Mark 5:24-34
A. Millions of human beings are in despair because of the extreme situations in which they live.
B. In all these situations, God has demonstrated His willingness to help those who seek Him for refuge.
I. THE HOPE OF A MIRACLE
A. The circumstances of the miracle (see Mark 5:24).
1. Christ was going to Jairus’ house.
2. A large crowd compressed Him.
3. It became increasingly difficult for people to move.
4. In that crowd was a woman who had lost hope.
B. Observe the obstacles the woman would have had to overcome to reach Jesus.
1. Twelve years of intense suffering (read Mark 5:25).
2. The large crowd that was in front of her (read Mark 5:24, 27).
3. The depletion of personal resources (see Mark 5:26).
4. Her social status.
C. In Hebrew society, the average woman had a secondary position and was legally considered to be a man’s property (see Gen. 31:14, 15; 1 Tim. 2:14).
1. A daughter didn’t receive an inheritance when her father passed away.
2. Currently, in many parts of the world, women continue to be underestimated and degraded in their social environment.
3. In addition to her social status, the woman
was the victim of a disease that was incurable
at the time (read Mark 5:25, 26).
D. Christ moving in the crowd (read Mark
5:24). “The golden opportunity had come. She
was in the presence of the Great Physician! But
amid the confusion she could not speak to Him,
nor catch more than a passing glimpse of His
figure. Fearful of losing her one chance of relief,
she pressed forward, saying to herself, ‘If I may
but touch His garment, I shall be whole’ [Matt.
9:21]. As He was passing, she reached forward,
and succeeded in barely touching the border of
His garment. But in that moment she knew that
she was healed. In that one touch was concentrated
the faith of her life, and instantly her pain
and feebleness gave place to the vigor of perfect
health.”1
II. MAKING THE MIRACLE POSSIBLE
A. Christ was the only solution for that woman (see Mark 5:26).
B. The woman approached Christ (see Mark 5:27).
C. Her hope was revived (see Mark 5:27, 28). Ellen G. White states: “On the way to the ruler’s house, Jesus had met, in the crowd, a poor woman who for 12 years had suffered from a disease that made her life a burden. She had spent all her means upon physicians and remedies, only to be pronounced incurable. But her hopes revived when she heard of the cures that Christ performed. She felt assured that if she could only go to Him, she would be healed. In weakness and suffering she came to the seaside where He was teaching, and tried to press through the crowd, but in vain. Again she followed Him from the house of Levi-Matthew, but was still unable to reach Him. She had begun to despair, when, in making His way through the multitude, He came near where she was.”2
D. The most important aspect was the touch of faith (see Mark 5:28).
1. Faith and trust in divine power changes the course of events in a person’s life.
2. God stands still upon human actions that are motivated by faith in His power (see Mark 5:30).
3. Divine power is sovereign over the evils that affect humans (see Mark 5:29, 30).
William Barclay said: “Mark never forgot the
divine side of Jesus. He begins his gospel with
the declaration of faith, ‘The beginning of the
gospel [good news] of Jesus Christ, the Son of
God.’ He leaves us in no doubt what he believed
Jesus to be.”3
III. THE MIRACLE IN OUR DAY
A. The world we live in is full of intense suffering:
1. Family problems.
2. Difficult personal situations.
3. Complicated financial issues.
4. Limited resources.
5. Emotional disappointments.
B. Christ is the only solution to our dilemmas.
1. The help that we can attain comes only from heaven.
2. God helps meet our needs and desires.
“We may be confident for the future only in the
strength that is given for the present necessities.
The experience in God is daily becoming more
precious. . . . Do not borrow anxiety for the future.
It is today that we are in need. . . . The Lord
is our helper, our God, and our strength in every
time of need.”4
CONCLUSION
A. This woman’s story can inspire us during difficult situations in our lives.
B. “The faith that is unto salvation is not a mere intellectual assent to the truth. He who waits for entire knowledge before he will exercise faith, cannot receive blessing from God. It is not enough to believe about Christ; we must believe in Him. The only faith that will benefit us is that which embraces Him as a personal Savior; which appropriates His merits to ourselves. Many hold faith as an opinion. Saving faith is a transaction by which those who receive Christ join themselves in covenant relation with God. Genuine faith is life. A living faith means an increase of vigor, a confiding trust, by which the soul becomes a conquering power.”5
C. How many of you, along with me, would
like to ask the Lord to grant you that kind of saving
faith by raising your right hand? May God
bless you! Let’s pray.
1 Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, 343.
2 Ibid.
3 Barclay’s Guide to the New Testament, 18.
4 White, Manuscript 22, 1889.
5
_____, The Desire of Ages, 347.
Nerivan Silva is an editor at the Brazil Publishing
House headquartered in Tatui, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
