Jesus saw a woman who took a huge risk to get close enough to Him to experience His healing. He saw a woman who longed for the healing only God can give. What can we learn from this woman?
As Jesus went with him, he was surrounded by the crowds. A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding, and she could find no cure. Coming up behind Jesus, she touched the fringe of his robe. Immediately, the bleeding stopped.
“Who touched me?” Jesus asked.
Everyone denied it, and Peter said, “Master, this whole crowd is pressing up against you.”
But Jesus said, “Someone deliberately touched me, for I felt healing power go out from me.” When the woman realized that she could not stay hidden, she began to tremble and fell to her knees in front of him. The whole crowd heard her explain why she had touched him and that she had been immediately healed. “Daughter,” he said to her, “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” Luke 8:42-48
We probably all know this story. Jesus was approached by Jairus, a leader of the synagogue, begging Jesus to come heal his sick daughter. As He went with Jairus, a throng of people surrounded Him. The crowds pushed against Him as He walked, everyone wanting a small piece of the man who was creating such a stir by His strange teachings and miraculous healings.
Suddenly, Jesus felt power leave His body.
“Who touched me?” He asked.
The disciples thought the question was rather ridiculous. The crowd pushing against Him, longing to get close to Him, would make it impossible to identify only one person who touched Him.
But Jesus knew. It wasn’t an ordinary touch. It was a touch born out of desperation. A touch filled with faith. An intentional desire to touch the man who was known to heal people.
Honestly, Jesus knew who touched Him. He didn’t have to ask. All He needed to do was look at the crowd. His eyes could have identified her easily. He could have chosen just to give her a knowing smile, a look that let her know He knew her faith had healed her.
Instead, He called her out. He asked who had touched Him. With great fear and trembling, she admitted she had been the one who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment. She confessed her need for healing.
Jesus’ response? He looked at her with compassion. He saw so much more than she saw, so much more than others saw. He saw a woman who had enough faith to reach out in spite of her unclean condition. He saw a woman who took a huge risk to get close enough to Him to experience His healing. He saw a woman who longed for the healing only God can give.
What can we learn from this woman?
1. She acted with deliberation.
Read verse 46 again. The woman deliberately touched Jesus. Many people were touching Jesus incidentally, but this woman was deliberate in her actions.
That’s a lesson for us. It’s so easy to become complacent, to live our lives without intention. But, if we want to experience the healing power of our Savior, we must act deliberately.
How was this woman deliberate? Because of her medical condition, she would have been an outcast in society. She would have been required to stay away from people. Yet, here she was, pushing her way into the very middle of the crowd. She knew she was considered unclean, and yet she went against society to put herself in a position where she could touch Jesus. She took a risk in an effort to find healing from the Savior.
How about you? What are you doing to deliberately seek to be closer to Jesus?
2. She acted out of desperation.
I’m sure this woman had sought healing everywhere. She had seen the doctors. She had tried to heal on her own. Maybe she had even seen the sorcerers or other gods who were common in Bible times.
And yet, she continued to bleed, leaving her an outcast.
“Unclean,” she must have yelled as people came near.
“Unclean,” keeping her from the temple.
“Unclean,” forcing her into isolation.
Where could she turn? What could she do? Perhaps she saw this opportunity as her last futile attempt for healing. She was exhausted from trying to find healing. She was tired of this life of loneliness. She was desperate to find healing so she could live a somewhat normal life.
She was desperate for what only Jesus could give.
3. She acted with determination.
Can you imagine the courage it must have taken for this woman to put herself in this situation? She had to go against all the cultural norms. She risked complete humiliation if someone recognized her as the unclean woman. And yet, she acted anyway.
This woman had to push her way into the middle of a crowd. She had to fight against all those people to make her way close enough to touch Jesus. This was no small act. It required strength and courage. It forced her out of her comfort zone into a place where she was within arm’s reach of the man she had heard so much about. She knew her target was just the hem of His robe. She had planned out her strategy, clearly and concisely.
And it worked. Her determination allowed her to fight the crowd and her fears to get close enough to find His healing power.
Are you determined to find the healing you want? How do your actions demonstrate that determination?
4. Jesus called her Daughter.
Jesus always went above and beyond—and He still does. You see, Jesus healed the woman’s physical issue. But, He also healed her emotional problems. He removed her filth. He removed the labels that kept her in bondage. He took away her shame. He declared she was not unclean, but had been made whole.
She was a daughter.
She was no longer an outcast; she had a place of belonging. She was no longer unclean; she was washed white as snow. She was now a symbol of courage, a woman to be talked about for the rest of eternity.
He rescued her from her life of isolation and placed her in a family, the family of God.
What healed this woman? Was it her determination? Was it her desperation? Was it her deliberation? No. It was her faith. It may have only been a shred of faith after years of fruitlessly seeking healing, but it was enough.
How’s your faith? Maybe you are barely clinging to faith. Maybe you have given up on finding the healing—physical, mental, or emotional—you so desperately need. Maybe you have struggled with your faith, and you’ve all but given up on prayer.
But, there’s something that won’t let you completely walk away. That’s all the faith you need to find the healing you so desperately want. Just a small seed of faith, enough to give you the courage to try one final act of desperation.
That’s enough faith to find your miracle, to find the healing Jesus has to offer.
Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/PeteWill
Dena Johnson Martin is a former single mom of three who learned the power of walking intimately with God when her marriage fell apart. Her greatest desire is to use her darkest days to encourage others to find the joy of a life restored by Jesus Christ. She earned her Master's in Life Coaching and is available to assist others with rebuilding their lives after the storms of adultery and divorce. In her spare time, Dena works as a Registered Nurse and is a regular contributor at Crosswalk.com. If you would like to contact Dena, please feel free to interact with her on her blog, Dena Johnson Ministries or email her at Dena@denajohnson.com.
