When Jesus is Near, So Is Hope

Then one of the synagogue leaders, named Jairus, came, and when he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet. He pleaded earnestly with him. "My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live." So Jesus went with him. -Mark 5:22-24 (NIV)

It's hard for me to read the story of Jairus in Mark 5 without thinking about the story of the friends bringing a paralyzed man to Jesus in Mark 2. In the latter-mentioned story, we're told nothing of the faith of the paralyzed man and whether he really believes that Jesus can or will heal him. What we are told is that, when Jesus sees the faith of the four who brought the paralyzed man to him, he heals the paralyzed man. The implication is that when you and I are willing to place others before Jesus, our faith- regardless of the faith of the one we place before Jesus- can prompt Jesus to heal.

In the Jairus story, I expect a group of people to come with him to see Jesus. He is the synagogue leader and no doubt has plenty of friends and colleagues. I expect that Jairus, with his daughter near death, would not want to leave her side. Instead, I expect Jairus to send other people to fetch Jesus. And yet Jairus himself comes searching for Jesus. Maybe unlike the paralyzed man, who had four faith-filled friends, Jairus is alone in believing that Jesus can heal his daughter. Whereas the paralyzed man is not recorded as saying anything, Jairus humbles himself by falling at the feet of Jesus and he pleads earnestly for his daughter's life.

The word that keeps coming to mind this morning as I read this text is hope. Whenever Jesus is near, there is hope.

Is there something in your life that has you paralyzed? Are you not even sure that you can make a statement of faith right now? Hopefully, you have faithful and faith-filled friends who are willing to place you continually before the feet of Jesus where healing can take place. You may not believe that it's possible, but scripture testifies to the fact that the faith of your friends can bring healing to you. There is hope.

Do you feel all alone? Is there no one standing with you or beside you as you go through difficult times? There's still hope. Just humble yourself before Jesus, fall at his feet and earnestly plead your need. Do not be afraid; just believe (5:36).

May God grant you the grace to have faith-filled friends who will continuously place you before Jesus, the grace to be willing to fall at His feet and plead your need, the grace to trust that God will do what's best, and the grace to never ever lose hope.




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If you're interested in reading through the Bible in a year, tomorrow's suggested readings are Job 22, Psalm 121, and Mark 7-10.