Introduction
Have you ever found yourself in a desperate situation? What
do you do in those times when you have sunk to your lowest point and have
nothing else to lose? Do you lay down and sulk, or do you fight and scratch?
For some, the desperate, seemingly hopeless situations are the ones that drive
them to the Lord Jesus Christ. Today, we will consider a narrative that tells
of a woman who has been plagued for years by a certain ailment, but in the end
she finds restoration and joy in the power of Jesus Christ. We also will read
about a young girl who was raised from the dead, blind men who were healed, and
a demon-possessed man who was freed. These hopeless situations find hope in the
Lord, and you can find hope as well, if you approach Him by faith.
READ Scripture-
This is the Word of God
A Woman Who had a
Flow of Blood vv20-22
This is a fantastic story bookended by the beginning and end
of the story of the girl raised from the dead. This woman who comes to Jesus
has been continually bleeding for twelve years. Obviously the problem is no
threat to her life, but with this condition she is an outcast. She would have
been considered unclean by the community. She would not have been able to
worship at the Temple
Because of this, she approaches Jesus from behind. This is a
daring move to approach someone, especially Jesus. She went for the hem of His
garment, maybe the tassels that would have been hanging from His prayer shawl.
For some reason, the woman thinks that if she could touch the hem of His
garment she would be healed. The grammar tells us that’s what she continually
told herself as she approached the Master. Maybe it was an act of humility.
Maybe she thought it would be out of the question to grab Jesus’ hand or
something of the like, but if she just touched His garment it would be enough.
Or possibly she considered the act of grabbing His garment as a sign of a
request for help. Either way, she was healed when she touched the garment, but
Jesus makes clear that it was her faith that accessed the mercy that was
provided. That she was made “well” or was “healed” is more literally the word
“saved.” Jesus told the woman that her faith had saved her. She was delivered
from her present condition, and, possibly, we can hear a hint that she was
saved from her sins. She could now be cheerful.
What is so important about this story? First of all, notice
the irony. Jesus is on His way to a girl’s dead body and is met on the way be a
woman who has a flow of blood. Both of these could make Jesus unclean, but He
is not concerned with external laws of cleanliness. He is concerned about the
people. So, He does not consider Himself, but others. Remember, He is the One
who said that He had come not to be served, but to serve and give His life as a
ransom for many. Second, Jesus was on a mission to raise the girl from the
dead. One request had already been made, yet He takes the time to stop the
parade that was forming in the street in order to speak to this woman. Not only
would this have been viewed as inappropriate for the situation, but the crowd
would have found it inappropriate for Jesus to speak to a woman. Yet, Jesus is
not concerned with what is socially appropriate. Lastly, “This woman lived in a
perpetual state of impurity, which resulted in her poverty, isolation, and
suffering” (Burge, 44). Yet, we see that Jesus is not a respecter of persons.
He is a respecter of faith. Faith is what He is looking for and is what He
responds to.
Daughter has just
Died vv18-19 and 23-26
At the beginning of our text this morning we were told that
Jesus was approached by a ruler while He was still teaching. Visualize this
scene. A ruler comes and bows down to Jesus, the Lord. This man was probably
the ruler of a synagogue. He had to truly humble himself to go and request help
from Jesus. He is desperate because his daughter had become greatly ill and had
died, but He knows Jesus’ reputation. He says, “. . . lay Your hand on her and she will live.” The ruler’s
faith is as great as desperation. He believes that Jesus can raise the dead to
life! Notice that the woman with the hemorrhage had bled for twelve years. This
girl was about that age. Jesus’ response is immediate. He gets up and follows
the man.
When Jesus finally arrived at the man’s house, after His
encounter with the bleeding woman, He sees flute players and wailers. All Jews
were required to hire at least two flute players and one wailing woman. Jesus
is actually able to get the noisy crowd to leave the house. “Put outside”
reflects a word that can literally mean “throw out.” Apparently Jesus and the
ruler throw the people out of the house. Matthew gives us few details, but
sticks to the root of what happened. “. . .
He went in and took her by the hand, and the
girl arose.” Of course, this news spread throughout all the land in a matter of
moments.
Two Blind Men vv27-31
Jesus rarely finds the time to rest. He is teaching and is
interrupted by a man who wants his daughter brought back to life. He is on His
way to that house and is interrupted by a woman who wants to be healed from an
issue of blood. As soon as both are restored, two blind men follow Him seeking
another miracle. They want to be healed of their blindness. Jesus apparently
ignores their cries, but they follow Him into a house. Jesus has one question
for them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They
reply affirmatively and respectfully. If Jesus can raise the dead, He can surely
restore sight!
As Jesus touches their eyes with His healing
hands, He once again emphasizes faith. He heals them in response to their faith. Isaiah predicted that the Messiah
would have such a ministry. He said in 35:5-6, “Then the eyes of the blind
shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then the lame
shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst
forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.” Their eyes were opened,
but Jesus commands them to tell no one. Possibly Jesus does not want to gain a
false following. He did not want followers who were only there to see a
spectacle or only there for physical healing. The two are disobedient to the
word of the Lord, and they go spread the news all over that country.
A Man, Mute and Demon-Possessed
vv32-34
Once again Jesus is faced with another issue that demands
His attention. As He leaves that house He is confronted by a group who bring to
Him a mute and demon-possessed man. This miracle will mark the end of this
section in Matthew’s Gospel account. He has shown us the great wonder-working
power of the Son of God in sweeping fashion. Jesus has the authority and power
to cast out demons, command the storms, heal every type of illness, and even
raise the dead to life. In this last paragraph, we are not directed toward the
details of the exorcism, but to the crowd’s reaction. There is a foreshadowing
here of things to come. The crowd says, “It was never seen like this in Israel
Conclusion
1) Jesus does not
allow Himself to be constrained by tradition or social standards. What does
this teach us? First, none of us are too far from Him. He will touch and save
any of us. He is no respecter of persons. He has come to seek and save the
lost. He did not come to call the righteous (seemingly) to repentance, but
sinners. He did not come to be served, but to serve and lay down His life for
us. Second, we should not allow ourselves to be limited in our scope of
ministry. How dare we discriminate against certain peoples! How dare we show
favoritism to one and not another! Are we above our Master? He humbled Himself
to do the work of the ministry, Gospel ministry, Kingdom ministry, and we must
do the same. No servant is greater than his master.
2) We are called
to follow our Master, to pick up our cross and follow Him. Therefore, we must
act immediately when we are confronted with needs, even when we must be
inconvenienced. As Americans, our goal every day is to find convenience.
Convenience in-and-of-itself is not a bad thing, but the ferocious pursuit of
it can be sinful. We are to consider others better than ourselves. Therefore,
if we see a need, even if it may hassle us, we must act in response.
3) There is
nothing too great for the Lord Jesus to overcome. An application to almost any
sermon is found in two words: Trust Christ. Why would you not trust the one who
heals diseases and conditions, raises the dead back to life, restores strength
from disability, and is sovereign over the works of the adversary? I will trust
Him, every moment, and I hope you will too.