HOST: Michael Whitworth
And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea. Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” And he went with him. And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him.While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler’s house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.” And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John the brother of James. They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. And when he had entered, he said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. But he put them all outside and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement. And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.
We often think of the Jewish leaders of Jesus' day as being an unbelieving lot who, as a whole, rejected Jesus and ultimately were responsible for His death. But this Jewish ruler had great faith in Jesus—so much so that he was willing to leave the side of his dying daughter to find Jesus and plead for Him to come and heal her. But even his faith had its limit. While he wholeheartedly believed in Jesus' power to heal, he could not bring himself to believe that anyone, even Jesus, could raise his child from the dead. As Jesus was delayed by the crowds, and one came from Jairus' house to report that the girl had died, all hope seemed lost. Their feelings of hopelessness were summed up in the question asked of Jairus: "Why bother the Teacher any further?" But Jesus quickly reassures them. This was not to be a day of mourning, but of celebration. Jairus' daughter would live. Even the chains of death had no power over Jesus. His command for her to "arise" was promptly obeyed, and she lived, causing her parents to be "overcome with amazement" and rightly so, for our God is an amazing God!
What lesson(s) can we learn from this great miracle of Jesus?
Don’t forget to pray and have a great day!
