25 Now a certain woman
had a flow of blood for twelve years, 26 and had
suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and
was no better, but rather grew worse. 27 When she
heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in
the crowd and touched His garment. 28 For she said,
“If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”
29 Immediately the
fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of
the affliction. 30 And Jesus, immediately knowing
in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said,
“Who touched My clothes?”
31 But His disciples
said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who
touched Me?’”
32 And He looked
around to see her who had done this thing. 33 But
the woman, fearing and trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and
fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. 34 And
He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has
made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” – Mark 5:25-34
The story as
described in Luke 8 is much like the one in Mark and the description in Matthew
is much more condensed. I find it
impressive that this story is captured in these three gospels. There are many stories not written in at
least three gospels. So, I find myself
believing that this is an important lesson.
The woman
believed. She believed if she could just
touch the very end of a fringe on Jesus’s clothes, she would be healed. She didn't have to touch Him; she didn't have
to have Him touch her; she didn’t have to have anyone know, I even get the idea
she’d have preferred no one to notice, but Jesus will always show someone’s
great faith; she didn't need anything but just the slightest touch from
something that touched Him. Oh, how
desperate she was! I am reminded of the
non-Jew woman who fell at Jesus’s feet two chapters later requesting Jesus to
cast the demon out of her daughter.
26 The woman was a
Greek, a Syro-Phoenician by birth, and she kept asking Him to cast the demon out
of her daughter. 27 But Jesus said to her, “Let
the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread
and throw it to the
little dogs.” 28 And
she answered and said to Him, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the
table eat from the children’s crumbs.” 29 Then
He said to her, “For this saying go your
way; the demon has gone out of your daughter.”
– Mark 7:26-29
This woman
with the blood condition just wanted a crumb and a crumb is all she needed. What great faith she had! Only the Centurion who told Jesus He didn’t
need to come to the house to heal his daughter but Jesus could just command it
and it would be done had more faith by my estimation. She believed that she didn't even need His
look or acknowledgment, only the touch of His clothes. While she was begging for just a crumb, her
faith was as a mighty mountain.
She was
healed by her faith. Sure, the power of
God healed her technically. But Jesus
specifically told her “your faith has made you well”. Her belief in the presence of God and in the
power of God made her well.
Today, I
pray for a crumb. I pray for God to
command healing and it to be done. I
pray for God’s will, His perfection, and His direction. I know Ecclesiastes 11:5 says, “you do not know the
works of God who makes everything”.
But I also know James 5:16 which says, “the effective, fervent prayer of a righteous
man avails much.” I hope I am
a righteous man and much can be availed.
The power of God is in the salvation message of Jesus. I pray that our testimony and confession of
His answer to our prayer would show everyone His power in our lives and move them in their faith. May God become real to others by His work in us.
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