The Benefit of Faith
Luke 8:40-56
August 12, 2018
This morning we again embark upon a familiar set of stories.
• We see Jesus healing the hemorrhaging woman
• And we see Jesus raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead.
And there are a lot of angles that this story can be told from.
I think you can even get different angles from the 3 gospel writers.
• MATTHEW was definitely the most brief seemingly just pointing out that Jesus has definite power over death.
• MARK really strikes a compassionate chord. When you read his account you can feel the pity he has for both the woman and for the synagogue official.
• And then we have LUKE’S account. And while we certainly witness the both the power and compassion of Jesus, Luke’s account seems to focus most on the way Jesus responded to faith.
As you know, we are in the portion of Jesus’ ministry
Where He is really pouring into the disciples. He is revealing who He is.
We’ve just witnessed the field trip where Jesus carried the disciples through a storm to a Satanic stronghold and used an army of demons to solidify exactly who He was.
It should be clear to the disciples by this point
That Jesus is in fact the Son of the Most High God.
(And the disciples will soon confess that in Luke 9)
But there is more to the lesson here than just the person of Jesus.
There is also THE EXPECTATION OF JESUS.
These men are being recruited as servants of Christ
And in the very next chapter
Are about to be commissioned out to preach in His name.
It is important that they understand exactly what He wants from people.
And how important this remains today.
Despite the clear teaching of Scripture,
This issue is continually being muddled and distorted
By the enemy and by false doctrine.
SCRIPTURE HAS MADE NO BONES ABOUT WHAT GOD REQUIRES.
Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
That certainly seems to spell it out clearly.
The writer of Hebrews also reminded us:
Hebrews 11:1-2 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval.”
And this would include men like Abraham:
Genesis 15:6 “Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.”
This would include men like David:
Romans 4:6-8 “just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: “BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN, AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED. “BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”
And of course this includes every other person listed there in the faith hall of fame of Hebrews 11.
And then there is that foundational verse that rattled the very core of Martin Luther and sparked the Reformation.
Romans 1:17 “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.”
The requirement of God has always been
Clearly spelled out for humanity.
GOD REQUIRES FAITH
And certainly we have no problem clarifying there that
God requires genuine saving faith as opposed to simple ascent.
• True faith obeys
• True faith endures
• True faith humbles itself before God
Certainly if a person lacks humility or obedience or endurance
We understand that their faith may not be what they profess it to be.
But the root requirement to it all is FAITH
Certainly if these disciples are going to go out and preach the kingdom,
Which is what occurs in chapter 9,
They will need to have a firm grasp on exactly what Jesus is looking for.
And that point is clearly made and even pointed out by Jesus
Here in the context of these 2 miracles.
Let’s work through this story and see, not only the divine power of Jesus,
But also the faith that He seems to acknowledge.
3 points
#1 A HUMBLE REQUEST
Luke 8:40-42a
Well you remember the events leading up to this day.
• Jesus has just sailed for the Gerasenes,
• Upon cleansing the demoniac,
• Was asked to leave their country, and now has returned.
I think it’s interesting also to point out the context
That Matthew’s gospel includes for this story.
Matthew 9:10-18 “Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?” But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. “But go and learn what this means: ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. “But no one puts a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; for the patch pulls away from the garment, and a worse tear results. “Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.” While He was saying these things to them, a synagogue official came and bowed down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live.”
Perhaps that helps you a little with the timeline of events here.
• Closely coinciding with this trip across the sea is also the event in which
Matthew threw a banquet for Jesus and riled up all of the religious leaders.
• Perhaps Matthew threw that banquet when he returned after being convinced
of the Divine power of Jesus.
But I bring that setting up to you because
It really only elevates even more what is about to happen.
Luke says that when Jesus returned “the people welcomed Him, for they had all been waiting for Him.”
Certainly we know why.
• These people wanted His miracles.
• These people wanted His healings.
We already know that they weren’t listening to His message,
• Which is why He has begun to pull away from them a little,
• But that doesn’t mean they aren’t still enamored with His power.
We see the same dilemma today quite often.
There are a great many people today
Who are interested in the healing power of Jesus,
Who have absolutely no interest in hearing what He has to say.
Well, this crowd is here.
And apparently, (according to Matthew) Jesus was also
In the middle of a debate regarding legalism and mercy for sinners.
AND DURING ALL OF THIS
(41-42a) “there came a man named Jairus, and he was an official of the synagogue; and he fell at Jesus’ feet, and began to implore Him to come to his house; for he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was dying.”
Many times when miracles are worked we are not intimately introduced to the recipient.
• We don’t know the name of the widow from Nain,
• Or the paralytic who was lowered through the roof,
• Or even the woman Jesus is about to heal.
But the gospel writers do introduce us to this man.
His name is “Jairus” and he “was an official of the synagogue”
In verse 49 the word “official” is
ARCHISYNAGOGOS (ar-kay-soon-a-go-gos)
And that means that he is not just any old official,
But in fact he is the head official of the synagogue.
John MacArthur notes:
“[He] was the chief official, or elder, of the synagogue…the highest ranking religious official in Capernaum, responsible for the total administration and operation of the synagogue. He supervised the worship services and oversaw the work of the elders, which included teaching, adjudicating disputes, and other such leadership duties.”
(MacArthur, John [The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Matthew 8-15; Moody Press, Chicago, IL; 1987] pg. 76)
And I think that is why the gospel writers include this man’s information.
It is NOT that this man somehow validated Jesus
By coming from such a high position.
But rather that a man of his position would humble himself before Jesus
Speaks to the sincerity of his faith.
As Matthew noted,
• Jesus was presently in a debate with a bunch of legalists about fasting.
• We already know what the chief priests and the scribes thought of Jesus.
What humility it must have taken for this man to cut through this crowd and bow down before Jesus and “implore Him to come to his house”
What we see being put on display here
Is both the humility and desperation of faith.
This man had a 12 year old daughter who “was dying”
Mark’s gospel says “at the point of death”
There was nothing anyone could do for her.
But don’t you suppose this synagogue official had heard a story or two about this Jesus?
• Do you suppose he knew about all the healings He had performed?
• Do you suppose he knew about the leper that had been cleansed?
• He may have even been in the synagogue that day when Jesus cast the
demon out of that man.
He had heard plenty about Jesus.
But until today he had never been desperate enough
To put his reputation on the line to go and approach Him.
BUT ON THIS DAY JAIRUS WAS AT THE END OF HIMSELF.
And let me tell you something about genuine saving faith,
It does not occur until you come to the end of yourself.
If you are still holding on to something good in yourself
As valuable and of merit before God
You do not yet possess the necessary humble faith that Jesus requires.
This is what makes legalism so very dangerous.
This is why Paul wrote so vehemently against it to the Galatians.
To have even a shred of confidence in anything you have done
As beneficial in your quest for salvation
Only indicates that you do not fully trust Christ.
Humility is a necessary aspect of saving faith.
In fact, when Jesus revealed that point He used stronger language than that.
Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
• The idea there is of absolute spiritual bankruptcy.
• And even more interesting than that is that the Greek phrase that Jesus spoke
there is in the emphatic.
• Which means “theirs alone” is the kingdom of heaven.
• If you aren’t spiritually bankrupt…
• If you have not come to the end of your works…
• If you have not come to the end of your merit…
• If you are not ready to fully deny yourself and all your accomplishments…
You are not yet ready to demonstrate the type of faith Jesus requires.
Jairus was
“he fell at Jesus’ feet, and began to implore Him to come to his house;”
There were no other options.
Jesus alone could help
Jesus alone could save
And Jesus is moved by his faith to follow Him.
But this is when the story takes an unexpected turn
A Humble Request
#2 A DESPERATE ATTEMPT
Luke 8:42b-48
Again we take into account the scene.
• Jesus has been welcomed back by all the people.
• And I promise you those people had expectations of their own regarding healing and deliverance.
BUT this synagogue official sort of ruined all their plans
And sought to steal Jesus away from the crowd.
AND JESUS IS LEAVING WITH HIM!!!
Which is why we read:
(42b) “But as He went, the crowds were pressing against Him.”
You know why.
• It’s because people are selfish.
• There were other people in that crowd who wanted healing and they want it before Jesus runs off to help this little girl.
Jesus is about to leave and the mob bombards Him
And “were pressing against Him”
And then we read of a remarkable story.
AND I WANT TO POINT OUT TO YOU from the beginning that
No one would know this story if Jesus hadn’t stopped
And specifically pointed out that it happened.
(43-44) “And a woman who had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and could not be healed by anyone, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak, and immediately her hemorrhage stopped.”
Here we have another tragic scene.
• On one hand we have a girl fighting for life at 12 years of age
• On the other hand we have a woman who for the last 12 years has had anything but life
You must understand the culture of her day
To know how miserable she must have been.
This woman was bleeding
• Certainly that brings with it inconvenience
• Certainly that brings with it weakness
But for a Jewish woman it brought even more than that
Leviticus 15:25-27 “Now if a woman has a discharge of her blood many days, not at the period of her menstrual impurity, or if she has a discharge beyond that period, all the days of her impure discharge she shall continue as though in her menstrual impurity; she is unclean. ‘Any bed on which she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her like her bed at menstruation; and every thing on which she sits shall be unclean, like her uncleanness at that time. ‘Likewise, whoever touches them shall be unclean and shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening.”
A woman in her condition was unclean
And she defiled everything she touched
She was for all intents and purposes a leper among her own people.
The only difference of course was that she was not contagious
And so she did not have to be quarantined outside the city.
She bore her shame every day
And she also had come to the end of herself.
Luke records that she “could not be healed by anyone”
I remind you that Luke was also a physician
And so he knew something of which he spoke.
Mark, telling the story through compassionate eyes, records:
Mark 5:26 “and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse”
And so it wasn’t just that doctors couldn’t help her.
• They had actually greatly harmed her in their treatments
• Taken all the money she had as payment
• And left her in a worse condition than when she started
This woman is out of options.
But having heard about Jesus (Mark 5:27) she decided to come to Him.
And she “came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak, and immediately her hemorrhage stopped.”
Now let’s stop and make a few observations here.
1) If this woman touches any other person they become unclean, but when she touches Jesus, she becomes cleansed.
Let that sink in
2) She is not the only person touching Jesus by a long-shot, but she is the only person being healed.
And this helps us understand why Jesus stopped.
(45-46) “And Jesus said, “Who is the one who touched Me?” And while they were all denying it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You.” But Jesus said, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me.”
All of a sudden, while following Jairus and fighting through the crowd
Jesus stops dead in His tracks.
SOMETHING HAPPENED.
Something occurred that Jesus wanted to make sure that everyone knew.
WHAT IS IT THAT JESUS WANTED EVERYONE TO KNOW?
If you say He wanted them to know
He had the power to heal you are WRONG.
That is NOT what He is trying to publicize.
That is easy to prove.
Look down to the end of the story after He raises the girl from the dead and notice what He says (56) “but He instructed them to tell no one what had happened.”
Jesus DIDN’T stop because He wanted the crowd to know
That He had just healed someone.
JESUS STOPPED FOR A DIFFERENT REASON.
And it began by Him asking “Who is the one who touched Me?”
And He must have asked it with a little bit of fire
Because “they were all denying it”
No one wanted to own up, when we already know that
Many people were pressing against Him.
And it’s at this point that Peter takes the bait (as he always does) and says, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You.”
In other words, “Jesus, what are You talking about, ‘Who touched You?’ everyone touched You.”
But Jesus wasn’t talking about someone
Stepping on His toe or bumping His shoulder.
Jesus knew that someone in that crowd had touched Him differently.
(46) “But Jesus said, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me.”
Now, let me go ahead and kill at least some of the suspense.
• Jesus knew exactly who touched Him.
• Jesus knew why she touched Him.
• Jesus made the decision to heal her when she touched Him.
• And He even knew exactly where she was standing.
What He is doing here is purposely making a spectacle.
He has everyone in the crowd’s attention.
(I would like to know what Jairus was doing at this very moment.
I’m sure antsy doesn’t come close to describing him right now)
Jesus is making a point, not about His power, but about something else.
(47-48) “When the woman saw that she had not escaped notice, she came trembling and fell down before Him, and declared in the presence of all the people the reason why she had touched Him, and how she had been immediately healed. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”
And there you see it yet again.
Humility, desperation, a willingness to suffer harm or humiliation all just to get to Jesus.
Jesus stops on His way to Jairus’ house
Because here He finds another example of the great faith
That He expects from everyone.
He already commended the faith of Jairus
• By being willing to leave the crowd and follow him.
Now He commends the faith of this woman
• By calling her out in front of the entire crowd and pointing out the effect of her faith is that she has been “made…well”
Only, the word is stronger than that.
It is the word SOZO in the Greek.
It is the word we translated “saved”
Jesus stopped and called attention to this woman
Not because He wanted to demonstrate His power to heal
(although certainly He did) but rather because
He wanted to publicly recognize the faith this woman had.
And if you’re doing a little inventory in your brain right now,
You realize that
• While Jesus frequently tells people not to mention the miracle He worked,
• He never misses an opportunity to put great faith on display.
Remember the leper?
Luke 5:12 “While He was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man covered with leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and implored Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
That was great faith.
After cleansing Him, Jesus didn’t tell him to keep it private.
Luke 5:14 “And He ordered him to tell no one, “But go and show yourself to the priest and make an offering for your cleansing, just as Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
Remember the paralytic being lowered down through the roof?
What was it that caused Jesus to make such a public spectacle about the forgiveness and healing of this man?
Luke 5:20 “Seeing their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven you.”
Do you remember when he stood on the plateau and all the people were wanting to be healed? Do you remember what He did and said?
Luke 6:19-20 “And all the people were trying to touch Him, for power was coming from Him and healing them all. And turning His gaze toward His disciples, He began to say, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.”
And of course that followed with the rest of the beatitudes.
Do you see how He is continually accentuating faith?
He told that entire crowd that was hungry for healing
That humble faith was what was really important.
Do you remember when the Centurion wanted his servant healed and believed that Jesus could heal him from a distance?
Luke 7:9 “Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled at him, and turned and said to the crowd that was following Him, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.”
Do you remember when Jesus ate at the Pharisees house and He pointed out the woman who was there worshiping Him?
Luke 7:44-48 “Turning toward the woman, He said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. “You gave Me no kiss; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. “You did not anoint My head with oil, but she anointed My feet with perfume. “For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” Then He said to her, “Your sins have been forgiven.”
And when the disciples panicked in the boat, what did He ask them?
Luke 8:25 “And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”
Are you catching the point?
Jesus is very pointed about what He is broadcasting.
Yes He has power and Yes He puts it on display.
But the thing He never fails to put on display is the necessity of faith
And any time He sees the type of faith He is looking for
HE POINTS IT OUT.
You don’t find Him pointing out and bragging about people’s works.
That’s what infuriated the religious leaders so much.
• They had everyone beat with works and Jesus didn’t care at all about that.
• He just went around everyone bragging about faith.
Even here:
He was on a rush errand to save a girl from dying
And still took the time to stop and point out great faith.
Are you beginning to understand how important faith is to Jesus?
– very important
Are you beginning to understand what true faith looks like?
– humble, desperate, willing to suffer shame
JESUS POINTS THIS WOMAN OUT BECAUSE
He wants everyone around to know
How important it is that they have faith in Him.
A Humble Request, A Desperate Attempt
#3 A REMARKABLE DELIVERANCE
Luke 8:49-56
So Jesus is in the middle of making sure everyone knows about this woman’s faith when messengers arrive.
(49) “While He was still speaking, someone came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, “Your daughter has died; do not trouble the Teacher anymore.”
Now this certainly pointS out to us the difficulty of the death problem.
The reason people hate death so much is because of its FINALITY.
When you die…that’s it.
Many people thought that this was too much for even Jesus to handle.
Remember the Lazarus story?
John 11:21 “Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”
John 11:32 “Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him, and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”
John 11:37 “But some of them said, “Could not this man, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have kept this man also from dying?”
They all knew with the sick there was at least a chance,
But once death steps in, forget it, it’s over.
And of course death is the ultimate consequence of the fall.
God told Adam that he would surely die and he surely did.
Go back and read Genesis 5 again if you must.
• It is the descendants of Adam and that list is there to serve one purpose.
• It is there to show that death has arrived.
• “and he died” – “and he died” – “and he died” – “and he died”
This is Jairus’ worst fear.
Before she was near death, now she is dead.
It should not surprise you, however,
The encouragement that he immediately receives from Jesus.
(50) “But when Jesus heard this, He answered him, “Do not be afraid any longer; only believe, and she will be made well.”
You’re seeing what this story is about aren’t you?
It’s all about how important faith is to Jesus.
And that is only further illustrated in what you see next.
(51) “When He came to the house, He did not allow anyone to enter with Him, except Peter and John and James, and the girl’s father and mother.”
Remember this crowd represents
Those who see but don’t see.
Those who hear but don’t understand.
He warned them back in:
Luke 8:18 “So take care how you listen; for whoever has, to him more shall be given; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has shall be taken away from him.”
They don’t get more until they listen to what they’ve got.
What did He give to the crowd?
• He just gave them a full blown sermon illustration about the importance of faith.
• When He healed that woman He gave the crowd that message.
But here He is about to once again put His deity on display,
And those without faith don’t get to see that.
In fact He only takes 3 of His disciples.
(52-53) “Now they were all weeping and lamenting for her; but He said, “Stop weeping, for she has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him, knowing that she had died.”
• Matthew’s gospel says there were “flute players and noisy disorder”
• They were already mourning and starting the funeral when Jesus walked in.
HIS OBJECTIVE is to respond to the faith of Jairus
Without giving this unbelieving crowd any more miracles.
So He says, “Stop weeping, for she has not died, but is asleep.”
(53) “And they began laughing at Him, knowing that she had died.”
Both Matthew and Mark reveal that
At this point the crowd got removed from the room.
(I wonder if it was something similar to when He cleared the temple).
They aren’t going to get to witness the miracle.
That is only for those who believe Him.
And when they leave
(54-56) “He, however, took her by the hand and called, saying, “Child, arise!” And her spirit returned, and she got up immediately; and He gave orders for something to be given her to eat. Her parents were amazed; but He instructed them to tell no one what had happened.”
You just can’t stress enough the divinity of Jesus here.
He handled death like it wasn’t even a problem.
• He didn’t even have to lay down on top of the girl like Elijah did.
• He didn’t have to wave His arms and dance about.
• He just reached into death, grabbed the girl’s hand, and pulled her out no differently than you or I would help our child out of a swimming pool.
No doubt who He is.
He conquers death.
Hebrews 2:14-15 “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”
But even more THE POINT OF THE STORY
Is who was privileged enough to witness it.
And very simply, it was only those with faith.
That is what Jesus is displaying here.
• He is proclaiming to the world that He requires faith.
• He is demonstrating to the disciples that faith is what He expects.
And the type of faith He demands is equally obvious.
• It is the type of faith that arises from genuine humility when a person has come to the end of their self.
• It is the type of faith that evidences itself in total desperation knowing that if Jesus can’t, there is no plan-B.
And friend I just have to ask you about your faith this morning.
1. Are you still holding on to something you’ve done as that which will appease God someday?
2. If Jesus turns out to be a fraud are you ok because you’ve got your eggs in multiple baskets?
3. Are you pretty sure that Jesus is the only way of salvation but you’re still not desperate enough for it that you would risk humiliation and loss to obtain it?
Because if any of those statements apply to you
Then you still have not given the faith that Jesus requires.
He absolutely demands total humility, total desperation, total trust.
A person must come to the end of their SELF and all their EFFORTS
And all their ACHIEVEMENTS
And lay it all on Jesus as their only hope.
And when a person does that, Jesus rises to save!
Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
