Sermon - “God’s Touch”

Texts: Mark 5:21-42, John 20:11-18

1 May 2005

Today we have read three stories of lives touched by Jesus’ presence:

• a young girl on the brink of life and the brink of death
• a sick and suffering woman, burdened by debilitating disease
• a faithful disciple, shaken by events of the last few days but not wanting to let her relationship with Jesus go.

The Girl

The book I have read most recently with my Book Club is called “The Good Women of China” - a compilation of stories of women’s lives and experiences. While they vary greatly in experience one of the common factors is the perception that having sons is of far greater value than being the mother of daughters. I’m aware that I would be considered very lucky if I lived in China, but don’t tell my sons or they might stop doing their chores!

We know from our biblical stories, particularly in the Old Testament, that this attitude was common to the Jewish people too. So it is a little unusual that a daughter is the focus of the story we read in Mark. Particularly if we remember it may be partly modelled on a couple of Old Testament stories from the books of Kings where Elijah and Elisha are both recorded as bringing young boys back to life. But here a ruler of the synagogue throwing himself at Jesus’ feet out of love and concern for his dying daughter. He asks Jesus to hurry home with him in the hope that his daughter would be made well again. Jesus doesn’t hesitate to set out with Jairus.

But before we see the happy end to her story there was an interruption by another encounter - a woman in the crowd who also reached out in desperation when Jesus passed by.

The bleeding woman

The two stories are sandwiched together in this way in all three synoptic gospels. The bleeding woman isn’t just a padding out of the other story to fill in the time it took Jesus to get to Jairus’ house. It is a complete healing story on its own, yet it is written to belong together with the story of Jairus’ daughter.

They are linked by the fact that both were called daughters - the leader of the synagogue begged for help out of love and concern for his only daughter, and Jesus showed this same concern, not only to the young girl but also to the insigificant unnamed woman who would clearly rather not be in the limelight. He called her daughter too, showing that his concern and care for those who seek him is as strong as the love of a devoted father. One of my favourite quotes is a statement from Max Lucardo which says ‘each of us is a divine work of art, signed by God.’ I heard an artist speaking once who said it was important to be ruthless, to screw up drawings that were not working. But the artist who created us is not like that. we might feel our life is not worth anything, that it should be screwed up and started again. But Jesus comes to people just as they are, offering life and healing and allowing us to hold our heads up as daughters of God.

The two stories are also linked by the number 12 - the woman’s illness had been for 12 years and Jairus’ dying daughter was 12 years old. In effect, the story tells us that the suffering of the woman had been for a lifetime. The 12 year old girl was just entering into womanhood, but the potential of life in all its fullness was now threatened. The woman with the constant flow of blood had not been able to experience life in its fullness for the time of her illness. You see a constant flow of blood made her ritually unclean. According to the levitical law she couldn’t be part of the congregation of the holy people. She wouldn’t be allowed near the place of worship. Anything she touched would be considered unclean. No wonder she was trying to be unobtrusive. When she touched the fringe of Jesus’ cloak she was touching the especially religious part of a Jewish man’s clothing. If it had been seen he too would be considered ritually unclean. But that didn’t seem to concern him - he turned around and asked who had touched his clothes. And then rather than berating her he spoke gently, commending her faith, recognising her worth. When he willingly took the hand of the dead child later he again risked the taboo of the ritual laws for the more important task of offering life in all its fullness to these women at risk. In Jesus’ eyes and with Jesus’ touch they became whole persons again. No longer shut out through religious taboos but welcomed back to their rightful place in God’s family.

The two stories are also linked by the theme of faith. The leader of the synagogue had come with the sure faith that Jesus could save his child. This faith was severely tested. Even in the midst of the story everything changed. A messenger came to say it was too late. Jairus didn’t turn away, but he must have wondered if there was any more hope. Mark tells us when Jesus raised his daughter he was filled with amazement. Even the leader of the synagogue can be surprised by the way God acts in the world. Circumstances may change, but God is always concerned with wholeness and renewal of faith. The last verse of this story is intriguing. “He strictly ordered them that no one should know about this…” That was asking the impossible - how could anyone keep quiet about such an event? The mourners were already outside making the noisy commotion demanded by Palestinian customs. They at least would need to have a reason for being told to go away. But maybe Mark was trying to warn us against merely being astonished by the miracle, and putting all our attention on that. The stories are told to show us that faith comes to fulfilment in a personal encounter with Jesus - whatever the circumstances we find ourselves in, if Jesus is there with us life and hope are possible.

The sick woman’s faith seemed to be initially at the level of superstition. She had heard about the power of this wondrous healer, and had come to see for herself whether his touch would restore her. But Mark’s account of the story prevents us from viewing Jesus as a superman who knew all things and could do all things. He had to ask the question “Who touched me?”, and by doing so invited the woman into conversation, allowing her to say in her own words what had happened to her. She was undoubtedly nervous. But what she said, and the words Jesus said to her, made it clear that her life was worth something to God. From now on she would be surrounded by the peace of God - that experience of faith that is hard to explain but can be a defining reality in our lives. And don’t forget that the biblical concept of peace is of wholeness, completeness.

One of the points in this combined story of healings is that the encounter with Jesus can’t remain anonymous. Jesus’ desire for secrecy notwithstanding, if he is really going to touch someone’s life, others will know about it. This is the very reason we celebrate baptism in our church - so that there is an opportunity to publicly acknowledge the impact Jesus has had on our lives. In a very dramatic way we can see how a life has been transformed. The story of the bleeding woman wouldn’t have been worth remembering if the woman had just slipped off into the crowd again. There may have been embarrassment, nerves, but by coming to the feet of Jesus she discovered words of liberation – “your faith has made you well. Go in peace.” By being taken by the hand and helped to stand the daughter of Jairus was able to return to the full potential of life. “Give her something to eat.” There is no separation between an inner life of spirituality and an outer life of normal events. When Jesus’ touch becomes real it affects our whole life. And others should be able to see the difference it is making. These stories are about people who were dramatically changed. But whatever our circumstances we ought to expect to be transformed by the touch of God on our lives. As Paul’s letters say, we should live as if we are being changed into the likeness of Christ. Letting our lives be shaped by the loving hands and the gentle words of our Lord, calling us back to life, healing our hurts, giving us a new future.

Mary Magdalene

The other story that we read is for me one of the most powerful gospel stories. Mary Magdalene has come to a new prominence lately with the astounding success of the novel the Da Vinci Code. But there have been people throughout Christian history who have acknowledged the important role she had in the gospels, the first of these being the writers of the gospels themselves. Each of them places her in the significant resurrection story. For John she was an ideal disciple. Even after all others had fled or were in hiding or wrung out by their grief, she remained focussed on Jesus. As we come across her in the garden in this story even Peter and the Beloved disciple who had come to the empty tomb had gone back to their homes. But she wanted to see it through, maybe she wanted to view his body to reassure herself his life really was over, maybe she couldn’t let go of her hope, maybe she just needed to be in the place where she had last seen him alive to sense if his spirit was lingering. Many of us who have lost loved ones have special places where we go to gain strength or clarity of thought or some degree of comfort. And yet, despite her determination, she didn’t recognise Jesus when he appeared before her. “Supposing him to be the gardener she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him and I will take him away.’”

And because she was there she witnessed the wonder of hope reborn. When Jesus spoke her name she recognised his voice. She became and example of the statement he made earlier in the gospel, “I am the good shepherd…my sheep know my voice”. Her future role in the church was formed by his compassion, his acceptance, his call on her life. His touch was not physical, but his confidence in her touched her, she became the first witness to the risen Christ. Because it was Mary Magdalene who was given the task to “Go and tell” ? that there is a power stronger than death, that God is on the side of life, that new life is possible.

And so as the witness to the hope of Jesus’ resurrection, Mary Magdalene functions for us as an example to follow. The witness did not stop with her ? we know that she passed on the good news, and those who heard it also passed it on, and before long the church was born. The message has been passed to us also, and we are still witnesses to this good news.

And yet our lives as Christians and as a church seeking to witness to the good news can still be interrupted. Our lives in this church have been interrupted by tragic events in the past two weeks. We have needed time to stop, reflect, remember and mourn. You have already heard that Jan Churcher had a big influence on Debbie’s life, and I’m sure would feel honoured by what has been said and done today. As we are able to celebrate the memory of Jan’s significant influence we are also spurred on and challenged by her life of faithful witness to have a new commitment to God and to each other.

I mentioned to a friend that I was preaching on three women in the New Testament today. My friend began to name some of the women, trying to guess which stories I had chosen. We were both surprised to realise just how many stories there are about women in the gospels. In some cases they are obviously woven together, such as in the Markan sandwich we have spoken about. But wherever we come across them we are shown lives that were touched by Jesus, and stories that have been passed on as a witness to the new life Jesus brought. These stories are encouraging for us, especially for us women, who are invited to witness to God’s touch on our lives.

During the week my mother posted me a letter from Adelaide, where she and dad were attending a conference. She also posted a leaflet with details of a stained glass window found in St Peter’s Anglican Cathedral. It portrays Mary Magdalene and the other women at the open tomb, with the figure of the risen Christ linked to the women through outstretched hands that encircle them. Superimposed over this image is the scene of Christ appearing to Mary when she mistakes him for a gardener. My mother thought this window would interest me ? it is the Magdalene window commissioned to acknowledge and celebrate the role of women in the scriptures, the history of the church, and in the forefront of social change. The design of the window incorporates circles and spirals, which criss-cross the long vertical mullions of the lancet panes. So while the architectural structure might try to impose hierarchical relationships the effect is rather that of interwoven support. There are many other details in the window - a jar of herbs carried to the tomb to remind us of the often nurturing ministry of women; a needle hanging from the abandoned shroud to symbolise the practical work women have done in the church, holding it together in the detail; Anglican symbols of leadership are set at the head and feet of Mary, to remind us that she was given the task of being apostle to the apostles. It is a rich visual tapestry, a celebration of the gifts and graces of women and the wisdom that remembers our lives are woven together through Christ.

The stories of women that we have read today remind us that Jesus touches us in different ways. One was a very public confrontation. One was behind closed doors in the presence of only a few intimately involved. And one was an encounter with a lone, grieving woman that we only know about because that woman went and told others of her experience.

Our lives unfold differently. But the privilege of being called into membership of a church community is that we have opportunities for our lives to interweave with others during the journey, so that we are able to share with others how Jesus has touched us.

Conclusion

One of our stained glass windows is a version of that famous painting of Jesus standing and knocking at a door with a lamp in his hand. It illustrates the verse in Revelation - “Behold I stand at the door and knock”. Is Jesus asking to be let in, or is he inviting us to come outside and journey with him? He was already walking along when he called disciples to follow him. He was already active in the world, healing and teaching and busy doing the things he believed God wanted him to do when he encountered the woman with the flow of blood and the daughter of Jairus. He was already out in the garden when Mary Magdalene was looking in the tomb. Our response in faith has to be active. Go in peace. Get up. Go and tell. When Jesus invites his followers to share in his work, it is an invitation to be part of the Kingdom of God that is already on the move.

JM: Canberra, May 1, 2005