Reaching Faith
| So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around Him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind Him in the crowd and touched His cloak, because she thought, "If I just touch His clothes, I will be healed." Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from Him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?" "You see the people crowding against you," his disciples answered, "and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?' " But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at His feet and, trembling with fear, told Him the whole truth. He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering." (Mark5:24-34) |
The woman has suffered. She's tried all the remedies, potions, rituals, diets and practices. Her malady made her ritually unclean and anyone she touched would be considered unclean too. One would expect her to be cynical and bitter. And yet she has faith.
We don't know if she had only heard of Jesus or if she'd gone to see/hear Him before, but something about Jesus convinced her. Something about His message, His character and His demeanour convinced her that He could be trusted. She was so convinced that she took a major risk by going into the midst of the crowd and touching Jesus' robe.
And it was a major big risk. She was ritually contaminating everyone she jostled with in the crowd and if any who knew of her condition saw her or if any evidence of her condition were to be noticed, people would have been very angry.
Furthermore, she decided to seek anonymous healing by simply touching His garment. This was probably for multiple reasons: (1)Not bothering Jesus, (2)consideration for the plight of the child, (3)not wanting to reveal how she had ritually contaminated the people she had brushed against and (4)she was used to not being touched.
Her faith was rewarded and she was instantly healed physically. But Jesus had more than her physical healing in mind - He wanted to heal her spiritually, emotionally and socially. By getting her to come forward and tell her story, she is able to express her pain and isolation and Jesus is able to call her "daughter" and commend her for her faith. This would give her closure, assurance and respect from the crowd.
Her reaching faith was met by a Saviour who could do more than she could ever think or imagine!
