Reach Out And Touch The Lord
Text: Mark 5:25-34.
Introduction: Once again we find ourselves in the fifth chapter of Mark’s gospel and you will recall that this section of the Gospel is filled with impossible cases, and is often referred to as the Home Of The Hopeless. Here Jesus shows that He has power over demons, over disease and over death. Here we find His arm is not shortened that he cannot save as He touches the lives of a man, a woman and a child. So far in our studies we have considered the deliverance of the man, the demoniac of Gadara, and then last time we were here we thought about the deliverance of the child, Jairus’ daughter, but now we come to the third victory in this chapter and that revolves around this woman, who the King James Version gently and tactfully describes as having an issue of blood.
In some ways this woman’s case is an incidental to the raising of Jairus’ daughter. As Jesus was making His way to Jairus’ home, this woman stole through the crowd and touched the Lord Jesus in pursuit of healing. That might have been the end of the matter, but for the fact that Jesus stopped en route to uncover her identity. What a frustrating few minutes these must have been for Jairus, and of course frustration gave way to despair when his servant arrived to tell him his daughter was dead. I wonder what he thought of this woman at that instant? Yet, this short dialogue was really designed to be a lesson in faith to the ruler of the synagogue.
I. Her Miserable Disease – vss 25-26
A. Mark describes three elements of this poor lady’s state to us.
1. He tells us of her ailment – she “had an issue of blood twelve years.”
2. He tells us of her treatment – she “had suffered many things of many physicians.”
3. He tells us of her detriment – she “had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse.”
B. Her ailment.
1. She “had an issue of blood twelve years.”
2. That is significant on two accounts – first of all the time period of her suffering equated with the age of Jairus’ daughter.
3. Whilst this poor woman had been in despair all those years, Jairus had been delighting in watching his daughter grow up.
4. His pain was relatively short lived in comparison to hers – and his patience was called upon because she equally in need of the Lord’s attention.
5. Secondly, and this is of greater relevance, her condition rendered her unclean under the law.
a. See Leviticus 15:19-33
b. The recurring word of this passage is “unclean” – she was unclean, anything she touched was unclean, anyone who touched her was unclean – she couldn’t enter the synagogue, she couldn’t worship, work, she couldn’t maintain a marriage – effectively she was an outcast, cut off from family, friends and society.
C. Her treatment
1. Of course, she had sought healing. She had visited every doctor, considered every remedy, and tried every cure – she “had suffered many things of many physicians.”
a. The ancient Jewish writings gave a number of different cures for bleeding.
(i) Beside tonics and other remedies, one cure was for the inflicted to carry the ashes of an ostrich egg in a linen bag in the summer, and in a cotton bag in the winter.
(ii) Another cure was to carry around a barleycorn that was found in the dung of a white she-ass.
(iii) If that failed one could try eating grasshopper eggs, or carrying around the tooth of a fox,.
(iv) My favourite remedy, and certainly the most macabre was carrying around the fingernail of a person who has been hanged!
(v) Common remedies also included cutting and burning of the infected area, which perhaps explains why Mark says she had, “suffered many things”.
b. But for all their efforts her condition never improved, in fact it got worse!
D. Her detriment.
1. Her state had impacted her in two ways:
a. It had eaten into her wealth – “had spent all that she had.”
(i) Then, as now, medical care did not come cheaply, and this poor lady had emptied her coffers in an effort to get well.
(ii). I think it is fair to say that most people value their health above their wealth, that those who are seriously or long term ill would gladly give up the luxuries of this life if they could be relieved of their pain and discomfort.
(iii) But these doctors she had been frequenting had not only hurt her bank account they had injured her body.
b. Their cures had affected her health – she, “was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse.”
(i) Mark’s suggestion is that the doctors contributed to her ill health, that they had added to her misery, but when we read Doctor Luke’s account her makes no such suggestion but simply says she, “had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any.” In other words there was nothing they could do for her, she was incurable.
(ii) I think that is interesting, it seems then as now, doctors were concerned to protect their fraternity from blame.
E. Now let us think about all this in spiritual terms.
1. You see there are many folks and their lives are also plagued by an” issue of blood” i.e., the blood that runs through our veins is tainted by sin, we have a sin problem, and try as we might there is nothing we can do about it.
2. It is not that people do not try. They too visit “doctors” and “healers” but they are, in the words of Job, describing his inept comforters, “forgers of lies, [and] … physicians of no value.” (Job 13:4). There’s;
a. Dr. Do-good, who suggests that by being a good friend and neighbour, by rearing nice children and being a good family man it will all work itself out in the end. He is a forger of lies and a physician of no value. His remedy is a sure path to hell, and far from making the sin issue better, he makes the self-assured heart stronger, he makes the sinner worse off rather than better off because he can never face up to the fact that he is guilty before God.
b. Dr. No-god, who suggests that religion is a crock, that faith in God is a restraint that needs to be cast off, a tool by which the powerful subdue the weak. The Bible says he is a fool. But, many there are who heed him, and are they the better for it? Well look around, see the sexualisation of our children, the murder of the unborn, and the licensing of the perverted, see a nation that calls evil good and good evil and then ask yourself about Dr No-god. He is a forger of lies, a physician of no value.
c. Dr. Formality, who sees the good of religion, but not too much. Not the sort that is in anyway evangelical. For him we can have the best of both worlds. His medicine balances a healthy dose of form and ritual, a christening here, a first communion there, a confirmation, a nice church wedding, a little bit of kneeling and repetitious praying, alongside the enjoyment of worldly ways. Does this better the sinner? No it makes him a hypocrite. This doctor too is a “forger of lies” and “a physician of no value.”
3. What we could learn from this woman’s experience.
a. Who are you listening to? Who are you heeding? Is it making you better or worse? How we need the Great Physician whose remedy is truth and whose cure is life eternal.
II. Her Marked Determination – vss 27-28
A. Now notice this episode very carefully, notice Mark says, “When she had heard of Jesus, [she] came…”
1. The Bible says faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.
2. A person cannot be saved until they hear of Jesus, and that places an onus upon as believers to tell of Him. That is how it works, and that is how the message of salvation operates.
3. Who spoke to this lady of Christ or how she heard we are not told, but once she knew of His power, and His ability to heal she was determined in her heart to get to Him.
B. She said within herself, “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.”
1. But she knew that a woman in her condition had no business mingling with crowds, and deliberately touching people.
2. So, she “came in the press behind…”
a. Really she was sneaking up on Jesus, hoping for a healing and desiring to slip away before anyone noticed.
b. And she “touched his garment,” Matthew tells us she ”touched the hem of his garment,” the tassels that hung from the robe typically worn by Jewish men in keeping with the law.
c. Now some say that her actions were driven by superstition, that somehow the garments Jesus touched were holy, in much the same way the things she touched were unclean – but let us be clear about it, it wasn’t her action as such, but her faith that made her whole. That’s what Jesus said;
III. Her Marvelous Deliverance – vss 29-34
A. Her faith was rewarded, “And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.”
1. How important it is that we see how this deliverance developed.
2. It began with a fact, she had heard of Him, heard of His miracles, His power, maybe even His message.
a. She had heard how he healed the sick and delivered the demonic.
b. She had tried everything else – she had lost her wealth and health, what more could she lose. She was at her wits end, and Jesus stood ready to meet her there, He was her only hope.
c. “Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man’s power ends.” George Muller
3. And her faith was not misplaced.
a. She believed Christ could make a difference for her, that He could be her Helper, her Saviour. She trusted Him. And so she pushed her way through the throng to reach Him and touch Him.
b. And she was healed.
4. Faith gave birth to feeling – “she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.”
a. How many there are who want the feelings first, who are seeking some sign, some signal that God is there, who want to experience Him before they will act in faith – that is getting the cart before the horse.
b. It is faith first – feelings later. We are not saved by feeling, but by grace are ye saved through faith!!
B. Having received her cure she pulled back into the crowd – but the Lord was having it.
1. “Who touched my clothes?” He cried.
a. Of course He knew who had touched Him, just as He knew where Adam was hiding in the garden.
b. This woman would be no more allowed to hide in the crowd, than Adam was permitted to hide in the bushes.
c. She would have to come out, she would have to make herself known. Why? Because, “Secret disciples are weak disciples”. (John Phillips).
2. His disciples had not even noticed the woman among the press and they were incredulous at the idea the Lord should seek one above all others in that throng.
a. But He knew who she was, it is clear from the text, “He looked round about to see HER that had done this thing.”
b. She was like a rabbit caught in the headlights! And so, “fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth.”
(i) We can not underestimate the importance of truthfulness with God.
(ii) So often we are just not honest, not honest with ourselves, with others or with God – we need to be open before Him – it’s not like He doesn’t already know, but truthfulness is a mark of sincerity and reality. God wants us to be real.
3. We need to step out from the crowd. Why?
a. That the Lord might be glorified. Christ is not exalted by a silent witness or a secret disciple.
b. That our deliverance might be complete and confirmed.
(i) She needed to tell it, to hear it from her own lips and to hear it from the Lord. This thing was real.
(ii) We need that too.
c. To encourage others.
C. Finally the Lord tells her, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”
1. He gave her assurance.
2. He called her His daughter – He was welcoming her into the kingdom.
3. Now she was already whole – yet he tells her to be whole, in one sense He is giving her His blessing, but in another sense I wonder is He telling her to live out her wholeness.
a. “You are whole… now go and be whole; live life to the full!!”
b. That relates to us as Christians: we are saved, (that’s our position) but also we are being saved as we live the Christian life out, (that’s our practice), old things are passing away and all things are becoming knew.
c. You are saved… so live like it!
Conclusion: Maybe you are here this evening and you need to be saved. Earlier we sang the chorus, “Reach out and touch the Lord”
Reach out and touch the Lord; as He goes by.
You will find He’s not too busy to hear your heart cry.
He’s passing by this moment; your needs to supply,
Reach out and touch the Lord; as He walks by.
That’s what the woman with the issue of blood found, and countless many more have found the same thing down through the years. Are you at you wits end? Have you exhausted your resources? Have you tried this and that and failed? Well, now it is time to trust Jesus, to come to Him and be saved.
But maybe you are saved. You know the Lord, you have made a profession of faith. But have you confessed your faith? Are you telling others about it? Have you testified, or been baptized? The Lord want to glory in your salvation. Maybe tonight would be a good time to tell others of Jesus.
