1 00:00:02,390 --> 00:00:05,450 Amen and welcome. Welcome. 2 00:00:06,050 --> 00:00:09,860 My name is Grant and I'm one of the pastors here at the church. 3 00:00:10,010 --> 00:00:13,440 And can you all hear me? OK, Wonderful. 4 00:00:13,450 --> 00:00:15,360 OK. It is. 5 00:00:15,430 --> 00:00:19,120 It's a great privilege this morning to be able to invite one 6 00:00:19,130 --> 00:00:21,380 of our own up to the platform to preach. 7 00:00:21,390 --> 00:00:25,680 This morning we're welcoming Annabelle Edward back to the 8 00:00:25,690 --> 00:00:28,040 platform to preach. It's been a while since 9 00:00:28,050 --> 00:00:31,820 Annabelle has preached here and after some travel has now 10 00:00:31,830 --> 00:00:35,890 returned and we'll be sharing with us out of the Gospel of 11 00:00:35,900 --> 00:00:38,670 Luke. And So what I simply want to do 12 00:00:38,680 --> 00:00:42,770 is on our behalf, pray for Annabelle and for us as we enter 13 00:00:42,780 --> 00:00:44,830 into these next few moments. Annabelle, thanks for preaching, 14 00:00:44,840 --> 00:00:47,220 thanks for being here. Thanks for returning, not 15 00:00:47,230 --> 00:00:53,430 deciding to stay in France, and for your good work and 16 00:00:53,440 --> 00:00:57,050 dedication, prayer over this passage in your time of 17 00:00:57,060 --> 00:01:00,000 preparation. So let's pray and then we're 18 00:01:00,010 --> 00:01:02,830 going to jump in. God, thanks for your love and 19 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:05,180 for your grace. Thanks that you're with us and 20 00:01:05,190 --> 00:01:09,190 thanks that you love us. Yeah, we are so grateful for our 21 00:01:09,200 --> 00:01:12,410 ability to be a community together and to worship together 22 00:01:12,420 --> 00:01:15,430 and for all of the joy and. And give that that is so. 23 00:01:15,440 --> 00:01:16,690 Yeah. Thanks that you've gathered us 24 00:01:16,700 --> 00:01:19,900 here today. And thank you for the word that 25 00:01:19,910 --> 00:01:22,810 you have given to Annabelle in preparation for today. 26 00:01:22,880 --> 00:01:25,010 So I got I'll pray for her as she preaches. 27 00:01:25,020 --> 00:01:28,640 Would you allow her, call her, challenge her to preach boldly 28 00:01:28,650 --> 00:01:31,720 again the word that has been stirred in her heart, in her 29 00:01:31,730 --> 00:01:35,990 mind, Grass, Scott, would you continue to open our hearts and 30 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:39,190 open our minds to what it is that you have for us this 31 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:40,730 morning? So Jesus, we love you. 32 00:01:40,740 --> 00:01:43,930 We're so grateful for all of life together. 33 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:46,230 Bless Annabelle as she preaches. We pray in the strong name of 34 00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:51,630 Jesus, Amen. Thank you. 35 00:01:51,700 --> 00:01:55,610 Alright, good morning everyone. I wanted to add my word of 36 00:01:55,620 --> 00:01:57,470 welcome to what has already been said today. 37 00:01:57,480 --> 00:02:00,550 So welcome. My name is Annabelle Edward and 38 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:03,510 I'm your digital communications coordinator here at the church 39 00:02:03,520 --> 00:02:05,370 this summer. If you don't know what that 40 00:02:05,380 --> 00:02:09,150 means, just think social media. On that note, if you are not 41 00:02:09,160 --> 00:02:11,610 following our social media, I would highly recommend it. 42 00:02:11,620 --> 00:02:14,680 We have both Instagram and Facebook and I have heard 43 00:02:14,690 --> 00:02:20,890 they're really good. So, so just a thought as I'm up 44 00:02:20,900 --> 00:02:23,170 here. Anyway, let's jump into our 45 00:02:23,180 --> 00:02:25,830 passage this morning. So if you have a Bible or a 46 00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:31,090 phone, flip through to Luke 840 to 56 as that is what we will be 47 00:02:31,100 --> 00:02:37,260 reading this morning. Jesus heals a bleeding woman and 48 00:02:37,270 --> 00:02:42,010 restores a girl to life. Now when Jesus returned, a crowd 49 00:02:42,020 --> 00:02:45,130 welcomed him, for they were expecting him. 50 00:02:45,220 --> 00:02:49,270 Then a man named Cyrus, a synagogue leader, came and fell 51 00:02:49,280 --> 00:02:54,000 at Jesus's feet, pleading with him to come to his house because 52 00:02:54,010 --> 00:02:57,780 his only daughter, a girl of about 12, was dying. 53 00:02:58,830 --> 00:03:03,140 As Jesus was on his way, the crowd almost crushed him, and a 54 00:03:03,150 --> 00:03:07,220 woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for 12 55 00:03:07,270 --> 00:03:09,900 years, but no one could heal her. 56 00:03:10,190 --> 00:03:13,260 She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, 57 00:03:13,310 --> 00:03:15,520 and immediately her bleeding stopped. 58 00:03:15,950 --> 00:03:17,860 Who touched me? Jesus asked. 59 00:03:18,390 --> 00:03:19,880 When they all denied it, Peter said. 60 00:03:19,890 --> 00:03:22,970 Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you. 61 00:03:23,580 --> 00:03:26,390 But Jesus said someone touched me. 62 00:03:26,460 --> 00:03:28,660 I know that power has gone out from me. 63 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:32,860 Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came 64 00:03:32,870 --> 00:03:36,730 trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the 65 00:03:36,740 --> 00:03:40,270 people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been 66 00:03:40,280 --> 00:03:44,310 instantly healed. Then he said to her daughter, 67 00:03:44,420 --> 00:03:47,740 Your faith has healed you, go in peace. 68 00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:52,430 Well, Jesus was still speaking. Someone came from the House of 69 00:03:52,440 --> 00:03:57,410 Cyrus, the synagogue leader. Your daughter is dead, he said. 70 00:03:57,460 --> 00:03:59,060 Don't bother the teacher anymore. 71 00:04:00,280 --> 00:04:02,250 Hearing this, Jesus said to Cyrus. 72 00:04:02,260 --> 00:04:06,900 Don't be afraid, just believe and she will be healed. 73 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:12,760 When he arrived at the House of Gyrus, he did not let anyone go 74 00:04:12,770 --> 00:04:15,940 in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child's 75 00:04:15,950 --> 00:04:19,140 father and mother. Meanwhile, all the people were 76 00:04:19,149 --> 00:04:23,180 wailing and mourning for her. Stop wailing, Jesus said. 77 00:04:23,250 --> 00:04:27,030 She's not dead, but asleep. They laughed at him, knowing 78 00:04:27,040 --> 00:04:30,430 that she was dead, but he took her by the hand and said, My 79 00:04:30,440 --> 00:04:33,980 child, get up. Her spirit returned, and at once 80 00:04:33,990 --> 00:04:37,430 she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her 81 00:04:37,440 --> 00:04:40,230 something to eat. Her parents were astonished, but 82 00:04:40,240 --> 00:04:43,770 he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened. 83 00:04:47,540 --> 00:04:51,050 When I was in elementary school, I tried out for the girls 84 00:04:51,060 --> 00:04:53,730 baseball team along with all of my friends. 85 00:04:54,080 --> 00:04:57,290 It was a small school, so nearly everyone who tried out for a 86 00:04:57,300 --> 00:05:03,310 team would get on except me. Year after year, in fact, for 87 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:09,220 three years in a row, I didn't make this baseball team and I 88 00:05:09,230 --> 00:05:12,320 felt left out, like I didn't belong. 89 00:05:12,390 --> 00:05:17,830 I tried so hard each year and yet it never was quite enough. 90 00:05:19,100 --> 00:05:22,590 Looking back, it's actually quite funny, but at the time 91 00:05:22,600 --> 00:05:28,790 little Annabelle was really sad. She felt left out, maybe even a 92 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:32,580 little outcast. Now I don't know about you, but 93 00:05:32,590 --> 00:05:36,000 I'm sure we have all had our fair share of experiences like 94 00:05:36,010 --> 00:05:38,400 this. Maybe you did make all the 95 00:05:38,410 --> 00:05:42,100 sports teams in school, but when you moved schools you felt 96 00:05:42,150 --> 00:05:47,520 outside of the in crowd or walking into a new church not 97 00:05:47,530 --> 00:05:50,790 knowing anyone. You felt like an outsider 98 00:05:50,800 --> 00:05:54,430 looking in. Or maybe you feel like this with 99 00:05:54,440 --> 00:05:57,960 your family or friend group, or in a new job. 100 00:05:58,740 --> 00:06:03,660 Or maybe you just know the pain of rejection all too well, the 101 00:06:03,670 --> 00:06:07,890 feeling of being left out, outcast, hurt. 102 00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:11,590 We have all felt like this at some point in another, and we 103 00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:13,430 will probably feel like this again. 104 00:06:14,610 --> 00:06:18,680 This is exactly why, when Pastor Grant said I'd be preaching on 105 00:06:18,690 --> 00:06:24,770 Luke 840 to 56, I was excited. This passage had been one that 106 00:06:24,780 --> 00:06:29,190 both intrigued me and I found powerful the first time that I 107 00:06:29,200 --> 00:06:32,040 read it. Now there are multiple reasons 108 00:06:32,050 --> 00:06:36,580 for this, but the main component of this was the contrast seen in 109 00:06:36,590 --> 00:06:41,380 the text, Mainly the contrast between a woman, unnamed, 110 00:06:41,390 --> 00:06:46,850 unknown, outcast, with Cyrus, a synagogue leader, wealthy, 111 00:06:47,600 --> 00:06:50,990 respected. The feelings and situations that 112 00:06:51,000 --> 00:06:55,470 we have all felt and experienced at one point or another is 113 00:06:55,480 --> 00:07:00,340 exactly why we find this passage so powerful. 114 00:07:01,760 --> 00:07:06,920 We're introduced to two people, A prominent man, Cyrus, one who 115 00:07:06,930 --> 00:07:11,050 is seen as everything good and noble in this world, and a woman 116 00:07:11,940 --> 00:07:16,500 completely cast out at the very bottom of society's hierarchy. 117 00:07:18,070 --> 00:07:25,710 And yet Jesus meets them both, and in doing so completely flips 118 00:07:25,720 --> 00:07:29,970 the script of these norms in society, blows up the idea of 119 00:07:29,980 --> 00:07:34,030 insider versus outsider. Up ends the way that we know and 120 00:07:34,040 --> 00:07:40,730 understand the world, changes the game, just like Jesus always 121 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:43,820 does. Let's unpack that today. 122 00:07:46,610 --> 00:07:50,640 So Jesus. Jesus turns a private moment 123 00:07:50,690 --> 00:07:55,990 into a public one. This woman, she has been 124 00:07:56,000 --> 00:08:03,790 bleeding for 12 years, 12 years, labeled unclean, untouchable, 125 00:08:03,880 --> 00:08:06,630 dirty. In every cent. 126 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:10,240 She was equated, as NT right puts it, with a corpse. 127 00:08:11,220 --> 00:08:15,260 As he writes, two of the most obvious sources of pollution in 128 00:08:15,270 --> 00:08:19,980 that time were corpses and women with internal bleeding. 129 00:08:21,830 --> 00:08:26,590 She couldn't have a husband. She couldn't have kids for all 130 00:08:26,600 --> 00:08:31,100 intents and purposes in this time, she was seen as useless. 131 00:08:32,659 --> 00:08:35,690 Further, with being labeled unclean, she couldn't be near 132 00:08:35,700 --> 00:08:41,090 others, let alone a holy man. As in that day, customs dictated 133 00:08:41,100 --> 00:08:45,180 that though her physical condition wasn't contagious, in 134 00:08:45,190 --> 00:08:50,760 a ritual sense, it was. And yet she pushes through the 135 00:08:50,770 --> 00:08:55,260 crowd to touch Jesus's cloak, makes her way through these 136 00:08:55,270 --> 00:08:58,330 great crowds that Luke makes no mistake in mentioning. 137 00:08:58,500 --> 00:09:01,070 In fact, he goes as far as to say that the crowds almost 138 00:09:01,080 --> 00:09:07,250 crushed Jesus in verse 42, which really paints a powerful image 139 00:09:07,300 --> 00:09:14,240 of how great this woman's faith and bravery truly is to brave 140 00:09:14,310 --> 00:09:18,100 this crowd just to be able to touch the edge of His cloak. 141 00:09:20,650 --> 00:09:26,220 In a deeply private, desperate act, this woman comes to Jesus 142 00:09:26,590 --> 00:09:29,750 with what is most likely the end of herself. 143 00:09:30,610 --> 00:09:34,040 She knows that going into this crowd means she will infect 144 00:09:34,090 --> 00:09:37,080 others with her impurity. Well, in fact, Jesus with the 145 00:09:37,090 --> 00:09:41,090 act of touching him, a man that even the synagogue leader vowed 146 00:09:41,100 --> 00:09:48,030 to, she would have known the consequences as NT Wright says. 147 00:09:48,040 --> 00:09:54,000 The risk of rebuff of the crowd, of the synagogue ruler and of 148 00:09:54,010 --> 00:10:00,910 Jesus. And yet she still goes at the 149 00:10:00,920 --> 00:10:04,530 end of herself. After 12 years of bleeding, 150 00:10:04,820 --> 00:10:09,640 going from doctor to doctor in pain, separated from her 151 00:10:09,650 --> 00:10:18,020 community, she approaches Jesus unnoticed, unseen, but with the 152 00:10:18,030 --> 00:10:23,500 strength and bravery and faith that if she could just touch 153 00:10:23,510 --> 00:10:29,940 him, she would be healed. What could this faith look like 154 00:10:29,950 --> 00:10:34,150 in our lives, this desperate at the end of ourselves? 155 00:10:34,860 --> 00:10:42,310 Faith. She didn't come with anything. 156 00:10:42,380 --> 00:10:45,320 No expectations for a man that in her mind shouldn't want 157 00:10:45,330 --> 00:10:49,310 anything to do with her, with the intention to disappear. 158 00:10:49,320 --> 00:10:55,820 Healed, but still invisible. Yet Jesus doesn't let that 159 00:10:55,830 --> 00:10:59,170 happen. That's just not who he is, 160 00:11:00,120 --> 00:11:04,990 because he knew that physical healing was only one thing this 161 00:11:05,000 --> 00:11:11,060 woman needed. Jesus stops everything, even on 162 00:11:11,070 --> 00:11:15,660 his way to what is arguably more important, a dying little girl. 163 00:11:16,250 --> 00:11:20,120 Someone who doesn't have time with a father who is most likely 164 00:11:20,130 --> 00:11:24,620 anxiously urging them to go faster, desperately trying to 165 00:11:24,630 --> 00:11:27,090 get him there in time to save his daughter. 166 00:11:28,450 --> 00:11:35,990 Jesus still stops, takes time, and sees this woman. 167 00:11:38,580 --> 00:11:41,960 He's Jesus. He knows who touched him and 168 00:11:41,970 --> 00:11:44,770 why. He knows the outcome, knows this 169 00:11:44,780 --> 00:11:48,430 woman, and knows that she has already been physically healed. 170 00:11:49,720 --> 00:11:54,390 So why does he stop? Why does he ask who touched me? 171 00:11:57,100 --> 00:12:02,410 Because in doing so, he brings a private moment into a public 1 172 00:12:02,740 --> 00:12:06,630 something hidden into the light for everybody to see. 173 00:12:07,760 --> 00:12:15,290 Not to shame her, but to see her, to call her daughter, to 174 00:12:15,300 --> 00:12:19,960 bring her home, to make her visible in a time and a place 175 00:12:19,970 --> 00:12:22,480 where everyone would love nothing more than for her to be 176 00:12:22,490 --> 00:12:28,360 invisible. He stops because her life 177 00:12:28,430 --> 00:12:33,290 doesn't change. Without him stopping, yes she 178 00:12:33,300 --> 00:12:36,710 would be physically healed, but that's not all she needed 179 00:12:36,720 --> 00:12:39,250 healing from. And physical healing, well a 180 00:12:39,260 --> 00:12:42,730 part of him is not the reason Jesus came down to earth. 181 00:12:43,970 --> 00:12:46,860 Know without him stopping she would not have been spiritually 182 00:12:46,870 --> 00:12:51,380 and socially healed as well. Without him stopping, she would 183 00:12:51,390 --> 00:12:55,510 not have been seen to be clean, allowing her to come home, 184 00:12:56,560 --> 00:13:01,850 allowing her to be whole. As again NT Right puts it, Jesus 185 00:13:01,860 --> 00:13:06,750 shares the pollution of sickness and death, but the power of his 186 00:13:06,760 --> 00:13:10,190 own love. And it is love above all else 187 00:13:10,200 --> 00:13:14,460 that shines through these stories, turns that pollution 188 00:13:14,700 --> 00:13:23,230 into wholeness and hope. Wholeness and hope What do you 189 00:13:23,240 --> 00:13:25,820 need wholeness and hope for today? 190 00:13:28,230 --> 00:13:33,180 Many of you have most likely at some point felt shame, fear, 191 00:13:33,590 --> 00:13:39,110 hurt Outkast and unseen. Maybe you're feeling that right 192 00:13:39,120 --> 00:13:43,050 now. Whatever your situation, I have 193 00:13:43,060 --> 00:13:49,420 good news. We have a God who sees, a God 194 00:13:49,430 --> 00:13:55,740 who knows, and a God who stops. Just like he restored the woman. 195 00:13:56,770 --> 00:14:00,080 Just like He made known to her that this healing was in no way 196 00:14:00,090 --> 00:14:04,770 an accident, He too wants to restore you today. 197 00:14:07,960 --> 00:14:10,750 Going back to the passage for a second, though, we see that 198 00:14:10,760 --> 00:14:14,860 Jesus is day is not at its end, because while he's taking time 199 00:14:14,870 --> 00:14:19,070 to see this woman, someone else is watching the clock. 200 00:14:20,670 --> 00:14:24,000 Jesus turns a public moment into a private one. 201 00:14:28,980 --> 00:14:31,530 Gyrus has no time. He's desperate. 202 00:14:31,540 --> 00:14:36,620 His daughter is dying and Jesus just stops. 203 00:14:37,300 --> 00:14:40,150 Like this is a leisurely stroll and not a life or death 204 00:14:40,160 --> 00:14:43,640 situation. Not like this is a father at the 205 00:14:43,650 --> 00:14:46,370 end of himself reaching out in desperation. 206 00:14:47,700 --> 00:14:51,250 The amount of anxiety he must have been feeling not only for 207 00:14:51,260 --> 00:14:54,720 Jesus stopping but having to tackle the sheer presence of 208 00:14:54,730 --> 00:14:59,970 this crowd. He knows that the clock is 209 00:14:59,980 --> 00:15:04,870 ticking down on his daughter's life and yet with the crowd, the 210 00:15:04,880 --> 00:15:09,910 verse 42 literally uses the word suffocating to describe impeding 211 00:15:09,920 --> 00:15:14,670 progress and Jesus stopping. He sees this time running out. 212 00:15:16,660 --> 00:15:20,160 Gyrus probably stood there, anxious and impatient, trying to 213 00:15:20,170 --> 00:15:22,350 get Jesus to his daughter faster. 214 00:15:24,490 --> 00:15:28,360 This is not the Monday morning traffic anxiety you feel when 215 00:15:28,370 --> 00:15:30,820 you're on your way to work and you're like, Oh no, I'm gonna be 216 00:15:30,830 --> 00:15:31,970 late. Hmm. 217 00:15:32,010 --> 00:15:34,860 No, this is the anxiety you feel when you see a loved one on 218 00:15:34,870 --> 00:15:42,280 their deathbed. Gyrus is trying so hard to push 219 00:15:42,290 --> 00:15:47,350 through this crowd, to just get there in time, and yet he 220 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:49,190 doesn't. He didn't. 221 00:15:50,060 --> 00:15:57,080 Time ran out, as he finds out, Just as Jesus is finishing 222 00:15:57,090 --> 00:16:00,880 talking to this woman, his daughter is dead. 223 00:16:02,120 --> 00:16:05,730 There's nothing more he can do. It's over. 224 00:16:07,020 --> 00:16:12,300 All that anxiety, desperation, fear must have all come crashing 225 00:16:12,310 --> 00:16:15,960 down the conflicting feelings this man must have been feeling. 226 00:16:15,970 --> 00:16:18,530 His hard, maybe impossible to imagine. 227 00:16:19,710 --> 00:16:23,720 Maybe he was thinking if only he did not stop, if only the crowd 228 00:16:23,730 --> 00:16:25,580 led us through faster. If only. 229 00:16:27,050 --> 00:16:35,440 If only Jesus sees this, He sees him, He knows him, and he 230 00:16:35,450 --> 00:16:41,720 understands him. Jesus still has perfect timing, 231 00:16:43,110 --> 00:16:47,720 even when we, like Gyrus, question why it feels like he is 232 00:16:47,730 --> 00:16:53,050 too late when we cannot possibly understand how he can still move 233 00:16:53,140 --> 00:16:57,370 in spite of the situation. I mean, Gyrus just heard that 234 00:16:57,380 --> 00:17:00,550 his daughter is dead, his hope is gone. 235 00:17:01,530 --> 00:17:06,240 Every normal human being would know that this her story is 236 00:17:06,250 --> 00:17:10,579 over. Even those around him understood 237 00:17:10,589 --> 00:17:14,240 this, for they told him don't bother the teacher anymore. 238 00:17:18,650 --> 00:17:22,839 But it's not. Jesus is still there. 239 00:17:23,690 --> 00:17:26,579 In the midst of this crushing storm that Gyrus is going 240 00:17:26,589 --> 00:17:33,520 through, Jesus is there. He tells Gyrus do not be afraid, 241 00:17:33,590 --> 00:17:38,050 but to believe in his daughter would be healed again. 242 00:17:38,060 --> 00:17:41,050 Probably not something Cyrus wanted to hear at that moment. 243 00:17:41,100 --> 00:17:44,590 Probably not something we wanted to hear if we were in his shoes. 244 00:17:46,140 --> 00:17:49,170 But this is not Jesus telling Cyrus if you only believe a 245 00:17:49,180 --> 00:17:55,190 little more. No, this is Gyrus calling G is 246 00:17:55,200 --> 00:18:01,070 Jesus calling Gyrus into a deeper dependence, a trust in 247 00:18:01,080 --> 00:18:04,730 God's so profound that he puts all he understands away and 248 00:18:04,740 --> 00:18:10,760 gives it to God in trust. Trust in his timing. 249 00:18:12,340 --> 00:18:15,590 Trust to take in san anxiety and desperation. 250 00:18:15,600 --> 00:18:19,050 Trust that Jesus has got him and his daughter. 251 00:18:20,650 --> 00:18:24,370 Not an easy feat for any of us. But let's not forget, the Gyrus 252 00:18:24,380 --> 00:18:28,870 is a synagogue leader, one that should have had it together, one 253 00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:31,760 that should have been able to save his daughter himself. 254 00:18:33,670 --> 00:18:39,420 Yet Jesus is calling Cyrus to humble himself, put faith above 255 00:18:39,430 --> 00:18:44,220 his own understanding, and see where Jesus leads. 256 00:18:46,790 --> 00:18:51,160 And Jesus leads differently, that's for sure, as when they 257 00:18:51,170 --> 00:18:55,590 get to the house, Jesus only allows 3 disciples and the 258 00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:59,270 daughter's parents inside. Probably not something all the 259 00:18:59,280 --> 00:19:03,950 mourners and great crowds were hoping for, yet exactly what was 260 00:19:03,960 --> 00:19:10,250 needed in this situation. Because Jesus is ultimately in 261 00:19:10,260 --> 00:19:13,670 control. He is the calm authority in the 262 00:19:13,680 --> 00:19:18,740 centre of all situations. Jesus flips the script. 263 00:19:19,820 --> 00:19:23,110 Yet unlike interacting and touching a bleeding woman, He 264 00:19:23,120 --> 00:19:29,500 flips it by allowing no crowd, no spectacle, just the girl's 265 00:19:29,510 --> 00:19:31,700 parents and his three closest disciples. 266 00:19:33,130 --> 00:19:37,860 What had been a very public moment became an intimate moment 267 00:19:37,870 --> 00:19:44,330 of resurrection, new life. A public moment turned private. 268 00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:51,610 Jesus takes the theatrics out of it for he doesn't want this 269 00:19:51,620 --> 00:19:56,450 miraculous and it is miraculous resurrection of a girl to over 270 00:19:56,460 --> 00:20:00,370 shadow who he is. He doesn't want a crowd to just 271 00:20:00,380 --> 00:20:04,310 see the signs and wonders and not get who he is or why he is 272 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:08,310 here. Not for spectacles, but to bring 273 00:20:08,320 --> 00:20:16,930 wholeness, bring peace, bring restoration, and to show care as 274 00:20:16,940 --> 00:20:19,810 demonstrator with him asking for the girl to be fed as soon as 275 00:20:19,820 --> 00:20:24,150 she was up again. Not only to care for her, but to 276 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:28,870 bring her parents out of their state of fear and joy and into a 277 00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:36,490 task of helping their daughter. He shows care and love, brings 278 00:20:36,500 --> 00:20:42,200 peace and restoration, and yet makes it abundantly clear in 279 00:20:42,210 --> 00:20:45,600 doing all these things, even ordering those present not to 280 00:20:45,610 --> 00:20:48,610 speak of what had happened. Though I doubt that lasted 281 00:20:48,620 --> 00:20:51,950 longer than an hour cause the dead girl was up and walking. 282 00:20:53,900 --> 00:20:56,330 But that though this was amazing. 283 00:20:57,250 --> 00:21:00,500 This was not a spectacle. This was not a trick. 284 00:21:00,510 --> 00:21:04,650 This was not a magic show. Instead, it was an intimate 285 00:21:04,660 --> 00:21:10,470 showcase of Jesus's great love and care for his children. 286 00:21:12,630 --> 00:21:14,980 How He will meet you where you are. 287 00:21:17,460 --> 00:21:24,610 Jesus restores our peace. Now this does not mean that this 288 00:21:24,620 --> 00:21:28,310 is not scary. In fact, it is quite obvious in 289 00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:33,240 both interactions with the woman and Gyrus that they are scared. 290 00:21:34,380 --> 00:21:37,570 We see clearly how much fear this woman is experiencing in 291 00:21:37,580 --> 00:21:45,210 verse 47 as she came trembling and fell at Jesus's feet, or how 292 00:21:45,220 --> 00:21:48,570 fear and anxiety are haunting gyrus both before and after 293 00:21:48,580 --> 00:21:52,480 learning of his daughter's death, as Jesus himself mentions 294 00:21:52,490 --> 00:21:58,300 it. And yet the woman's still went 295 00:21:58,310 --> 00:22:03,010 to Jesus Gyrus, still brought him to his home. 296 00:22:03,770 --> 00:22:12,060 With fear and faith they went, because yes, God wants to work 297 00:22:12,070 --> 00:22:15,440 through us and in us to bring us out of detrimental fears that 298 00:22:15,450 --> 00:22:19,490 grip our hearts. But that does not mean that we 299 00:22:19,500 --> 00:22:25,370 can't start afraid, that we can't run to Him, afraid and 300 00:22:25,380 --> 00:22:30,000 desperate. Because sometimes it is our 301 00:22:30,010 --> 00:22:32,870 desperation that pushes us towards God. 302 00:22:35,120 --> 00:22:38,530 And we see clearly in these passages that these two were 303 00:22:38,540 --> 00:22:43,600 desperate enough. Gyrus, A synagogue leader with 304 00:22:43,610 --> 00:22:45,810 all his many resources, had failed. 305 00:22:46,550 --> 00:22:48,890 He had failed to save his daughter himself. 306 00:22:50,050 --> 00:22:53,390 He was so desperate that the and at the end of himself that he 307 00:22:53,400 --> 00:22:56,540 went to a man that for everything that were probably 308 00:22:56,550 --> 00:23:02,320 hearing about in the synagogue was a Beck best crazy at worst 309 00:23:02,330 --> 00:23:06,050 blasphemous. That's desperation. 310 00:23:07,420 --> 00:23:11,950 And the woman desperate enough to brave a crowd, one that is 311 00:23:11,960 --> 00:23:18,150 disgusted by her, deems her unworthy, won't touch her with 312 00:23:18,160 --> 00:23:21,350 all the consequences, beating down on her if this doesn't 313 00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:24,660 work. That's desperation. 314 00:23:25,500 --> 00:23:30,210 That's faith because Jesus calls for faith. 315 00:23:31,060 --> 00:23:34,890 We see it in both these stories, how the woman's faith heals her 316 00:23:35,180 --> 00:23:39,250 and how Jesus calls the man to faith that his daughter would be 317 00:23:39,260 --> 00:23:43,230 healed. Again, this is not easy. 318 00:23:44,280 --> 00:23:46,760 They both had to do things that were uncomfortable. 319 00:23:48,520 --> 00:23:53,790 Gyrus had to humble himself. The woman had to reveal herself, 320 00:23:55,160 --> 00:24:00,440 and yet in doing so, God worked in unexpected but miraculous 321 00:24:00,510 --> 00:24:05,650 ways. Because God moves in response to 322 00:24:05,660 --> 00:24:11,350 our prayers, He hears our desperate calls, He feels our 323 00:24:11,360 --> 00:24:13,480 pain, and He knows our heartbreak. 324 00:24:14,670 --> 00:24:20,080 He is the God of salvation, a word that literally means added 325 00:24:20,090 --> 00:24:24,040 to root, wholeness of body, mind and spirit. 326 00:24:24,910 --> 00:24:30,370 He takes our uncleanness and restores us once more. 327 00:24:33,640 --> 00:24:36,570 Remember when I said at the beginning of the sermon that one 328 00:24:36,580 --> 00:24:42,350 of the two most obvious sources of pollution in this time was a 329 00:24:42,360 --> 00:24:48,650 bleeding woman and corpses, and that it was a very understood no 330 00:24:48,660 --> 00:24:50,520 go? You do not touch anyone that 331 00:24:50,530 --> 00:24:52,370 could fall into these categories. 332 00:24:54,040 --> 00:24:58,370 Well, Jesus touches both of them in the span of one day in this 333 00:24:58,380 --> 00:25:03,850 passage. Not only that, but Luke mentions 334 00:25:03,860 --> 00:25:07,370 his instance like instances like this quite consistently. 335 00:25:07,520 --> 00:25:11,830 Last Sunday, Justin preached on a man that Jesus called demons 336 00:25:11,840 --> 00:25:16,270 out of who was also deemed unclean. 337 00:25:17,630 --> 00:25:20,500 These stories written together by Lucas and Norway. 338 00:25:20,510 --> 00:25:25,580 A mistake. It showcases spectacularly who 339 00:25:25,590 --> 00:25:31,090 Jesus is at his core. He is a man who flips the 340 00:25:31,100 --> 00:25:37,540 script, shakes it up. He is preparing people for this 341 00:25:37,550 --> 00:25:42,370 flip. He does this by touching them, 342 00:25:43,500 --> 00:25:47,410 those deemed unclean, dirty, polluted. 343 00:25:48,280 --> 00:25:51,710 He takes their uncleanness and restores them. 344 00:25:52,740 --> 00:25:58,110 He takes our uncleanness and in order to make us whole once 345 00:25:58,120 --> 00:26:05,140 more, as Isaiah 53 four says, He took up our pain and bore our 346 00:26:05,150 --> 00:26:11,290 suffering to bring salvation, to bring restoration, to bring new 347 00:26:11,300 --> 00:26:18,370 life. Jesus restores our peace. 348 00:26:19,220 --> 00:26:23,360 Maybe physical, but more than that, too, as though these 349 00:26:23,370 --> 00:26:25,770 stories are about physical healing. 350 00:26:25,820 --> 00:26:32,700 They're not about that at all. Just like I could never actually 351 00:26:32,910 --> 00:26:37,810 end up on that baseball team even though I worked and I hoped 352 00:26:37,820 --> 00:26:42,840 each year, so too do we not always get the physical healing 353 00:26:42,910 --> 00:26:48,440 that we so desperately hope for, that we pray for, long for? 354 00:26:49,680 --> 00:26:53,850 And I can't answer the question of why it is something that many 355 00:26:53,860 --> 00:27:01,740 have and still do wrestle with. However, I can tell you that 356 00:27:01,750 --> 00:27:08,140 Jesus restores our peace. He wants to end does bring 357 00:27:08,150 --> 00:27:12,930 wholeness and hope. He wants to restore our peace in 358 00:27:12,940 --> 00:27:20,550 spite of fear in the midst of brokenness, our peace during 359 00:27:20,600 --> 00:27:24,750 struggles. Jesus is peace meets all 360 00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:30,290 situations like His peace met the fear of both the woman and 361 00:27:30,300 --> 00:27:34,990 gyrus. He wants to meet you today too. 362 00:27:37,840 --> 00:27:39,920 Let me end with one final thought. 363 00:27:41,360 --> 00:27:44,590 Luke is using these stories very strategically. 364 00:27:44,980 --> 00:27:49,170 He is preparing us for the climax of the Gospel, the whole 365 00:27:49,180 --> 00:27:51,510 point of the New and Old Testament. 366 00:27:52,790 --> 00:27:56,840 Luke is writing the ultimate foreshadowing for how Jesus 367 00:27:56,850 --> 00:27:59,370 flips the script during the crucifixion. 368 00:28:00,410 --> 00:28:05,120 Where Christ becomes desperately unclean for us to be healed, 369 00:28:06,320 --> 00:28:09,150 where Jesus takes all the sin, all the shame, all the 370 00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:16,590 brokenness and suffering, everything unclean to bring us 371 00:28:16,780 --> 00:28:24,980 into wholeness, Jesus embraces our uncleanness to restore us in 372 00:28:24,990 --> 00:28:28,960 salvation. Isn't that amazing? 373 00:28:31,100 --> 00:28:37,940 Let's pray, Lord, thank you for your word that You have given us 374 00:28:37,950 --> 00:28:41,240 today. Thank You that we could be here 375 00:28:41,250 --> 00:28:45,110 together to hear it. May it take root in the hearts 376 00:28:45,120 --> 00:28:48,670 of all those who heard it, all those who need it today. 377 00:28:50,470 --> 00:28:53,340 Yet Your. Let your truth shape our lives, 378 00:28:54,170 --> 00:28:57,510 challenge our thinking, and deepen our walk with you. 379 00:28:59,190 --> 00:29:04,120 I asked you that that you restore our peace today and as 380 00:29:04,130 --> 00:29:09,500 we go into this week, let your name be glorified in all that we 381 00:29:09,510 --> 00:29:11,690 do Amen.