April 22, 2002
LifeWay Family Bible Series for May 5
Jesus was a model of caring and compassion
___Mark 5:21-43
___By Barbara Kent
___University Baptist Church, Fort Worth
___This study from the Gospel of Mark begins a series of lessons that can help us know what Jesus did and teach us how to minister in times of need.
___Recently my husband experienced a series of serious heart problems including heart attack, bypass surgery and stroke, all within a period of six weeks. During those dark and difficult days, many people ministered to our needs. Family members responded with prompt and unending care. Doctors and nurses gave attention above and beyond the call of duty. Friends from around the world visited, prayed, telephoned and cared.
___One friend stands out. Val Borum is a retired anaesthesiologist who was my husband's Sunday School teacher while we were students at Southwestern Seminary more than 40 years ago.
___He visited Dan in the hospital many times during those days. He gave wise counsel, loving care and his comforting presence. He prayed for Dan and me as we walked through those days. Perhaps the most commanding thing about all this is that he does this for many people. He "makes rounds" visiting fellow church members and others who need loving care. His ministry among us reflects his understanding of what Jesus would do and what he would have us do.
___Being sensitive to the need
___The story of Jairus' daughter reveals the heart of Jesus. He was sensitive to those in need. Jesus was pressed by crowds as word of his healing power spread. In the midst of one such crowd, Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, sought the Master out, fell at his feet and begged him to heal his young daughter who was dying (v. 23). He recognized Jesus' power over sickness as he said, "Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live" (v. 23).
___How did Jesus respond to this interruption? He responded exactly as you would expect--he went with Jairus. There is no indication Jesus responded because of Jairus' position as a ruler of the synagogue. Jesus simply responded to the need he encountered.
___Interruption along the way___
___While Jesus was on his way to heal Jairus' daughter, a woman approached him who had suffered many years with a problem the doctors had been unable to cure (v. 25). In fact, with all the medical care, instead of getting better she grew steadily worse (v. 26). She, too, had heard of Jesus' healing power. She so strongly believed in his ability to heal that she felt if she only touched his clothes she would be healed (v. 28). And she was correct. Verse 29 says, "Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering."
___Jesus knew someone had touched him with a touch of faith. He stopped and asked, "Who touched my clothes?" (v. 30). The response of the disciples and the crowd was Jesus' question was foolish. How could he not be touched in such a crowd? Jesus simply stood still and looked around him at the crowd (v. 32). The woman, with trembling and fear, fell at Jesus' feet and told him what had happened (v. 33). Tenderly and without apparent hurry, Jesus responded with infinite care and concern (v. 34).
___Voices of pessimism _versus the voice of peace
___Even while Jesus was speaking to the woman, word came that Jairus' daughter had died. There was no need to bother Jesus any further, or at least so the servants said (v. 35). The voices of pessimism lacked the faith which Jairus had demonstrated when he came to Jesus. Jesus spoke to Jairus and to that faith as he said, "Don't be afraid; just believe" (v. 36).
___Without apparent haste but with perfect peace, Jesus took Jairus, Peter, James and John and left the crowd behind as they moved toward the house of Jairus (v. 37). The scene which greeted them was one of sadness and sorrow. The daughter of the house was dead! Weeping and wailing was appropriate, or so it seemed. Jesus, however, spoke words of peace and hope in the face of pessimism: "The child is not dead but asleep" (v. 39). And the weeping and wailing voices laughed with scorn. After all, they had seen the dead child. Jesus had not.
___Jesus took the parents and the disciples and went in to the chamber where the child lay. Upon hearing this story as a child, I could picture in my mind's eye the look on Jesus' face and the tone of his voice as he took the hand of Jairus' daughter and said those strange words: "Talithha koum" (v. 42). And the 12-year-old daughter of Jairus did exactly as Jesus has told her to do. She got up.
___As a child, I focused on the little girl. As an adult and a parent of children, I can see in my mind's eye the response of the parents to this event. To the child, it was just a matter of waking up. To the parents and the disciples who observed it, it was a demonstration of the infinite care and ministry of Jesus in time of need. It was a precious and private moment and one Jesus protected for them as he instructed them not to let anyone know what had happened (v. 43). Perhaps the last and most touching evidence of Jesus' infinite care was his awareness of the child's need for food.
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___Question for discussion
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