ.  But more than that, it is a lesson in faith.  We note how carefully Jesus puts out those who ridicule His leadership in the situation -- and how carefully He creates and builds the faith of those for whom the situation is so dire, before the child is healed.

Today's reading gives us great lessons about faith.  It's important to know that the woman with the blood flow first approaches Christ with great faith.  Although she tries simply to touch His clothes, and to do so without His awareness, her faith is such that it makes the connection with Christ.  She is healed of the affliction, and He is aware that power has gone out of Him.  No matter what the circumstances, this result is a true fruit of her faith, a kind of testimony to the sort of faith she has.  And indeed, Jesus declares it:  "Your faith has made you well."  In a recent reading and commentary, we discussed the nature of betrayal or evil.  John's Gospel tells us, "For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God" (John 3:20-21).  This woman is an example of one who comes to the light, that her deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."  She makes a full confession to Him, before everyone else in that crowd, of what she's done.  We can think about faith, in addition, by the actions that surround Jairus and his family.  It's interesting that he's the ruler of the synagogue, and we contrast that with the women who, for an incredible twelve years, has been a kind of outcast and rendered as unclean.  (Just imagine her shame.)  And yet her faith is greater than his -- he needs to be buoyed and helped by Christ.  He needs to be shielded from the ridicule of those who surround him in his own home, including those who've come to wail and mourn.  Christ also brings those closest to Him among the disciples, the three of His closest inner circle, those whose faith is the strongest.  It teaches us the power of our own efforts at discipline and self-care in the pursuit of our own faith.  We needn't put ourselves in temptation's way by surrounding ourselves or engaging those who are going to tear it down or ridicule it.  Rather, faith needs nurturing, shoring up, our utmost capacity to seek out and accept help.  These are messages to us from the Gospel today, and we need to take them seriously, and determine exactly what our goals are, and why faith is important to our lives and the outcomes in life.  Let us know the rock we stand on, with eyes wide open and discerning.