Mark 5:35-43 - two healings

My commentator emphasizes the contrast between the synagogue official and the woman. The bleeding woman is ritually unclean. But she disregards this. She pushes through the crowd, making everyone she touches ritually unclean. They may not know it but it does not change the fact. When she touches Jesus she makes him ritually unclean. Yet the touch does not make him unclean, it does the opposite, it makes her clean! She knows she needs healing and she goes and gets it.

The official also knows he is desperate. Going to Jesus though has to be against all his prior prejudices. If he has shared his intent with anyone surely they tried to talk him out of it. Better to lose a daughter than to allow this upstart to gain a victory. The synagogue official also knows where he must go for healing. Yet his reticence is based on entirely different reasons than the woman.

Both could be embarrassed by going to Jesus for very different reasons. I think if we came to Jesus when we had needs with the intensity that these two people did, God would grant our petitions. But we are too proud. We ask timidly. We refuse to give full weight to our desperation for fear of looking foolish.

The commentator saw it much differently than I. He thought of Paul who asked three times to be loosed of a "thorn in the flesh" and God told him "no"(2 Cor. 12:7-10). It sounds like Paul did ask in desperation. In his desperation God gave him a direct answer. The answer was no. Of course this contradicts what I just wrote in the previous paragraph. Yes I agree. God's ways are not our ways. There is no logical rule.

Yet Paul received an answer. In response to our half-hearted requests we usually get silence. . "In a model response to a negative answer he put behind him the disappointment of not getting what he wanted and instead accepted what he got." (Phillip Yancey).

Paul heard God. The no was a blessing. In this case no is better than yes. God knows better than we do. In this case he explained it to Paul. I think we always have to accept no as God's will no matter how fully or how half-heartedly we ask. In the final analysis we petition God and he answers. I believe through Jesus Christ our mediator and advocate we get audience with God. God hears and answers. But the answer could be no. In fact it often seems to be no or at least not yes as we wanted. It may be wait. It may be God will answer in a different, better way.

It is important to keep asking in positive faith and not in bitterness.

MARK 5:35-43

[35]While He was still speaking, they came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, "Your daughter has died; why trouble the Teacher anymore?" [36]But Jesus, overhearing what was being spoken, said to the synagogue official, "Do not be afraid any longer, only believe." [37]And He allowed no one to accompany Him, except Peter and James and John the brother of James. [38]They came to the house of the synagogue official; and He saw a commotion, and people loudly weeping and wailing. [39]And entering in, He said to them, "Why make a commotion and weep? The child has not died, but is asleep." [40]They began laughing at Him. But putting them all out, He took along the child's father and mother and His own companions, and entered the room where the child was. [41]Taking the child by the hand, He said to her, "Talitha kum!" (which translated means, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!"). [42]Immediately the girl got up and began to walk, for she was twelve years old. And immediately they were completely astounded. [43]And He gave them strict orders that no one should know about this, and He said that something should be given her to eat.