Today's devotion -- Mt 9:18-26
18While he was saying this, a ruler came and knelt before him and said, "My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live." 19Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples.
20Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed."
22Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment.
23When Jesus entered the ruler's house and saw the flute players and the noisy crowd, 24he said, "Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep." But they laughed at him. 25After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. 26News of this spread through all that region. (NIV)
taken from www.biblegateway.com
At a women's conference last year I had the privilege of listening to Liz Curtiss Higgs, a Christian author and speaker. She has written some of the funniest books I've read, and she has also written some of the most memorable stories based on Biblical characters.
At this conference, Liz talked about this particular passage. Most of us have heard about the woman who desperately grabbed at Jesus' hem, knowing that if she could just touch him she would be healed from her terrible affliction. Because of her bleeding she was considered 'unclean', and anyone she touched would also be unclean and would be required to provide a sacrifice to be back in good graces.
Jesus has had a very busy week. He just returned to his home town and he's preached to a large crowd, probably at Peter's house. He healed a man whose friends had torn through a roof in order to get him close to Jesus. He called Matthew to join the disciples and he feasted at Matthew's home with many tax collectors and sinners. John's disciples have questioned his practices and he has also been riddled with questions and accusations by the Pharisees. Now, as he is heading toward the ruler's home to heal a child, a woman grabs the hem of his garment in an act of extreme faith.
Liz pointed out a couple of interesting facts about this story that I'd never noticed before. If you look at the account that Mark tells (Mk 5:22-43), we find out that the child Jesus heals is twelve years old. She is brought back to life, ready to move forward into adulthood. And the woman he healed has been bleeding for twelve years...the entire lifetime of the child. She too, is essentially brought back to life and is ready to move forward.
A best I can tell, this is the only time Jesus calls a woman 'daughter'. While the temple ruler, Jairus, is advocating for his daughter in the plea for Jesus to heal her, Jesus puts himself in the position of advocate and father for the woman desperate to be healed.
When there is no one else to intervene on our behalf, Jesus himself will step in and full that spot, even when we are unclean. Amazing.
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