Ever heard about the story of the woman with the issue of blood? What are your thoughts about it?
It’s one of those stories that continue to touch and amaze me. Imagine living in ancient Israel with that condition for 12 years. The stress, the pain, the lies from doctors, the depression!!! What sanitary products did she use for that long period? Oh, I have so many questions, so many!
And there was a woman who had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse.- Mark 5:25-26
It's quite amazing that she was brave enough to have faith in Jesus after all that she had been through. She could have considered Jesus’s fake like all the doctors she had met but no! she chose to believe. Discernment is making an appearance here too. She chose to believe that He was the real deal.
“If I touch even the hem of His garments, I will be made well", she said
The bible says ‘immediately the fountain of her blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction- Mark 5:29
A big miracle like this just by touching the hem of his garment-the hem not the collar. Unbelievable!!
Jesus turns and asks who touched him.
Do you think He asked because He did not know the person who did? I doubt that.
After much thought the only reason, I could come up with was that Jesus wanted to let her know that He had seen her pain.
He had seen how she tried all those years to find healing but to no avail. He had seen all the tears she has had to shed both privately and publicly because of her condition. He had seen the friends she had lost and the opportunities she had missed because of the disease. He even called her "daughter".
He was acknowledging her pain. Many times, when people go through pain, they assume that God does not care. But here is God in the flesh, showing a mortal that He is not oblivious to her pain and He cares.
The world is seeking Jesus. They might not be saying it but everything going on in the world shows that people need answers but have resorted to the wrong places for them.
Can we imagine ourselves as the hem of Jesus’s garment so that when people meet us, they will find the healing they are looking for and answers to their questions?
That someone will say, “if I can only get to Juliana (insert your name), I can find a solution to my problem.” In our various spheres of influence, we can be hems of the Lord’s garment bringing peace and joy to the world.
The hem of a garment is one of the parts that easily gets dirty. When washing, one has to pay attention to those parts and wash them well. That's exactly what God does to those of us who want to be His hems. He subjects us to deep cleansing and consecration. We cannot do what the world does if we are meant to heal it.
God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured and the evil spirits left them- Acts 19:11-12
The bar has been set so high by the Apostles and other great men who followed. In these last days we cannot afford to do less.
We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to do greater things. We as Christians are extensions of God here on earth, our major assignment is to make disciples and represent God wherever we find ourselves. The power of God is not reserved for a select few, we all have access to it. We can do the things Jesus would have done if He was here on earth. We can extend the Father's love to men and women with issues of blood and flesh.
This is the essence of Christ's death. That we can do greater things than He did (John 14:12).
Dont't be in a hurry to leave yet, I have a gift for you. In a strange coincidence, I found a novel that tells the story of this woman in a very beautiful way. Some of my questions were answered in this book and my respect for this woman doubled. Written by Lady Charlotte Osei Poku, our heroine is given a voice and a personality in this novel. I would 100% recommend this book to every believer. You can download it below.
Happy Easter Weekend!
One of the life groups (Bible study) that I go to, have been going through mark and we just actually went over this very passage. As we read through mark, we’ve been trying to identify passages in which the Word “immediately“ is used. am fascinated by the fact that healing or restoration happens immediately with Jesus.
We pray we become an extension of His love. Thanks for the novel and God richly bless you.