We Are Desperate Right Now: A Gospel Lesson*

This story is about two people who lived entirely different lives. The man in our story was a husband with a family and an important job. He was powerful and known in his town. And until just a few days earlier, his life was just fine. Now, his only daughter who was 12 had gotten so sick she was about to die. Her father was desperate. He had heard about the man Jesus who was doing miracles. He had heard the stories of blind people being able to see and the unbelievable story about a widow’s son who was dead and Jesus brought him back to life! Could Jesus heal his daughter? He did not know but he had to try to save his daughter. He raced from his home asking everyone who might have seen Jesus where they thought he might be. When he found Jesus he fell at Jesus’ feet and said, “Jesus my daughter is dying! Please come quick and save her, I beg you!” Jesus heard the man’s desperate cry and saw his anxious face and agreed to go to his home. 

The man’s name was Jairus. I imagine that right then he began to hope for the impossible. He began to hope his daughter would be cured. He wanted Jesus to hurry fast. But there was a large crowd of people with Jesus already and they moved slowly. 

The other person in this very same story was a woman. She was not an ordinary woman. She had been living by herself for 12 years. How is that for social distancing? She had been bleeding from a wound that wouldn’t heal all of those years. She had gone to many doctors but no one could heal her. She wasn’t bleeding to death but her body just kept bleeding every day. In Bible times she was considered unclean and had to be separated from the rest of the community. If she had a husband or children she did not live with them. She was not allowed to go to the synagogue and learn about God’s Word. She was “untouchable.” She could not be with anyone but herself. There was no where she belonged.

This woman desperately wanted to be healed. She had heard all the stories about Jesus’ healing power so she did something very, very, brave. She left her home and headed to find Jesus. When she realized he was among a great crowd of people, many of which were likely men, she could have given up and returned home. How could she tell Jesus about her bleeding problem in front of all those people? But she decided that if Jesus was so powerful all she had to do was get close enough to touch the hem of his robe and she would be headed. Then she would wiggle herself free of the crowd and no one would know. 

Bravely, she pushed herself into the very same crowd that was headed to Jairus’ home. It wasn’t easy to get close to him at first, but she pushed a bit here and there and worked her way near Jesus. She bent low and touched the hem of his clothing.

Jesus stopped. “Who touched me?” He asked. The disciples thought this was the oddest question. There was a huge crowd around him. Everyone was touching Jesus.

Jairus was likely really frustrated and perhaps angry. He might have thought to himself, “Why was Jesus stopping? Why is this important?”Then Jesus said, “Someone touched me and I felt my power go out from me.”

The woman couldn’t hide any longer. She fell down at Jesus’ feet and said,“I touched you.”  Perhaps Jairus thought “Please don’t talk to her now. Don’t ask her story. It will take too long!” But of course Jesus was never in a hurry. He had time for this poor woman. He didn’t scold her. He looked into her eyes with great love and said, “Your faith has made you whole. Because you believed that I was God and could heal you, because you had that kind of brave faith in me, you are healed.” Can you imagine how her life changed in that moment? She was no longer sick. She could go back to her family and be among her friends. She had been healed by Jesus.

Then the crowd continued to Jairus’ house. Suddenly one of Jairus’ servant came running to him and cried, “It’s too late, Jairus. Your daughter is dead!” Jairus was stunned. “Could Jesus save her or would he turn around now?” Without concern Jesus said, “It’s okay she is just sleeping.” Jairus was puzzled. He knew she had died. His servant wouldn’t lie.

When they arrived at Jairus’ house, his friends and neighbors were gathered outside crying with grief. Jesus, Jairus, his wife, and the disciples went inside to the daughter’s room where she lying lifeless on her bed. Certainly Jairus touched her and realized that she was dead. Certainly the child’s mother had already seen her die. It was then that Jesus took the girl’s hand and said, “Little girl, get up.” Immediately she sat up, got out of her bed and began to walk around. Jairus was astounded. His precious daughter was alive! Jesus had personally come to her bedroom and touched his dead daughter and she was alive! He would never be the same. 

This story has two good endings doesn’t it? Jairus’ daughter didn’t stay dead. The woman’s bleeding stopped. Jairus’ was spared the horrific pain of losing his daughter. The woman was now free to live among her friends and family. 

In this story a powerful man and a poor woman were both desperate. They did not know anyone who could heal except Jesus. Jesus didn’t view Jairus as powerful or the woman as poor as much as He looked at these two people as equal in need, as equally desperate. He saw no distinction. 

Jesus sees us that way too. We are all desperate for his touch, for his free gift of salvation. It doesn’t matter if we are rich or poor, white or black, we are all equally in need of his power to change our lives. 

For older children: We live in a time where we have made so many categories between us and them. We have those who will wear masks those who won’t wear masks. We have those who believe that black people aren’t treated equally and those who believe that they are. We have people who like our president and people who do not.  And we have people who have all kinds of views in between. 

But Jesus doesn’t look at us that way. To him we are all really the same. We are in desperate need for Jesus’ salvation from our sin. If Jesus hadn’t taken our punishment for sin, if He hadn’t died in our place, we would remain desperate people without any hope. But He came. He died to make us right with God.  When we follow Jesus we seek to love him with all our hearts and our neighbors as ourselves. 

We are in desperate need to see ourselves and our neighbors the way Jesus sees us. We are in desperate need to love one another. We are called to fight for justice in our neighborhoods. We are also called to love those with whom we disagree. It’s a pretty impossible task isn’t it?

I wonder what would happen if we asked Jesus to give us love for those with whom we disagree…I wonder what would happen if we read stories and books about people who think and act differently than us…I wonder what would happen if we made friends with someone who was different than we are…I wonder what would happen if we repented of believing we are always right and humbled ourselves. 

We are in desperate need to love one another, even when we don’t agree, even when we think people are doing or believing the wrong thing. We are to remember that Jesus calls us to love one another. Even now. Especially now. 

*This story comes from Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56; and Matthew 9:18-26. Much of the concept for this lesson came from a sermon given by my pastor Ryan Kraus at First Presbyterian Church, Lewisburg, PA. He taught on Saturday, June 14 a few weeks after the murder of George Floyd and the first Sunday we convened since the Covid pandemic began.

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