The Shadow of the Empty Tomb
Mark 2026 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea. And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet,
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. And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.
And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse,
When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.
And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. 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?
And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing.
But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.
While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further? As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.
And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James. And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly.
And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying.
And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise. And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment.
And he charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.
Introduction
Introduction
In our passage, we find the climax of the first section of Mark. Jesus heals a person of an incurable disease and He raises to life a person that had died. Together, they look forward to the final victory won in the Empty Tomb on Easter Sunday.
Mark was likely the first Gospel written. Under the inspiration of God, he writes with an intent to point his readers toward the Cross and the Empty Tomb. Those who read are faced with a question: who is this Jesus?
As we grow in our walk with God this year, we want to be Following in the Life of Faith. That means that we must begin with the correct Person to put our faith in. Mark gives us the message of Jesus to all people.
Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
Will you commit each day to believe God and His promises? Will you confess your sins and choose to grow in relationship to Him? If you have not yet, will you believe in Him for salvation? Let’s Follow in the Life of Faith this year and see God do what He says He will!
There are a few things that most can agree are fears common to many people. One might be the fear of what other people think. Another might be the fear of being left alone. But the greatest fear that mankind can have is the fear of death. Every person has a day that they will die. Every person except for two: Enoch and Elijah. Only one Person died and rose again of His own power. Jesus died but is alive forevermore. He is the main character in the passage this morning. He brings hope instead of fear in the face of death. The contrast of faith and fear points to the change that Jesus can bring in a person’s life.
There are people here that are concerned about disease and death. Yet, Jesus, in the midst of a surging crowd and chaotic concerns, calmly addresses the problems and the faith of the two people He encounters. Jesus deals with individuals here to show us the trials of faith that we face often. This Easter morning, we will see the Shadow of the Empty Tomb as Jesus heals and raises the dead. Ultimately, the victory is won in the Cross and the Empty Tomb where our resurrection is made reality.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
Declaration
Declaration
This morning, Jesus calls us to "Be not afraid, only believe." The only proper response to the resurrection of Jesus is faith in Him alone. Today, we have the promise of spiritual cleansing and spiritual resurrection through Jesus pictured in these miracles. Let’s see three examples of faith in this story.
1. Faith Facing Danger
1. Faith Facing Danger
And when Jesus was passed over again by ship unto the other side, much people gathered unto him: and he was nigh unto the sea. And, behold, there cometh one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name; and when he saw him, he fell at his feet, 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. And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him.
The story begins with Jesus traveling back across the Sea of Galilee to the other side. It seems that He maybe in the city of Capernaum again. Jairus comes to Him to show us that there can be faith in a dangerous need.
Jairus is the ruler of the synagogue. This was a position that included selecting those who would read and preach in the synagogue as well as maintaining the building. Along with other tasks inside the synagogue, Jairus was likely an influential member of that town’s society. He comes here to Jesus despite what was probably scorn by the other religious leaders in town.
In verse 22, Jairus comes to Jesus and bows before Him. There is desperation and respect in this act. He begs Jesus to come and heal his daughter by laying his hands on her. Jesus had been doing exactly that in the area around Capernaum for months. There is real sadness in Jairus' voice as he says "my little daughter lieth at the point of death" in verse 23. This a dangerous situation that he comes to Jesus for help in. He has chosen to trust Jesus and, if Jesus comes, Jairus is confident that his daughter will live.
Faith has been a common theme in the book of Mark. The man who was paralyzed was rewarded with healing based on the faith of him and his friends. They brought him to Jesus as He alone could save.
And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.
There can be faith in danger as Jairus shows us. Jairus comes to Jesus and asks for help in his great concern. Jesus comes along with Him and responds to his request in verse 24. Do we have faith to go to Jesus when we are in danger? The sickness of a daughter is no different than any of our great needs. Spurgeon reminds us,
I have a great need for Christ; I have a great Christ for my need.
Charles Spurgeon
2. Faith Facing Defenselessness
2. Faith Facing Defenselessness
And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse, When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole. And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague. 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? And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.
As Jesus, Jairus, the disciples, and the great multitude move along, there is another person who needs Jesus help. A woman with a great disease shows us that there can be faith in the defenselessness of our lives. This woman, unnamed here in the Bible, is a picture of the simple faith that Jesus responds to in His ministry.
Her Trouble v. 25-26
Her Trouble v. 25-26
Verses 25-26 give us a picture of what this woman was suffering from. Like the demoniac earlier in chapter 5, Mark takes a few verses to give a more clear picture of the hopelessness and helplessness that she was experiencing. Without a great miracle, her life is a shambles.
This woman had an constant problem with bleeding. The Bible is not clear on exactly what was occuring. However, she was constantly unable to worship God in the Temple because of her loss of blood. Leviticus 15 gives the specific laws that described these restrictions. Being cut off from worshipping God must have been a terrible discouragement to her. The God who created her to worship Him was inaccessible to her because of the test that He had brought into her life.
The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
Verse 26 expands her incurable problem. She had gone to doctors but they had not been able to make the condition any better. Instead, she “suffered” because of them and she was worse off then she had been before.
These “physicians” would try natural concoctions to try to remove a sickness. Luke was likely one of these healers. There is a clear indication that in ancient Israel, sickness was treated with a spiritual as well as physical dimension. Jehovah brought the sickness and only He can deliver. Thus, prayer is important. To this point, nothing that anyone could do for her had made things any better. Like the prophet, neither prayer nor healing seemed to help her out of her unclean condition.
Is there no balm in Gilead; is there no physician there? why then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered?
The condition of the woman was such that she was broken, hopeless, and harmed by trying to fix her condition. She is not able to do anything for herself but continue to try to avoid causing any other person from being able to worship God. How sad would those twelve years have been! One writer points out,
The Bible Exposition Commentary Mark 5:21–34
Jairus was about to lose a daughter who had given him twelve years of happiness (
This is who we are without Jesus in our lives. We are like the woman who was not able to come into the presence of God because of her unclean condition. God cannot look on sin and there must be a remedy!
Her Faith v. 27-34
Her Faith v. 27-34
For twelve years, she was without any solution to her problem. But today was different from those other days! Today, Jesus was coming through town. Verse 27 tells us that she walked behind Jesus in order to simply touch His garment. Listen to what confidence she has,
For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.
Jesus had been healing all over Galilee. The people who came, many of them would touch His garments. Jesus rewarded their faith. But the faith in Him was what resulted in healing. It was not His clothing but the power of God as the Sovereign Creator of the Universe. There is no greater that God!
For he had healed many; insomuch that they pressed upon him for to touch him, as many as had plagues.
The woman comes through the crowd and touches Jesus. Immediately, verse 29 tells us that she is healed! She knew that the uncleanness was gone and she was now healed. She had come to the only person that could change her condition. Her faith was rewarded.
The same is true for us in our sin and suffering. We can only find relief in Him. Joseph Parker reminds us,
Preaching through the Bible: Mark-John Mark 5:34
All of us have to go to Christ through a crowd,—a crowd of objectors, of indifferent persons, of apathetic professors, of quibbling critics, etc.: if we be in earnest, we shall find our way to Christ
As Jairus tries his best to move quickly through the crowd, Jesus stops and turns back. He knows that someone has been healed by touching Him in faith. In verse 30, Jesus asks who it was that touched Him. The woman responds in faith and Jesus tells her the key to the miracle, “thy faith hath made thee whole.”
Were is your faith in the God? Only Jesus can remove the uncleanness of our sin. Under the Law, the Israelites would offer animals to cover their sins. One animal for one sin will never remove the stain and make a person right with God! Hebrews tells us,
But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
Our own actions are not able to get us to heaven. We cannot be right with God based on our works. Instead, as with this woman, the uncleanness and the loneliness cut off from worshipping God has been removed by the blood of Jesus.
Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;
There can be faith in the defenselessness of our lives. She believed that Jesus would heal her and she reached out in faith. Jesus responded to her faith and removed her disease. She was a changed person who could have freedom and fellowship now. Do you have faith in your defenselessness?
3. Faith Facing Death
3. Faith Facing Death
While he yet spake, there came from the ruler of the synagogue’s house certain which said, Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further? As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe. And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James. And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly. And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn. But when he had put them all out, he taketh the father and the mother of the damsel, and them that were with him, and entereth in where the damsel was lying. And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise. And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment. And he charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.
The story now reaches its darkest point. Some come to Jairus to tell him the worst possible news. In the midst of sorrow, there can be faith facing death.
Jesus responds to the words of these men with a command that must be heeded today. “Be not afraid, only believe.” We can all find something to be afraid of but only those who choose to will find Someone to believe in. We have this challenge today: will we believe God in the face of death?
For each person, death is coming. Death is not the end but it is a portal to eternity. Every person will spend eternity somewhere. The Bible says,
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Jesus speaks into the ear of Jairus a command. Will he be afraid of the failure of Jesus to come through in his life or will he believe? We have this same command today and the same challenge.
Verse 37-38 bring Jairus, Jesus, and three of the disciples to the house of the ruler. Here, there is sadness and hopelessness. The mourners have already arrived. As they enter the house, Jesus makes a declarative statement that the girl is just asleep. This is true of every person that Jesus will change. Where she is only sleeping, there is still hope! Jesus refers to her death as simple sleep.
As He enters the sick room, Jesus knows what is about to happen. He speaks to the child a simple request. As one commentary mentioned, this would be a similar greeting that the girl’s mother would have said on any morning as the sun shone in. And the girl rises up and walks having returned to life. Jesus has raised from the dead a person in need.
Verse 43 ends with Jesus showing that this was for the faith of those who were present and those who would read about it. Throughout the story, Jesus is showing that He has power even when there are obstructions in the way of producing healing. It seems that God was choosing to test the faith of Jairus in Jesus to do the impossible.
When we are faced with death, were is our faith? Can you feel the sorrow of Jairus as he is told that his daughter has died. All of his hope and all of his haste seems to have been wasted. Jesus speaks to him about faith instead of fear. He continues to follow Jesus to his house and he sees an impossible thing happen. His daughter who was dead is alive again! In the face of death, there is faith in the One who has conquered death. Paul tells us,
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.
There is life in Jesus alone. Jesus died on the cross for you and for me. He lived a perfect life and died in our place as a perfect Sacrifice. We will see that in the months ahead in Mark. On the third day, Sunday Morning, Jesus rose again and He lives forever more. Because Jesus rose again, He offers eternal life to all that will believe in Him! So Paul,
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
The good news of the kingdom of God is that Jesus is alive today. The rule of God is here. Jesus calls all to repent and believe in Him alone. There is fear in the face of death because Jesus has won the victory. From the miracle of Jairus’ daughter to the Empty Tomb to your heart, Jesus has won the victory. Will we trust Him today?
Conclusion
Conclusion
This morning, Jesus calls us to "Be not afraid, only believe." The only proper response to the resurrection of Jesus is faith in Him alone. Today, we have the promise of spiritual cleansing and spiritual resurrection through Jesus pictured in these miracles.
What will you do with Jesus? He heals the incurable and He raises the dead. No one else can do these things. He offers victory today! Will you believe Him? The shadow of the Empty Tomb reaches forward to this deceased girl and it reaches here to your needy heart. Will you believe Him?
That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
All of us are sinners. We have chosen to disobey God and His word. We face eternal punishment for our sin. But the grace of God is available through Jesus Christ. His death for us is sufficient to take away our sins and provide us a home in heaven. Will you believe?
We all face tests of faith:
In the face of danger, we can have faith that God cares and God responds.
In the face of defenselessness, we can have faith that God sees and God restores fellowship.
In the face of death, we can have faith that God casts out fear and restores faith.
God is still the God who raises the dead. He rose again on Easter to show us His power. Will we have faith in Him today? The good news of the kingdom is that God rose again and He can raise all dead in sin when they believe in Him!
For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
The Shadow of the Empty Tomb reminds us that our faith in Him is rewarded with new life because He is alive today! Will you believe Him?
