A Desperate Dad And His Dying Daughter
Take your Bibles and turn to Luke 8. We don't realize how crucial it is to have the presence of a father in the house: a Christian father, a praying father, just a father. The statistics I have in my hand are shocking to me. The U.S. Department of Health and Census says that 63% of youth suicides are from fatherless homes. That's five times the average. Ninety percent of homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes. Eighty-five percent of all children who show behavioral disorders come from fatherless homes. Eighty percent of rapists with anger problems come from fatherless homes. Do you think the devil isn't working overtime in order to get the father out of the home?
Seventy-one percent of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. Seventy-five percent of all adolescent patients in chemical abuse centers come from fatherless homes. Seventy percent of youths in state-operated institutions [prisons] come from fatherless homes. Clearly, fathers represent a lot more than just a paycheck. They represent safety, protection, guidance, friendship, and someone to look up to if they love the Lord, if they are doing what they are called to do.
Let's look at Verse 40. Jesus has just returned to Capernaum, which was His headquarters, from the land of the Gadarenes. A crazy man lived there, and when Christ shows up, He delivers him and sets him free. These demons entered 2,000 pigs, and these pigs ran down a hill into a lake and drowned. So Jesus was asked to leave that part of the region. They sent Him out. He was unwelcome in the land of the Gadarenes, so He travels back to Capernaum.
"So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Jesus." Jesus is now at the peak of His popularity in His ministry. Thousands upon thousands are flocking to Him. Remember when He said, "If I be lifted up, I will draw all men to Me?" He was talking about the cross, and if we will lift Him up in praise, I believe He will pull people in. I believe the Lord wants His house full. The crowds were enormous everywhere Jesus went because of His mighty miracle-working ministry.
The fact that churches are empty today may be due to the fact that not many are getting saved. How can a church go for months and months and no one get saved? What are you doing when you go for 52 weeks and no one has gotten saved? Well, we're having our little club meetings. We here at Maranatha are out to see lives changed, people touched, set free, delivered.
Verse 41: "And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue." You can say he was a Pastor, but he was more than a Pastor. He ran what went on in that synagogue, and everything revolved around this Jewish community in Capernaum. They didn't miss attending the synagogue when the circus came to town. You come to church when it's convenient. It's amazing. In the Winter, it's too slick, it's too cold. In the Summer, it's too hot; but in Capernaum, everything revolved around the synagogue. When the Sabbath Day came around, everything shut down.
Jairus was the one that selected who would preach, who would read the Scriptures. The Scriptures to them was a scroll, the Old Testament, and it was so sacred to them that the ruler, the leader of the synagogue, made sure nothing happened to the Scriptures. This man had it made. He had all there was to have. He had power. When he walked into a room, people stood up. He had preeminence, prosperity.
One Nazarene man told me years ago that he was on the board of a Nazarene church, and he thought his job was to keep the Preacher under his thumb, to keep him humble and poor. He was confessing this in a public meeting and asking for forgiveness. This man had prosperity, prestige, prominence, and power. He had it made. When you were the ruler of a synagogue, you were something in town. People looked up to you, but I have found out something in life.
You can have the newest and shiniest car. You can live in a big house. I've got people here in the house praying that, between 2:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. today, somehow some way they will win a $500,000 house. It's amazing when we can have so much "stuff," but with all the "stuff" we have--retirement, 40lK's, stock and bonds, medical insurance--let me tell you something. Sometimes when we have all there is to have, we get problems we can't solve.
I and one of our deacons was in the home yesterday of a dying man. Let me tell you what his environment consists of right now--a bed, sheets, a pillow, and the ceiling. He is receiving 24/7 care, but it doesn't matter if that house has 5 bedrooms and 3 baths. It doesn't matter if he has a 2-car garage or if his car is parked under a car port. It doesn't matter if his car is new or old. He has been sent home to die. Do you ever think about death? Do you ever think about the fact that one day your life on this planet will be over? Do you ever think about dying? Do you think that when you die that's the end of life? I don't think so.
Here comes a man that has all this prestige and preeminence, and he has a major problem, but thank God. I wonder where YOU go when you need help? Where do you go when you've checked with this doctor, had this x-ray or report, driven to Cleveland and Duke? Where do you go when nothing in life can bring a solution to your problem? Where do you run to? A lot of people run to church when they get in a crisis. Don't ever make fun of a person who runs to church just because they're in a crisis, because sometimes God has to shake us to wake us!
There is a situation going on in the synagogue in Capernaum. Christ is performing miracles, and they are debating as to who He is. I think He's the Messiah. I think He's the Son of God. Oh you're crazy. Do you think God is in flesh? There is a debate going on in the synagogue, and Jairus is the head of the synagogue.
Do you know there is a debate going on in America about Jesus? He's married to Mary Magdalene. He has kids! He has kids, but Mary Magdalene didn't produce them. He has a bride, but His bride is His Church. For 2,000 years, there has been a debate about who Jesus is.
There is a debate going on, Jairus is the leader of the synagogue, and the Pharisees are saying, "The whole world is going after Him," and thousands upon thousands go where He goes. If you're the ruler of your synagogue, and there is a debate in your church, if there is a split in your church. That's what we start doing in church. We start lining up groups. I'm Baptist. I'm Pentecostal. I'm Church of God. I'm Catholic. You're either saved, or you're not saved. God doesn't have 15-20 teams. He has one church, and it's made up of everybody that has been born again, washed in the blood, accepted Christ as their Savior. Quit bragging about being this or that. Just say, "I follow Jesus!" If you don't do that, it doesn't matter what church you go to.
Jairus, ruler of the synagogue, comes to Jesus, "falls down at His feet and begs Jesus to come to his house." Don't let anybody talk you out of inviting Jesus to your house. I'm not talking about religion. I'm talking about a person. Jairus asked a person to come into his house. People say, "Oh, I've joined the church." You can't join this church I'm talking about. You have to be born into it. I didn't join the Wright family. I was born into it. Church, Christ said, "You have to be born again."
Look at how Jairus comes to Jesus in his desperation. He came (1) broken. Please don't distort what I'm getting ready to say. He comes not caring what the religious people think about Jesus. People say, "Well, I don't care!" Everybody cares about something, but he came broken. (2) He came bowing down. The word "fell" there means one person is going lower than the other person, and it is in submission to authority. In falling down at the feet of Jesus, Jairus is telling Jesus, "I can't help myself. Will you help me?"
I'm going to show you something that is amazing. In the Old Testament, you will find where the Bible says, "Take off your shoe." We're talking about something different than where Moses was at the burning bush. In the Old Testament, there was a certain covenant where you took off your shoe and gave it to the person you were going into covenant with. What you were telling the person when you gave them your shoe was, "I can't help myself. If I get any help, it is going to come from you, and the only thing I can offer you is my sandal. I'm telling you that I can't go another step without your help. I'm submitting to you."
When Jairus fell down, he wasn't going through some form or fashion in order to impress someone. He has thrown away his dignity, because someone in the crowd is going to talk about him. Someone might talk about you, but when you're desperate, you don't care who talks about you. I know people who come to Maranatha, sit in the back, and stick their necks out. I know they are wondering when we're going to bring the snakes out. They're not coming out, because, if they come out, I'm gone!
You're not desperate enough. People say, "Well, I'm just kind of hiding here. I'm trying to be anonymous. I don't really want anyone to know I'm at Maranatha." Well, the camera goes around, and they see you on the Internet. Uncle Joe just saw you; but he isn't going to say anything because if he saw you at Maranatha, that means he's watching it.
Jairus comes (1) broken, (2) bowing, and (3) begging. He begs Jesus to come to his house. What has taken him away from his duty at the synagogue? I'll tell you why he is desperate. He has a dying daughter. Look at Verse 42. "For he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she was dying." How many daughters does he have? Just one, and she is the sunshine of his life. His only daughter is dying, he is desperate, he comes to Jesus for help, and Mark 5:23 says, "If you will come to my house and lay your hands on my daughter, she will be healed." In both Scriptures, Jesus doesn't say a word. He just starts following him.
So as they are heading toward Jairus' house, Verse 43 says, "Now a woman, having a flow of blood for twelve years." It's interesting to me that the child was born 12 years ago, and this woman, who also was a daughter. The daddy of this daughter over here is coming to Christ to intervene for his daughter, but this woman has no daddy to come and help her. She is coming all by herself.
Thank God for the fathers who will come and intervene for their daughters, but thank God for the daughters who, I don't think this was an accident. I think God was bringing this day to pass. I personally believe that God was setting the devil up. I believe God sets us up. You mean God started this woman bleeding 12 years ago? No, I didn't say that, and I don't think God made this daughter sick. I think that is the work of the devil. I really do. In the crises we go through, I believe the devil is trying to crush us. He's trying to take us out, but if we will get to the right person, and His name is Jesus, I believe He can intervene. I believe God can turn your problem around.
The Bible says this woman begins to confess what she believed about Jesus. Deep down in your heart of hearts, what do you really believe about Jesus? Is He the only way, or do you believe He is one of the many ways? Do you believe He is God in flesh? You have to know what you believe about Jesus. People say, well, I don't believe in smoking, I don't believe in drinking, and I don't believe in cussing. I'm not talking about that. What do you believe about Jesus? If you listen to testimonies in churches, all you will hear is I don't do this and I don't do that. What do you believe about Jesus?
Jesus came to save sinners, and the Bible talks about His mercies [plural]. Do you know why? Mercy got me up this morning. Mercy got me to church. Mercy got me from one place to another. Is anybody glad for God's mercies? Has anybody had to dip into the well of God's mercies more than once?
So, she confesses what she believes about Jesus. "If only I can touch the hem of His garment, I shall be made whole," but she also puts her faith on display by doing something when she makes contact with Jesus. Multitudes were around Jesus. Some were even bumping up against Him, but she was the only one that created a cure. She confessed with her mouth what she believed about Jesus. She put her faith into action by making contact with Jesus. Put these two together, and she created a cure, because, later, Christ says, "Your faith has made you whole."
I believe we can create an atmosphere for miracles. The Bible says that "God enthrones Himself on the praises of His people," and it's no wonder when people come to church and say, "It's too hot. It's too cold. It's too loud. It's too soft." Brothers and Sisters, if somehow some way we could just forget about ourselves and concentrate on Jesus and begin to worship Him and praise Him. Well, I'm not worthy. No one is worthy. Well, I just don't feel well. Praise Him through your feelings. I believe we can create an atmosphere where the miracle-working power of God can be released.
She is continually confessing, and when she touches Him, Jesus stops and says, "Who touched Me?" I think it was a joke to the disciples. People were trying to get up close to Jesus where the blessing was. This woman is the only one that gets what she came for, because she didn't touch Him accidentally. She touched Him on purpose. The Holy Ghost begins to move in a meeting, and this one gets blessed and healed and saved, but this one [yawns]. Any desperate person in this house will get what you came for if you will believe in Jesus and make contact with Him by faith.
Jesus starts looking around for this woman. He knew where she was, but didn't want to point her out. He wanted her to do it on her own. Verse 47 says, "She came trembling and falling down before Him, she confessed everything she had happen to her." How long do you think it took? She had spent all her money on doctors. She is now penniless. Jairus is somewhere in the crowd, and nowhere in Mark 5 or Luke 8 does it say he says a word. He doesn't say a word.
There has been a disastrous delay. There has been an unscheduled appoint-ment. Jesus gets stuck in traffic, and here is a desperate father with a dying daughter, and he is waiting. Do you think he is doing it with joy? How long did it take? We don't know, but I guarantee you she took the long route. Women go in circles. Men get to the point. Women go shopping. We go hunting.
I don't go to 15 men's stores to find a pair of pants. I go to one, and the minute I find them, I buy them. A woman goes for a dress. She will go to every store, come back to the first one she went to and buy the dress. Let's go home. I need a purse. Once she finds the purse, we're ready to go. But I don't have any shoes to match the purse to wear with the dress. Do you have any idea how many shoe stores there are for women in malls? Have you ever gone to where they sell men's shoes? There is one row, black, brown, black, brown, black, and brown. Wait, there's another black one. Oh, and one over here.
How long do you think it took her to tell ALL of the story? Women will come up to me and they just have to tell me every little detail. They will start down this trail, and half way down they will go down another trail. I'll say, but we're over here. But this relates. How? I'll get to it. Men come in and say, I was sick, got healed, praise God! You don't see men going up to each other and saying, "How are you feeling? You look down. Are you distressed? Share your feelings with me." I don't want to know how he feels.
This woman is telling everything that has happened to her, and Jairus isn't saying a word. Do you think he is getting blessed by her testimony? No, no, no. That isn't happening. Verse 48 says, "And He said to her, 'Daughter, be of good cheer, your faith has made you well.'" He acclaimed her, He encouraged her faith, and while Jesus is still speaking, they come from Jairus' house, and this is what they say to Jairus. Jesus is talking to the woman that has now been healed and the servants come and say, "Your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the Teacher."
Let me tell you my opinion about them calling Jesus "Teacher." I believe these in the synagogue only believed that this Jesus was a pretty good Teacher, and He could draw a crowd. They also had heard about some miracles, but they weren't really sure He had done any of those, but they knew one thing. Death has now come, and the Teacher's ability has just stopped. There is no use to bother Him any longer, because He can't go any further because He is just a Teacher.
I'm here to tell you that my Jesus has the keys to death, hell, and the grave. He makes a divine declaration that we need to hold onto today. Jesus is ignoring the bad report. Sometimes we just have to give a deaf ear to people. They will drag you down into a valley. Sometimes you just have to ignore what people are saying. Well, so and so said this. Just ignore it, and Jesus said to Jairus, "Do not be afraid."
"Don't be afraid" is found 600 times in the Word. He says, "Son, remain fearless." Then He says, "Only believe." In the Greek it means this. "You came to me believing. It brought you out of your house. You left the bed of your dying daughter. You came all the way to where I am believing." What He is saying here is, "What brought you to me, if you will just keep on, will take us all the way to her house." Don't stop believing just because the situation has changed. Don't stop believing because of a bad report.
Jairus hasn't seen his daughter. He is believing what they said. At this point, it is just a word. Words can paralyze you and cause you to have fear, or words can cause you to have faith. Right now a decision has to be made. Are you going to operate in fear, or are you going to operate in faith? Every day of our lives, we have choices and decisions to make. Destiny is determined by decision. Quit blaming it on grandpa and grandma. You are who you are today because of the decisions you made. Take some blame for where you are. You can change your tomorrows by changing your decisions today.
That's why for many, many decades, Billy Graham has been telling people, "Make a decision for Jesus today." I watched his wife's funeral yesterday. They buried her in a pine box built by a prisoner in the state penitentiary in Louisiana that cost $200. That prisoner made two of them. One for Ruth Graham and one for Billy Graham. She knew she didn't need to be buried in a Cadillac, because she is only going to visit.
"Do not be afraid, only believe. Remain fearless and faithful." So they travel on down and finally get to Jairus' house, and there are professional mourners there. Judaism would bring in professional mourners that would lead the family in lamentations, in weeping and wailing; and when Jesus gets there, He says, "Why are you weeping? She is only asleep."
If you will read the writings of the Apostle Paul, you will find out that he tells you that death is sleep. Death is not annihilation. It's separation. If you go to bed and sleep all night long without being disturbed, it seems like seconds when you wake up. That's why Christ was speaking of death as sleep. The body is asleep. When you die your body will be asleep, but your Spirit. Death is not when your heart stops and your brain stops functioning. Death is when your Spirit leaves your body. God breathed into Adam, and he became a living Spirit.
This daughter is dead. Her body is asleep, but she is somewhere. So, Christ comes in, and these mourners become mockers; because, when He said, "She is only asleep," these mourners began to ridicule Jesus. Guess what He did? He threw them out. Sweet, loving, tender, kind, precious Jesus threw them out.
He took five people in there: Peter, James, John, momma and daddy. He walks into the room where the little girl's body is lying. Jairus had asked Jesus, "Come to my house and touch my daughter and she will be made whole." If you read the Scriptures, He grabbed her by the hand. Her hand was cold. He touched her hand and spoke words of life. He said, "Little girl,"
Wait a minute. Is He talking to that dead body? No, He's not talking to a dead body. He's talking to a little girl. He is calling her spirit back from the Place of Departed Spirits. Do you know that 10,000 years from now, you will be somewhere? For a believer in Christ, the Bible says, "To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord." When Jesus was dying on the cross, there was a thief there and he said, "Remember me when you come into your Kingdom," and Christ said, "Today you will be with Me in Paradise."
The Place of Departed Spirits is called Sheol, and the upper region of Sheol is Paradise. Remember the rich man that had died and ended up in Hades? Remember the beggar who died and ended up in Paradise, and the rich man asked for just a drop of water? He said, "I can't do it. There is a great gulf fixed in between."
When Christ died, let me tell you where He went for three days. He went to Paradise, the upper region of Sheol; and according to 1 Peter, He preached there, and those in Hades heard Him preach but with no hope. So, when He says, "Little girl," He is calling her back from the spirit world. You say you don't believe that? Look at the Verse 55. "Then her spirit returned." Where was her spirit? In Paradise. He said, "Little girl, get up."
There was only one way she could get up. He called her spirit back, and her spirit went back into her body, "and she arose immediately." It's quiet in here. Some of you have never heard this before in your life. What do you think happens when you die? You think you just go to sleep. No, there's no soul slumber. You're either in hell or you're in Heaven.
When Christ arose from the grave, He led captivity captive. He emptied Paradise. The saints of God are not in Paradise. They're in Heaven. They're in spirit bodies, but they can see and hear and touch. All they are waiting for is the Second Coming of Jesus when He comes back and the body is resurrected. When that spirit went back into her body, disease had left her. That tells me, when the resurrection day comes, disease will be gone. We don't know what this disease had done to her body, but no matter what had been going on in her body, it was instantly restored the moment her spirit returned.
It's a symbol of the resurrection. The spirit comes back in, and the body is free of blindness, deafness, cancer, and sickness. I don't know about you, but when you get to the last mile of the road, you may be interested in what I'm telling you. You plan this trip and that trip, and get brochures; but you're going to die and be somewhere for eternity, and you don't even know what the trip is about. You have no idea that God is going to take this planet, burn it completely up, and resurrect it. It's going to be called a New Earth.
Do you know that you were built for eternity? Doctors today do not know why we age. They can't figure out why the body dies. There is a curse on the body. It happened in the Garden of Eden. This body is going to die, but I was built for eternity. I'm going to live on a resurrected earth in a resurrected body.
The Bible says the little girl's parents were "overwhelmed with amazement." In the Greek it says, "They were out of their minds." What can you say when your daughter that was dead is now alive? What are you going to do when you get to Heaven and see someone that you loved all of their life and wept at their funeral?
I got saved at the age of 18. I prayed for my daddy, but I never heard my daddy pray. He never read the Scriptures to me. I was sent to Sunday School, but when he was 80 years old, he was blind, but he could see. When he was 80 years old, I had the privilege of taking my father into the water, buried with Jesus, resurrected to life.
Jairus was not ashamed to come to Jesus for help. He was not ashamed to invite Him into his home. If you had a praying daddy, you ought to be thankful. As a matter of fact, if your father has passed away and gone on, you should come to the altar and thank God. Not all of us can do that. Some of your fathers cried out for you, and in some of our cases, WE cried out for them. If you had a believing daddy, and he influenced your life for Christ, you ought to be so thankful.
If you don't know Christ, you need to invite Him into your heart and invite Him into your home, because your home needs Jesus. Some of you are in crisis situations right now, and you've got to have help. Christ is that help.