"And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your affliction.” While He was still speaking, some came from the ruler of the synagogue's house who said, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?" As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, He said to the ruler of the synagogue, "Do not be afraid; only believe." (Mark 5:34-36)
As Christians, we all hear words such as grace, salvation, and faith quite frequently. And all play a part in our daily life whether we know it or not. In the story above, a woman of desperate faith had just touched the hem of Jesus’ robe and been healed. Did the robe heal her? Of course not, her faith that the man wearing the robe could heal her resulted in her being healed. She had an active and courageous faith.
The setting for this scripture points us to a faith that is beyond the natural, it points to a God-based faith. We can only lay hold of the things of God by faith. The Bible is only a book until, by faith; we receive it as the living Word of God. In contrast to the woman, the synagogue ruler was afraid, but Christ told him to believe.
It is interesting to note that those who were standing by said to the synagogue ruler, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” In essence, they said, “There is no hope, just accept it and go on.” Many well-meaning people today tell us it is too late, but not Jesus. He tells us with all assurance that it is not too late! It is never too late with God. Look beyond where you are to what God says about you. We do that in Celebrate Recovery.
Jesus spoke some very powerful words to the ruler and He speaks these words to us today, “Do not be afraid; only believe.” What would truly happen in our lives if we dared to believe God? How about an Imagination Campaign that puts Cokesbury out of debt. We all know that we cannot please God without faith, but do we truly believe God at His Word? We see people with terrible hurts, habits and hang-ups that find faith hard to lay hold to. But through a systematic 12-Step program and working with the 8 Principles of CR, we see them go through a healing process that only God could provide.
You have to begin with the faith you already have: it may be just a little, but you start there. A great example of this is the story of the man who brought his sick son to Jesus in Mark 9. Jesus looked at the man and said, “I can heal your son. If you will believe, I will heal him.” In response, the father then makes a classic statement: “Lord, I do believe. Help me overcome my unbelief.”
Have you ever felt like that? “Lord, I have some faith. But I also have some doubts.” This man was filled with faith and doubt, yet despite his honest doubts, he went ahead and asked Jesus for a miracle. And Christ true to form gave the man his miracle – Jesus healed his son. Christ helps us with our addictions, our grief, and our failings, whatever. You believe he can do what he says he can do.
So, both the synagogue ruler and the woman had faith. And with this faith, Christ was able to work miracles – for both of them. By faith we lay hold of the things of God and act upon God’s promises. What a blessed place it is when the life we have we share with God in faith. The life God gives through faith in him is life-changing.
In Christ,
Jerry McGuire
