A Job for JesusНамуна

Who touched me?

The writer of Hebrews is trying to place before us the danger of getting cemented into religious dogmatic systems and duties. He urges us to go into the richer meaning for which religion existed in the first place—that is to bring us into meaningful relationships. In the Old Testament law, the high priest could not be touched. Religion has a tendency to cause people to back off and not draw close. We tend to love our principles more than we love our people.

Jesus is on his way to Jairus' daughter. His daughter was sick and on the brink of death (there is nothing gloomier than having a child in trouble). Jairus has influence in society to fix and move things but now has run into a problem that he couldn’t unravel. This was a job for Jesus. Whenever you have a job that is beyond you this has to be a job for Jesus. 

Everybody is thronging around Jesus and waiting in expectation to get to the destination, never noticing that God has a plan along the way and in the process. 

Walking with God is not so much about the destination. It is about the things that happen along the way. We miss that the greatest lessons are sometimes along the pilgrimage.

The woman’s name is not mentioned, so probably she has no significance? She is known by her problem rather than by her name. Sometimes the problem becomes so big in your life that it swallows up your identity. Have you had a problem so big that you have lost sight of what has been happening and gripped by what has consumed you? Sometimes all we are praying for is about the issue. Do something dear God...and we lose sight of who God is. 

Whenever you start talking big about your problem you are magnifying your problem and whatever you praise will be intensified in your life.

This woman has been sick for twelve long years. When you have an issue for a month you can pull through. When a problem stays a few months it is bad enough. Now consider twelve long years. When the problem first attacked her she had means to tackle it. She had relationships, but it was all taken away. She had relationships with doctors that promised to fix her problem but that was taken away too. No doubt, the woman is not just losing blood, she may also be losing finances and human bonding, because the law said that a woman who had an issue could not have a relationship. Wherever she sat and touched had to be declared unclean. Her issue had separated her from society. What are the issues that separate you from others? 

Sometimes God has to close every other door before you are able to see him clearly. Faith is born when our ability fails. It starts at our human limitation. You start believing God when you have run out of options.

Most times during a miracle in the New Testament Jesus came to the victim and performed the miracle. But in this case he was not moving in her direction. His back was turned to her. Have you gone through something in life when you have felt that his back was turned to you and voices say, "Where is your God now? Looks like God is blessing everyone else but you!"?

Notice Jesus’ response. He says, "Who touched me?" It is actually an indictment to all of the entourage around him who were surrounding him but never touched him. Like us, all around him but more concerned with who has the greatest church or the greatest choir, or the greatest set of deacons. None of this touched him. Finally somebody came and touched him. Notice the disciples' response: "What do you mean, who touched you?"

Let God touch you today. You may be written off as a hopeless case, but allow God to touch you and make you whole. We have a high priest who can be touched by our infirmities.