1 00:00:02,920 --> 00:00:06,840 Brian Johnson is a 47 year old tech billionaire. 2 00:00:07,520 --> 00:00:12,480 He is the subject of a recent Netflix documentary called Don't 3 00:00:12,480 --> 00:00:16,280 Die, The Man Who Wants to Live Forever. 4 00:00:17,240 --> 00:00:20,000 Speaking recently about the documentary on a podcast, 5 00:00:20,360 --> 00:00:23,520 Johnson was asked the question, Do you think that you're going 6 00:00:23,520 --> 00:00:27,520 to die? He answered no. 7 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:34,960 Johnson is engaged in what he calls Project Blueprint, an 8 00:00:34,960 --> 00:00:39,040 effort to reduce his so-called biological age. 9 00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:44,360 He thinks that if he can reduce his rate of aging enough, he can 10 00:00:44,360 --> 00:00:48,360 stay alive long enough for technological breakthroughs to 11 00:00:48,360 --> 00:00:50,800 eventually breakthrough the barrier of death itself and 12 00:00:50,800 --> 00:00:53,600 bring him along with it into immortality. 13 00:00:55,800 --> 00:01:00,320 Johnson's daily anti ageing regimen, which costs him 14 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:05,360 $2,000,000 a year and enlists a team of doctors, includes taking 15 00:01:05,360 --> 00:01:09,800 111 pills every day, wearing a baseball cap that shoots red 16 00:01:09,800 --> 00:01:13,160 light into his scalp, collecting and testing his own stool 17 00:01:13,160 --> 00:01:16,960 samples, and receiving blood plasma transfusions from his 18 00:01:17,240 --> 00:01:21,080 teenage son. Johnson recently posted on a 19 00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:26,920 social media website Conquering Death would be humanity's 20 00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:31,840 greatest achievements. What odds of success do you give 21 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:38,680 him more personally? What's your answer to death? 22 00:01:39,680 --> 00:01:42,960 What are you going to do about death? 23 00:01:43,800 --> 00:01:51,400 What can you do about death? This morning we continue our 24 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:55,520 series in Mark's gospel of chapter 5, verses 21 to 43. 25 00:01:56,200 --> 00:01:59,440 The section of Mark's gospel that we are in, stretching from 26 00:01:59,440 --> 00:02:02,800 the end of chapter 4 to the beginning of chapter 6, 27 00:02:03,080 --> 00:02:07,680 showcases Jesus's authority. We saw Jesus's authority over 28 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:10,680 nature itself at the end of chapter 4, and then his 29 00:02:10,680 --> 00:02:14,040 authority over demonic spirits in the earlier part of chapter 30 00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:16,320 5. In one sense, our passage is 31 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:19,800 very simple. In it, Jesus demonstrates his 32 00:02:19,800 --> 00:02:24,800 power and authority over disease and even death. 33 00:02:26,840 --> 00:02:32,920 But our passage is also incredibly personal, probing and 34 00:02:32,920 --> 00:02:38,000 tender. It shows us 2 intimate, soul 35 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:44,560 searching encounters with Jesus. Please follow along as I read 36 00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:47,600 the whole passage. Mark 5, verses 21 to 43. 37 00:02:47,600 --> 00:02:49,360 We have a couple of volunteers with Bibles. 38 00:02:49,360 --> 00:02:51,240 If only he needs a Bible put up a hand. 39 00:02:52,160 --> 00:02:54,200 Two young men will bring them to you right now. 40 00:02:54,200 --> 00:02:56,080 Austin OK, if you need a Bible, put up a hand. 41 00:02:56,360 --> 00:03:06,000 Mark 5, verses 21 to 43. And when Jesus had crossed again 42 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:09,720 in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, 43 00:03:09,720 --> 00:03:13,760 and he was beside the sea. Then came one of the rulers of 44 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:18,480 the synagogue, Gyrus by name. And seeing him, he fell at his 45 00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:21,920 feet and implored him earnestly, saying, My little daughter is at 46 00:03:21,920 --> 00:03:25,560 the point of death, come and lay your hands on her, so that she 47 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:32,800 may be made well and live. And he went with him, and a 48 00:03:32,800 --> 00:03:35,360 great crowd followed him and thronged about him. 49 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:39,480 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for 12 50 00:03:39,480 --> 00:03:44,960 years, and who had suffered much under many physicians and had 51 00:03:44,960 --> 00:03:49,040 spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew 52 00:03:49,040 --> 00:03:52,000 worse. She had heard the reports about 53 00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:56,440 Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his 54 00:03:56,440 --> 00:04:00,480 garment. For she said, if I touch even 55 00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:04,200 his garments, I'll be made well. And immediately the flow of 56 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:07,920 blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of 57 00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:13,040 her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself 58 00:04:13,040 --> 00:04:16,640 that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in 59 00:04:16,640 --> 00:04:20,079 the crowd and said, Who touched my garments? 60 00:04:21,160 --> 00:04:24,760 And his disciples send to him. You see the crowd pressing 61 00:04:24,760 --> 00:04:27,360 around you, and yet you say, Who touched me? 62 00:04:28,240 --> 00:04:30,840 And he looked around to see who had done it. 63 00:04:31,840 --> 00:04:36,280 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear 64 00:04:36,280 --> 00:04:39,560 and trembling, and fell down before him, and told him the 65 00:04:39,560 --> 00:04:42,760 whole truth. And he said to her, daughter, 66 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:49,040 Your faith has made you well, go in peace and be healed of your 67 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:52,640 disease. While he was still speaking, 68 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:57,800 there came from the ruler's house some who said, Your 69 00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:02,640 daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any 70 00:05:02,640 --> 00:05:06,240 further? But overhearing what they said, 71 00:05:07,040 --> 00:05:12,880 Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, Do not fear, only 72 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:16,640 believe. And he allowed no one to follow 73 00:05:16,640 --> 00:05:19,600 him, except Peter and James and John the brother of James. 74 00:05:20,080 --> 00:05:22,360 They came to the House of the ruler of the synagogue, and 75 00:05:22,400 --> 00:05:25,320 Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 76 00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:29,560 And when he had entered, he said to them, Why are you making a 77 00:05:29,560 --> 00:05:34,640 commotion and weeping? The child is not dead, but 78 00:05:34,640 --> 00:05:39,520 sleeping. And they laughed at him, but he 79 00:05:39,520 --> 00:05:43,240 put them all outside and took the child's father and mother 80 00:05:43,240 --> 00:05:46,120 and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. 81 00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:51,680 Taking her by the hand, he said to her, Talitha Kumi, which 82 00:05:51,680 --> 00:05:56,280 means little girl, I say to you, arise. 83 00:05:57,480 --> 00:06:01,560 And immediately the girl got up and began walking, for she was 84 00:06:01,560 --> 00:06:04,400 12 years of age. And they were immediately 85 00:06:04,400 --> 00:06:09,000 overcome with amazement. And he strictly charged them 86 00:06:09,160 --> 00:06:13,680 that no one should know this and told them to give her something 87 00:06:13,680 --> 00:06:19,040 to eat. Here's the main point of the 88 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:25,320 passage. Only Jesus has power over death. 89 00:06:26,680 --> 00:06:34,040 So trust Him no matter the cost and no matter how hard it is to 90 00:06:34,040 --> 00:06:39,720 believe. Only Jesus has power over death. 91 00:06:40,720 --> 00:06:47,520 So trust him no matter the cost and no matter how hard it is to 92 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:52,120 believe. In other words, faith is hard, 93 00:06:52,960 --> 00:06:57,360 but Jesus defeats death. The sermon will have three 94 00:06:57,360 --> 00:07:01,400 points. The first will be the longest .1 95 00:07:02,400 --> 00:07:07,240 Jesus power over disease. We'll see this in verses 21 to 96 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:14,120 34.2 Jesus power over death. We'll see this in verses 35 to 97 00:07:14,120 --> 00:07:22,040 43.3. The power and difficulty of 98 00:07:22,040 --> 00:07:25,440 faith. The power and difficulty of 99 00:07:25,440 --> 00:07:27,200 faith. We'll see this in various verses 100 00:07:27,200 --> 00:07:30,400 throughout the passage that treat faith and unbelief. 101 00:07:32,120 --> 00:07:35,120 Before we jump into .1, just a word on our passages overall 102 00:07:35,120 --> 00:07:38,160 structure. Our passage is a classic example 103 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:41,480 of Mark's famous sandwich technique where he starts a 104 00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:44,000 narrative, something else interrupts it, and then he 105 00:07:44,000 --> 00:07:46,240 finishes out that first narrative. 106 00:07:46,240 --> 00:07:49,160 So the story begins with Gyrus asking Jesus to come and heal 107 00:07:49,160 --> 00:07:52,760 his deathly ill daughter. It's then then Jesus is 108 00:07:52,760 --> 00:07:55,760 interrupted by the woman's act of touching his garments. 109 00:07:56,200 --> 00:07:59,320 Then the story with Gyrus and his daughter breaks off until 110 00:07:59,320 --> 00:08:01,000 the end of Jesus interaction with the woman. 111 00:08:01,720 --> 00:08:03,920 Then it picks back up again with the news that his daughter has 112 00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:07,000 died. Now Mark is reporting what 113 00:08:07,000 --> 00:08:09,000 happened in the order that it happened. 114 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:10,920 The interruption really happened. 115 00:08:11,200 --> 00:08:15,720 But he also deliberately draws attention in the way he tells 116 00:08:15,720 --> 00:08:21,640 the story to the parallels and the contrasts between the two 117 00:08:21,640 --> 00:08:24,160 situations. Why? 118 00:08:24,960 --> 00:08:27,040 Why does he tell the story that way? 119 00:08:27,400 --> 00:08:30,040 Keep that question in mind as we walk through the passage and I 120 00:08:30,040 --> 00:08:36,039 think we'll find the answer point #1 Jesus's power over 121 00:08:36,039 --> 00:08:39,240 disease. Verses 21 to 34. 122 00:08:40,159 --> 00:08:44,400 Healing from grave illness is what Gyrus asks for on behalf of 123 00:08:44,400 --> 00:08:47,360 his daughter, and it's what the woman seeks and finds by 124 00:08:47,360 --> 00:08:50,200 touching Jesus garment. Look with me first again at 125 00:08:50,200 --> 00:08:55,320 verses 21 to 24. And when Jesus had crossed again 126 00:08:55,320 --> 00:08:58,640 in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, 127 00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:01,720 and he was beside the sea. Then came one of the rulers of 128 00:09:01,720 --> 00:09:05,680 the synagogue, Gyrus by name. And seeing him, he fell at his 129 00:09:05,680 --> 00:09:09,160 feet, and implored him earnestly, saying, My little 130 00:09:09,160 --> 00:09:12,280 daughter is at the point of death, Come and lay your hands 131 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:16,120 on her, so that she may be made well and live. 132 00:09:16,160 --> 00:09:20,120 And he went with him, and a great crowd followed him and 133 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:25,080 thronged about him. As usual, a huge crowd gathers 134 00:09:25,080 --> 00:09:28,520 around Jesus as soon as he steps off the boat and onto the 135 00:09:28,520 --> 00:09:31,880 seashore. Gyrus is introduced as a ruler 136 00:09:31,880 --> 00:09:35,080 of the synagogue, which sounds impressive, but the position is 137 00:09:35,080 --> 00:09:38,560 more like a lay worship leader. Every local Jewish community 138 00:09:38,560 --> 00:09:41,680 would have had one. It's still he was a man of 139 00:09:41,680 --> 00:09:46,160 standing in the community. We also learn from verse 40 in 140 00:09:46,160 --> 00:09:48,280 the fact that there were multiple rooms in his house. 141 00:09:48,280 --> 00:09:51,240 That means he had some type of wealth because most homes in 142 00:09:51,240 --> 00:09:54,080 that day were single room dwellings. 143 00:09:54,680 --> 00:09:59,360 But here Gyrus doesn't appeal to Jesus based on his status or his 144 00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:02,160 wealth. Instead, he falls down before 145 00:10:02,160 --> 00:10:05,160 him in a posture of humility and humiliation. 146 00:10:05,160 --> 00:10:07,120 He's desperate. He's pleading with Jesus. 147 00:10:07,280 --> 00:10:09,440 Why? Because he says his little 148 00:10:09,440 --> 00:10:13,360 daughter is at the point of death, this is urgent, there's 149 00:10:13,360 --> 00:10:16,440 no time to lose. And he expresses faith in Jesus 150 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:20,000 ability to heal her. He asks Jesus to come and lay 151 00:10:20,000 --> 00:10:23,440 hands on her, that she may be made well and live now. 152 00:10:23,640 --> 00:10:27,920 Most of the Jewish leaders had rejected Jesus, but here's one 153 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:31,480 whose desperate circumstances drove him to Jesus and drove him 154 00:10:31,480 --> 00:10:35,480 to his knees before Jesus. And so Jesus agrees to go with 155 00:10:35,480 --> 00:10:39,480 him, and the crowd comes to pressing tightly around him. 156 00:10:40,560 --> 00:10:44,280 But then someone interrupts their progress, verses 25 and 157 00:10:44,280 --> 00:10:47,160 26. And there was a woman who had 158 00:10:47,160 --> 00:10:51,800 had a discharge of blood for 12 years and who had suffered much 159 00:10:51,800 --> 00:10:57,040 under many physicians and had spent all that she had and was 160 00:10:57,040 --> 00:10:59,280 no better, but rather grew worse. 161 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:04,240 This woman also is in a desperate condition. 162 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:08,960 The phrase discharge of blood closely echoes Leviticus 12, 163 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:14,280 seven and 1525, which makes it clear that her condition is a 164 00:11:14,280 --> 00:11:17,840 chronic vaginal hemorrhage. In an effort to remedy this 165 00:11:17,840 --> 00:11:21,160 condition, she sought out many doctors, but none of them 166 00:11:21,720 --> 00:11:24,240 helped. In fact, they made her condition 167 00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:26,760 worse. This is not surprising if you 168 00:11:26,760 --> 00:11:30,000 know anything about the history of pre modern medicine. 169 00:11:30,440 --> 00:11:34,840 She suffered not only from the disease, but from the cures. 170 00:11:35,760 --> 00:11:38,920 Now, even with all the advantages of modern medicine 171 00:11:38,920 --> 00:11:44,400 today, doctors, in an effort to heal sometimes make things 172 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:47,280 worse. An effort to heal can 173 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:53,920 unintentionally inflict harm, and no doctor can heal every 174 00:11:54,240 --> 00:11:58,400 disease. In this woman's quest for 175 00:11:58,400 --> 00:12:01,960 healing, she spent all the money she had. 176 00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:06,960 Medical bankruptcy is not unique to modern America. 177 00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:11,000 Imagine how discouraged she was, how disheartened she tried 178 00:12:11,000 --> 00:12:12,560 everything. She'd spent everything. 179 00:12:12,720 --> 00:12:15,240 After 12 years, no improvement, she'd only got worse. 180 00:12:15,360 --> 00:12:19,520 Her condition was chronic and in some sense degenerating. 181 00:12:20,360 --> 00:12:22,760 Also. Her condition left her in a 182 00:12:22,760 --> 00:12:28,400 chronic state of ritual impurity that had a few implications. 1 183 00:12:28,400 --> 00:12:31,520 was that she would have been unable to marry or to conceive 184 00:12:31,520 --> 00:12:34,200 children. Her condition not only drained 185 00:12:34,200 --> 00:12:38,840 away her life, it prevented her from bringing new life into the 186 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:41,800 world. Like the demon possessed man we 187 00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:45,600 encountered last week, this woman's life also is a kind of 188 00:12:45,600 --> 00:12:48,320 living death. She carries around within her 189 00:12:48,320 --> 00:12:53,160 own body a continual source of death and impurity. 190 00:12:54,040 --> 00:12:58,280 Her ritual impurity also had religious and social 191 00:12:58,280 --> 00:13:01,000 implications. She was prohibited from 192 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:03,680 attending the temple and participating in the annual 193 00:13:03,680 --> 00:13:07,120 feasts and pilgrimages. It's unclear to what extent she 194 00:13:07,120 --> 00:13:09,600 would have been isolated from regular society. 195 00:13:09,600 --> 00:13:13,160 There's some debate over that, but being indefinitely excluded 196 00:13:13,160 --> 00:13:15,600 from temple worship on top of everything else would have been 197 00:13:15,600 --> 00:13:18,440 bad enough. This woman's condition was dark 198 00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:23,520 and desperate. If you have a chronic illness, 199 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:27,880 or you've cared for someone who has a chronic illness, you know 200 00:13:27,880 --> 00:13:31,480 something of how heavy this woman's burden was. 201 00:13:32,680 --> 00:13:35,160 In fact, you could even say this woman's condition was beyond 202 00:13:35,160 --> 00:13:37,400 human hope. What else is she supposed to do? 203 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:38,640 What else is she supposed to try? 204 00:13:38,640 --> 00:13:43,640 There's no hope left except for what she heard about Jesus. 205 00:13:44,600 --> 00:13:50,040 Look at verses 27 and 28. She had heard the reports about 206 00:13:50,040 --> 00:13:53,760 Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his 207 00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:56,160 garment. For she said, if I touch even 208 00:13:56,160 --> 00:14:02,360 his garments, I will be made. Well, she heard about Jesus and 209 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:06,800 she believed what she heard. If you are not a believer in 210 00:14:06,880 --> 00:14:11,640 Jesus, that same opportunity is open to you today. 211 00:14:12,080 --> 00:14:15,800 Here I am reporting to you about Jesus. 212 00:14:16,360 --> 00:14:21,080 All you have to do to be made right with God is believe the 213 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:25,680 report. Trust Jesus based on this report 214 00:14:25,920 --> 00:14:30,840 that I'm giving you right now. Many people pressed around 215 00:14:30,920 --> 00:14:34,320 Jesus, but only this woman reached out and touched him. 216 00:14:35,280 --> 00:14:41,200 As Agustin put it, flesh presses, faith touches. 217 00:14:42,120 --> 00:14:45,520 Coming to church every week and hanging out with Christians 218 00:14:45,720 --> 00:14:49,080 doesn't make you clean and whole. 219 00:14:49,480 --> 00:14:54,720 Only faith in Christ will heal you, will save you. 220 00:14:55,880 --> 00:14:59,560 Now there might have been an element of superstition mingled 221 00:14:59,560 --> 00:15:03,080 with the woman's faith, evident in her kind of private thought 222 00:15:03,080 --> 00:15:05,560 that if only she could touch Jesus garment, she would be 223 00:15:05,560 --> 00:15:08,160 healed. But she clearly still had faith 224 00:15:08,160 --> 00:15:11,840 in Jesus, and it turned out that her belief about touching His 225 00:15:11,840 --> 00:15:15,520 garment was right. So she approaches him kind of 226 00:15:15,520 --> 00:15:19,480 stealthily from behind, attempting to avoid detection 227 00:15:19,480 --> 00:15:22,440 either by the crowd and seemingly even trying to avoid 228 00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:25,400 Jesus's detection. She is not drawing any kind of 229 00:15:25,400 --> 00:15:29,360 attention to herself whatsoever. So she touches his cloak. 230 00:15:29,360 --> 00:15:32,160 What happened? Verses 29 and 30? 231 00:15:33,000 --> 00:15:36,640 And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in 232 00:15:36,640 --> 00:15:38,960 her body that she was healed of her disease. 233 00:15:39,560 --> 00:15:42,640 And Jesus, perceiving in Himself that power had gone out from 234 00:15:42,640 --> 00:15:46,720 him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, Who touched 235 00:15:46,720 --> 00:15:51,000 my garments? She was healed immediately, and 236 00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:53,440 she knew it. She could feel the difference in 237 00:15:53,440 --> 00:16:01,640 her own body, and Jesus also felt something in his own body. 238 00:16:01,960 --> 00:16:06,440 Note very carefully the exact wording of verse 30. 239 00:16:06,920 --> 00:16:14,240 Jesus perceiving in Himself that power had gone out from him. 240 00:16:15,000 --> 00:16:19,200 Does this mean that the healing power went out from Jesus 241 00:16:19,400 --> 00:16:23,840 without him knowing why or deciding in advance that it 242 00:16:23,840 --> 00:16:27,720 would happen? I think that's exactly what the 243 00:16:27,720 --> 00:16:32,160 text is saying. We'll unpack that. 244 00:16:33,480 --> 00:16:35,920 We recently had an electrical issue in our house. 245 00:16:36,800 --> 00:16:39,600 I went to the little dungeon room where the Breakers are, and 246 00:16:39,600 --> 00:16:44,040 I saw on the ground some wires that were kind of tangled and 247 00:16:44,040 --> 00:16:46,680 looked like they'd been chewed through, as if an animal had 248 00:16:46,680 --> 00:16:49,560 gotten to them. There's also a puddle of water 249 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:53,520 on the ground. The last thing I was going to do 250 00:16:53,680 --> 00:16:58,280 was touch those wires. If I did, it was possible that 251 00:16:58,280 --> 00:17:02,360 electrical current would flow from them into me, to my 252 00:17:02,360 --> 00:17:05,119 immediate harm. Now, thankfully, we brought in 253 00:17:05,119 --> 00:17:07,200 an electrician. He said those wires weren't 254 00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:09,240 really attached to anything. That wasn't really the problem. 255 00:17:09,480 --> 00:17:12,800 Phew. OK, but still, what would have 256 00:17:12,800 --> 00:17:17,319 happened to me if they were as bizarre as it sounds? 257 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:21,200 I think something like that is what this text is saying 258 00:17:21,680 --> 00:17:25,040 happened. Jesus power flowed from him into 259 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:28,920 the woman automatically, involuntarily, but of course the 260 00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:31,720 power that flowed from him into her didn't harm her. 261 00:17:32,440 --> 00:17:36,880 It healed her instantly, completely, and she knew it. 262 00:17:37,920 --> 00:17:40,720 Now, sometimes when you read something like this in 263 00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:44,440 Scripture, you're tempted to think it can't possibly mean 264 00:17:44,440 --> 00:17:47,040 that. But if you're pretty confident 265 00:17:47,240 --> 00:17:52,520 you're getting the sense of the words right, it's far better to 266 00:17:52,520 --> 00:17:57,480 admit ignorance, pray and ask God, what on earth does this 267 00:17:57,480 --> 00:17:59,920 mean? Now, I'm going to take a little 268 00:17:59,920 --> 00:18:02,560 time to unpack this. We'll pause here a while to 269 00:18:02,560 --> 00:18:05,680 understand what's going on here. We have to understand Old 270 00:18:05,680 --> 00:18:09,800 Testament dynamics of purity and holiness. 271 00:18:10,520 --> 00:18:16,000 The primary cause of impurity, Ritual impurity was involuntary 272 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:19,120 states in which something comes out of the human body. 273 00:18:19,560 --> 00:18:22,080 According to Old Testament purity laws, there were three 274 00:18:22,080 --> 00:18:25,680 primary sources of ritual impurity, skin disease, 275 00:18:26,400 --> 00:18:30,680 discharge, a bodily fluid, and contact with a dead body. 276 00:18:31,320 --> 00:18:34,840 It's striking that already in Mark's gospel, Jesus has healed 277 00:18:34,840 --> 00:18:38,640 someone who had skin disease. Here he heals the woman's 278 00:18:38,640 --> 00:18:43,000 discharge of blood, and he's about to turn a corpse back into 279 00:18:43,000 --> 00:18:47,920 a living person. Jesus is on a mission to remove 280 00:18:47,920 --> 00:18:52,720 impurity by eradicating its sources. 281 00:18:53,880 --> 00:18:57,360 Consider how blood causes impurity according to the Old 282 00:18:57,360 --> 00:19:01,120 Testament ritual laws. Because it is the force of life, 283 00:19:01,560 --> 00:19:03,960 blood needs to be contained. It needs to stay where it 284 00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:06,640 belongs, circulating around the body. 285 00:19:07,280 --> 00:19:10,440 When blood comes out of the body, it causes impurity. 286 00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:12,320 It's like a kind of contamination. 287 00:19:12,920 --> 00:19:17,120 And when someone is impure, they can communicate that impurity to 288 00:19:17,120 --> 00:19:19,920 whatever they come into contact with, whether it's a physical 289 00:19:19,920 --> 00:19:24,200 object like a cup or a vessel, or whether it's a person you 290 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:28,920 could communicate impurity to. In the Old Testament, there's 291 00:19:28,920 --> 00:19:33,480 not only ritual impurity, but moral impurity. 292 00:19:34,080 --> 00:19:37,600 Many Old Testament passages talk about sins making people impure 293 00:19:38,480 --> 00:19:42,880 like a stain on clothing. Now here's a key point. 294 00:19:43,640 --> 00:19:48,560 For Old Testament Israel to continue to dwell in God's 295 00:19:48,560 --> 00:19:55,000 presence, they had to be both ritually and morally pure. 296 00:19:56,400 --> 00:20:00,560 If they weren't God's, holiness would break out against them and 297 00:20:00,840 --> 00:20:04,000 destroy them. All the Old Testament laws about 298 00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:07,840 both moral and ritual purity were protections. 299 00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:10,880 They were guardrails. They were fences protecting 300 00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:17,880 people from an utterly pure God. Both impurity and holiness are 301 00:20:17,880 --> 00:20:22,600 dynamic forces. Impurity spreads and holiness 302 00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:25,480 can ZAP out like an electric current. 303 00:20:26,520 --> 00:20:31,240 But not only that. God's own holiness was also, in 304 00:20:31,240 --> 00:20:36,000 a sense, contagious. Under the Old Covenant, God's 305 00:20:36,000 --> 00:20:39,920 holiness was manifested most intensely in the Tabernacle and 306 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:44,160 later the Temple, and especially in its inner room, the Holy of 307 00:20:44,160 --> 00:20:48,440 Holies. For instance, Exodus 29, verse 308 00:20:48,440 --> 00:20:55,440 37 teaches whatever touches the altar shall become holy. 309 00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:59,520 The altar where sacrifices were offered expressed God's own 310 00:20:59,760 --> 00:21:03,200 holiness. Whatever touched that altar as 311 00:21:03,200 --> 00:21:07,280 it were, contracted something of God's own holiness. 312 00:21:07,480 --> 00:21:11,880 Within certain bounds, God's holiness is contagious. 313 00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:16,400 It makes holy what comes into contact with it. 314 00:21:16,800 --> 00:21:18,960 It's like the glory that's shown on Moses's face. 315 00:21:18,960 --> 00:21:21,600 When Moses would meet face to face with God, he would step 316 00:21:21,600 --> 00:21:23,240 away and his face would shine. Why? 317 00:21:23,240 --> 00:21:26,360 Because God's glory had been shining on him. 318 00:21:27,320 --> 00:21:32,600 So all that background on purity and holiness in mind, what's 319 00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:37,000 going on here? In verses 29 and 30, the passage 320 00:21:37,000 --> 00:21:43,160 is showing us that Jesus possesses God's own holiness. 321 00:21:43,840 --> 00:21:48,760 Jesus has the kind of holiness that makes what it touches holy. 322 00:21:49,960 --> 00:21:56,280 Jesus is holy like the temple is holy, not like the priests are 323 00:21:56,280 --> 00:22:00,240 holy. That's why in Mark 124 he's 324 00:22:00,240 --> 00:22:06,720 called the Holy One of God. This woman experienced an 325 00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:12,080 uncontrolled discharge from her body, and so did Jesus. 326 00:22:13,160 --> 00:22:15,400 But whereas the woman's discharge of blood rendered her 327 00:22:15,400 --> 00:22:20,480 impure, Jesus's discharge of holiness healed her and removed 328 00:22:20,480 --> 00:22:24,160 the source of her impurity. Instead of her touch defiling 329 00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:28,360 Him, His power healed and cleansed her. 330 00:22:29,120 --> 00:22:33,800 Instead of her impurity flowing from her to Him, holiness and 331 00:22:33,800 --> 00:22:36,840 healing and purity flowed from him to her. 332 00:22:37,640 --> 00:22:42,880 This exchange proves that Jesus's power is inherent and 333 00:22:42,880 --> 00:22:47,560 inexhaustible. Jesus power to heal did not come 334 00:22:47,560 --> 00:22:50,440 from outside, it didn't come from another. 335 00:22:50,760 --> 00:22:54,920 He didn't have to ask for it. His divine power to heal dwelt 336 00:22:54,920 --> 00:22:58,000 within his own human body. Why? 337 00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:01,320 Because, as Paul says in Colossians 29, in him the whole 338 00:23:01,320 --> 00:23:06,360 fullness of deity dwelt bodily. The power that went out from 339 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:10,440 Jesus body and healed the woman did not diminish His power in 340 00:23:10,440 --> 00:23:12,560 any way. We're about to see proof of 341 00:23:12,560 --> 00:23:16,000 that. In giving to her, He didn't lose 342 00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:20,360 anything. He always has more to give. 343 00:23:21,480 --> 00:23:24,400 There's plenty more where that came from. 344 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:31,240 This passage shows us something brand new in the history of 345 00:23:31,240 --> 00:23:34,080 God's dealings with His people and with the world. 346 00:23:34,640 --> 00:23:38,080 The whole system of the temple and the sacrifices was ordained 347 00:23:38,080 --> 00:23:42,360 to purify the people and protect them from the fatal consequences 348 00:23:42,360 --> 00:23:46,080 of their impurities coming into contact with God's purity. 349 00:23:46,600 --> 00:23:49,440 But what happens here? It's as if the woman is going to 350 00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:51,440 reach out and touch the ark of the covenant. 351 00:23:52,120 --> 00:23:56,000 She could die from that, but instead she was healed and 352 00:23:56,000 --> 00:24:00,080 purified. An impure woman approached the 353 00:24:00,080 --> 00:24:04,680 holy God in faith and was purified and healed. 354 00:24:05,560 --> 00:24:12,320 This holy 1 still destroys the impurity, but by faith the 355 00:24:12,320 --> 00:24:16,040 impure 1 is kept from being destroyed. 356 00:24:17,360 --> 00:24:20,760 Concepts of ritual purity might seem foreign to many of us. 357 00:24:21,520 --> 00:24:26,600 I think we all can recognize in our own experience a feeling of 358 00:24:26,600 --> 00:24:33,520 moral impurity, of our own sins leaving a mark on us, staining 359 00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:38,000 us, defiling us. And just about every other world 360 00:24:38,000 --> 00:24:40,960 religion in one way or another presents some type of program 361 00:24:41,080 --> 00:24:46,280 for you to cleanse yourself, for you to render yourself pure, to 362 00:24:46,280 --> 00:24:48,960 atone for your own sins and somehow work on your own 363 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:51,720 transformation so that you can be more acceptable, whether it's 364 00:24:51,720 --> 00:24:54,720 to kind of the forces of the universe or whatever gods there 365 00:24:54,720 --> 00:24:58,360 are. The good news of Jesus is 366 00:24:58,360 --> 00:25:02,480 something entirely different. It is not atone for your own 367 00:25:02,480 --> 00:25:05,000 sins. It is not cleanse yourself so 368 00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:09,200 that you can approach God. It is Jesus atone for your sins 369 00:25:09,200 --> 00:25:13,160 through his death on the cross. It is Jesus provides all the 370 00:25:13,160 --> 00:25:15,960 cleansing from moral impurity that you need. 371 00:25:16,280 --> 00:25:20,840 You have no purity in yourself. You are impure in yourself. 372 00:25:21,080 --> 00:25:25,120 But through faith in Christ, you can approach God's own holiness 373 00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:29,120 and be safe, be accepted, be reconciled to him. 374 00:25:29,120 --> 00:25:31,560 That's what Jesus came to accomplish through his death. 375 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:34,200 And just like this woman here, the only way to receive it is 376 00:25:34,200 --> 00:25:36,320 faith in him. The only way to receive it is to 377 00:25:36,320 --> 00:25:39,520 trust his power and not to come to him thinking, oh, I could 378 00:25:39,520 --> 00:25:42,440 have some little mini religious assistance in my sort of ongoing 379 00:25:42,440 --> 00:25:45,280 quest for self improvement. No, it's to despair. 380 00:25:45,640 --> 00:25:48,560 Just like this woman despaired of any help from doctors, just 381 00:25:48,560 --> 00:25:51,160 like this woman despaired of being able to fix herself. 382 00:25:51,480 --> 00:25:55,560 To become a Christian is to despair of fixing yourself and 383 00:25:55,560 --> 00:25:58,720 know that only Jesus can fix you. 384 00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:01,760 And he proved it, as we'll see later. 385 00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:04,120 He proved it by rising from the dead. 386 00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:09,480 He, in his own body, overcame the impurity of death to offer a 387 00:26:09,480 --> 00:26:14,000 pure, eternal resurrection life to all who trust in Him. 388 00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:16,760 If you've never turned from sin and trusted in Jesus, come to 389 00:26:16,760 --> 00:26:18,800 him today. He's the only way to be cleansed 390 00:26:19,200 --> 00:26:23,800 from sin. So Jesus healed this woman, but 391 00:26:23,800 --> 00:26:25,600 he wasn't done with her just yet. 392 00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:28,880 He was going to heal her even more deeply. 393 00:26:29,360 --> 00:26:33,680 Look at verses 31 and 32. And his disciples said to him, 394 00:26:34,080 --> 00:26:36,400 You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, who 395 00:26:36,400 --> 00:26:39,240 touched me? And he looked around to see who 396 00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:41,760 had done it. Now when Jesus looks around to 397 00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:45,400 see who had done it, it's possible he's acting like God 398 00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:48,040 with Adam in the Garden of Eden, saying Adam, where are you? 399 00:26:48,880 --> 00:26:50,840 God knew full well where Adam was. 400 00:26:50,840 --> 00:26:53,320 He didn't need to ask. He asked for Adam's sake. 401 00:26:53,320 --> 00:26:56,600 That's possible. But given that verse 30 presents 402 00:26:56,640 --> 00:27:00,400 Jesus's healing as involuntary, I think it's far more likely 403 00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:03,000 that he's speaking from genuine human ignorance. 404 00:27:03,680 --> 00:27:08,120 We learn in Luke 252 that as a child Jesus grew in wisdom that 405 00:27:08,120 --> 00:27:10,480 is with reference to his human nature. 406 00:27:11,240 --> 00:27:16,080 As God, Jesus is omniscient. As man, His knowledge is 407 00:27:16,080 --> 00:27:18,600 limited. How can those two realities 408 00:27:18,600 --> 00:27:21,000 coexist in a single person? That's a mystery. 409 00:27:21,360 --> 00:27:24,000 I cannot psychologically reconcile it for you. 410 00:27:24,560 --> 00:27:27,280 But Scripture teaches both truths, so we shouldn't be 411 00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,440 afraid to recognize at different times in the Gospels, Jesus 412 00:27:30,440 --> 00:27:32,800 speaking from genuine human ignorance. 413 00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:37,320 But Jesus in verse 32 is not merely looking to remedy 414 00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:39,840 ignorance. He also has other purposes in 415 00:27:39,840 --> 00:27:44,880 mind for requiring this woman to publicly identify herself. 416 00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:48,800 Verses 33 and 34. But the woman, knowing what had 417 00:27:48,800 --> 00:27:52,600 happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down 418 00:27:52,600 --> 00:27:55,120 before him and told him the whole truth. 419 00:27:56,240 --> 00:27:59,640 And he said to her, daughter, your faith has made you well. 420 00:27:59,960 --> 00:28:03,040 Go in peace and be healed of your disease. 421 00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:06,040 We'll talk a little more about this exchange in the Third 422 00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:08,000 Point. For now, just a couple of brief 423 00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:10,800 comments. For one thing, here's an 424 00:28:10,800 --> 00:28:14,560 insightful principle that Tim Keller articulated from this 425 00:28:14,560 --> 00:28:19,320 passage. When you go to Jesus for help, 426 00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:25,560 you will both give to and get from him far more than you 427 00:28:25,560 --> 00:28:28,360 bargained for. When you go to Jesus for help, 428 00:28:29,120 --> 00:28:33,440 you will both give to and get from Him far more than you 429 00:28:33,440 --> 00:28:37,280 bargained for. She came seeking healing, and 430 00:28:37,280 --> 00:28:40,320 what she got in addition was a face to face meeting with Jesus. 431 00:28:41,160 --> 00:28:46,440 What she got was assurance, she got his tender address, she got 432 00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:50,040 his public declaration to all around that she was now healed, 433 00:28:50,160 --> 00:28:54,360 therefore pure, therefore to be fully welcomed back into society 434 00:28:54,360 --> 00:28:58,720 and into all her relationships. What she got was far more than 435 00:28:58,720 --> 00:29:03,200 she was looking for and that only happened through making her 436 00:29:03,200 --> 00:29:07,960 private initiative public. In order to have a face to face 437 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:11,400 relationship with Jesus, she had to tell Him what she did. 438 00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:14,640 She had to risk full transparency before him, full 439 00:29:14,640 --> 00:29:17,480 visibility. She had to lay everything bare 440 00:29:17,480 --> 00:29:20,720 and submit to whatever he was going to make of her. 441 00:29:21,960 --> 00:29:25,880 And this is what he made of her daughter. 442 00:29:26,800 --> 00:29:30,440 A term of affection, endearment, reassurance. 443 00:29:30,640 --> 00:29:35,720 She came seeking healing and he declared her to be a member of 444 00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:41,800 his family. Now all that required her giving 445 00:29:42,120 --> 00:29:44,000 Jesus more than she bargained for. 446 00:29:44,480 --> 00:29:47,840 It happened in full view of everyone, and it had to happen 447 00:29:47,840 --> 00:29:49,880 in full view of everyone for her to be restored to full 448 00:29:49,880 --> 00:29:55,160 fellowship with everyone. Public confession, Public 449 00:29:55,160 --> 00:29:58,720 restoration. When Jesus says your faith has 450 00:29:58,720 --> 00:30:02,240 made you well, he isn't saying that her faith is the power that 451 00:30:02,240 --> 00:30:06,600 healed her, but that her faith is how she received His power. 452 00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:10,680 When he says go in peace and be healed of your disease, He's 453 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:12,080 promising that it won't come back. 454 00:30:12,520 --> 00:30:17,000 He's assuring her that the remedy is permanent. 455 00:30:18,280 --> 00:30:22,840 All the while, while Jesus was interacting with this woman, 456 00:30:23,640 --> 00:30:28,640 imagine how Gyrus felt. He would have had a front row 457 00:30:28,640 --> 00:30:30,520 seat. After all, he's there with 458 00:30:30,520 --> 00:30:32,160 Jesus, showing him the way to his house. 459 00:30:33,760 --> 00:30:36,240 But now this woman with a chronic condition comes in and 460 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:40,440 interrupts and stops Jesus in his tracks. 461 00:30:41,200 --> 00:30:46,440 Gyrus has no time to lose. Jesus has plenty of time. 462 00:30:47,960 --> 00:30:50,120 Why? What's going on? 463 00:30:50,560 --> 00:31:00,240 Shouldn't Jesus be in more of a hurry .2 Jesus's power over 464 00:31:00,240 --> 00:31:04,640 death. Jesus's power over death. 465 00:31:04,640 --> 00:31:07,960 We see this power in verses 35 to 43. 466 00:31:09,960 --> 00:31:14,640 Start with verse 35. While he was still speaking, 467 00:31:14,640 --> 00:31:17,080 there came from the ruler's house some who said, your 468 00:31:17,080 --> 00:31:21,240 daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any 469 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:24,960 further? When someone has a potentially 470 00:31:24,960 --> 00:31:28,480 fatal illness or other serious medical condition or 471 00:31:28,480 --> 00:31:33,800 complication, there are times when every minute matters. 472 00:31:33,800 --> 00:31:36,200 Some of you can attest to this experience. 473 00:31:37,000 --> 00:31:39,800 My family can attest to this by experience. 474 00:31:40,920 --> 00:31:45,680 This was one of those times. The delay has been excruciating. 475 00:31:46,200 --> 00:31:47,720 Jesus, what about the little girl? 476 00:31:48,000 --> 00:31:51,560 Get there before it's too late. The whole time that Jesus is 477 00:31:51,720 --> 00:31:55,520 looking for this woman and talking with this woman, the 478 00:31:55,520 --> 00:31:59,560 sands of the little girl's hourglass had been running out. 479 00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:04,360 And now they have run out. She's gone. 480 00:32:06,040 --> 00:32:08,480 The girl's death challenges Jesus's credibility. 481 00:32:08,800 --> 00:32:11,640 Why has he been wasting his time on a woman whose condition was 482 00:32:11,640 --> 00:32:14,480 chronic, allowing the little girl to slip away? 483 00:32:15,040 --> 00:32:18,720 Is Jesus's sense of triage so upside down? 484 00:32:19,720 --> 00:32:22,920 This is malpractice. If Jesus were a doctor today, he 485 00:32:22,920 --> 00:32:26,200 could be sued for this. What is going on? 486 00:32:27,040 --> 00:32:29,240 And then Jesus raises the stakes even more. 487 00:32:29,800 --> 00:32:33,640 Verse 36. But overhearing what they said, 488 00:32:33,720 --> 00:32:35,640 Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue. 489 00:32:36,240 --> 00:32:43,640 Do not fear, only believe. The situation has gone from bad 490 00:32:44,400 --> 00:32:49,120 to awful. Gyrus has just heard the worst 491 00:32:49,120 --> 00:32:54,040 news of his life. This has just become the worst 492 00:32:54,200 --> 00:33:01,280 day of his life. Jesus has just let this man's 493 00:33:01,360 --> 00:33:09,960 daughter die and now he has the gall to say do not fear, only 494 00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:17,200 believe. What Jesus, asks Gyrus. 495 00:33:18,520 --> 00:33:25,440 He also asks you, will you trust him when all hope is lost? 496 00:33:26,640 --> 00:33:33,560 Will you trust in Jesus on the worst day of your life? 497 00:33:37,280 --> 00:33:39,400 Now here comes one of the keys to the whole story. 498 00:33:40,120 --> 00:33:41,640 I think. Here comes the key to the answer 499 00:33:41,640 --> 00:33:45,280 of why Mark sandwiches these narratives and makes them so 500 00:33:45,280 --> 00:33:51,480 parallel when Jesus says do not fear, only believe. 501 00:33:52,480 --> 00:33:57,040 Let's say Gyrus asked how? What does that look like? 502 00:33:57,440 --> 00:34:02,720 How am I supposed to do that? The answer would be the woman 503 00:34:02,720 --> 00:34:06,240 who just caused the delay. Do what she did. 504 00:34:07,000 --> 00:34:10,320 Have faith like she had trust in me. 505 00:34:10,320 --> 00:34:13,800 Jesus is saying when you have no hope, do you think she had any 506 00:34:13,800 --> 00:34:18,360 hope, humanly speaking? And yet she came to me in faith. 507 00:34:18,920 --> 00:34:22,520 This woman has become an example to Gyrus. 508 00:34:22,800 --> 00:34:25,560 The kind of faith the woman has is trusting Jesus no matter the 509 00:34:25,560 --> 00:34:29,239 cost, trusting Jesus no matter the circumstances, trusting 510 00:34:29,239 --> 00:34:31,159 Jesus no matter how hard it is to believe. 511 00:34:31,440 --> 00:34:33,400 It's trusting Jesus when there is no hope. 512 00:34:33,679 --> 00:34:35,520 It's trusting Jesus without limit. 513 00:34:35,920 --> 00:34:40,560 It's trusting Jesus in and through and beyond death. 514 00:34:40,880 --> 00:34:43,560 It's trusting that Jesus has power over death. 515 00:34:44,480 --> 00:34:48,400 Humanly speaking, Gyrus and this woman have nothing in common. 516 00:34:48,600 --> 00:34:53,280 He's a man, she's a woman, he's wealthy, she's broke, He has 517 00:34:53,280 --> 00:34:55,679 standing in the community. She's an outcast. 518 00:34:55,880 --> 00:34:59,560 All they have in common is that their desperation drove them to 519 00:34:59,600 --> 00:35:01,600 Jesus. All they have in common is that 520 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:04,560 they have no hope apart from Him. 521 00:35:06,040 --> 00:35:09,480 And now she has led the way for him. 522 00:35:10,480 --> 00:35:15,080 If he proves to have faith like hers, he will spiritually 523 00:35:15,080 --> 00:35:18,680 survive the worst day of his life. 524 00:35:20,120 --> 00:35:25,000 Look at verses 37 and 38. And he allowed no one to follow 525 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:28,440 him except Peter and James and John, the brother of James. 526 00:35:29,040 --> 00:35:31,360 They came to the House of the ruler of the synagogue, and 527 00:35:31,360 --> 00:35:35,480 Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 528 00:35:36,760 --> 00:35:40,160 The commotion here with these mourners weeping and wailing, 529 00:35:40,480 --> 00:35:42,640 reflects the ancient practice of hiring mourners. 530 00:35:42,640 --> 00:35:46,680 When someone died, they would sing out loud wailing songs. 531 00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:48,840 Now, you might think that's a kind of artificial or 532 00:35:48,840 --> 00:35:52,080 superficial practice. But the point was to give people 533 00:35:52,080 --> 00:35:54,840 permission to freely voice their grief. 534 00:35:55,200 --> 00:35:57,960 Hired mourners led the way and opened up space. 535 00:35:57,960 --> 00:36:01,680 They set the tone so that it was more natural for family members 536 00:36:01,680 --> 00:36:05,400 and friends to grieve aloud and grieve freely. 537 00:36:06,400 --> 00:36:12,280 But Jesus tells them that their services are not necessary. 538 00:36:13,280 --> 00:36:15,280 Verse 39 in the first part of verse 40. 539 00:36:16,360 --> 00:36:18,560 And when he had entered, he said to them, why are you making a 540 00:36:18,560 --> 00:36:21,640 commotion and weeping? The child is not dead, but 541 00:36:21,640 --> 00:36:24,080 sleeping and they laughed at him. 542 00:36:25,800 --> 00:36:30,760 Hear Jesus speaks in a Riddle. I don't think he's seeking to be 543 00:36:30,760 --> 00:36:34,960 deliberately misunderstood, but he's speaking in a way that is 544 00:36:34,960 --> 00:36:37,720 almost inevitably inviting misunderstanding. 545 00:36:38,080 --> 00:36:42,880 They know the girl is dead, so to them, Jesus just looks like 546 00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:45,080 he's making a dumb, obvious mistake. 547 00:36:45,760 --> 00:36:49,800 Jesus is denial, not dead. But sleeping doesn't mean the 548 00:36:49,800 --> 00:36:52,240 girl's not actually dead. It doesn't mean they were just 549 00:36:52,240 --> 00:36:54,640 mistaken and she's in a coma and he's going to wake her up. 550 00:36:55,440 --> 00:36:59,560 It means she isn't going to stay dead. 551 00:37:00,440 --> 00:37:05,200 By the time Jesus gets through with her, her death will prove 552 00:37:05,200 --> 00:37:12,800 to have been only a short nap. Jesus calls death sleep, not to 553 00:37:12,800 --> 00:37:18,080 pretend it isn't real, but to deny that it's ultimate in the 554 00:37:18,080 --> 00:37:23,080 presence of death. Jesus announces his power over 555 00:37:23,200 --> 00:37:25,200 death, but the crowd don't get it. 556 00:37:25,800 --> 00:37:28,360 They laugh at him. They think he's either stupid or 557 00:37:28,360 --> 00:37:31,600 crazy. As we sang in Ah Holy Jesus, he 558 00:37:31,600 --> 00:37:36,280 was by foes, derided. This is one of the saddest 559 00:37:36,280 --> 00:37:40,480 sentences in the Bible. Jesus is proclaiming his power 560 00:37:40,480 --> 00:37:42,120 over death, but they think he's lost it. 561 00:37:42,400 --> 00:37:44,400 They think he has no idea what he's talking about. 562 00:37:44,840 --> 00:37:49,840 The mourners mock Jesus, but Jesus is about to mock death. 563 00:37:50,920 --> 00:37:56,160 Look at verses 40 to 42. But he put them all outside and 564 00:37:56,160 --> 00:37:58,800 took the child's father and mother and those who were with 565 00:37:58,800 --> 00:38:02,120 him and went in where the child was, taking her by the hand. 566 00:38:02,120 --> 00:38:06,160 He said to her, Talitha Kumi, which means little girl, I say 567 00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:09,600 to you, arise. And immediately the girl got up 568 00:38:09,600 --> 00:38:12,040 and began walking, for she was 12 years of age. 569 00:38:12,440 --> 00:38:15,160 And they were immediately overcome with amazement. 570 00:38:17,600 --> 00:38:22,760 Here Jesus treats this girl exactly as if he's waking her up 571 00:38:22,760 --> 00:38:25,400 from sleep. He takes her by the hands. 572 00:38:25,880 --> 00:38:29,160 He addresses her in tender, simple, everyday terms. 573 00:38:29,440 --> 00:38:32,400 His command is basically equivalent to wake up 574 00:38:32,400 --> 00:38:35,480 sweetheart. Now why is it recorded in 575 00:38:35,480 --> 00:38:37,640 Aramaic? That's what Talithakumi, it's in 576 00:38:37,640 --> 00:38:42,000 the language Jesus spoke. Why in Aramaic here I think it's 577 00:38:42,000 --> 00:38:45,720 probably because it's just such a vivid memory in the minds of 578 00:38:45,720 --> 00:38:50,000 the eyewitnesses. Such ordinary words producing 579 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:54,000 such an extraordinary result. The only other time in Aramaic 580 00:38:54,000 --> 00:38:59,200 saying of Jesus is recorded in Mark is Chapter 7 verse 34 where 581 00:38:59,200 --> 00:39:01,760 he told a blind man's eyes to be opened. 582 00:39:01,760 --> 00:39:05,320 It's if he's speaking directly to the man's eyes and the man's 583 00:39:05,320 --> 00:39:09,280 eyes obey the command. Jesus says be opened and the 584 00:39:09,280 --> 00:39:13,320 eyes open. Jesus says to a dead girl arise 585 00:39:13,560 --> 00:39:21,280 and she gets up. Parents among us can attest that 586 00:39:21,280 --> 00:39:25,760 some children wake up more easily than others, and children 587 00:39:25,760 --> 00:39:30,680 wake up more easily at certain times than at other times. 588 00:39:30,800 --> 00:39:33,560 Snow day? Out in the door, fully dressed 589 00:39:33,560 --> 00:39:39,560 at 6:00 AM School day. Sometimes that can take 590 00:39:40,200 --> 00:39:46,680 strategic tactics and careful diplomacy to gently lure a child 591 00:39:46,680 --> 00:39:48,880 out of bed to get dressed and go to school. 592 00:39:50,360 --> 00:39:56,840 Jesus raised a child from death more easily than I can get one 593 00:39:56,840 --> 00:39:58,720 of my kids out of bed on a school day. 594 00:40:01,760 --> 00:40:06,000 Jesus's direct address deprived death of its power. 595 00:40:07,280 --> 00:40:10,200 He spoke the girl out of the grave. 596 00:40:11,440 --> 00:40:15,840 He shut down death by a simple voice command. 597 00:40:17,240 --> 00:40:19,840 Human words called the girl back from death. 598 00:40:20,080 --> 00:40:23,080 How? Because the one speaking them is 599 00:40:23,080 --> 00:40:27,120 divine. A human hand lifted a girl from 600 00:40:27,120 --> 00:40:29,240 the grave. How? 601 00:40:30,520 --> 00:40:34,480 The hand belongs to Jesus's truly human nature, which truly 602 00:40:34,480 --> 00:40:38,280 belongs to the one who is truly God. 603 00:40:39,480 --> 00:40:43,520 This girl's resurrection is a picture and preview of ours. 604 00:40:44,080 --> 00:40:47,720 One day Jesus voice will call everyone out of the grave. 605 00:40:47,720 --> 00:40:51,000 That's what John chapter 5 says. And on that day, we who have 606 00:40:51,000 --> 00:40:55,120 trusted in Jesus will receive perfect, glorified bodies like 607 00:40:55,120 --> 00:40:56,960 we heard earlier in First Corinthians 15. 608 00:40:57,520 --> 00:41:00,920 Our transformation will be as complete and instant as this 609 00:41:00,920 --> 00:41:04,040 little girl's resurrection was, and even more so because we will 610 00:41:04,040 --> 00:41:06,520 be clear of death's reach forever. 611 00:41:07,200 --> 00:41:11,600 For someone who is safe in the hands of the Incarnate Lord of 612 00:41:11,600 --> 00:41:16,960 Life, death is no more a threat to life than sleep is. 613 00:41:17,760 --> 00:41:21,120 Jesus has resurrection power in himself, as he declares in John 614 00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:23,080 11. I am the resurrection and the 615 00:41:23,080 --> 00:41:25,000 life. And he proved it by rising from 616 00:41:25,000 --> 00:41:27,400 the grave. If you're suffering from a 617 00:41:27,400 --> 00:41:32,240 chronic illness, if your health is going from bad to worse, 618 00:41:32,520 --> 00:41:36,760 trust in Jesus's promise to rise you up out of the grave with a 619 00:41:36,760 --> 00:41:43,200 glorified, perfected body. You may experience healing and 620 00:41:43,200 --> 00:41:50,240 answers to prayer now, but even if you don't now, you will then. 621 00:41:52,440 --> 00:41:56,760 The story concludes in verse 43. And he strictly charged them 622 00:41:56,760 --> 00:41:59,320 that no one should know this and told them to give her something 623 00:41:59,320 --> 00:42:01,680 to eat. The girl's illness left her 624 00:42:01,680 --> 00:42:04,440 hungry, so Jesus sees to it that she's provided for. 625 00:42:05,040 --> 00:42:09,240 And he commands silence in his continual campaign of an effort 626 00:42:09,240 --> 00:42:13,320 not to be swamped by crowds. Kids in the congregation. 627 00:42:14,240 --> 00:42:16,720 Imagine what it would have been like to be that girl. 628 00:42:17,600 --> 00:42:21,120 One minute you are sicker than you've ever been in your life. 629 00:42:22,720 --> 00:42:27,760 Then you're dead. Then you wake up and you see 630 00:42:27,760 --> 00:42:31,240 your parents and a man you've never seen before standing kind 631 00:42:31,240 --> 00:42:32,880 of close to you and three other men you don't know. 632 00:42:32,880 --> 00:42:34,920 And you start walking around. You get a snack. 633 00:42:37,640 --> 00:42:41,800 Imagine how you would have felt when your parents explained to 634 00:42:41,800 --> 00:42:48,280 you what had happened. How should that 12 year old girl 635 00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:55,200 have lived after that? What difference should it make 636 00:42:55,200 --> 00:42:59,520 to the whole rest of her life that Jesus raised her from the 637 00:42:59,520 --> 00:43:02,640 dead? This girl is a picture of every 638 00:43:02,640 --> 00:43:04,720 Christian. Spiritually speaking. 639 00:43:05,360 --> 00:43:11,000 Every Christian is someone whom Jesus has raised from the dead. 640 00:43:11,200 --> 00:43:14,720 What difference should that make to the whole rest of your life? 641 00:43:16,440 --> 00:43:20,640 What had turned into the worst day of Gyrus's life ended up 642 00:43:20,640 --> 00:43:24,240 being the best day of his life by Jesus delay. 643 00:43:25,000 --> 00:43:29,320 He both demanded and gave Gyrus more than he bargained for. 644 00:43:30,600 --> 00:43:39,200 Jesus demanded faith in the face of death, and he gave him his 645 00:43:39,200 --> 00:43:47,320 girl back from the grave. Only Jesus has power over death, 646 00:43:47,840 --> 00:43:51,640 so trust him no matter the cost and no matter how hard it is to 647 00:43:51,640 --> 00:43:57,720 believe .3 The power and difficulty of faith The power 648 00:43:57,800 --> 00:44:01,080 and difficulty of faith. This poem will be briefer mainly 649 00:44:01,080 --> 00:44:03,040 application. We're just going to look again 650 00:44:03,040 --> 00:44:06,800 at how faith and unbelief show up throughout the passage. 3 651 00:44:06,800 --> 00:44:09,680 brief sub points within this passage. 652 00:44:09,760 --> 00:44:18,560 First, unbelief exposed. We see this in verses 35 and 40. 653 00:44:19,360 --> 00:44:22,040 Verse 35 the messengers come to gyrus and say your daughter is 654 00:44:22,040 --> 00:44:23,880 dead. Why trouble the teacher any 655 00:44:23,880 --> 00:44:26,280 further? They thought that because the 656 00:44:26,280 --> 00:44:29,920 girl's life had ended, Jesus power to help it ended. 657 00:44:31,000 --> 00:44:32,960 They thought that life was the limit of his power. 658 00:44:33,480 --> 00:44:38,800 They could not conceive how deep and far and wide and high his 659 00:44:38,800 --> 00:44:43,240 power reached. Similarly, in verse 40, when 660 00:44:43,240 --> 00:44:46,240 Jesus says in verse 39 the child is not dead but sleeping, they 661 00:44:46,240 --> 00:44:48,520 laugh at him. They think Jesus mistakes death 662 00:44:48,520 --> 00:44:50,680 for sleep. Someone who mistakes death for 663 00:44:50,680 --> 00:44:53,520 sleep is more worthy of scorn than trust. 664 00:44:54,080 --> 00:44:57,440 But the mistake is not his, it's theirs. 665 00:44:58,520 --> 00:45:01,120 What's the problem that underlies both expressions of 666 00:45:01,120 --> 00:45:05,240 unbelief here? It's that they measured Jesus by 667 00:45:05,240 --> 00:45:10,840 human standards. They applied to Jesus human 668 00:45:11,080 --> 00:45:14,000 limits. They used pre measured 669 00:45:14,000 --> 00:45:18,960 categories to cut Jesus down to size rather than allowing Jesus 670 00:45:18,960 --> 00:45:23,920 to explode all their categories. The only way to understand Jesus 671 00:45:23,920 --> 00:45:27,320 rightly is to let him explode your categories. 672 00:45:27,760 --> 00:45:30,440 The only way to begin to understand Jesus is to realize 673 00:45:30,440 --> 00:45:32,760 that Jesus is beyond your understanding. 674 00:45:33,640 --> 00:45:36,520 The only way to see Jesus truly is to realize that the truth 675 00:45:36,520 --> 00:45:39,360 about him is more wonderful than you can imagine. 676 00:45:40,400 --> 00:45:44,280 If you don't believe in Jesus, I hope you're starting to see that 677 00:45:44,280 --> 00:45:48,680 this is astoundingly good news. Brian Johnson doesn't have power 678 00:45:48,680 --> 00:45:51,080 over death. Jesus does. 679 00:45:51,480 --> 00:45:54,320 No doctor has power over death, but Jesus does. 680 00:45:54,520 --> 00:45:59,600 No technology or drug or bio hack can overcome death, but 681 00:45:59,600 --> 00:46:02,400 Jesus can simply by speaking a word. 682 00:46:03,280 --> 00:46:07,760 Jesus alone can overcome death. Jesus alone deserves your 683 00:46:07,760 --> 00:46:12,720 absolute confidence. Sub .2 Faith's power. 684 00:46:14,160 --> 00:46:16,560 Faith's power. We see faith's power in a whole 685 00:46:16,560 --> 00:46:19,560 bunch of places. Look at Jairus's posture at the 686 00:46:19,560 --> 00:46:21,560 very beginning, verses 22 and 23. 687 00:46:21,800 --> 00:46:26,040 Seeing him, he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly. 688 00:46:27,080 --> 00:46:30,680 Jairus's desperation drove him to Jesus and drove him to his 689 00:46:30,680 --> 00:46:34,240 knees, and it led him to beg of Jesus to plead with him, to ask 690 00:46:34,240 --> 00:46:39,360 him intensely and earnestly, When's the last time you prayed 691 00:46:39,360 --> 00:46:42,120 like that? When's the last time you begged 692 00:46:42,120 --> 00:46:46,320 God in prayer? Would an audit of your prayer 693 00:46:46,320 --> 00:46:51,320 life reveal that you are desperate for Jesus? 694 00:46:52,080 --> 00:46:55,320 Faith humbles you in order to lift up Jesus. 695 00:46:56,280 --> 00:47:00,440 Faith empties you in order to fill you with Jesus. 696 00:47:01,480 --> 00:47:05,040 And faith grasps hold of Jesus in order to receive his power. 697 00:47:05,880 --> 00:47:08,440 Think again of the woman's faith in verses 27 and 28. 698 00:47:08,640 --> 00:47:13,240 For she said, if I touch even his garments, I'll be made well. 699 00:47:13,800 --> 00:47:17,560 The desperateness of her condition highlights the depth 700 00:47:17,960 --> 00:47:20,920 of her faith. Her disease was incurable. 701 00:47:21,120 --> 00:47:22,840 She'd suffered from it for years. 702 00:47:22,960 --> 00:47:25,400 She'd been disappointed more times than she could count. 703 00:47:25,600 --> 00:47:28,280 She knew there was nothing in herself to make her worthy of 704 00:47:28,400 --> 00:47:30,600 Jesus. She had no money, nothing to 705 00:47:30,600 --> 00:47:32,880 offer. And yet she grabbed hold of 706 00:47:33,000 --> 00:47:37,360 Jesus in faith. Faith is where your need and 707 00:47:37,360 --> 00:47:43,000 Jesus's power meet. Faith is how your desperation 708 00:47:43,760 --> 00:47:48,000 becomes a platform for Jesus's compassion. 709 00:47:48,920 --> 00:47:52,280 That's why Jesus says in in verse 34, your faith has made 710 00:47:52,280 --> 00:47:54,040 you. Well, you could equally 711 00:47:54,040 --> 00:47:56,920 translate that your faith has saved you. 712 00:47:57,800 --> 00:48:01,280 It's the same Greek word. Literally speaking, this woman 713 00:48:01,280 --> 00:48:04,880 received healing by faith. But that statement echoes with 714 00:48:04,880 --> 00:48:10,920 overtones for every Christian. Your faith has saved you, How? 715 00:48:11,600 --> 00:48:15,880 Not by any power in itself, but because by faith we receive the 716 00:48:15,880 --> 00:48:21,520 power of Christ. Faith is not a vibe. 717 00:48:22,920 --> 00:48:27,000 Faith is not a general feeling of goodwill toward whatever 718 00:48:27,000 --> 00:48:29,600 powers are out there in the universe. 719 00:48:30,000 --> 00:48:32,840 Faith is not a kind of optimistic sense that everything 720 00:48:32,840 --> 00:48:34,600 is going to be all right in the end. 721 00:48:35,760 --> 00:48:41,000 Faith is only as good as its object. 722 00:48:41,880 --> 00:48:45,760 Faith is confidence in something, or more specifically 723 00:48:46,320 --> 00:48:52,040 someone, because faith is how we receive Christ's power. 724 00:48:52,680 --> 00:48:56,560 Faith is world conquering and death conquering, but faith's 725 00:48:56,560 --> 00:48:59,920 only power is what it gets from Jesus. 726 00:49:01,520 --> 00:49:08,800 Sub .3 faith's difficulty. Twice in our passage we see 727 00:49:08,800 --> 00:49:13,040 faith tested. Twice in our passage, Jesus 728 00:49:13,040 --> 00:49:17,160 tests someone who has already come to him demonstrating faith. 729 00:49:17,880 --> 00:49:21,000 First, the woman. Verses 30 to 33. 730 00:49:21,000 --> 00:49:24,120 As we saw, Jesus requires the woman to out herself. 731 00:49:24,480 --> 00:49:28,480 She grabs hold of him as she thinks in private, and he 732 00:49:28,480 --> 00:49:33,960 requires her to go public. He demands that she out herself 733 00:49:33,960 --> 00:49:36,400 before him and before the watching crowd. 734 00:49:37,160 --> 00:49:45,160 Sometimes Jesus requires us to risk embarrassing ourselves as 735 00:49:45,160 --> 00:49:48,600 part of declaring our loyalty to Him. 736 00:49:49,480 --> 00:49:52,520 Why? Because ultimately, that 737 00:49:52,520 --> 00:49:53,720 strengthens our commitment to Him. 738 00:49:54,560 --> 00:49:57,320 Proving your faith publicly deepens your faith. 739 00:49:57,880 --> 00:50:01,880 It offers evidence of faith that was more than she bargained for 740 00:50:01,880 --> 00:50:05,320 and it was for her good. And of course, Gyrus got more 741 00:50:05,320 --> 00:50:07,400 than he bargained for and had his faith swordly tested. 742 00:50:07,400 --> 00:50:10,600 When Jesus let his daughter die, Gyrus had faith. 743 00:50:11,840 --> 00:50:14,680 Jesus tested that faith far beyond what Gyrus would have 744 00:50:14,680 --> 00:50:17,520 thought was his breaking point. Jesus, hurry. 745 00:50:18,480 --> 00:50:24,360 Jesus, don't you care? So often in trials we can accuse 746 00:50:24,360 --> 00:50:28,400 God of either delay or indifference. 747 00:50:29,560 --> 00:50:34,720 When's the last time you wanted God to hurry up to answer your 748 00:50:34,720 --> 00:50:37,680 prayers pronto? Right now, thank you very much, 749 00:50:37,800 --> 00:50:40,280 in just the terms that you're desiring and maybe even 750 00:50:40,280 --> 00:50:44,960 demanding. When it seems like God is 751 00:50:44,960 --> 00:50:49,600 delaying, trust Him. Resist the temptation of 752 00:50:49,680 --> 00:50:54,040 arrogance. Resist the temptation to inform 753 00:50:54,040 --> 00:50:59,240 God that you know how to run your life better than He does, 754 00:50:59,520 --> 00:51:03,720 it seems. Instead, wait for Him, trust in 755 00:51:03,720 --> 00:51:06,800 Him. If He is demanding of you more 756 00:51:06,800 --> 00:51:11,040 than you bargained for, remember He's doing that in order to give 757 00:51:11,040 --> 00:51:16,000 you more than you bargained for. When's the last time you accused 758 00:51:16,000 --> 00:51:20,120 God of indifference? Does God care? 759 00:51:20,880 --> 00:51:23,360 He cares more than you can imagine. 760 00:51:24,200 --> 00:51:28,520 Look at the healed woman. Look at the girl gently lifted 761 00:51:28,520 --> 00:51:31,760 out of death. Look at the cross of Christ. 762 00:51:31,960 --> 00:51:35,600 Look at his resurrection. How can you look at each of 763 00:51:35,600 --> 00:51:40,400 those displays of divine compassion and accuse God of not 764 00:51:40,400 --> 00:51:49,640 caring about you? If God cares this much, if God 765 00:51:49,640 --> 00:51:52,000 loves you so much that he gave his only Son over to death for 766 00:51:52,000 --> 00:51:55,680 you, then you can trust Him. Every day you can trust Him. 767 00:51:55,680 --> 00:51:58,800 On the worst day, you can trust Jesus. 768 00:51:59,440 --> 00:52:06,400 On the worst day of your life. The aspiring immortalist Brian 769 00:52:06,400 --> 00:52:11,120 Johnson said conquering death would be humanity's greatest 770 00:52:11,120 --> 00:52:14,680 achievement. Who's going to tell him? 771 00:52:16,360 --> 00:52:19,720 I'm sorry, Brian, you're 2000 years late. 772 00:52:20,320 --> 00:52:25,720 There is a human who has conquered death, and it didn't 773 00:52:25,720 --> 00:52:28,200 take him 111 pills a day to do it. 774 00:52:29,120 --> 00:52:34,880 He just spoke a word. Then he proved his regiment by 775 00:52:34,880 --> 00:52:38,400 doing it on himself. And here's the best news of all. 776 00:52:39,120 --> 00:52:43,520 If you trust in Christ, if you trust in him, he'll do it for 777 00:52:43,520 --> 00:52:46,880 you too. Let's pray. 778 00:52:51,520 --> 00:52:54,120 Heavenly Father, we praise you for your compassion. 779 00:52:54,840 --> 00:52:56,800 We praise you for your wisdom over death. 780 00:52:57,560 --> 00:53:02,560 We pray that we would trust that when you are demanding of us 781 00:53:02,560 --> 00:53:08,040 more than we meant to give you, that it's because you're giving 782 00:53:08,040 --> 00:53:12,960 us more than we could ask for. We pray in Jesus name, Amen.