She Touched Him

Scripture: Luke 8:40-56

41 A man named Jairus, a leader of the local synagogue, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come home with him. 42 His only daughter, who was about twelve years old, was dying. As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded by the crowds. 43 A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure. 44 Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped. 45 “Who touched me?” Jesus asked. Everyone denied it, and Peter said, “Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you.” 46 But Jesus said, “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” 47 When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him and that she had been immediately healed. 48 “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” (Luke 8:41-48 NLT)

Jesus and his disciples were on their way to the home of a synagogue leader whose daughter was dying. A woman who had suffered twelve years with constant bleeding came up behind him in the crowd. This woman, because of her illness, was considered unclean. If she touched anyone or if anyone touched her, her uncleanness would be transferred to them. She would be guilty, and they would have to perform a series of rituals so that they could be “clean” again.

The woman was desperate! She took a risk, not only of embarrassment and rejection, but of punishment, in order to find healing and relief from her condition. She thought, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” Friends, there’s no chapter and verse in the Bible that says if she could touch Jesus’ robe she would be healed! She thought that! That desperate thought became an act of faith that drew healing from heaven and healed her! It might be easy to see her thought of touching Jesus’ robe as foolish, desperate superstition. Jesus saw it as an act of faith. She was healed before he spoke to her! She was healed by her desperate faith!

I wonder if I’m desperate enough! Is my awareness of my need for healing, change, transformation, freedom important enough to me? In my heart I want to touch the hem of Jesus’ robe and be healed, be changed! And yet, so many times I think of the cost, the risk, of what people will think. What about you? Do you ever get these kinds of thoughts? Let’s be desperate, friends! Let’s risk it all to touch Jesus!

Prayer:

Father, One more time, I press through the crowd, I reach out to touch Jesus. Heal me, cleanse me, change me! Make me all and nothing else but what you want me to be!