Oh, Lord, our God, we are thankful to know that our times are in your hands and that according to your wisdom and your love and your justice, you lead human history and you lead each of our lives individually. And we pray as we look into your word, you will give us insight into your wisdom and your ways and your goodness to us. So bless us by your Holy Spirit, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Please be seated. Some of you may know that when Calvin was exiled from Geneva, his first pastorate there didn't go very well. You know it's not going well when they kick you out after 18 months. He was gone for about three years, and when they called him back, recognizing they couldn't get along without him, his first sermon was eagerly anticipated, and he began by saying, take off where we left off last time. So that's what I'm doing. I'm taking up where I left off last time in September with our study of Luke's gospel, and I ask you to turn with me in Luke chapter 8 to verse 40, and we'll read verses 40 through 56. Luke chapter 8 at verse 40. Let us hear God's own word. Now when Jesus returned, that is, returned from Gennesaret, now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue, and falling at Jesus' feet, he implored him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter about 12 years of age and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him and there was a woman who had a discharge of blood for 12 years. And though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. And Jesus said, who was it that touched me? When all denied it, Peter said, Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you. But Jesus said, someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me. And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling and falling down before him, declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him and how she had been immediately healed. And he said to her, Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, your daughter is dead do not trouble the teacher anymore but jesus on hearing this answered him do not fear only believe and she will be well and when he came to the house he allowed no one to enter with him except peter and john and james and the father and mother of the child And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, do not weep, for she is not dead, but sleeping. And they laughed at him, knowing she was dead. But taking her by the hand, he called, saying, child, arise. And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. And the parents were amazed that he charged them to tell no one what had happened. So far the reading of God's Word. They were all waiting for Jesus. He'd been gone across the Sea of Galilee, you remember, to Gennesaret, to Gentile territory. He probably had not been gone very long. Remember, it was just about a six-mile trip across the Sea of Galilee. He might even have been able to make that trip there and back in a day, probably at most a day or two or three. He hadn't been gone very long. But they were waiting for him. And then comes, after his welcome, two quite familiar stories. The illness and death of Jairus' daughter. and subsequent resurrection and the healing of the woman with the issue of blood. Now, do you ever think what process ministers go through when they're studying the scripture? Sometimes you read a passage, especially if you're preaching through a book, and think to yourself, why didn't I just skip around instead of preaching straight through? Because if you skip around, you can preach passages that immediately connect with you. If you're preaching through a book, you sometimes have to pause and figure out, what am I going to do with this? And I have to publicly confess, confession is good for the soul, that when I first read this, I thought to myself, another healing, another resurrection. We've already talked about that. Now, isn't that sad that we're not gripped by the amazement of the power of Jesus Christ to heal the sick and raise the dead? But I wasn't initially. I thought, haven't I already preached about a healing and about a resurrection? But as you study this passage, you come to realize what we all know, that every part of the Bible has its own distinctive message, its own particular angle to help us. And I was chagrined by my lack of faith because this is, to quote Reverend Gordon, now my favorite passage. But it's sort of true. You get so excited about what the Lord has revealed and what he has given to us in this passage. This is a kind of unique story in the Bible. there are two stories intertwined. There's two stories very much interconnected. And Luke shows us that in the way he tells the story, beginning one story, interrupting it with another story, coming back to the original story, but he also connects it through certain words that repeat. Both Jairus and the woman ultimately tremble and fall at his feet. The number 12 is important in both stories. Jairus' daughter is 12 years old. The woman has been sick 12 years. The word daughter is very important here because Jairus has a daughter and Jesus says to the woman after he's healed her, daughter. And so these things are to be taken together and together they help us to see another angle as Jesus shows us the nature of the kingdom that he is bringing into the world. The theme of kingdom is repeated a number of times in Luke 8 and Luke 9. Jesus is bringing the kingdom. Jesus is preaching the kingdom. He's bringing the secrets of the kingdom. He's bringing the good news of the kingdom. He's sending disciples out to teach the kingdom. He's showing the kingdom here in a profound way. And he's showing the kingdom to those who wait. That's how this section begins. He was welcomed by those who had been waiting. And in particular, he shows the kingdom to those who are waiting with three particular needs. Three. Three points. A proper sermon. We enjoy kidding back and forth. We're not mad at one another. Or at least I'm not mad at the domain. Three waiting situations that I hope will help us. The first is those who wait and worry. Those who are waiting and worrying. I bet none of you have ever worried. So this sermon may not be for you. But for those of you who have worried, even once or twice in your life, this is a sermon for you. Waiting and worrying. Think of Jairus, a father. A famous man. His name is given. An influential man. A wealthy man, no doubt. He's the ruler of the synagogue. And he's worrying because his only daughter is dying. Now, in all likelihood, this is some problem for the daughter that's come on very quickly. He's been waiting for Jesus to come back from this short trip. Because I think his daughter has suddenly become ill, and seriously ill, terribly ill. And he's come running through the crowd that's waiting for Jesus. And although he's a proud man, he's an important man, he throws himself at the feet of Jesus and implores him. begs him to come to his house to help his daughter. He knows the time is short. His suffering is intense. He's humbled before the Lord, seeking the Lord's help. And we can identify with him, can't we? We can identify with those who are intensely suffering, Those on whom suffering has come suddenly and unexpectedly. Those who are waiting and worrying. And then there's another one who has waited. This woman. She's apparently not important or influential. She's not given a name. Maybe as she was there in the crowd around Jesus, few people knew particularly who she was. We're told explicitly that she's poor because everything she had she spent on doctors trying to find relief from this discharge of blood. A condition that is chronic, long-standing, 12 years she's suffered, debilitating, weakening. Physically, a real problem for her. But it's not only a physical problem for her, It's a serious religious problem for her. Because according to Leviticus 25, a woman with an issue of blood is ritually unclean. No one is supposed to touch her. And so a social barrier has descended on her, separating her from friends and family. And she has had this long suffering, this chronic condition. And we can appreciate her worry, too, can't we? We can appreciate her suffering. We can see the struggle of a long-suffering. And so we can enter into this passage, can't we? Because we have known situations of intense suffering and of long-suffering. And most of us have experienced those things to one extent or another in our own lives. And so, we're eager to see, how does the kingdom come to those who are waiting and those who are worrying? Well, this passage says it comes to the waiting and witnessing. Because we're told to look at what Jesus is doing and saying for those who are the weary and the worrying. What is Jesus doing? If I'm more consistent with my alliterations, what is Jesus working and what are his words for those who are witnessing the kingdom coming to the worrying? He comes with power and authority, Luke 9, verse 1 says. And the actions, his works, are several in this text. The first work, and we might easily overlook it, the first work is that he goes with Jairus. Now we saw this morning, didn't we, that Jesus doesn't have to go with those who are suffering to aid them. He could just speak a word of command. That's what we read in John 4 this morning. But here, for the sake of Jairus and his family and their suffering, he's willing to go with them. And Jesus sets out. And think how relieved Jairus must have been. Think how relieved Jairus must have been. The master's going to come with me. And then as he's going along, surrounded by a crowd, he suddenly stops and asks a question, who touched me? because another work has been done to Jesus, a work that no one has seen, a work that no one except Jesus knows about. This woman has touched him, this woman with the issue of blood, this woman who has suffered 12 long years has come and touched him. She didn't even want to speak to him. She didn't want to make any fuss. But in her need, in her weariness and worry, She knew if she could just touch him, all would be well. And immediately, she's healed. And Jesus pauses to talk to her. We'll come back to that. But in that moment of talking to her, in that time of talking to her, word comes from Jairus' house that his daughters died. And there's no need further to bother the master. But Jesus is never bothered by the needs of his people and he goes with Jairus to the house and he raises the girl from the dead. Child, arise, he said. And she was awakened from the dead. It's amazing the works of Jesus that are displayed here, his power, his authority, his glory being open to us for just a minute. But as wonderful as these works are, even more wonderful, if I can say that, are the words that he speaks, the words that are witnessed by the waiting. What does he have to say to his people who are waiting? If you're waiting, you want the words of Jesus, don't you? And he has words for you. And that first word is pausing in the midst of this crowd to say, who touched me? and Peter, who isn't always very on the mark, but can always speak for the crowd, Peter says, a lot of people touched you. There's a crowd here. They're pressing in on you. You know, he's not, you know, in an SUV like a politician making his way down the road with guards keeping the crowds at a distance. The crowds have pushed in on him. Lots of people are touching him. He sort of has to make his way through the crowd. He's rubbing shoulders with all sorts of people. Who touched you? Everyone's touching you. And Jesus says, someone special touched me. I perceive healing power has gone out of me. Now, why does Jesus ask this question? Does he not know who touched her? Now, this is a simple question. You all ought to be able to get this right. Jesus is the Son of God. He knows who touched him. So why is he asking this question? Because he wants to display to the crowd the great works that God is doing amongst them. And it illustrates for us that God is often at work in ways we don't see, in ways we don't appreciate. And he's sometimes at work in lives of our brothers and sisters in Christ that we don't hear about. Maybe we don't want to talk about the struggles we've gone through and how the Lord has helped. But here, to show the coming of the kingdom, to show something of the glory of the kingdom that he's bringing, Jesus calls this woman to come and to confess, declare, make known what has happened to her. And so she comes trembling. She comes falling at his feet. And she says, I just touched him. I knew if I touched him, I would be healed. And on touching the hem of his garment, I was immediately healed. And what does Jesus say? Does he say, you shouldn't have touched me because you're unclean? Does he say you should have stood far off and just made your request? No, and verse 48 is the very center of this whole episode. He speaks these wonderful words to her daughter. Daughter. He's showing that he loves this woman as much as Jairus loves his daughter. She's part of the family of God, and that means he loves her. That should be so precious to all of us, that Jesus looks at us, looks down from heaven at us, and he sees us in our various needs, and he says, son, daughter. Verse 48, your faith has made you well. Now, the word here, made you well, is one of those words that has more than one meaning. In the old translation, it was equally well put. Your faith has saved you. Saved you from your physical affliction, but also saved you from your spiritual affliction. Your faith has saved you. Now, when Jesus says that, he never means you've worked up enough faith as a virtue and as a work that you've saved yourself. What Jesus always means by faith is faith is looking away from yourself and trusting in Jesus. And she's looked away from herself. She's looked away from all of her works to try to find a medicine that would heal her. And she's looked away from her helplessness to the helper. She's put her trust in him. She's rested in him. And because she turned to him, She's saved, and she's well. And he can say to her, go in peace. What a wonderful thing. We'll end this service, and I'll raise my hands, and I'll say, not quite, but close, go in peace. That's how Jesus sends his people out to live in the world. In peace, because they're reconciled to God, because they know the love of God, because they know that the blessing of God goes with them, because he has saved them, and they've believed what Jesus said. Go in peace. Wonderful words. Wonderful words. But while he took time for this woman, while he took time to show the glory of the kingdom in salvation and healing, while he took time to speak to her as his beloved daughter, Jairus' daughter died. And so as Jesus turns from the woman to accompany Jairus, word comes from the household of Jairus, your daughter is dead. Do not bother the master anymore. From the world's point of view, There is no clearer and bitterer end than death. The world pretends it can do so many things, but even the world cannot pretend that it can conquer death. Death is the end. Death is the point beyond which nothing more can possibly be expected. So don't bother the master. He can do wonderful things. He can heal the sick. But when death comes into the world, even from him we cannot expect anything, is what the world says. So here is Jairus, who has been waiting, who has been worrying, who has been, I bet, a little bit frustrated as he has to stand there while Jesus takes care of this woman. There's Jairus, the rest. But Jesus has a word for him, doesn't he? Jesus has a word for him. Verse 50, but Jesus on hearing this, that the daughter is dead, answered him, do not fear. Do not fear. What an amazing thing. That is so often the message of God to his people. Don't be afraid. Don't judge by the world's judgment that leads to fear and hopelessness. Don't be afraid. Only believe. Did you just see this woman who was saved and healed because she believed, because she looked to me? Jairus, you now look to me. You now trust in me. Only believe, and she will be well. She will be saved. And maybe Jairus, if he'd been taught by the Pharisees who believed in the resurrection, thought, well, that's good that one day she will be well. One day she will be raped. But Jesus continued to accompany him to the house and went into the room where the girl lay dead. And we read in verse 51, he allowed no one to enter with him except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child, there are the five gathered around the bed. And what does Jesus say? Do not weep, for she is not dead, but sleeping. I don't know if you've talked to people when they're grieving. Ministers end up doing that. And one of the things that grieving people often say is, I know people want to be helpful, but they say sometimes really stupid things that sort of only compound the grief. Did Jesus say a stupid thing here? Now, I know you're too pious to answer that question wrongly. Jesus never says stupid things, but this is fairly remarkable. The girl is dead, and Jesus says she's not dead. She's only sleeping. And what did they do? They laughed at him. Who laughed at him? Well, apparently, they're in this room. There are just five of them. Apparently, the five of them laughed at him. It says they all laughed at him. The mother, the father, Peter, James, and John, his disciples, his apostles. They all laughed at Jesus. And maybe we scratch our heads and say, well, Jesus was wrong, wasn't he? She wasn't asleep. She was dead. The Bible says she was dead. But Jesus is never wrong. What he's doing here is the most amazing thing. He is redefining for Christians death. Those who die in the Lord are not dead. They are asleep. And it's interesting how when we look at the writing of the apostles later in the New Testament, we see how Jesus has changed the way they speak. The apostles, when they write, speak about the dead being asleep. Because that's the truth. The dead are not dead forever, as the world believes. But the dead will arise because they're only sleeping. They're only waiting for the revelation of the fullness of the kingdom of Christ. And these words should be in our hearts and in our minds. Every time we stand at a grave and say goodbye, we can walk away saying, this is not the end. They are only sleeping. They will rise again. because that's the promise of Jesus. And the world may laugh at him, but the Lord will have them in derision, because at the last day, at the last trumpet, when Jesus appears in all his glory, those who belong to him will rise first from the dead to share in his glory. He's redefining death here. And after they had laughed at him, he took the girl by the hand. That is interesting, too, because it renders you unclean, the law of Moses says, to touch a dead body. So he's touched a woman with an issue of blood, unclean. He's touched a dead body, unclean. Jesus takes our uncleanness on himself so that we might be saved and healed and whole. That's who the Savior is. And he shows who he is. Holding her hand, he speaks her back to life. Child, arise. And they stopped laughing because she sat up and she ate And she demonstrated that she was fully alive by the work of the Savior. The worrying had now witnessed the work of Jesus and the marvelous words of Jesus that bring life and healing and salvation. And then thirdly, briefly, he speaks to those who are waiting and weak. You notice he tells Jairus and his wife they can't tell anybody about this healing. Now, I don't know if any of you have ever lived in a small town. Capernaum was kind of a small town. Jairus and his wife didn't need to tell anybody that their daughter had been raised from the dead because everybody in town would know by the next morning that she had been raised from the dead. Those things just spread, don't they? But while he told Jairus that he didn't need to say anything, he had required the woman to speak, hadn't he? The woman with no name, the woman with no money, the woman with no influence. And Jesus is saying to all of us, I particularly use to build my kingdom the words of those who are waiting in weakness. It's not primarily the powerful. It's not primarily the noble. I've chosen the weak things of this world to bring to naught the strong. My strength is made perfect in weakness. And so she has this weak woman bear testimony to who the Savior really is, to all of his glory, to all of his goodness, to all of his love, to all of his power. And so Jesus shows his kingdom to the waiting, to the weak, to those who witness. And he says to all of us tonight, doesn't he, are you waiting for Jesus? Are you waiting with some intense suffering? Are you waiting with some long-suffering? Are you wondering, why did he heal them and not heal me and mine? Jesus is saying to you and to me, trust me. I know what I'm doing. I will accomplish my purpose. I will heal and save. I will raise from the dead in my good time. It's only a matter of time. And so as we wait, we may think of the words of Psalm 27, verse 17. Wait for the Lord. Be strong and let your heart take courage. Wait for the Lord. May all of us wait in hope and in faith and in confidence that Jesus will come and Jesus will save. Amen. Let us pray. oh lord our god we thank you for your word we thank you that it speaks to us in our struggles in our pain in our waiting and as we wait we pray that your word will comfort us that your spirit will build us up in the faith and that you will hear our prayer come quickly lord jesus for it's in his name that we pray Amen.