She Touched His Cloak

She Touched His Cloak

Mark 5:25 – Now a woman was there who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years. 26 – She had endured a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet instead of getting better, she grew worse.

verse 27 – When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 – for she kept saying, “If only I touch his clothes, I will be healed.” 29 – At once the bleeding stopped, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.

verse 30 – Jesus knew at once that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?” 31 – His disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing against you and you say, ‘Who touched me?'” 32 – But he looked around to see who had done it. 33 – Then the woman, with fear and trembling, knowing what had happened to her came adn fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 34 – He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”

The many doctors who were caring for the woman were causing her great pain.  She spent everything she had – she had nothing left to pay the medical bills. 

Once a year I go the chiropractor and I know she is going to inflict terrible pain on me – but I go because after the pain comes overflowing relief.  The pain is worth it!  But for this poor woman – the pain the doctors were inflicting was not bringing her the relief she was seeking – she was getting worse, not better.  She not only had to endure the pain from the disease but also the pain from the care.  All their efforts were failing. What was the point in allowing herself to be subjected to all this torture if it wasn’t going to make things better? 

It is the same for many people today.  We’re many years in the future from when the story of this woman took place.  People still get sick.  Many spend all their resources and have to appeal to others through fundraising to keep the medical care going and all for what?  To endure the endless torture of useless medical treatments that only make things worse – yet still hoping that the doctors will succeed.

This is not everyone’s story and yet in a sense it is.  We’ve all been afflicted with sin.  Humanity has endured thousands of years of trying to alleviate its effects.  We’re hemorrhaging life and resources at the hands of experts, PhDs, MDs, self-help gurus, and false prophets who appeal to us to try this cure and that cure to get relief (for a price) – only to find things getting worse.  So many have taken their own lives in despair when they discovered that the solutions were worse than the affliction.

But just when all hope seemed lost the woman heard about Jesus.

Have you heard about Jesus?  If you could only touch Him you would be healed.  You would be forgiven.  Jesus is the same today as He was back then.  He has the power to do what all the doctors and experts cannot.  Touch Him today – this moment.  May your faith make you well of your disease and your sin.  May your life be flooded with the peace that only Jesus can give.

You’ll be tempted to scoff at this solution and that is your choice.  If all your faith is wrapped up in a combination of medical care and Jesus, then so be it.  May your faith make you well – but this woman was made well not only of her disease but of everything the doctors had done to her in their failed attempts at making her well.  Jesus doesn’t need the doctors.  It is the doctors who need Jesus.  All humanity needs Jesus.

Let’s reach out and touch Jesus today!