Whew!

By Pastor Dan Hickling

Act 1

“While he was saying this, a synagogue leader came and knelt before him and said, ‘My daughter has just died. But come and put your hand on her, and she will live.’ Jesus got up and went with him, and so did his disciples. Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. She said to herself, ‘If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.’Jesus turned and saw her. ‘Take heart, daughter,’ he said, ‘your faith has healed you.’ And the woman was healed at that moment.”—Matthew 9:18–22 (NIV)

Jesus is in the middle of turning the religious system of His day upside down when He’s interrupted by a father whose daughter has just died. He begs Jesus to come to her side to heal her, but this interruption is interrupted by a woman suffering from an incurable condition who reaches out to touch His cloak. Jesus restores her health and her sense of identity as a beloved daughter of God.

Act 2

“When Jesus entered the synagogue leader’s house and saw the noisy crowd and people playing pipes, he said, ‘Go away. The girl is not dead but asleep.’ But they laughed at him. After the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took the girl by the hand, and she got up. News of this spread through all that region.”—Matthew 9:23–26 (NIV)

Jesus continues on with the frantic father whose daughter had just died. He arrives at the home and, ushers out the grieving gathering and says what nobody would dare say in a moment of mourning; that she’s not dead but just sleeping. Then, He proceeds to do the unthinkable by raising the departed daughter from the dead. News spreads as one can imagine.

Act 3

“As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, ‘Have mercy on us, Son of David!’When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, ‘Do you believe that I am able to do this?’‘Yes, Lord,’ they replied. Then he touched their eyes and said, ‘According to your faith let it be done to you’; and their sight was restored. Jesus warned them sternly, ‘See that no one knows about this.’ But they went out and spread the news about him all over that region.”—Matthew 9:27–31 (NIV)

Jesus proceeds on His course and is again interrupted, this time by two blind men begging for mercy and that their blindness would be healed. He touches their eyes, and they immediately receive the gift of sight. Despite telling them to keep this miracle under wraps, the two men go around spreading the news of what Jesus had just done. Again, news spreads.

Act 4

“While they were going out, a man who was demon-possessed and could not talk was brought to Jesus. And when the demon was driven out, the man who had been mute spoke. The crowd was amazed and said, ‘Nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel.’But the Pharisees said, ‘It is by the prince of demons that he drives out demons.’”—Matthew 9:32–34 (NIV)

Jesus moves on when He is, you guessed it, interrupted! This time, the interruption comes from a man who’s possessed by a demon that disabled his host from being able to speak. Jesus performs a dual healing, first by casting the demon out, which, in turn, restores the man’s ability to speak. In the wake of this unprecedented work, the religious rulers of that time, who were obviously unable to help the poor man, fire shots at Jesus by accusing Him of working in league with Satan.

Whew! No sooner does Jesus say or do something incredible than He’s interrupted with another staggering dilemma. And in each and every instance, He rises to the moment and does what only God in the flesh can do.

Why are we choosing to present this passage in such rapid succession? Because sometimes our perspective of Jesus and what it means to follow Him needs to get shaken! Our hearts can grow cold to the truth. We slip into a state of thinking of Him and the life of faith as, well . . . dull and boring. But anyone who associates Jesus with boredom isn’t actually looking at Him. They’re seeing some unworthy facsimile of Jesus that, quite honestly, nobody would or should follow.

The Lord is as alive and active now as He was then, and it’s a thrill to live in vital union with Him. Those are the facts, and they need to fall afresh on our hearts whenever they grow cold.

Pause: What isn’t Jesus? How can you regularly remind your heart of this?

Practice: In prayer, ask Jesus today to show you in ever-increasing measure who He truly is, to reveal more and more of His character and heart to you.

Pray: Lord, forgive us for ever associating You with the word “boring.” Refresh our hearts with the dynamic power of who You are and enable us to stay in step with You. Amen.