Faith in Action & A Call to Action

The Raising of a Question — (Vs. 14)

Application — Worry about your own relationship with the Lord.

The Response of the Lord

(Vs. 15) — Illustration # 1 — The Children of the Bridechamber

William Barclay — A Jewish wedding was a time of special festivity. The unique feature of it was that the couple who were married did not go away for a honeymoon; they spent their honeymoon at home.

For a week after the wedding, open house was kept; the bride and bridegroom were treated as, and even addressed as, king and queen. And during that week their closest friends shared all the joy and all the festivities with them; these closest friends were called the children of the bridechamber. On such an occasion, there came into the lives of poor and simple people a joy, a rejoicing, a festivity, a plenty that might come only once in a lifetime.

So Jesus compares himself to the bridegroom and his disciples to the bridegroom’s closest friends. How could a company like that be sad and grim? This was no time for fasting, but for the rejoicing of a lifetime.

(Vs. 16) — Illustration # 2 — The Patch

What Jesus was trying to explain in this illustration here is that He had come to do a completely new thing.

Not to patch the legalistic ideologies of Judaism but to be a totally new garment. The new garment would be woven with a crimson thread of grace through faith in the one and only Son of God.

There would also be a new institution called the Church and this would be the vehicle through which this message of salvation would be shared.

(Vs. 17) — Illustration # 3 — The Wineskins

Wineskins were made out of goat skins. When they were new, the skins had some elasticity to them but after a while they would begin to dry out and harden.

New wine put off gasses due to fermentation and therefore, if you put new wine into old skins, the skins being hardened, would crack and you would lose the skin and the wine.

That’s why it was imperative to put new wine into new skins.

R. T. France said it this way, “Jesus has brought something new, and the rituals and traditions of official Judaism cannot contain it. The explosive exuberance of the new era … must break out of the confines of legalism and asceticism.”

John Phillips — The old was right for its day and age. But now it was time for the new—a new dispensation, a new covenant, a new dynamic, new principles, new life, new methods, a new “container.” Christianity was to replace Judaism altogether.

The church is not Israel, but something entirely new and unique in God’s dealings with men. Those who would equate the church with Israel introduce Judaistic forms, ceremonies, and rules into Christianity. The result of trying to make a patchwork quilt of Judaism and Christianity is confusion.

The outcome of such a misconception of Christianity is Christendom with its priests, sacraments, feasts, fasts, holy days, rituals, calendars, and liturgies. The Lord envisioned no such thing. He gave the disciples of John a lot to think about as they went away.

As the question and answer session with John’s Disciples is coming to an end, Jesus is approached by a most unlikely candidate with a dire request.

Look down with me at the requesting of the Lord.

The Requesting of the Lord — (Vs. 18-33)

Request # 1 — Jairus Daughter — (Vs. 18-19)

Matthew tells us this man is a ruler but when you look at all the gospels collaboratively, you will find this man’s name is Jairus and he isn’t just any ruler but the ruler of a Jewish synagogue.

Mark 5:22–23 KJV 1900

22 And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, 23 And besought him greatly, saying, My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.

Luke 8:42 KJV 1900

42 For he had one only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she lay a dying. But as he went the people thronged him.

William Barclay — The ruler of the synagogue was a very important person. He was elected from among the elders. He was not a teaching or a preaching official; he had ‘the care of the external order in public worship, and the supervision of the concerns of the synagogue in general’.

He appointed those who were to read and to pray in the service, and invited those who were to preach. It was his duty to see that nothing unfitting took place within the synagogue; and the care of the synagogue buildings was in his oversight. The whole practical administration of the synagogue was in his hands.

It is clear that such a man would come to Jesus only as a last resort. He would be one of those strictly orthodox Jews who regarded Jesus as a dangerous heretic; and it was only when everything else had failed that he turned in desperation to Jesus.

So, we have this ruler of a synagogue named Jairus and undoubtedly, he’s exhausted every other measure available to help his daughter but now that all else has failed he swallows his pride and does the only thing knows left to do.

Come to the one who has proven that He has the power to heal!

So, here’s Jairus and he’s come humbly, we don’t need to miss that, he’s come humbly to Jesus (he came and worshipped him) and requested His help and Jesus obliges his request.

Now, before I move on I need to say this…if you are to come to Jesus you must come humbly! There’s no room for pride in the life of a believer or in heaven therefore, when a person comes to Jesus they must come with a humble attitude and make their request.

The Bible tells us that Jesus and His disciples began to follow Jairus to his house.

Now, keep in mind, at this point his daughter is near death but not dead.

Then as they head to Jairus house, something unexpected happens.

Request # 2 — The Woman w/ the Issue of Blood — (Vs. 20-22)

Just when Jairus thinks all is good and they’re going to make it back in time and his daughter is going to be healed, Jesus makes a very unexpected stop.

In order to gain the full picture here we’re going to need to employ Dr. Luke and Mark to help us out.

Matthew tells us that as they were on their way to Jairus house, a woman with an issue of blood for 12 years makes her way up behind the Lord and touched the hem of his garment.

And the reason she did this is because she said within herself that if she could but touch the hem of Jesus garment she would be made whole.

Now, when you look in the other gospels you begin to get a little clearer picture of this woman's dire situation.

Mark 5:25–34 KJV 1900

25 And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, 26 And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, 27 When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. 28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. 29 And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. 30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? 31 And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? 32 And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. 33 But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. 34 And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

Here was a woman who had exhausted every measure but could not be healed by mortal man’s hands!

The Bible actually tells us she had spent everything she had seeing physician after physician and had only gotten worse!

Here was a woman at the end of her rope!

Because of her condition and the letter of the law she was rendered unclean meaning she couldn’t touch anyone or anything without that person or thing going through a cleansing process.

She couldn’t attend the synagogue because of her condition and after 12 years of dealing with this plague, she hears of this man named Jesus!

And having exhausted every other measure and coming up short, and hearing of the miracles this man named Jesus had been performing, she decides in her heart that if she can but touch Him, she would be made whole!

I don’t need Him to see me, I don’t need to make a scene, and I know there’s probably going to be dire consequences if they find out what I’m hiding but this is my last chance, my last shot at being healed of this awful disease!

So, she braves the crowd she’s not even supposed to be in. She pushes through and makes her way to Jesus and then, just at the right time, when no one is looking, she thinks no one will ever know, she reaches out and touches the hem of Jesus garment!

At that moment, though she didn’t mean to cause a scene, cause a scene she did!

Jesus knew the very second this woman laid a hand on Him.

He could tell that healing power had went out from Him!

He stops everything and turns about to see who had touched Him.

He asks, who touched me?

I believe for split moment, time stood still as Jesus asked this question.

His disciples thought He was crazy and say, “Lord there are people everywhere what do you mean who touched you? It could have been anyone in this frenzied crowd!”

But Jesus, knew more than they knew.

He knew there was someone there who needed to confess what they had done.

Someone needed to confess their faith in Him!

Can I tell you this morning that there is no thing such as a silent Saint!

In order to trust in Jesus there must be a confession of such!

Romans 10:9–10 KJV 1900

9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

There must be belief and confession!

This woman had exuded belief but had tried to skip out on the confession but Jesus wouldn’t allow it to be so!

I love how Luke’s gospel adds in the little detail...

Luke 8:47 KJV 1900

47 And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.

Listen to me this morning friend, try as you might, there’s no hiding from God, Amen!

Maybe you’re here this morning or watching online and you’ve been trying to hide from God!

God sees you right now, at this very moment He knows your heart and what you need to do!

Maybe you need to believe?

Maybe you need to confess?

Stop playing hide and go seek with God because you can’t hide from a God who sees all!

This lady confesses her situation and what she had done and then Jesus responds with these beautiful words...

“Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole.”

Notice what He calls her?

Daughter!

She had believed; she had confessed; and now she had been made whole…in more ways than she even knew, amen!

She was now whole physically and spiritually!

Chuck Swindoll — The irony of this miraculous touch shouldn’t be missed: Whereas the scribes would have believed that the woman’s discreet touch of Jesus’ garment imparted to Him ritual impurity, the opposite was true; the touch imparted to the woman Jesus’ cleansing power!

Let me ask you something this morning before moving on…are you whole spiritually?

Have you trusted in Jesus wholly?

If not, why don’t you make that move here today?

Request # 1 Cont’d — (Vs. 23-26)

Now, in the hustle and the bustle of the moment, we’ve forgotten all about Jairus!

Can you imagine what’s going on in Jairus’ mind right now?

His daughter was at the point of death when he left her and he’s hoping he’ll make it back in time but now this detour has happened and I’m sure the whole time this was playing out that Jairus was thinking to himself… “ok, come on Jesus! Do we really have to do this right now?”

What he didn’t know is that Jesus still had the situation under control!

Has it ever occurred to you that time doesn’t occur to God?

Here Jairus is and in his mind, time is running out but what he failed to understand is that the one who was in control of time was also the one in control of his situation!

Just as the scene with the lady comes to an end Jairus receives the dreaded news he’d hoped he’d never have to hear.

Luke 8:49–50 KJV 1900

49 While he yet spake, there cometh one from the ruler of the synagogue’s house, saying to him, Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master. 50 But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.

Can you imagine Jairus thoughts at this very moment?

It’s over. She’s gone. I can’t believe this is happening! If it hadn’t of been for this woman we might of made it in time! But now I’ll never see my baby girl alive again!

He did just heal this woman though. If He can do that without even touching her, maybe just maybe there’s something He can do for her too!

I have to believe! It’s the only shot I’ve got!

Just a flurry of emotions running through Jairus’ mind one after another overtaking each other every second!

They get to the house and Matthew tells us that there are minstrels playing and people making noise.

Minstrels were flute players and the people making noise were professional wailers (explain).

Mark 5:38 KJV 1900

38 And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.

Jesus comes on the scene and tells everyone to leave that she was not dead but sleeping and the Bible says they laughed Him to scorn!

He kicks them out and allows only the mom, dad and those that were with Him (Peter, James & John) to be inside and then Jesus takes the young girl by the hand and and she arose!

She that was dead is made alive again!

Then the Bible says that “NLT — the report of this miracle swept through the entire countryside!”

Now, you would think after such a busy day thus far, they would give Jesus a break but no, the requests just keep coming!

Request # 3 — Two Blind Men — (Vs. 27-31)

As Jesus and His disciples are leaving the house and heading back to what most believe to be Peter’s place, two blind men somehow hear of Jesus and begin following Him.

And as they are following they begin to cry out, “thou Son of David, have mercy on us.”

Now, something very interesting happens here…Jesus doesn’t just heal them.

He allows them to continue following and crying out “Son of David, have mercy on us!”

Now, this title “Son of David” has a great deal of significance because it referred to Jesus Messiahship.

It pointed to Jesus as a fulfilling of Old Testament prophecy.

John Phillips said — Perhaps one reason He did not heal them at once lay in the fact that they believed in His messiahship.

It was a delight to His heart to find two people who really and truly believed. So many were only half convinced, in spite of all He had said and done.

Even though the crowds were excited about the raising of Jairus’s daughter, they still had no real conviction that Israel’s promised Messiah had at last come. So He let the two blind men proclaim their message—He let the physically blind tell the spiritually blind that He was the Son of David.

He allows them to follow on making their request and proclamation until they came into the house.

One thing for sure we can say about these blind men is this…they were persistent, Amen!

After coming into the house Jesus asks them here, “do you believe I can do this thing you ask of me?”

To which they reply, “Yes, Lord.”

Jesus says, “According to your faith be it unto you.”

And their eyes were opened!

Isn’t it great to think that the first thing these blind men saw was Jesus!

What better sight could a man ask to see, Amen!

Jesus tells them not to tell anyone but as soon as they left the place they began to tell everyone!

Can I just say, when Jesus does for you spiritually what He did for these blind men physically, you will have no other option, no other desire but to go and tell someone about Him, Amen!

Has Jesus opened you eyes?

If so, when was the last time you went and blazed it abroad what He’s done for you?

And maybe you’re sitting here and your spiritual eyes have never been opened! Friend you have no idea what you’re missing!

Life takes on such a deeper meaning when the eyes of your heart are opened to Jesus, Amen!

Open the eyes of my heart Lord!

Open the eyes of my heart!

I want to see you! I want to see you!

Just when you think the requests are over, here comes another one!

Request # 4 — The Demon Possessed Dumb Man — (Vs. 32-33)

The door to Peter’s house had become a revolving door with people needing to see the Savior!

Don’t you wish people were still as eager to come see Jesus today?

As the blind men leave, the dumb demon possessed man enters.

Now, when the Bible says dumb here, it’s speaking of his inability to talk.

Jesus makes quick work of this demon and the dumb begins to speak!

I love the reaction of those around… “the multitudes marvelled, saying, it was never so seen in Israel!”

Only one could do what has been done but for those full of unbelief, there was but one thing left to do…cast shade on the miracles of the Lord in hopes that the people wouldn’t believe!

Look next with me at...

The Repudiation of the Pharisees — (Vs. 34-35)

Because they couldn’t explain away the miracles that Jesus had performed, the only thing left to do was make an excuse as to how He was doing it.

Sadly, they stooped so low as to claim that the reason He was able to do such miracles was because He was doing them through the power of Satan.

This is what we like to call nowadays…grasping at straws.

There was no denying that miracles had been performed. There was hiding the healings or suppressing the seers any longer.

The truth had been witnessed, the truth had been experienced, the people had eaten the loaves and the fishes, been touched by His healing hands and now the only thing left to do was come up with something so wild and crazy that maybe just maybe some people would buy into it!

The people didn’t buy it and Jesus didn’t give their comments a second thought.

He just continued doing what He had come to do.

The Reflection of the Lord — (Vs. 36-38)

The Bible says that Jesus just kept preaching, and teaching and healing and then in Verse 36 it says, “that when He saw the multitudes He was moved with compassion on them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd.”

Matthew 9:36 (NDSB Mt1): The word which is used for moved with compassion (splagchnistheis) is the strongest word for pity in the Greek language. It is formed from the word splagchna, which means the bowels, and it describes the compassion which moves people to the deepest depths of their being.

Jesus seen us for what we were and it broke His heart!

Sheep are horrible navigators and thinkers for themselves. If left alone they wander and stray and tend to find themselves in places they don’t need to be.

They tend to get themselves in sticky situations sometimes even following other’s leads right in to calamity.

Sheep need a shepherd.

And just as sheep need a physical shepherd, we as sheep need spiritual shepherds in our own lives to guide us! Jesus being the chief shepherd.

And this vision of lost sheep implores Jesus to make His final comment here at the end of Chapter 9.

Matthew 9:37–38 KJV 1900

37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; 38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.

William Barclay — Here is one of the most characteristic things Jesus ever said. When he and the orthodox religious leaders of his day looked on the crowd of ordinary men and women, they saw them in quite different ways. The Pharisees saw the masses as chaff to be destroyed and burned up; Jesus saw them as a harvest to be reaped and to be saved. The Pharisees in their pride looked for the destruction of sinners; Jesus in love died for the salvation of sinners.

Jesus calls us to action here. The harvest truly is plenteous but the laborers are few.

Would you be willing to submit to laboring for the harvest of the Lord this morning?

Martin Luther had a friend who felt about the Christian faith as he did. The friend was also a monk. They came to an agreement. Luther would go down into the dust and heat of the battle for the Reformation in the world; the friend would stay in the monastery and uphold Luther’s hands in prayer. So they began that way. Then, one night, the friend had a dream. He saw a vast field of corn as big as the world; and one solitary man was seeking to reap it—an impossible and a heartbreaking task. Then he caught a glimpse of the reaper’s face; and the reaper was Martin Luther; and Luther’s friend saw the truth in a flash. ‘I must leave my prayers’, he said, ‘and get to work.’ And so he left his pious solitude and went down to the world to labour in the harvest.

Geoffrey Heawood, headmaster of a great English public school, has written that the great tragedy and problem of this age is that we are standing at the crossroads, and the signposts have fallen down.

There have been studies come out recently that state over the next decade or so there is going to be a great falling away from the Christian faith.

Are we really going to let that happen?

It’s our job to be a street sign pointing people to Jesus!

It’s our job to live out our Christian faith as a testament to the Lord Jesus Christ!

It’s our job to rear our children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord!

It’s our job to share Jesus with others when He opens the door to do so!

It’s our job to labor!

Those who have been born again are the Church of the living God and if we care anything at all about her, we will do something about it!

We will labor until God calls us home for truly the harvest is plenteous but the laborers are few!

Close

As we come to a close, if you will remember I titled this message “Faith in Action & A Call to Action.”

I want us to recap really quickly what we’ve read this morning and I hope you can see a much larger picture take place.

We began with The Questioning of Our Lord.

This is the world. Trying to drag us down and keep our mind off of Jesus.

Trying to keep us focused on things that don’t matter instead of the things that do, which is our personal spiritual walk with Jesus.

Next, we had Jairus daughter and this is a picture of the toll that our sin has on our lives.

It eats away slowly until it ultimately ends in death! For the wages of sin is death!

But then, in the midst of our sinful lives we have an encounter with Jesus and our lives are changed forever which is represented by the lady with the issue of blood!

She understood her condition was dire and that she needed Jesus and she put her faith in action and came to Him and was healed of her awful disease!

She found a new life in Christ and you can do the same thing today if you will but trust in Him!

Jairus experienced this same principle by putting his faith in action and believing upon Jesus!

Jesus heals Jairus daughter and this is a picture of a lost person after being touched by Jesus.

We who were once dead in our trespasses and sins have been born again, made new creatures in Christ Jesus!

We who were dead have been made alive in Christ!

Then you have the blind men which is example of faith.

They were blind. They could not see and yet they believed!

This is the very meaning of faith…believing without seeing!

So many people want to see in order to believe but dear friend, if you intend on being saved, you must see with the eyes of your heart and not your head!

Believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ at once and you shall be saved!

And then we have the dumb man. He’s a picture along with the blind men of what happens when you get saved.

You tell others about Him!

Then we have the Pharisees.

They are a picture of the Devil who tries explain to away what’s happened to you!

He tries to hide your newfound life in Christ!

He wants to cloak it in mystery and keep you quiet and hope that it will fall to the wayside but we must determine to keep pressing on!

To keep preaching. To keep teaching. To keep telling. To keep laboring because there are so many more out there who need to hear the same good news that you heard and which saved your soul!

There is a call to action this morning!

For the saved and the lost!

If you are here and lost or watching online and lost the call from Jesus is for you to put your faith in action and trust in Him!

As we have seen this morning, there is no problem to big for God! There is no disease or death that God cannot heal or overcome!

The only requirement is faith...

Hebrews 11:6 KJV 1900

6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

As those blind men this morning, won’t you put your faith in action and come to Jesus today?

Romans 10:13 KJV 1900

13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

The call to action this morning for the lost is to put your faith in action and be saved!

Then, there is also a call to action for the saved.

Get busy!

The harvest is truly plenteous! There is plenty of work to do! There are plenty of lost people dying every single day and going to a devil’s hell all because there aren’t enough workers in the field!

Church, we need some laborers!

Jesus call to you this morning is this…get busy doing something for me!

Get busy leading someone to me!

Get your hearts right and look at the big picture!

People are dying lost every day and how many of those people could have come to know me if only you would have done something?

Take the time I’m giving you and do something productive for the Kingdom with it!

Don’t waste it away! Use it wisely!

If you are here and saved, won’t you commit to laboring for the Lord this morning?