An incredible woman with an incredible faith
Luke 8:43-49
This woman did have incredible faith, however, she only meant to take the healing she desperately needed and then to leave quietly. After being healed, she intended to go on quietly living her life. Jesus, on the other hand, wanted something else; He wanted to speak directly to her. Yes, he joyfully meets our needs, but he is much more interested in developing a relationship with us than merely addressing our physical needs.
Many reasons prevented this woman from announcing her faith in Jesus publicly. She was a woman living in a patriarchal society, and not just a woman but also a bleeding woman. For twelve years, she had been seeking a cure for her condition and no one was able to heal her. She knew that Jesus had the power to heal her and everything depended upon an opportunity to receive that healing touch from him. When she saw Jesus, she decided to touch the edge of his robe from behind him. Perhaps she didn’t feel able to make eye contact with Jesus. Remember, she was living in a culture, which stigmatized anyone afflicted with this disease. After touching the hem of his garment her strong faith in Jesus granted her what she had longed for many years, “the healing of her body”.
Jesus wanted more for her than the healing of her sickness. He wanted to restore her identity and the way she viewed herself. Her faith was so impressive to the point that Jesus stopped to ask who touched him because he said, “Power has gone out from me.” He wanted to speak to this woman immediately. What she received secretly, he wanted to be made public. For Jesus, now was the right time, right place and right audience for this woman to be known, so she could begin ministering to others. The blessing she received in one moment through touching his cloak could last forever, if she dared to step out in faith with Jesus.
We all want Jesus to answer our prayers but then we want to return to our ordinary lives, deciding for ourselves the best way to live. Jesus invited this woman to come forward and tell her story. What she sees as embarrassing, he sees as a time for celebration and declaration of faith. Something unusual and remarkable just happened and it is too good to go unnoticed.
am sure the woman was not planning to hide her testimony, but she wanted privacy to determine who she could trust, who would be interested, inspired or even care enough about her faith and her walk with Jesus.
We were purchased by the precious blood of Jesus, so our lives do not belong to us anymore. It belongs to him and people need to hear that. Ravi Zacharias put it this way; “People think that Jesus came to make bad people good, and that is wrong, Jesus came to give life to dead people.” Each one of us has a unique story of what God has done and is still doing in our lives. Our stories need to be shared, to encourage and to build up one another.
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