Matthew 9:18-26

Matthew 9:18-26 NIV While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, “My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples. Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. She said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.” Jesus turned and saw her. “Take heart, daughter,” he said, “your faith has healed you.” And the woman was healed at that moment. When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, he said, “Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.” But they laughed at him. After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. News of this spread through all that region. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Matthew tells some more healing stories. I have to ask myself what purpose these bring to His account, when he had already reported Jesus' ability to heal on a number of occasions. What's different here is the level of healing and the level of faith. Jesus raises a little girl from death! The woman with the issue of blood believes a simple touch of the edge of His cloak will heal this chronic condition. The synagogue leader believes if Jesus lays hands on his dead daughter she will live again. This reveals that the faith of the people is increasing. With their increased faith we witness miraculous healing. Central to these two healing stories is the faith of the people approaching Jesus and their focus on touching. In the case of the woman with the issue of blood, she believed if she touched the hem of Jesus' garment, she'd be healed of a 12 year condition that made her religiously unclean. The number 12 is symbolic of the 12 tribes of Israel. Does the woman's unclean condition, a condition that bars her from attendance at temple, isolated by religious law, imply that Israel is unclean? God is holy. As such the Holy One does not allow unholy or unclean persons or things in His presence. The Old Testament reveals a few occasions where unauthorized (unholy) people approaching the sanctuary of God was lethal. The uncleanliness of Israel may be because they sin, but Jesus is a friend of sinners. There's a new era of mercy and love. So if Israel would just reach out to Jesus in hope, like the woman with the issue of blood, they would be restored and reconnected to the God of life. The blood leaving the woman made her tired as life was stripped away, for life is in the blood. In the same way a life of habitual sin separates one from God and strips away life from the sinner. The message to Israel is to seek the Lord for healing and reconciliation with the Holy One. Jesus' raising of the dead girl is a mini-Easter. It points to what's going to happen for all who hope in Christ. We will all experience resurrection to eternal life. Notice that the faith of her father saved her. She was dead, but because he humbled himself before the Lord and asked that He come and lay His hands on her, she was brought back to life. Parents often witness their children making sinful choices. It pains us to watch them suffer mistakes. Sin causes estrangement within ourselves. Sin causes shame, a feeling of being outside of the Father's love. This is not exactly the case. Nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Jesus Christ, not even our sin. (Rom 8:38-39) We feel the estrangement just the same, like Eve with her eyes opened to her shame after she ate the forbidden fruit. God did not cease to love her. He provided clothing for her to cover herself. But God allowed her to face the consequences of her sin. I'm sure God was pained. Eve was His first daughter; she and Adam the first of His human children. And like a father God watched them make their choices to listen to the serpent's lies rather than God's commands. God began to provide a way for them to endure their banishment from paradise. God hoped His human children would learn to choose obedience rather than rebellion. In the same way parents watch their children make decisions that do not lead to the narrow gate of life, but to the wide road that leads to destruction. We pray and hope that our children will find their way back to the righteous path. Like the synagogue leader we kneel before Jesus and ask that He touch our children, believing that His hand will return them to life in God. The word spread about Jesus. He said the girl was not dead but only sleeping. He took her by the hand and raised her to life. This happened because of the prayers and intercession of a loving parent. Let these stories give you hope. Perhaps you've been living with an illness, or something else that isolates you from others. You've tried a lot of things that didn't work, but don't lose hope. Reach out for Christ. Perhaps His touch will heal you because of your faith that Jesus can heal you. Maybe you have children going the wrong way in life. You fear for the consequences they will face. Kneel in prayer every day and ask the Lord to touch their lives. Ask Jesus to take them by the hand and restore them to the path that leads to eternal life. Above all be amazed at the power of Christ. That same power resides in you through the Holy Spirit, a power that can conquer the grave and everything that leads there.