Mark 5:21-43

What do Subway, Jimmy John’s, Jersey Mikes, and Quiznos all have in common? (Sandwiches)

Which is the best??? (Hero’s Subs (Chicago) - Ed Aileen).

In order to find out which sandwich chain is the best, you have to compare and contrast. Mark is going to tell us a story today and force us to compare and contrast the characters presented. He doesn’t want us to try and determine which one is better. He wants us his readers to identify with them and arrive as some unmistakable points to ponder.

Why are we talking about sandwiches? This passage contains another Markan sandwich. We have seen this before. Mark will start telling a story, then interjects another story, then finishes the first story. We saw this a few chapters back,

Family / (switches gears to Scribes of the Pharisees / Family - When Mark does this He is connecting thematic motifs for us to consider. I think the name of the sandwich Mark served us a few weeks ago was, “The what not to do with Jesus” sandwich.

The name of this sandwich is “All You Can Eat” sandwich. And it will become clear why it is named that by the end of the message time.

Mark 5:21–43 (ESV)

21 And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea.

22 Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet 23 and implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.”

24 And he went with him. And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him.

25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, 26 and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse.

27 She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 28 For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.”

29 And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?”

31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 32 And he looked around to see who had done it.

33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

35 While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler’s house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?”

36 But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”

37 And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John the brother of James. 38 They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly.

39 And when he had entered, he said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but sleeping.” 40 And they laughed at him. But he put them all outside and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was.

41 Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” 42 And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement.

43 And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.

PRAY

Mark wants us to compare and contrast these two stories as He mashes them together so that after inspecting the ins and outs of the details we arrive at a set of conclusions that are unmistakable.

There will be some unmistakable points to ponder at the end of the message.

Contrasting

How were these people different?

1. One was a man. One was a woman.

There is a difference despite the insanity of our culture. There is a difference. By design, males and females are different. A person’s genetic, biological sex is an immutable characteristic of their being that cannot be changed by mutilating body parts or messing with chemicals.

2. The man had a name. The woman was unnamed.

Mark 5:22 (ESV)

22 Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name…

Mark 5:25 (ESV)

25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years,

3. The man held a high profile position in the synagogue and was ritually clean. The woman was indistinguishable and unable to enter the synagogue because of perpetual uncleanness.

Mark 5:22 (ESV)

22 Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name…

Jairus had a high profile, he was a “ruler” of the synagogue. We have already talked about the importance of the synagogue in the Jewish community in those days. It was the social and religious center of the town in those days. This guy, he is one of it’s rulers. Everyone would know him.

No one was eligible to this office until he had a certificate from the Great Sanhedrim. In order to get their blessing their were a whole bunch of requisite qualifications. Jairus had those! Then he had to be elected by the members of the synagogue itself. He had the vote of the people and the backing of the group that served as the judicial authority for the Jews. He had a high profile.

Contrast that with the indistinguishable among the crowd women we read about in verse 25.

Mark 5:25 (ESV)

25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years,

Her is an unknown and unnamed women whose only claim to any sense of fame is that she is one who has been unclean for 12 years straight. She lived in a perpetual state of constant uncleaness. Her condition did not let her have a high profile. In fact she attempted to be as low profile as possible. If her condition was found out, she would be socially and religiously shunned.

It seems strange that in my work week I ended up studying things regarding this subject matter, but a women suffering from this condition was called a “zabah.”

More than likely this is a menstrual cycle that isn’t going right because it is always going. I am certain she was scared and confused. She probably lived a lonely and isolated existence wondering what was wrong with her. Surely she tried to hide what was “wrong with her” because who can exist in a state of uncleaness for 12 years straight? And it’s not like she didn’t try to improve her condition.

Mark 5:26 (ESV)

26 and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse.

She had “suffered much under many physicians.”

As if the condition wasn’t life jarring enough, she “suffered much, under many physicians.” If your heart string are tugged yet, make sure you have a pulse. This is so sad.

Some of the most defeating times of peoples lives are when they go so see professional after professional, specialist after specialist and they all end up just worsening the situation and shrugging their shoulders when they are done.

This is defeating in any area of life; but especially when it centers on your health and something as sensitive and important as the life reproduction process. This is devastating.

How might she have suffered under many physicians?

I had to do a deep dive in the Jewish literature to come up with a set of prescriptions.

The Talmud, which is a collection of rabbinic Jewish texts that record the oral tradition of the early rabbis speaks of a number of methods, medicines and treatment plans that were to be applied to this type of illness.

“One remedy consisted of drinking a goblet of wine containing a powder compounded from rubber, alum and garden crocuses. Another treatment consisted of a dose of Persian onions cooked in wine administered with the summons, “Arise out of your flow of blood!” Other physicians prescribed sudden shock, or the carrying of the ash of an ostrich’s egg in a certain cloth.”

None of that worked. So she existed in a state of uncleaness that caused her to be a low profile as possible. She was left alone.

Maybe she honored the religious and civil laws for the first few months, maybe even a year, but after a while, she couldn’t just remain out of society forever. But it is really hard to hide what is “wrong with us,” for that long, eventually the truth comes out and when it did for her she was undesirable, more than likely unavailable for marriage and lived under the shadow of a social stigma that crushed her. She was considered walking pollution.

So here is a guy who is socially sought after in order to experience a cleansing as he worked in the synagogue, and a women who people shunned due to her unclean status and was not allowed in that synagogue.

4. The man had money. The woman had nothing.

This is subtle, but we need to see something in…

Mark 5:38 (ESV)

38 They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly.

So we know that this man had a “house,” and he was able to afford professional mourners who could come help in the grieving process. At that time it was required by custom that even the poorest or the poor would have to “hire a minimum of two fluteplayers and one professional mourner.” But what we see here is probably a lot more than just the minimum, there seems to be more people in the mix for this loss and I think we need to contrast that with what Mark tells us about the woman who…

Mark 5:26 (ESV)

26 …had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse.

One seemed to have it all and lacked nothing, while the other had spent all she had and lacked everything.

5. The man was confident. The woman was hesitant.

Jairus approached Jesus with a direct request.

Mark 5:22–23 (ESV)

22 Jairus…implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.”

This word, “implored” is the same word used we saw last week translated, “begged,” but here we see a little bit of a nuance. Jairus was the “ruler” of the synagogue. He had authority, and Jairus more than likely had already seen first hand what Jesus could do with His power. Remember the leper that was cleansed in chapter one? Where did that cleansing take place? In the synagogue in Capernaum. Jairus was confident to ask a direct request from Jesus because of his position as ruler of the synagogue and because of seeing first hand what Jesus could do. But, the woman on the other hand only…

Mark 5:27 (ESV)

27 …had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment.

She heard “the reports” about what Jesus could do. She hadn’t witnessed first hand what Jesus could do, she was about to, but up until her healing, she had only “heard” from a distance. And because she was unclean and hadn’t witnessed first hand, she decides it would be better to not approach Him directly, but rather she will just come up behind him and touch His garments.

There are more things we could observe, but we have made the point. These people are vastly different.

Last week we identified a man who was unclean as unclean could be as he lived among the tombs near thousands of pigs. This week we see two people who are as different as different can be.

There is more we can contrast, but let’s pause on briefly compare them and their individual situations for a moment and then ponder a few unmistakable points as we wrap up.

Comparing

We are not going to take time to read all the verses to substantiate these things, you can read them on your own.

Both stories feature a female that had a physical need. The little girl was 12 years old and the woman suffered with her condition for 12 years. Jairus was concerned for his daughter; Jesus was concerned for his when He addressed her he said,

Mark 5:34 (ESV)

34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

Both experienced desperation, both experience fear and both demonstrated faith and they both believed that if Jesus was involved in their situation, their situations might change.

The unmistakable points to ponder.

No matter who we are,

1. We need Jesus to be involved in our situations.

Both these vastly different people recognize their need for Jesus and Jesus makes Himself available to both of them. No matter what our situations might be, no matter how “important” we actually are or how “unimportant” we think we are, Jesus is making Himself available to us. We may be at the very top of our game, but we still need Jesus. We might be at the very end of our ropes, we still need Jesus. And Jesus makes Himself available.

And, in order for Him to be involved in our situations,

2. We must come to Him.

If Jairus doesn’t come, his daughter doesn’t get raised to new life. If the daughter subject to bleeding doesn’t come, she doesn’t get physically healed and reestablished into the broader society. We must come to Him. All Who seek Him with sincerity and with earnest can have certainty that once they get to Him, they will get from Him all that they need.

Here are two final questions to consider.

What does coming to Jesus look like and what do we really need?

First,

What does coming to Jesus look like?

Well, it very, very hard, because it is very, very humbling. It is probably the opposite of what comes natural to us who have any semblance of pride.

Mark 5:22 (ESV)

22 Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet

Jairus was the “ruler” of the synagogue and he swallows his pride, admits his inability and falls down before Jesus essentially saying, I don’t have it in me to have happen what I want to have happen. My position, as powerful as it is, has a ceiling. And so he comes and he falls down before Jesus. He humbles himself and admits his need.

and of the woman Mark says,

Mark 5:33 (ESV)

33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth.

This woman was seemingly as low as low could be, but she finds another level as she comes to him, fears and all and falls down before Him. And among the massive crowd that she had successfully remain indistinguishable among, begins to verbally tell Him the whole truth of her situation. She is completely empty at this point. No more secrets. No more wondering if she would be found out. No more wrestling with her conscience or ruled by the jeering of others. She dumps it all out before him and is now as empty as empty can be, which provides the perfect opportunity for Jesus to fill her up and satisfy her by saying these words,

Mark 5:34 (ESV)

34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

She, for the first time in 12 years had a peace that surpassed her understanding. And it didn’t happen because she acted on her faith, her faith was her acting.

Faith is not an inner sense of certainty or the eradication of all fears and doubts. Faith is acting according to God's word even while we are afraid. Faith proves itself in obedience and so she went out with peace and was “healed of her disease.”

Both these individuals, who are categorically different as different can be, do the exact same thing, they come to Jesus with their fears in tow and fall down before Jesus.

That is what “coming to Jesus” looks like. Humbling yourself before Him admitting your need. And that is the second question.

What do we really need?

Well the grown woman needed to be saved from what ailed her, and the little girl needed to be raised from the dead.

I can’t wait to show you this. Collectively these two women needed to be saved and raised.

Look at this verse and notice the word Mark records for us that Jesus says.

Mark 5:34 (ESV)

34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

That phrase “has made you well” in the Greek is one word: σέσωκεν which root word is σῴζω which is brought into the English as “saved.”

This woman needed to be “saved” and her faith in Jesus ability brought about her salvation.

And what about the little girl? What does Mark record that Jesus says to her?

Mark 5:41–42 (ESV)

41 Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise (ἐγείρω).” 42 And immediately the girl got up (ἀνίστημι) and began walking…

This is resurrection language. Look at the last chapter of Mark as he writes about Jesus rising from the dead. To “the women” who arrived at the burial site of Jesus, the angel says to them,

Mark 16:6 (ESV)

6 And he said to them (the women), “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen (ἐγείρω); he is not here. See the place where they laid (τίθημι) him.

The little girl needed to be raised up just like Jesus. Collectively the women in our passage needed to be saved and raised.

Their need is exactly what we need as well.

When we humbly come to Jesus and recognize our ultimate need of being saved by Him and raised up by Him, He will give us what we want, that we can’t bring about ourselves.

And look how this ends it is almost comical. The people that once laughed at Jesus thinking he was crazy for suggesting that he could help a dead girl are now the people after witnessing the “resurrecting power of Jesus,” are…

Mark 5:42–43 (ESV)

42 …overcome with amazement. 43 And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.

He laughs last, laughs the longest and the loudest. Jesus clearly proved His control and dominance over the demons in the last sermon and here His Kingdom’s power is proving to undo the sting of death itself!!!

This is something to celebrate and Jesus then tells those people who had to pick their jaws up off the floor to “give the little girl” something to eat!

Why do you give her and “All You Can Eat” sandwich. What I mean by that is that everyone of us who wants to eat, can eat. He is offering to us the “bread of life” which is Himself. But, people that aren’t hunger don’t eat. You and I have to come to Him hungry. We have to be willing to admit our hunger and despite our fears, our faith has to digest and internalize what is being served up to us on the cross of Christ so that we too can be saved and experience resurrection.

May the quality and the deliciousness of this sandwich compel us all to come to Him now as we enter into a time of Holy Communion.

Pray

Benediction

I know how intimidating it can be to make a public acknowledgement of your need.

No matter who you are, we all struggle to some degree with fear and faith. Come to Jesus.

No matter who you are, you are going to need assistance upon your death bed. Come to Jesus.

In the Kingdom of Christ, it doesn’t matter if you are a nobody or a somebody. The Kingdom of Christ is open to everybody.

What is your favorite place to get a sandwich and what is your “go to” order?

What will it look like to have Jesus be “involved in your situation?” Where do you need Jesus to show up this week, and when He shows up, what do you anticipate that looking like? (ex. the little girl was raised, the grown women was saved). What do you need Jesus to do for you this week?

What would it look like for you to “humble yourself” before Jesus and “fall down” before Him?

What fears do you typically struggle with? Have you come to Jesus with your fears?