Gtcotr/ss110721
Every account and each story in the Bible is intended to be a picture of God’s single intent to rid the earth of sin. The Old Testament depicts God’s willingness to deal harshly with sinners who refuse to obey Him while the New Testament reveals God’s offer to separate the sinner from their sin and empower them to live a righteous life through the goodness of God’s grace and forgiveness which was provided in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
The Bible only tells one story. It is the story of redemption. Every scripture is a piece to the one picture God is painting. The only way to rightly interpret scripture is with scripture and in light of the one-story God is telling. As well, we should be able to take each account and every character and see how God is adding to the final picture of eternity. (*)
When we are united with Christ, all is heaven; When we are separate from Him, all is hell.
This morning we will use the account of the woman in Mark 5 who was healed when she dared to press through a crowd and touch the hem of the garment Jesus was wearing. The garment Jesus was wearing is a symbol of what the prophet Isaiah (Isaiah 61:10) called the “garment of salvation”.
While you are turning in your Bibles to the 5th chapter of the Gospel of Mark, allow me to share two points of truth this morning.
1.
God never abandons us just because we are wrong.
2. God’s plan always includes the time you will need to wait on Him.
Mark 5 NKJV
25 Now a certain woman had a
flow of blood for twelve years,
·
We
do not know if this was the result of pre or postmenopausal problem, or perhaps
postpartum hemorrhage.
·
What
we do know is that this condition is both life-draining and life-threatening.
· 12 years is a long, long, long time …
26 and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.
· On the issue of suffering …
This note comes from Adam Clarke’s commentary on Mark:
No person will wonder at this account, when he considers the therapeutics of the Jewish physicians in reference to hemorrhages, especially of the kind with which this woman was afflicted.
Rabbi Jochanan says: "Take of gum
Alexandria, of alum, and
of crocus hortensis,
the weight of a zuzee each; let them be
bruised together, and given in wine to
the woman that hath an
issue of blood. But if this fail, Take
of Persian onions nine logs, boil them in wine, and give it to her
to drink: and say, Arise from thy flux.
But should this fail, Set
her in a place where two ways meet, and let her hold a cup of wine
in her hand; and let somebody come behind and affright her, and say,
Arise from thy flux. But should this do no good, Take a handful of
cummin and a handful of crocus, and a
handful of faenu-greek; let these be boiled, and given her to drink, and say, Arise from thy flux.
But should this also fail, Dig seven
trenches, and burn in them some cuttings of vines not yet circumcised (vines
not four years old;) and let her take in her hand a cup of wine, and let her be
led from this
trench and set down over that, and let
her be removed from that,
and set down over another: and in each
removal say unto her,
Arise from thy flux."
·
I
choose to not share the horrible and cruel physical remedies employed on those
who were experiencing this type of life-draining and life-threatening trouble
in those days. None of them worked.
·
I
imagine there were so many friends, family members, and well-meaning counselors
who no doubt gave it their best shot, but to no avail.
· Overlaying this account with the single intent of God in scripture reminds us of the fact that no one and nothing can save a person from the life-draining ills of sin except Jesus. However … that is not the end of her story … and the story is intended to encourage you.
27 When she heard about
Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment.
·
She
heard about Jesus, and it made her hope. He still gives hope to the lost and
downtrodden today.
· Notice the resident and understandable intimidation factor which so many face and must overcome in order to press through all of those people already familiar with Jesus and most likely already touching Him and certainly welcomed and comfortable in His presence. She pressed through the intimidation and unfamiliarity to touch Jesus.
28 For she said, “If only I
may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”
29 Immediately the fountain
of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed
of the affliction.
·
Immediately!
That’s how fast a person can be saved by faith.
· She felt the life-drain cease immediately … it changed her whole life!
30 And Jesus, immediately
knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd
and said, “Who touched My clothes?”
·
I
love the fact that Jesus knows each and every time any person touches Him with
faith.
·
Every
time someone touches Him, every time someone gets saved … He knows it!
·
The
crowd … the ministers … the worshippers might not know it … they may have been
touching Jesus all along but someone new touched Him …
·
Someone
touched Jesus who had never touched Him before …
· Jesus wanted to know heer and personally encourage her.
31 But His disciples said to
Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched
Me?’ ”
32 And He looked around to
see her who had done this thing.
·
Jesus
stops, and so do the angels in heaven the Bible says, and they rejoice to see
one sinner repenting more than those who are always all-around Jesus touching
Him all the time.
· Jesus so loves those in need … He loves the hurting and the tired and the fearful and those who have no other hope but Him.
33 But the woman, fearing and
trembling, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and
told Him the whole truth.
34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.”
This
morning it is easy to see the salvation message in the account of this woman
who was healed by just a simple touch in faith.
·
What
do you need today? Have you heard about Jesus?
·
God never abandons us just because we are wrong.
·
God’s plan always includes the time you need to wait on Him.
·
Perhaps
it has been a long, long, long time …
·
Or
perhaps you feel like you are in the crowd and the only one going unnoticed …
·
Maybe
you have tried every other remedy within your reach
·
Let
me tell you about Jesus …
o Hear the truth – then
Talk to yourself; Convince yourself …
o Press in and reach out … Heaven will not disappoint you …
*(As I said, each
account is aimed at this same truth … even the very first words found in the
Bible from Genesis 1:
·
God found His creation in trouble, darkness, and chaos.
·
God’s Spirit considered what to do
o
He moved closer to the darkness and chaos
o
God decided to do something about it …
·
He said, “Let there be light!”
o
He sent Jesus, the Light of the World to separate the
light from the darkness
o
In Christ, God separated light from darkness
It
is easy to overlay the creation account with the message of the Gospel and the
personal salvation of each soul. Other accounts are just as foretelling.
·
God has a plan – He is going to rid the earth of sin
·
He will succeed – The new earth revealed in Revelation
will be free from sin and its ill affects
·
We have a chance to participate
o
God will separate us from sin, or He will judge us as
sinners
o
When we are united with Christ, all is heaven; When we are
separate from Him, all is hell.
o
Our part is to have faith in the Jesus of the Holy Bible.
§ He is the Son of
Almighty Jehovah, the One True God
§ He is the King of
Kings and the Lord of Lords
§ He is the Savior of
all who call in faith upon His name.)
