Mark 5:21–43
21 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. 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. 24 And Jesus went with him; and much people followed him, and thronged him. 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. 35 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? 36 As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe. 37 And he suffered no man to follow him, save Peter, and James, and John the brother of James. 38 And he cometh to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and seeth the tumult, and them that wept and wailed greatly. 39 And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. 40 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. 41 And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise. 42 And straightway the damsel arose, and walked; for she was of the age of twelve years. And they were astonished with a great astonishment. 43 And he charged them straitly that no man should know it; and commanded that something should be given her to eat.
Jairus was an important man, the ruler of the synagogue.
He had put his position in jeopardy when he asked for help from our Lord, but who cares about a job when your child is dying? Coming to Christ might cost him, but for now Jairus is still an honored man.
Jesus agreed to go help this important fella’s daughter but their travel was greatly hindered by the crowd trying to get something from Christ. I guess even important folks aren't exempt from busy traffic are they?
Then Jesus stopped. They were in a hurry, on a mission for an important man with an urgent need but Jesus hit the brakes.
Why? He stopped to help a no name woman.
Everyone knew the ruler’s name, we still do, but only Heaven knows her name. She was a nobody with nothing. Whatever money she had, was wasted on unhelpful physicians.
Jesus made the important man wait.
I bet Jairus wasn’t used to that.
Maybe that women needed to be made to feel important for a change. She had been waiting for twelve years and it was someone else’s turn, so Jesus made Jairus wait.
Maybe, Jairus needed to know the world didn’t revolve around him, that there were others just as important to the Lord. So, Jairus had to pat his foot and check his watch while Jesus made him watch someone else take priority.
The delay didn’t make sense really.
The women’s situation didn’t seem urgent, it wasn’t life threatening. The case of the young girl however, her strait was dire. The lack of urgency shown by the Great Physician might seem like malpractice to some. I am not a doctor, but I have watched some on TV and they all seem to understand the need for triage.
You are supposed to prioritize the patients, aren’t you?
Yes, I am sure of it, yet Jesus took his time.
The delay proved deadly and the message arrived, “too late, the girl is dead”.
Jesus calmly encouraged the man to remain faithful and continued to the house. When he arrived, he cleared the room except for her parents, Peter, James and John and then Jesus simply told the dead daughter to rise.
When he said, “Talitha Cumi” (damsel arise), she arose!
There is life giving power in the Words of Christ!
We see in this story the reason for the Lord’s lack of urgency, no situation is beyond his control. If even death isn’t too much for him to overcome, then it is never too late for our Lord!
So, who reading these words is being forced to wait?
You have been waiting for an answer to a prayer?
Hoping for a healing?
Seeking success for a change?
I get ya. Waiting ain’t fun!
Listen to Jesus and the words he spoke to the man he made wait, “be not afraid, only believe”.
No situation is beyond him. Let him take his time, he does all things well.