A Touch Of Faith Can Make You Whole

“For she said, “If I can just touch His robes, I’ll be made well!” 

Introduction

Are you willing to go the extreme to be with Jesus? That is the question I brought with me this morning, and this question is not just for you, it is for each and every one of us. Are you willing to go the extra mile, knowing that the extra mile is never easy. I think this is the problem with some of us today; we want everything to be easy. No matter what circumstances life throws in our direction, we have to believe that we can handle it ourselves. And so it is really about our perception.

There’s no such thing as a bad circumstance. All those things we perceive as bad are actually a growing experience in life. You have to see that everything that happens to you has come into your life for a reason, an we are challenged in life because that’s what life is all about. Life is about how we deal with those challenges do we look up to the Lord in victory or do we go down with the devil in defeat?

What route do you take when life for you has become desperate? You’ve heard the old saying; “Desperate times call for desperate measure” I am sure, when in the desperate moments of our lives, the actions we decide to take that might have been rejected under normal circumstances may now have become the best choice for us. Here in our text is the story of a woman whose faith was born in desperation, a woman who bled for twelve long years, and to get to the point, this woman had a menstrual flow of blood. Can you even imagine what it would be like to have such a hemorrhage for twelve long years? And then, can you imagine what it would be like, on top of having a flow of blood for twelve long years, you are considered by everyone around you to be an unclean or an untouchable person? Can you imagine the desperation this poor woman must have felt?

For twelve long years this woman had some issues, she had a physical issue, a financial issue, a family and friends issue, and a faith issue. But, can I tell you this morning that everybody has an issue or issues? Nobody is perfect, and as long as you are not perfect and unless you are in denial, I guarantee that you have your very own problems, situations, circumstances, and issues.

We all have problems, and our problem is not there are problems. The problem for many of us is making the mistake of going through life without expecting there will be problems or thinking that because you have a problem—it is a problem that cannot be fixed. If you have a problem this morning there is Someone who is able, in fact, He is more than able to fix it.

1. She Went The Extra Mile

She had a condition that no one understood, no one wanted to be around her—because they just didn’t understand her, they didn’t understand her illness, they didn’t understand why she of all people she had this illness, they thought maybe it’s a curse or something they just didn’t know. And people are like that—people often fear what they don't understand and hate what they can't conquer. They really didn’t understand what she had; they only thing they knew is whatever it was they definitely did not want it and did not want to be within ten feet of it.

Not only did the people not understand her, most likely she didn’t understand her own self. I heard somebody say, “the most difficult phase of life is not when no one understands you, it is when you can’t even understand yourself” now how can you explain something that can’t understand yourself? This is the reason she went to “many physicians” maybe they could explain it? She must have thought, but going to these doctors ended up being a bad move for her—it was a waste time and money. In fact, “she spent all that she had” when you’re out of time and money—it can cause you to become extremely desperate.

Was there ever a time when your month was much larger than your paycheck? If so, how do you feel at the end of the month? Was there ever a time you wished that dollar bills were made out of rubber so you can stretch them a little further? This is why you’ve been reading about those payday loan companies so much lately. Their primary objective is to take advantage of your desperation. And there is an office on every corner, they will loan you the money but they are hoping that you are so desperate until you would willing to pay them back with high interest rates.