Having Faith in God’s Healing Power
Shared on March 10, 2024
Many folks sought for Jesus to lay hands on them or to touch Him. They believed that the touch of Christ could heal. In this week’s lesson Pastor McCrary teaches about the healing power of faith in God. In our lesson we will see two desperate people come to Christ with the desire of His healing power. We will learn that many touched Jesus but were not heal but these who were healed all share one thing in common.
Introduction
Our Sunday School lesson this week runs in total contrast with what we saw in last week’s lesson. In last week’s lesson, we saw the heart of doubters as nothing Jesus said could move them to believing the truth. In today’s lesson, we take a look at those who truly have faith in the Lord. As you often hear me say, we can overcome any obstacle so long as we have faith in Christ (Phil. 4:13).
In Desperate Need of Help
Our lesson opens with Jesus returning to Galilee from the country of the Gadarenes (Luke 8:26,40). Jesus had just cast out the legion of demons that possessed a man in the country of the Gadarenes (Luke 8:30-33). The Gadarenes had asked Jesus to leave because they feared His power (Luke 8:37).
As Jesus returned to Galilee, He was approached by a man named Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue (Luke 8:41). Jairus fell at the feet of Jesus and begged Him to come to his home and heal his sick daughter (Luke 8:41-42). Jairus, we could say, seemed to be very desperate for Jesus’ help. Have you ever been so desperate for the help of Christ that you dropped to your knees in prayer?
The woman with an issue of blood
Jesus immediately began to follow the man to His home. Notice that Jesus did not ask Jairus any questions, He just followed. I picture how when we make our supplications known to the Lord, God never asks us any questions in return. God will respond to our prayers right away!
Now as Jesus was making His way to Jairus’ home, He was surrounded by a great multitude. Within that multitude was a woman with an issue of blood for twelve years (Luke 8:43). Scripture tells us that she had spent those years going to doctors that could not heal her.
So, why did she make her way to Jesus? Well, she believed that if she could simply touch Him, she would be healed. Jairus believed he needed to get Jesus to his house to lay His hands on his daughter so that she could be heeled. Both Jairus and this woman were very desperate!
Now, do you think these two people were moving with sincere faith? Or, were these people simply desperate and making a last ditch effort? Frankly, I believe this was a last ditch effort on both their parts but I don’t see anything wrong with that. I do believe that both these people believed or were open to believing.
What you go through in life will often force you to choose between having faith or not. Some of us make the choice to believe right away while it may take others up to that point of one last chance. I believe that these two had reached the point of desperation where they chose to believe. Sadly, not everyone chooses to believe in these moments.
Healed by Faith
Now, when the woman touched Jesus from behind, we are told that she was immediately healed (Luke 8:44). As He was being pressed upon by the crowd, Jesus asked out loud, “Who touched Me (Luke 8:45)?” This was a moment where Peter looks at Jesus like He’s crazy because everyone was touching Him.
Jesus responded to Peter, “Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me (Luke 8:46).” Is Jesus like some kind of conductor where all one has to do is touch Him and be healed? Well, notice that Jesus said “somebody” and not “they”. Though He was being pressed upon by a multitude, not everyone in the crowd was being healed!
So, why was everyone in the crowd not being healed? Some of us may think to ourselves, maybe they all didn’t need to be healed. To this thought, I would ask, do you think the rest of the multitude was perfect? I believe that all people are in need of some kind of healing from Christ! Nobody is perfect!
So, why weren’t everyone in the crowd being healed even though they were touching Jesus? The crowd backed off of Jesus and only the woman that was healed remained close by. I imagine that this woman was startled with a bit of joy as she realized she was healed.
The woman declared that she was the one that had touched Jesus and been healed (Luke 8:47). Now, notice what Jesus said to the woman about her healing. Jesus said, “your faith has made you well (Luke 8:48).” She may have thought that just by touching Jesus she would be healed but it was her faith that healed her!
A lot of times we aren’t healed of our afflictions because we doubt— we lack faith. When I say “our afflictions”, I want to be clear that our afflictions are just physical. No, we are also afflicted mentally, emotionally, and spiritually as well. We can be healed of all our afflictions through sincere faith in Christ! God does not have to touch you for you to be healed.
The Healing of Jairus’ Daughter
Let’s not forget about Jairus who may have been standing there still worried about his sick daughter. As Jesus was speaking with the woman, someone came to Jairus and told him his daughter died (Luke 8:49). They said to Jairus, “Do not trouble the Teacher.”
I imagine in this moment that Jairus’ heart sank. I can only imagine the thoughts running through this man’s head. He had to be thinking to himself that he was so close to saving her. He had to be thinking that he had done everything right by going to Jesus. Yet, his daughter still died.
Jesus, when He heard this announcement, quickly said, “Do not be afraid, only believe (Luke 8:50).” There is great power in this statement from Christ, especially coming after a man heard a loved one died. I remember when my dad passed away just how crushing of a blow that was for me. Yet, I could feel the Spirit urging me to move by faith, don’t be afraid.
Jesus said to Jairus, “she will be made well” and then made His way into Jairus’ house. Scripture points out that Jesus permitted no one to go in with Him except for Peter, James, John, Jairus, and the mother (Luke 8:51). Why did Jesus only permit this group to be in the house with Him?
Jairus and the mother wept as they entered but Jesus told them not to weep because “she is not dead, but sleeping (Luke 8:52).” So, did the girl not die? The people laughed and ridiculed Jesus for saying that because the girl was dead (Luke 8:53). I’m certain they checked her pulse and got nothing in return.
Jesus shared similar language about death when He told the disciples of Lazarus’s death. Jesus said to them, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up (John 11:11).” When the disciples misunderstood Jesus, He had to tell them plainly, “Lazarus is dead (John 11:12-14).”
Jesus did not view death in the same way that we view death. While the body may physically die, Jesus knows that the soul is still living. After our physical death, Jesus says that the soul takes a rest until we are risen with Him at the last day.
So, Jesus was being comforting to Jairus and the mother while also knowing that the girl’s soul was still living. After putting those that ridiculed Him out of the house, Jesus took the girl by the hand and called on her to rise (Luke 8:54). This, again, reminds of the raising of Lazarus from the dead as he was also called forth (John 11:43). The girl’s spirit returned to the flesh and she rose immediately (Luke 8:55).
What was it that had healed this girl and brought her back to life? Was it Jesus touching her by the hand? Was it Jesus calling her forth? Jairus believed and the girl’s spirit was put back into the flesh.
The Power of Faith
The power of Jesus should be undoubted but, again, His power was doubted. Jesus told her parents to tell no one what happened, which I always find to be interesting (Luke 8:56). Jesus charged quite a few of those He healed to tell nobody. Why did Jesus give this charge?
Scripture does not give us a definite answer as to why Jesus would charge some of those He healed not to tell anyone. It could have been possible that Jesus only desired for those to come to Him for the message and not the show. It could have been that He did not want those He healed to be touched and groped over by multitudes as well. Such answers are just speculation.
That being said, a note that I want to conclude today’s lesson on is about the power of faith. I feel like we sincere believers underestimate just how powerful we can be. Recently I have spoken about how we often give power to those who don’t really have power, for example, the devil. Satan is not God’s equal! God is almighty and the devil is a fallen angel that was created by God.
I preached a series of sermons last year – “Know Thyself”. The reason why I preached this series is because we need to know that we have incredible power. The power that we sincere believers have comes through our faith in Christ.
When Paul said that he could do all things, he didn’t say he could do all things through his own power and might. The biggest mistake you can make today is trying to take things on by your own power and might. We are at our weakest when we try to take things on without Christ. So, I encourage you all today to live life with Christ. Be of sincere faith as there is great power in faith in Christ.