OUTBREAK! TEXT: LUKE 8:43-48
Opening: There are certain words and terms that can strike fear into all of mankind: “The Plague” is one such term. Others words like “epidemic” and even the word “Outbreak” creates panic. Down through the sands of times, these words have been used far too often………. and the ramifications of words like these have stood in the remembrance of history.
I am sure that all of had to learn this story in our history classes. In the middle of the 14th century, there was an “outbreak” in Europe known as the “The Plague”. It was later earned the nickname: “The Black Death”. From 1347 to 1351, four short years,….. at least 75 million people were believed to have perished from this pandemic outbreak.
In 1918, there was another “outbreak”……this one was nicknamed the “The Spanish Flu”. It did not last long and within one year it had completely ran its course. However, it was believed that if this outbreak had not quickly found its demise…..it would have had the capacity of claiming over 1/3 of the earth’s population. In 2009, this “Spanish Flu” reared its ugly head once again……but with different names. By some, it was called “H1N1”……..but the media and probably most of us were calling it “the Swine Flu”.
1981 is another year that went down in history – An outbreak of unknown origin was affecting the people of Cameron. It was an outbreak that had originated in the Congo in 1959…….. but due to the restrictions and difficulties of transportation at that time, it was not brought into the main light of the world until 1981. Fear and panic struck the people of Africa and the entire world….as this plague began spreading quickly. This unknown virus, this plague, this outbreak……the one that we now refer to…… as HIV or Aids…..was spreading quickly around the world. While we are somewhat containing this disease, it is still believed that at least 35 million people are carrying the HIV virus today. And this deadly virus will one day claim the lives of its victims.
In all of these cases…….and many more like them………there was an “outbreak” where people were infected. And infectious people are often the most fear and even placed in a place of isolation. This isolation is for containment and for study. And can I say to you today that mankind has always possessed a sense of curiosity and there is an intense desire to study what we do not understand.
EXAMPLE: Here in our opening video, is the movie of a single monkey. A single monkey that unknowingly was infecting the entire world. Notice that this “outbreak” started with just one.
Therefore I would like to present a question to you today: “is being infected ALWAYS such a bad thing? Or can good come……when an outbreak occurs?
Here in our text in Luke 8, there is a story of a woman. A woman that was infected. She had a disease that could not be explained and in most importantly…..one that most people were probably even terrified of. There had to be concern in that day as to whether this disease she was carrying…was it contagious? Could it be transmitted to someone else?
But there is something else worth noting in this story: This woman had a disease that not only “infected” her…….but once she met Jesus………the results of that meeting would “affected” her.
I believe with all of my heart that Christians today need an infection. One that becomes contagious! We need an infection….. that begins to affects us…….just as it did this woman in our text today.
Luke 8:43-48 (KJV) 43 And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, 44 Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment: and immediately her issue of blood stanched. 45 And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? 46 And Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.
47 And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately. 48 And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.
Transition: How many of us can truly imagine what it would be like to have a disease and no one knows what it is…..or even more concerning,….. how to cure it? Can you imagine the feeling you would have after spending your entire life savings just looking for anyone that can fix what is wrong in you? Can you imagine the despair that you would carry……….. the depression that would linger……….. the hopelessness that would abound….simply because “NO ONE” could help you. This must have been the place that this woman was at……….UNTIL……..she heard about a man named Jesus!
Perhaps she had heard stories of those infected with Leprosy…….and how Jesus had cured them. Perhaps she had heard the testimonies of how He had healed the lame……given sight to the blind…….made the deaf to hear. She may have even heard the story of how a man named “Lazarus”…….who had been dead for four days…….whose body was most likely stinking and decaying in the tomb……..and how Jesus had given him “life”.
This woman had the faith to believe that this man Jesus, was not just any doctor…..He was a “super doctor”. In fact, He must be the “Great Physician”. And she knew if she could just get to Him….if she could just touch Him….Then she too would be given “Life”. How true a statement this would become in her!
Here we find a woman that was “infected”……..and once she met Jesus…….and became “affected”. This makes me wonder why so many that claim to know Jesus, that claim to be Christians, have never been affected like those that met Jesus in the scriptures?
This woman was cured………but the after-effects would bring about a S.T.A.P.H infection in her life. And if we as Christians want to reach our full potential for Christ, we too, need to be infected……. with S.T.A.P.H.!
Those that work in the medical field would say, Preacher, are you crazy? A STAPH infection is word that brings terror to most doctors and hospitals. An outbreak of STAPH can often create a panic. But, the S.T.A.P.H. I am referring to today is not a medical condition, but rather it is a spiritual issue. What we need today is a spiritual S.T.A.P.H. that becomes so contagious…….. that it turns into an OUTBREAK.
Today I want to share with you the five spiritual tenets of a Christian S.T.A.P.H. infection that will scare those around you and prayerfully make them want to even study you!
All five of these tenets can be seen in the life of this unknown woman…and although she had been cured of her disease…the after-effects of her treatment was more than noticeable. It is obvious in the fact that she was:
I. Surrendered
Luke 8:43-44 (KJV) 43 And a woman having an issue of blood twelve years, which had spent all her living upon physicians, neither could be healed of any, 44 Came behind him, and touched the border of his garment
In order for this woman to come to a place where she believed that Jesus had the answer to her issue, …….. she had to first surrender to the fact that regardless of what obstacles were in front of her, she MUST go to Jesus.
This woman who was most likely an outcast, the one that was despised by society, that probably was even forced into a life of loneliness and abandonment……She KNEW in her heart that Jesus was the answer. So she risked everything…in order to just get to where He was. She was so surrendered in her faith, that she believed if she could only touch the hem of his garment, there would be enough power in that alone that she would be healed of this terrible disease.
What a lesson for us today. We live in a society that teaches us to handle our own issues……to fix our own problems…..when in reality, Jesus just wants us to surrender them to Him! So often we act as if the Lord is just simply too busy to be bothered by our problems. But a SURRENDERED person knows the truth.
Hebrews 4:16 (KJV) 16 Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
This is what this woman did! Even though the crowd would not have wanted her there…she came boldly to Jesus in order to get help from Him. I am willing to say that there are some here today, that you too have a need. You need some help. It could be with finances, it could be with family, it could be with friends…….it could be that you need to know the Lord personally and accept Him as Savior. What you need to do….is come BOLDLY to Him, because He has the answers
What a shame it is when this world looks at us as Christians……. and what they find is fear instead of faith….. they find concern instead of peace….when they find defeat instead of joy and peace.
When we as Christians totally surrender, we become infectious. People begin to look at us and ask why we are so happy in a messed up world? And we are able to tell them…..this world is not my home, I am only passing through!
While the rest of the world is chasing wealth in a lottery ticket, I am investing all I have in my eternal home. I don’t have to worry about all of the problems that of this world, because I one day touched the hem of the garment of the problem-solver. Therefore I don’t have to fear ISIS. I don’t have to fear a collapse in the world economy. I don’t even have to fear death…….All because one day I surrendered – I threw up the white flag – I said I am fighting a war that I cannot win…….and that is where I met Jesus……and He healed me.
I had to surrender and go boldly to Him…….and when I did, something amazing happened. He met me! He changed me! He saved me! And the results of my salvation was something that affected me….and now I want to become “Contagious”. I want the whole world to look at me, to study me, and to want what I have been given……LIFE! . I want them to be so curious, that they get too close and catch what I have. YOU SHOULD WANT THE SAME THING IF YOU ARE A CHILD OF GOD…….But that can never happen without total surrender.
A Contagious Christian will always be a surrendered Christian. Whatever you are facing today, Jesus is still the answer. If you will only be willing to surrender to Him, He still has the power to save you, change you and give you LIFE!
So, this woman came surrendered. We can also see that she was:
II. Teachable
Luke 8:45 - 45 And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
This woman got a touch of Jesus and she may have just wanted to fade into obscurity thinking no one would notice. But when you get a touch of Jesus, He knows you and You will know Him! You cannot find him and think that you can hide in the crowd. Jesus is wanting the whole world to hear about what has happened to you!
When this woman was healed, Jesus was going to make this a teaching moment for her and even His disciples.
Imagine what the Disciples were thinking when He presented this question. Better yet, can you imagine what this woman must have been thinking? The crowd is pushing and shoving – trying to get to Jesus – and then the question, “Who touched me?” If we are honest and we had been there, we would have asked the same question that Peter asked: “Master, who hasn’t touched you? Everyone has touched you in the mob of people, and you ask, ‘who touched me’?”
When a person is fully surrendered to Christ, they cannot just get what they want and leave. They cannot just say I am saved, so I do not need to worry about anything else. God has a plan for every one of his children, and in order to become what He wants them to be…….we must become…… teachable.
This young lady…..she could have ran away….but she came back to Jesus……in fact, verse 47 tells us that she came trembling. When we fully recognize who the Lord Jesus really is……..we too should tremble. But we need not fear Him. Because He loves us…enough to die for us….and His love in us……..that should be apparent. Notice the words of John:
John 3:16-17 (KJV) 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
From the moment we felt that first tug on our hearts, we need to get to Jesus. In doing so, we actually made ourselves teachable. It should be the desire for eternal life……. that gives us the desire to learn more about Jesus and how to have an eternal home in Heaven. It should be that desire that makes us want to learn how we can have peace and joy and happiness. And if we become teachable, we recognize that salvation is a gift – nothing we can earn or deserve. Paul tells us in:
Ephesians 2:8-9 (KJV) 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
From the very beginning of a persons’ salvation it requires that we become teachable. But after salvation, we must also remain teachable. Why? Because God has plans for us!
Jeremiah 29:11-- “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord”
1 Thessalonians 4:3 (KJV) 3 For this is the will of God, even your sanctification
Proverbs 3:5-6(KJV) 5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
At the moment of our salvation, we should be so infected with Jesus, that we want him to teach us what we need to be in order to find the maximum amount of joy in this life. And once we discover that joy, it should become so contagious that other need to know more. It is then….that we teach them. We become His disciple.
So we can see that an infected Christian is surrendered and teachable. But there is a third trait we can see in the life of this woman, she was also:
III. Available
In order to come to where Jesus was and to find the answers that she needed, she had to make herself available. It is the same for us as well. Jesus has never imposed His will and desires upon anyone. How do I know this to be true? Because His desire is that everyone would come to Him to be cured of the disease called sin. His desire is that everyone would accept Him as their Savior.
John 6:37 (KJV) 37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
Romans 10:13 (KJV) 13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
This woman had an issue – an issue that required attention –and Jesus had the answer to not only save her life, but also her soul. This woman’s availability was what granted her save-ability! She willingly came to Jesus and he changed her life forever. I truly believe from that day on, she became even more available to tell others what Jesus had done in her life. The doctors could not help her. Twelve years she had struggled, gave up every dollar she had to her name in order to save her life. Then she met Jesus and he gave unto her “eternal life”. How could she not make herself available?
NOTE: Yet many of us, we claim to have met this man named Jesus! But ……Have we really? If we have, then why are so few available to serve Him in the way that He ask us? Why does it seem that our light is out and our joy has left?
Matthew 5:14 (KJV) 14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
Perhaps the reason that this world is looking for answers, is because many of us that claim the name of Christ have never truly been infected with the love and light of Jesus.
We will never be able to infect this lost world with a gospel that should be contagious until we are first willing to make ourselves AVAILABLE! So we see this woman was SURRENDERED, TEACHABLE, AVAILABLE……and she was also:
IV. Passionate
Luke 8:47 – “47 And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.”
This woman’s life had just been radically altered. She has been saved from her infectious disease only to be affected by God’s love. Now….even in her fear…she came to tell Jesus what she had done and why she had done it! But she also wanted everyone around that was listening to hear her story too! Suddenly…she became a passionate Christian!
This world is looking for people that are passionate about what they believe. Why all of the talk around the world about radical terrorist? Because, even though these people are wrong, they are still passionate. Now the whole world is studying them. They want to know more about Islam.
What would happen if we had some passionate Christians? Some that are so Surrendered, Teachable, Available and Passionate that we decided that it is our time to affect this world with our message….with our Gospel and with our Savior? What would the outcome look like? Would we see:
• Revival in our lives and churches like we have not seen in years
• Would we see our loved one coming to Christ for salvations
• Would we find our families being restored and put back together
• Would our children find a home where both Mom and Dad love them and raise them as it was meant to be.
• Would we find peace in society….where no all of a sudden……ALL lives matter!
• Would be see substance abuse hospitals and clinics going out of business because society discovers that the answers to life is not in a pill or a bottle…..but rather in Jesus.
• Would this world discover the joy, happiness and peace it longs for……come from infected Christians that are now affecting the world.
This world is in desperate need of some passionate Christians! And lastly, I want you to notice that this woman was:
V. Humbled
Luke 8:47-48 (KJV) - 47 And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately. 48 And he said unto her, Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.
Humility is a required ingredient in salvation. You will never find the peace you long for until you first recognize that Jesus is the answer! Notice the words of Jesus:
John 14:6 (KJV) 6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
NOTE: Humility is a rarity now days…..even within the church and amongst those that profess Christ. For those of us that proclaim the name of Christ, we must understand that when a person meets a “HUMBLE CHRISTIAN” they seem to take notice very quickly.
It is my humility that forces me to say…….I am nothing more than a mere sinner……..but I am also a mere sinner that has been saved by grace. I was infected by the love of Christ and had the desire to spend eternity with Him. Therefore, I had to humble myself and understand that He took my place on a cross. He took on my pain and punishment because He loved me. And because He first loved me……I now therefore want to serve Him. This means that I may be mocked occasionally – I may be laughed at because I still believe His word over societies opinions……but the ridicule is worth it, because he took more ridicule than I ever will. Jesus IS my example. HE affected me and I want to affect others!
Philippians 2:8 (KJV) 8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross
Closing:I want to leave you with one final thought today. This woman who was infected with sin –became affected by Jesus – just as I did………and the Lord Jesus has given me a S.T.A.P.H infection. My prayer now is that I become contagious and others will develop a spiritual S.T.A.P.H infection.
Have you been infected? Do you know now how to tell if you are infected? It can be seen if you are:
Surrendered
Teachable
Available
Passionate
Humble
If you are missing any of these traits, my prayer is that this message will affect.
If you are hear today, and you have never asked Jesus to become Lord of your life…..let me say this to you……Jesus is the answer! All you need to do is be willing to come to Him and He will meet you, he will save you and he will give you the peace of knowing that Heaven is your home. Why would you not be willing to at least come and talk with me and find out? What do you have to lose?
Church……..we need a S.T.A.P.H. infection like this church has never seen. I am praying for such an “epidemic outbreak” that everyone in the surrounding counties will have to take notice.
One monkey in our opening video infected a nation! One Christian can affect the world! Are you willing to be the one? Are you willing to take a chance? Are you willing to come? Are you willing to allow God to move in you so that others may become infected too! Some of you have a fear in coming……..but there should not be! This woman came to Jesus and He changed her life. Jesus can change the outcome in your life as well……but you must be willing to come to Him!
