31 Days of Healing: Jairus' Daughter

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 (NKJV)

There are so many wonderful things to notice about this passage of scripture.  First, it contains two stories, juxtaposed, side by side, for a reason.  The stories of Jairus’ daughter and the woman with the issue of blood are connected on purpose.  The little girl in the story was 12 years old, and the woman with the issue of blood had been experiencing her issue for 12 years.  The woman with the issue of blood “interrupts” the procession on the way to Jairus’ home.  And Jairus has to continue in faith, the same as the woman, to receive his miracle.

An important thing to notice is when Jairus comes to Jesus, he falls at His feet while imploring Jesus to come and heal his daughter.  Falling at His feet could be considered an act of worship.  You will notice that many of the people who received healing from Jesus called Him Lord, or indicated in some way that He was Lord and they had faith in Him. This was probably an extreme act of faith for Jairus because He was a synagogue leader.

Jairus’ daughter is dying.  He has no time to lose, so he comes to Jesus, the source of all life, begging for Jesus’ help.  And the Bible simply says,

So Jesus went with Him, (Mark 5:24)

It’s so simple.  Jesus went with Him.  He didn’t ask questions.  He didn’t require anything from Jairus, other than Jairus coming to Him to ask.  If Jairus would have opted not to go to Jesus, he wouldn’t have received his miracle.

 

Jesus went with Him.  What does this demonstrate about the character of Jesus?  It just seems like a peaceful statement to me.  It’s a picture of who Jesus is.  It is a picture of his compassion and willingness and love.

So, they are traveling to the synagogue leader’s house for Jesus to heal the little girl, and the woman with the issue of blood stops them.  She touches Jesus which causes her to be healed. And Jesus stops.  He is aware that power went out of Him, so He stops to see who that touched Him.  This must have alarmed Jairus some. It would have me. 

After Jesus’ interaction with the woman, some people come from Jairus’ house and tell him not to bother Jesus, that his daughter is dead.  Jesus immediately interrupts the thought patterns that Jairus is possibly starting to experience, and says to him,

Do not be afraid, only believe.(Mark 5:36)

He was telling Jairus to stay with Him.  They were still going to his house.

When they get there, there are already people mourning.  Ugh.  But, what does Jesus do.  He puts them all outside.  He only allows Peter, James, John and the little girl’s mother and father to go in with him. Let’s stop here for a moment.

There are going to be people in your life that are already mourning your situation.  They think it is the end that it is over.  Some diagnoses are alarming to people, so they are going to automatically believe the very worst.  In those situations, we need to follow Jesus example, and put them out.  Listen to Jesus.  “Don’t be afraid. Only believe.”  And only allow people like Peter, James, and John to speak into your life and situation.

When they arrive where the little girl is laid, Jesus says to her, “Talitha, cumi.” This means, “Little girl, arise.”  Side thought:  I wonder why Mark chose to tell us the Aramaic words that were spoken.  Why didn’t he just tell us what Jesus said. What was the significance?

And then she was raised.  The Gospel of Luke tells us that

Her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Then He gave orders that she be given something to eat. (Luke 8:55)

I want to go back for just a minute.  If you read a few verses back, Jesus tells them that she is not dead but sleeping.  But her spirit returned to her body.  To me, that would mean she is dead.  I don’t think Jesus was lying to them.  I think He knows things we don’t about spiritual matters.  It is important that we listen to Him.

If you need a miracle today, like Jesus told Jairus, “Do not be afraid, only believe.”



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