KNOWING JESUS IN COMPLETE WHOLENESS
AUGUST 15, 2004 Jay Robison MARK 5:25-34
I have researched Sermon Central as well as other resources in preparation of this message. I want to acknowledge Joel Smith’s contribution on this passage.
What are your handicaps, limitations, hang-ups?
May haunt you daily or periodically, new or old condition
Maybe physical pain or something don’t like about your body Some of us struggle w\emotional and psychological disorders like depression, fear, worry or various forms of neurosis. Or weaknesses are spiritual arena. You’re plagued by doubt. Or there’s a nasty temptation you keep yielding to.
May be new problem or one you’ve had all of life
Today we will focus on those handicaps, limitations, hang-ups
Learn how to find Jesus’ healing from unnamed lady in Mk 5
Jesus asked to heal gravely ill daughter of synagogue leader
His growing popularity so crowd pressed on him
There, a woman touches Jesus we don’t even know her name God’s way of inviting all of us who are hurting to his side
I am convinced God wants to give us wholeness
God knows about limits, barriers, hurts of your life & mine
Invites us to wholeness, learn from this lady
1. Don’t Allow YOUR DIFFICULTIES TO DEFINE YOU
Mark tells us all we know about this lady, no name
But this Vs 26 NCV She had suffered very much from many doctors & had spent all the money she had, but instead of improving, she was getting worse.
Unpack that a little bit, Mark tells us a mouthful
This lady had problems!
PHYSICAL-12 YEARS OF BLEEDING
Commentators believe some kind of uterine bleeding
Visiting lady in last church who had hysterectomy knew as a man I couldn’t relate delicate to ask about she said
I’ve been bleeding for yrs just wanted get that out of there
Suffice it to say blood is a personal thing
My blood is very personal to me lady lost blood 12 yrs
FINANCIAL-SPENT ALL THE $$ SHE HAD
Medical care was not as available to masses in that day
Usually only the rich could afford to see Dr.
Mark says this lady spend all $$ she had on Drs
And she not only did not get better but worse
She was at the end of her rope
SPIRITUAL-SHE WAS UNCLEAN
Lev 15:19–27 goes into great detail women w\blood unclean
Anything she touched unclean If she married, for 12 years she could not touch her husband or her children,
She was forbidden to enter temple for worship
EMOTIONAL-ISOLATED, LONG ILLNESS
She not allowed to walk in streets where there were people She could not sit on anything, it would be unclean
Nobody dared to visit her she was rejected from society. She had been humiliated because her sickness like leprosy. Woman put out of home not allowed to touch loved ones
No affection or sexual intercourse unclean
Still this woman was desperate for help her.
She would not allow herself to be defined by her difficulties she would not be marked only by her condition
If you ever start defining yourself by your difficulties
Or labels that others give you you’ve been defeated by them. If you make excuses about what you can’t do certain things because of your challenges you’ve been defeated by them. Don’t follow pattern of our culture and label yourself with a disease or dysfunction. If you do, you’ve been defeated.
Parents don’t allow your kids to be labeled
If you call them shy, slow, stupid, ADD, ADHD, dyslexic, etc you’re aiding & abetting their defeat. They’ll use limitation
as excuse for any behavior or not achieving their potential.
HS boy on Crutches kept him from being physically active,
he excelled in studies & was well liked by peers.
They saw problems had getting around, sometimes felt sorry for him, but for a long time nobody asked why on crutches One day, his best friend asked “It was polio,” answered boy “It’s so hard for you, how do you keep from being bitter?” Tapping his chest w\his hand, young man replied w\a smile, “Oh, it only got to my legs! It never touched my heart.
2. Reach Out FOR RESTORATION
Does not mean ignore pain
Farmer Joe decided his injuries from accident serious enough to take trucking co (responsible for the accident) to court. In court, trucking company’s fancy lawyer was questioning Joe. "Didn’t you say, at the scene of the accident, I’m fine’?" Farmer Joe "Well I’ll tell you what happened. I had just loaded my favorite mule Bessie into the..." "I didn’t ask for any details," lawyer interrupted, "just answer the question. Did you not say, at the scene of the accident, ’I’m fine’!" Farmer Joe "Well I had just got Bessie into the trailer & I was driving down the road..." Lawyer interrupted again "Judge, I am trying to establish the fact that, at the scene of the accident, this man told Highway Patrol that he was just fine. Now several weeks after accident he is suing my client. I believe he is a fraud. Please tell him to simply answer the question." But Judge was interested in story "I’d like to hear what he has to say about his favorite mule Bessie." Joe thanked Judge proceeded, "Well as I was saying, I just loaded Bessie, my favorite mule, into trailer driving her down highway when huge semi-truck ran stop sign & smacked my truck right in side. I was thrown into one ditch Bessie was thrown into other. I was hurting real bad & didn’t want to move. However, I could hear ole Bessie moaning & groaning. I knew she was in terrible shape just by her groans. Soon State Police came on scene. Officer heard Bessie moaning\groaning so he went over to her. After he looked at her he took out his gun & shot her between the eyes. Officer then came across the road w\his gun in his hand looked at me said, "Your mule was in such bad shape I had to shoot her. How are you feeling?" It was then that I said, "I’m fine."
Woman faced her troubles and reached beyond them
She overcame THE CROWD AND HER WORRY Mark says great CROWD pressing on Jesus
Not like she could get up to him
Wonder if she had worries, when thought came to her
Why would Jesus care about her
But bible says when she reached out and touched Jesus even in the crowd Jesus asks, who touched me
Disciples you gotta be kidding 100s of people touched you
But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. Vs 33 NKJV
Why was she afraid?
SHE MADE JESUS UNCLEAN
She was unclean and made him unclean
Everyone she touched was not unclean
JESUS COULD STRIKE HER WITH A CURSE
After all if he was really powerful, it may backfire
He could have said, well for touching me
I’ll strike you with a curse, you will be worse
She was drawing on his power w\out his permission
SHE WAS TOUCHING GOD!
If not recognition of individual sin in presence of sinless God, something’s wrong. When God comes in power there is joy, but there’s also fear and trembling
Reaching out for the holy, have we lost her humility?
Do we come here assuming we can tip our hat to God
Or do we come here in awe, to meet HOLY GOD
When she touched Jesus, flow stop & knew Jesus healed her
Something came out of him, as a pianist pours out in playing or an artist gives self in painting
When Jesus heals the power proceeds from him,
Touches her and brings healing
Woman refuses to allow her life
to be defined by hopeless circumstances
Jesus reaches out to her in Mercy=passion, power, the ability of God to treat us far better than we ever deserve.
3. Live A LIFE OF RENEWAL
If we don’t allow ourselves to only be defined by difficulties
And when we reach out for restoration, healing from God
How do we then really live life of faith?
Often DIFFICULTIES AND HARDSHIPS seem to kill faith difficulties, & handicaps are cited as reasons why people lose their faith. They conclude either there’s no God or that
God doesn’t care about them personally or angry with them. None of these are true.
Context of story tells about God’s desire for our wholeness. Jesus was on way to heal daughter of an important man
Woman w\flow of blood was a nobody.
Jesus not only healed, her but connected w\her personally
Jesus said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” Vs 34 NKJV
When healing comes, Jesus gives her shalom “peace”
But what if we are not healed? We pray, reach no change
Look for GOD IN THE MIDST OF YOUR STORM
God allows storms in our lives for reasons. Look for it.
Dr. told Helen Keller she would never be totally healed
“Oh, well, there’s a lot of living to be found w\in your limitations, if you don’t wear yourself out fighting them.” Helen Keller “Face your deficiencies and acknowledge them, but do not let them master you.”
Paul had a thorn in the flesh, prayed repeatedly for healing
It never came, Okay God your will be done, use me
Paul had seen heaven with his own eyes.
It’s enough to make anybody’s head swell.
God gave him a handicap said remember to depend on me
Great thing about our limitations is that they get our focus off the superficial stuff and center us on what really matters. This, in turn, leads to true contentment.
If you’re observant you may have noticed that most of our dissatisfaction with life comes through things that don’t matter. Look for the Lord in your limitation. Ask him to reveal what he’s trying to accomplish through it. You don’t have to be a victim to your disabilities. Let God launch you past your limitations
Mount Rushmore in Black Hills of SD has 60ft sculpture of 4 pres took 14 yrs to build sculpture 6,375 above ground after it was done asked Sculptor Gutzon Borglum how he did it look what you have made, he replied figures have been there 40 mill yrs. I just had to dynamite 400,000 tons of granite to bring them to view God sees our potential will you allow him to dynamite your life
Consider how God cares for the broken
Extraordinary how bible is aware of brokenhearted
Isa 40:1 Comfort comfort ye my people
51:12 I am he that comforts you
61:1-3 It is to heal the brokenhearted, to give beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness
66:13 As one whom his mother comforts so I will comfort you
Take heart when the seas get stormy,
look around for the people God places in your life.
God put them there because he loves you and because
He knows you can’t make it on your own!
Like it or not, we need each other! And God will not abandon us or leave us alone.
How do you need healing today?
Don’t be defined by hurt, handicap, limitation
Reach out for restoration
Live a life of renewal
KNOWING JESUS IN COMPLETE WHOLENESS
AUGUST 15, 2004 Jay Robison MARK 5:25-34
What are your handicaps, limitations, hang-ups?
1. Don’t Allow
She had suffered very much from many doctors &
had spent all the money she had, but instead of improving, she was getting worse. Vs 26 NCV
This lady had problems!
2. Reach Out
She overcame
But the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. Vs 33 NKJV
Why was she afraid?
3. Live
Often seem to kill faith
Jesus said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” Vs 34 NKJV
Look for
Consider how God cares for the broken
Isaiah 40:1, 51:12, 61:1-3, 66:13
How do you need healing today?
