Key Verse:
Matthew 9:22 NASB
22 But Jesus, turning and seeing her, said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has [a]made you well.” And [b]at once the woman was [c]made well.
Where to begin?
Matthew 9:9 NASB
Matthew Called
9 As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s office; and He *said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.
After healing the demon-possessed man in the country of Gadara, Jesus returned home to Capernaum, where He was received with great jubilation. After healing the paralytic who was lowered through the roof by his four friends, Jesus went on to call the last of the primary disciples (the Twelve), Matthew. The call of Matthew to discipleship at this particular time is significant, in that he was a witness to the happenings in today’s lesson. Stick a pin there for a moment…
The Lesson
Matthew 9:18-19 NASB
18 While He was saying these things to them, behold, [a]a synagogue [b]official came and [c]bowed down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will become alive again.” 19 Jesus got up from the table and began to accompany him, along with His disciples.
Jesus had been speaking with John’s disciples when they were interrupted by a synagogue official the Gospels of Mark and Luke identify as Jairus. According to Matthew’s Gospel, Jairus kneeled before Jesus and pleaded with Jesus to come to his home and heal his daughter who had just died. To my earlier observation about Matthew, he was an eye witness to this particular event and the other events surrounding it. While Mark and John’s gospels state that Jairus’ daughter was dying, in Matthew’s narrative, Jairus’ daughter was already dead. While there is an obvious difference in the three synoptic gospels in the telling of this narrative, is there an argument for error in Scripture? No. In Luke and Mark’s gospels, Jairus’ daughter was reported dead by Jairus’ servant well before Jesus arrived at Jairus’ home. What then?
Matthew’s telling adds an element of desperation, in that, when a person died in ancient Israel and the surrounding regions (the Middle East0, it was customary to bury that person before sunset. It was thought to be disrespectful to the memory of a loved one to do otherwise. Thus, when Jairus comes to Jesus, there is a real sense of desperation in his demeanor because he has a limited amount of time remaining before sunset. If Jairus’ daughter is to be resurrected, Jesus must accompany him immediately. There is not a moment to waste. The fact that Jesus immediately left the table to accompany Jairus indicates that Jesus understood Jairus’ anxiousness and sought to minister first to Jairus by alleviating his fears.
My children are adults today. Both have asthma and have had life-threatening asthma attacks in their childhood. Once, when my daughter was eight years of age, she had an asthma attack so severe that her pediatrician came to the emergency room at 4 am and stood by me at her hospital bed as we both waited for any indication that she would live for a few minutes more. A few years later I had a very similar situation with my son. In essence, I have stood by my children’s bed as they literally hung between life and death and I really didn’t know what the outcome would be. The one thing I did have in those moments was … Jesus. He is our hope in whatever storm life presents. He has certainly come through for us. Amen.
Matthew 9:20-21 NASB
20 And behold, a woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years came up behind Him, and touched the [d]border of His [e]cloak; 21 for she was [f]saying [g]to herself, “If I only touch His cloak, I will [h]get well.”
But while they were en-route to Jairus’ house, a woman who was also in the throes of desperation interrupted them. Why? Because she had a debilitating health issue that had plagued her for the past twelve years. She didn’t mean to interrupt. She only desired a touch. Just a touch, she reasoned, would be all she would need to be made whole. Remarkably, she did not desire a touch from Jesus, rather, she just desired to touch Him. In fact, she only desired to touch His garment. Just a slight .. touch, she reasoned, would suffice.
Mark 5:30-31 NASB
30 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that power from Him had gone out, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?” 31 And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’
Matthew 15:25-28 NASB
25 But she came and began [k]to bow down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” 26 Yet He answered and said, “It is not [l]good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 And she said, “Yes, Lord; but please help, for even the dogs feed on the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed [m]at once.
Lord help us! Help us to have the faith of this woman. So great was her faith, that her touching of Christ’s garment had the effect of moving Heaven. Literally. Jesus did not ‘heal’ this woman. The ‘essence’ of Christ healed her. She perceived that this essence, this ‘virtue’ was her rightful inheritance as a daughter of Abraham. She just reached out and took what was rightfully hers. R.W. Shambach, preaching about the Syrophoenician woman who pleaded for Jesus to heal her daughter preached that, “Healing is the children’s bread!” Beloved, this woman that reached for Jesus’ garment felt exactly the same way. Healing was hers. Her touch put a demand on Heaven for release of what she felt was rightfully hers. Jesus felt it. He declared that virtue had been released from His person.
Matthew 9:22 NASB
22 But Jesus, turning and seeing her, said, “Daughter, take courage; your faith has [i]made you well.” And [j]at once the woman was [k]made well.
Mark 5:34 NASB
34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has [f]made you well; go in peace and be cured of your disease.”
Luke 8:48 NASB
48 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has [e]made you well; go in peace.”
Luke 13:16 NASB
16 And this woman, a daughter of Abraham as she is, whom Satan has bound for [g]eighteen long years, should she not have been released from this restraint on the Sabbath day?
Apparently, Jesus agreed! Matthew, Mark, and Luke all testify that Jesus addressed this un-named woman as ‘Daughter’. The inference here is that Jesus indeed regards her just as she sees herself, as a daughter of Abraham; a rightful heir to the promises of Heaven. May we see ourselves this same way. Let us find ourselves agreeing with Jesus. Amen.
Matthew 9:23-24 NASB
23 When Jesus came into the [l]official’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd in noisy disorder, 24 He said, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him.
Mark 5:35-38 NASB
35 While He was still speaking, people *came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, “Your daughter has died; why bother the Teacher further?” 36 But Jesus, overhearing what was being spoken, *said to the synagogue official, “Do not be afraid, only [g]believe.” 37 And He allowed no one to accompany Him except Peter, [h]James, and John the brother of [i]James. 38 They *came to the house of the synagogue official, and He *saw a commotion, and people loudly weeping and wailing.
Luke 8:49-53 NASB
49 While He was still speaking, someone *came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, “Your daughter has died; do not trouble the Teacher anymore.” 50 But when Jesus heard this, He responded to him, “Do not be afraid any longer; only believe, and she will be [f]made well.” 51 When He came to the house, He did not allow anyone to enter with Him except Peter, John, and James, and the girl’s father and mother. 52 Now they were all weeping and mourning for her; but He said, “Stop weeping, for she has not died, but is asleep.” 53 And they began laughing at Him, knowing that she had died.
Meanwhile, Jairus is completely out of time. However, notice what Jesus does. He encourages Jairus to stand firm in his faith. To just continue to believe that what Jesus promises, He is able to deliver. I can picture Jesus throwing His arm around Jairus’ shoulders, drawing him close, looking directly at him, so as to draw his attention away from the growing commotion surrounding the most certain death of his daughter and encouraging him to continue to stand on the same belief that brought him to Jesus in the first place: that Jesus could and would resurrect his daughter. Beloved, let me encourage you with that same knowledge. Jesus loves you and is concerned about you. He is concerned with the very things you are. Not only is He concerned, but He will act on your behalf to address your concerns. He loves you that much. Isn’t that good news?
Matthew 9:25-26 NASB
25 But when the crowd had been sent out, He entered and took her by the hand, and the girl [m]got up. 26 And this news spread throughout that land.
Mark 5:41-43 NASB
41 And taking the child by the hand, He *said to her, “Talitha, kum!” (which translated means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). 42 And immediately the girl got up and began to walk, for she was twelve years old. And immediately they were completely astonished. 43 And He gave them strict orders that no one was to know about this, and He told them to have something given her to eat.
Luke 8:54-56 NASB
54 He, however, took her by the hand and spoke [g]forcefully, saying, “Child, arise!” 55 And her spirit returned, and she got up immediately, and He ordered that something be given her to eat. 56 Her parents were amazed, but He instructed them to tell no one what had happened.
Then Jesus came and simply took another ‘ daughter of Abraham’ by the hand and did something only He can do. He spoke to her and her spirit returned. She breathed. She lived. And though Christ ordered those who witnessed this miracle not to make it public, aren’t you glad they did? I certainly am.
Selah
wb
Proverbs 3:5-6 NASB
5
Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
6
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.
Happy Father’s Day!
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