WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.639 Mark chapter 5. I want to begin today by reading an accident report. 00:00:05.639 --> 00:00:16.199 ! Dear sir, I'm writing in response to your request for additional information in block 3 of the accident report form. 00:00:16.199 --> 00:00:20.580 ! I put poor planning as the cause of my accident. 00:00:21.359 --> 00:00:28.400 I'm a bricklayer by trade. On the day of the accident, I was working alone on the roof of a six-story building. 00:00:28.399 --> 00:00:33.739 When I completed the work, I had about 500 pounds of brick left over. 00:00:34.560 --> 00:00:42.019 Rather than carry the bricks down by hand, I decided to lower them in a barrel using a pulley attached to the side of the building. 00:00:43.039 --> 00:00:50.759 After securing the rope, at ground level, I went back up on the roof, loaded the bricks into the barrel, and went back down. 00:00:51.140 --> 00:00:56.399 I untied the rope, holding it tightly to ensure a slow descent of the barrel. 00:00:56.399 --> 00:01:02.439 You will note in block 11 of the report that I weigh 175 pounds. 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:11.459 Due to my surprise at being jerked off the ground so suddenly, I lost my presence of mind and forgot to let go of the rope. 00:01:12.379 --> 00:01:19.539 Needless to say, I proceeded at a rapid rate up the side of the building. 00:01:19.540 --> 00:01:23.140 In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the barrel coming down. 00:01:24.320 --> 00:01:28.100 This explains the fractured skull and broken collarbone. 00:01:29.100 --> 00:01:34.920 Slowed only slightly, I continued my ascent and did not stop until my right hand was jammed into the pulley. 00:01:35.740 --> 00:01:37.660 This accounts for my broken wrist. 00:01:38.320 --> 00:01:41.920 Despite the pain, I maintained the presence of mind and held tightly to the rope. 00:01:41.920 --> 00:01:46.340 At approximately the same time, the barrel hit the ground and the bottom fell out. 00:01:47.280 --> 00:01:51.840 Devoid of the bricks, the barrel now weighs about 50 pounds. 00:01:52.560 --> 00:01:55.320 I refer you again to my weight in block 11. 00:01:56.540 --> 00:02:00.620 As you might imagine, I began a rapid descent down the side of the building. 00:02:00.760 --> 00:02:04.320 In the vicinity of the third floor, I met the empty barrel coming up. 00:02:04.319 --> 00:02:06.859 That accounts for my broken ankles. 00:02:08.419 --> 00:02:11.919 Slowed only slightly, I continued to descent and landed on a pile of bricks. 00:02:12.019 --> 00:02:14.219 This accounts for my broken legs and lower back. 00:02:14.319 --> 00:02:18.120 At this point, I must have lost my presence of mind because I let go of the rope. 00:02:19.060 --> 00:02:21.680 The barrel then came down and struck me on the head. 00:02:22.400 --> 00:02:24.939 This accounts for my second fractured skull. 00:02:25.359 --> 00:02:28.079 I respectfully request sick leave. 00:02:30.539 --> 00:02:32.159 The man had a hard day. 00:02:32.159 --> 00:02:40.460 And I wanted to start with a light moment because there's not a lot of light about this passage of Scripture, quite honestly. 00:02:42.740 --> 00:02:43.859 It's talking about struggle. 00:02:47.659 --> 00:02:50.599 And the person we're going to talk about today is not the only one that's been through struggle. 00:02:52.699 --> 00:02:55.079 The reality is there's a lot of struggle in this room, probably. 00:02:57.019 --> 00:02:59.539 And nothing light about that either. 00:03:00.419 --> 00:03:01.460 And I don't want to make it light. 00:03:02.159 --> 00:03:05.079 Now, Mark was quite a writer. 00:03:06.379 --> 00:03:09.139 He has a writing trait. 00:03:09.180 --> 00:03:09.900 He has several of them. 00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:13.319 But he has a writing trait that stands out in his gospel. 00:03:13.740 --> 00:03:16.139 It's called the Markin Sandwich. 00:03:16.639 --> 00:03:19.659 And he uses it at least six times. 00:03:19.780 --> 00:03:22.219 Some theologians say as much as nine times. 00:03:23.579 --> 00:03:26.460 We've already seen it once in Mark chapter 3. 00:03:26.460 --> 00:03:28.000 But we see it again here. 00:03:28.000 --> 00:03:37.879 There is a story that is sandwiched between Jairus' approach to Jesus, asking for the healing of his daughter, 00:03:38.879 --> 00:03:46.500 and then the ultimate healing of his daughter as he raised her from the dead. 00:03:46.500 --> 00:03:48.000 Christ did. 00:03:48.379 --> 00:04:00.360 In between that first occasion and the actual resolution, there is a divine interruption, an unplanned pause. 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:08.200 And in that, a life is changed by one grasping for Jesus. 00:04:08.340 --> 00:04:09.440 I want you to see this this morning. 00:04:09.540 --> 00:04:12.420 It's in Mark chapter 5, beginning in verse 25. 00:04:12.620 --> 00:04:13.340 And it says this, 00:04:13.340 --> 00:04:21.199 And there was a woman who had a discharge of blood for 12 years and who had suffered much under many physicians 00:04:21.199 --> 00:04:25.819 and had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. 00:04:26.639 --> 00:04:33.280 She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 00:04:33.439 --> 00:04:37.720 For she said, if I touch even his garments, I'll be made well. 00:04:37.720 --> 00:04:45.740 And immediately the flow of blood dried up and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:50.560 And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, 00:04:51.040 --> 00:04:55.700 immediately turned about in the crowd saying, who touched my garments? 00:04:56.560 --> 00:05:01.780 And his disciples said to him, you see the crowd pressing around and yet you say, who touched me? 00:05:02.680 --> 00:05:05.000 And he looked around to see who had done it. 00:05:05.000 --> 00:05:13.800 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 00:05:15.220 --> 00:05:18.879 And he said to her, daughter, your faith has made you well. 00:05:20.300 --> 00:05:26.300 Go in peace and be healed of your disease. 00:05:26.300 --> 00:05:31.780 The scripture says that this lady suffered much. 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:39.660 And I will tell you that the English translation of the original Greek does not do that phrase justice. 00:05:40.379 --> 00:05:49.019 Because the reality is when it says that she suffered much, it really means that she was in prolonged agony. 00:05:50.840 --> 00:05:53.400 She was spent. 00:05:53.399 --> 00:05:56.560 In every way. 00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:03.899 Medically, she had a persistent loss of blood that made her anemic at best. 00:06:04.159 --> 00:06:11.060 And after 12 years, she very likely was close to the door of death. 00:06:12.399 --> 00:06:14.379 Physically, she felt awful. 00:06:15.479 --> 00:06:16.899 Constantly weak. 00:06:17.899 --> 00:06:19.759 Alone due to her condition. 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:22.699 Too weak to care for herself. 00:06:22.699 --> 00:06:24.979 But not only that, she was affected socially. 00:06:26.120 --> 00:06:29.439 For being a woman in that day, her status was bound to her husband. 00:06:30.759 --> 00:06:33.699 And it's very possible that she didn't have a husband. 00:06:34.659 --> 00:06:42.419 If she had suffered with this before her marriage, she would not have been a candidate for marriage based on Levitical law. 00:06:42.420 --> 00:06:50.000 If she had suffered with it in that day and time, men typically didn't marry in sickness and in health. 00:06:50.480 --> 00:06:53.420 She would in most cases be cast aside. 00:06:53.540 --> 00:06:58.220 Therefore, her status was limited at best without sickness. 00:06:58.220 --> 00:07:02.460 But now sick, she is also unclean. 00:07:02.560 --> 00:07:08.780 Anything she sits on, anything she lies on, anything she touches is considered unclean. 00:07:08.980 --> 00:07:10.120 She's unwelcomed. 00:07:11.380 --> 00:07:13.900 And for her, that is all the time. 00:07:14.020 --> 00:07:22.080 She is considered unclean, unkept, even cursed. 00:07:22.079 --> 00:07:25.399 That was her reputation. 00:07:26.779 --> 00:07:30.379 Scripture says financially she was spent completely. 00:07:30.919 --> 00:07:31.899 She spent all she had. 00:07:32.699 --> 00:07:35.279 If no husband, that probably didn't last very long. 00:07:35.379 --> 00:07:37.819 But either way, she had tried it all. 00:07:37.979 --> 00:07:40.159 We don't know about the doctors. 00:07:40.879 --> 00:07:42.319 Maybe they had done a good job. 00:07:42.419 --> 00:07:46.240 Maybe she had no advocate to help her get the proper care. 00:07:46.319 --> 00:07:50.199 Or maybe she didn't give them the opportunity because she kept trying something else. 00:07:50.240 --> 00:07:51.159 We don't really know. 00:07:51.160 --> 00:07:55.380 We do know that Israel had some of the most modern medicine of that day. 00:07:55.540 --> 00:08:06.280 But it was still limited to folk remedies, herbal treatments, trial and error, and instructions given by the law. 00:08:06.400 --> 00:08:08.060 And some of those were in Leviticus. 00:08:08.360 --> 00:08:12.879 But there were a lot more of them written in Levitical law that said all kinds of things. 00:08:13.940 --> 00:08:16.180 With all of that, she had no success. 00:08:16.180 --> 00:08:24.780 As a matter of fact, the gospel of Luke that was written by a physician himself said no one could heal her. 00:08:26.379 --> 00:08:28.420 The effort had been there. 00:08:29.480 --> 00:08:34.159 But the results were exasperatingly depressive. 00:08:34.159 --> 00:08:43.059 She was affected spiritually for the same reasons as socially because she was considered a spiritual outcast. 00:08:43.579 --> 00:08:47.839 She would have been constantly taunted, unable to be made right. 00:08:47.939 --> 00:08:52.759 A common thought would have been God is punishing her for something. 00:08:52.860 --> 00:08:55.279 Therefore, she must be a sinner. 00:08:56.419 --> 00:09:00.079 She must be one that we stay away from. 00:09:00.080 --> 00:09:14.639 Isn't it amazing how we are really good at pointing out and ridiculing other people's public sins while we're ignoring our private sins? 00:09:14.639 --> 00:09:21.699 It's a whole lot easier to deal with that than somebody else's life than it is for us. 00:09:24.279 --> 00:09:28.600 And the reality is, just like in this situation, when they didn't know the whole story for this lady, 00:09:29.600 --> 00:09:33.240 we probably don't know the whole story and whoever we're talking about either. 00:09:33.240 --> 00:09:51.019 The reality is, the tendency of us to get so enamored and ridicule someone else for their public sin while we ignore our private sin is not amazing at all. 00:09:51.100 --> 00:09:51.759 It's of the devil. 00:09:52.220 --> 00:09:53.060 It smells of smoke. 00:09:54.759 --> 00:10:00.620 It's a distraction from us dealing with what we need to deal with. 00:10:00.620 --> 00:10:08.779 And the reality is that our prideful glare is just as wrong as their sinful act, whatever that is. 00:10:11.060 --> 00:10:14.840 Folks, I'm just going to let the cat out of the bag. 00:10:15.560 --> 00:10:17.200 We're all in a spiritual mess. 00:10:18.840 --> 00:10:25.500 Outside of the grace of God, we're all in a spiritual mess, so we need to watch who we judge. 00:10:25.500 --> 00:10:35.159 Our sins weigh as much as their sins, and we're not even sure about their sin. 00:10:36.860 --> 00:10:38.500 They sure wasn't sure about hers. 00:10:39.639 --> 00:10:42.019 They had assumed a lot about this dear lady. 00:10:44.379 --> 00:10:49.519 How about the mental and emotional anguish that she had to go through? 00:10:49.519 --> 00:10:52.039 I mean, have you ever felt bad? 00:10:52.960 --> 00:10:53.939 I mean, bad. 00:10:54.720 --> 00:10:56.220 And over a long period of time? 00:10:58.220 --> 00:11:03.879 I mean, sickness for just a few days will absolutely wear you out. 00:11:05.480 --> 00:11:07.899 How about for 12 years? 00:11:10.240 --> 00:11:12.019 It made her desperate. 00:11:12.019 --> 00:11:17.100 It made her desperate enough to take a chance. 00:11:18.379 --> 00:11:22.159 When it seemed like all hope was gone, her life was slipping away. 00:11:22.980 --> 00:11:25.240 She decided to risk it all. 00:11:28.379 --> 00:11:33.620 What do you do when you've tried everything that you know to do and you're losing hope? 00:11:35.100 --> 00:11:39.840 Not only does she beg the question, but she also answers the question as well. 00:11:39.840 --> 00:11:47.019 Now, if you have lost hope in your situation, I want you to notice where she found it. 00:11:48.960 --> 00:11:50.560 How did she find hope? 00:11:51.879 --> 00:11:56.700 She found hope through the testimony of others. 00:11:57.580 --> 00:11:58.899 I want you to notice what it says in verse 7. 00:11:59.160 --> 00:12:03.560 It says, she had heard the reports of Jesus. 00:12:03.559 --> 00:12:10.059 You have to realize the chance that she was taking. 00:12:11.359 --> 00:12:15.839 It would have seemed to her that Jesus may not acknowledge her at all. 00:12:16.679 --> 00:12:22.500 Because the reality is, right before she approaches him, he's been approached by a man with clout. 00:12:23.679 --> 00:12:25.239 Jairus was a synagogue leader. 00:12:25.240 --> 00:12:29.980 To most synagogue leaders, Jesus was a threat. 00:12:31.180 --> 00:12:32.779 He challenged their system. 00:12:32.960 --> 00:12:34.659 He threatened their authority. 00:12:34.879 --> 00:12:36.039 He threatened their system. 00:12:37.639 --> 00:12:45.700 By being someone that would not control, but one that would disturb their order. 00:12:45.919 --> 00:12:46.840 And they didn't like it. 00:12:47.779 --> 00:12:50.100 By the way, God's good at shaking systems up. 00:12:50.180 --> 00:12:51.019 He'll do that. 00:12:51.019 --> 00:13:02.279 But with all that said, and in his time of need, the pompous and well-positioned Jairus fell at the feet of Jesus and begged for the healing of his 12-year-old daughter. 00:13:02.539 --> 00:13:05.799 He was in a dire situation, an urgent matter. 00:13:07.199 --> 00:13:12.980 But I want you to notice, did Christ run frantically with Jairus? 00:13:14.759 --> 00:13:15.460 He didn't. 00:13:15.460 --> 00:13:19.779 He didn't rush. 00:13:21.019 --> 00:13:27.299 As a matter of fact, when this unclean woman touched the hem of his garment, he stopped. 00:13:29.740 --> 00:13:34.279 Not to ridicule her, but to love her. 00:13:36.860 --> 00:13:47.600 Even though Jairus was significant, and even though his situation was dire, Christ still took the time for this dear, hurting woman. 00:13:47.699 --> 00:13:48.379 And you know what? 00:13:48.439 --> 00:13:50.059 He always will. 00:13:50.059 --> 00:13:51.799 I want to be clear. 00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:54.459 God is not a respecter of persons. 00:13:55.719 --> 00:13:58.159 The ground is level in Jesus. 00:13:58.419 --> 00:13:58.859 It is. 00:13:59.559 --> 00:14:06.699 Our titles, our wealth, our talents do not sway the love of Christ. 00:14:06.979 --> 00:14:07.699 It does not. 00:14:07.899 --> 00:14:08.939 He sees the soul. 00:14:09.579 --> 00:14:12.419 And all souls have one thing in common. 00:14:12.419 --> 00:14:17.120 They are in desperate need of Jesus Christ. 00:14:17.599 --> 00:14:18.860 Every soul is. 00:14:19.679 --> 00:14:23.500 Our souls have a vacancy without Christ. 00:14:24.639 --> 00:14:27.299 Now, does everyone know that? 00:14:27.299 --> 00:14:31.719 Well, let's assume they don't. 00:14:35.399 --> 00:14:36.759 So let's tell them about Jesus. 00:14:39.319 --> 00:14:41.879 Let's not trust somebody else to do it for us. 00:14:43.879 --> 00:14:52.199 Let's not trust the fact that they may live in Pickens County, and there may be a lot of churches around, and they may live close to one, and they may ride by one a lot. 00:14:52.200 --> 00:14:54.600 And that ought to be enough. 00:14:58.360 --> 00:15:00.200 Let's not bother to assume that. 00:15:00.200 --> 00:15:08.840 The reality is, some people need to hear your story. 00:15:11.000 --> 00:15:13.460 They need to hear what God's done in your life. 00:15:13.460 --> 00:15:29.920 And the reality is, with all the technology that we have today, and with all the media that we have today, the personal testimony is still the most compelling method of anything to get a message out. 00:15:30.920 --> 00:15:39.519 When I purchase something online, businesses want me to review the purchase and to publish that review. 00:15:39.519 --> 00:15:43.419 And a lot of times they ask me to do that before I even get the product. 00:15:44.319 --> 00:15:46.600 And I want to say, hurry up, you know. 00:15:48.220 --> 00:15:49.259 I ordered it this morning. 00:15:49.340 --> 00:15:49.840 Where is it? 00:15:52.779 --> 00:15:57.879 And before I buy from an individual or before I buy from a small company, I check reviews. 00:15:58.799 --> 00:16:01.019 And those reviews are personal testimonies. 00:16:02.679 --> 00:16:06.579 In a court case, the whole case hinges on the power of testimony. 00:16:06.580 --> 00:16:14.220 And I want you to understand that this woman never would have got to Christ, never would have bothered. 00:16:14.560 --> 00:16:21.620 Somebody told this lady about Jesus, or she would have never known about him. 00:16:22.620 --> 00:16:25.759 Let's never underestimate our Christian testimony. 00:16:26.340 --> 00:16:31.580 Let's tell folks how Christ has changed our life. 00:16:31.580 --> 00:16:32.100 Life. 00:16:34.500 --> 00:16:35.740 Let me just ask you. 00:16:36.560 --> 00:16:37.879 Has Christ changed your life? 00:16:39.480 --> 00:16:40.379 Well, let's tell somebody. 00:16:42.800 --> 00:16:44.139 Telling each other is not enough. 00:16:44.220 --> 00:16:45.120 I mean, we need that too. 00:16:47.360 --> 00:16:48.560 But let's tell somebody. 00:16:49.420 --> 00:16:52.139 This lady found hope by somebody telling her about Jesus. 00:16:52.480 --> 00:16:56.800 Not only that, but she also found hope by having the faith to change. 00:16:56.799 --> 00:17:05.720 She had labored over her illness for as long as Jairus' 12-year-old daughter had been alive. 00:17:08.460 --> 00:17:09.619 That's a long time. 00:17:10.659 --> 00:17:14.099 And she was desperate for her circumstances to change. 00:17:14.099 --> 00:17:24.879 And she thought, if I can get to Christ, if she could somehow squeeze through unnoticed and get a touch of him. 00:17:25.139 --> 00:17:30.279 And I don't know exactly how it all went down. 00:17:31.599 --> 00:17:33.399 I have a spiritual imagination. 00:17:33.819 --> 00:17:34.919 So go with me for a minute. 00:17:34.920 --> 00:17:40.600 But if this lady was not supposed to be in public due to her condition. 00:17:42.160 --> 00:17:44.039 She was not supposed to be socializing. 00:17:44.140 --> 00:17:45.340 She should not have been in a crowd. 00:17:45.880 --> 00:17:49.720 And because the disciples looked at Jesus and said, why are you asking who touched you? 00:17:49.840 --> 00:17:51.400 Look at all these people touching you. 00:17:51.740 --> 00:17:53.880 There must have been a clamor of people there. 00:17:54.259 --> 00:17:57.539 So how in the world do you get through when the locals know who you are? 00:17:57.820 --> 00:18:03.019 You've been sick for 12 years in a situation where you shouldn't be out in public culturally. 00:18:03.019 --> 00:18:05.879 So how do you get there? 00:18:06.599 --> 00:18:07.639 How do you do that? 00:18:09.859 --> 00:18:15.420 In my mind, I feel like she had to, she wanted to touch the hem of his garment. 00:18:15.519 --> 00:18:16.220 She had to get low. 00:18:19.279 --> 00:18:22.839 And if she got low enough and held her head down, maybe nobody would even recognize her. 00:18:25.059 --> 00:18:31.940 And just reach through and just, and just, just get a touch. 00:18:33.019 --> 00:18:46.359 It's interesting that Matthew tells us that she was repeating to herself, if I just touch the hem of his garment. 00:18:47.019 --> 00:18:48.680 If I just touch the hem of his garment. 00:18:52.299 --> 00:18:53.859 You know it had to be a struggle. 00:18:55.379 --> 00:18:57.259 She had to wonder what will people think. 00:18:57.339 --> 00:18:59.359 She had to wonder what would they do. 00:18:59.359 --> 00:19:01.659 She had to wonder what will happen to me. 00:19:04.079 --> 00:19:10.500 Well, when I read that, it reminds me of something we deal with practically every worship hour. 00:19:13.799 --> 00:19:16.919 When I get done preaching in a few moments, we're going to stand and we're going to sing a song. 00:19:17.000 --> 00:19:18.279 We're going to call that the invitation time. 00:19:18.279 --> 00:19:27.460 And I'm going to encourage you, and I'll encourage you now, that if you've never given your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ, you need to do that today. 00:19:28.160 --> 00:19:29.740 He'll change you forever. 00:19:30.879 --> 00:19:31.920 He'll heal what ails you. 00:19:32.220 --> 00:19:36.200 He'll touch you spiritually, powerfully. 00:19:37.639 --> 00:19:40.759 And you come down and tell me, Pastor, I need to give my life to Christ. 00:19:40.899 --> 00:19:42.859 He'll change your life for eternity. 00:19:42.859 --> 00:19:47.779 Or maybe there's a matter in your life where you need to follow him. 00:19:49.019 --> 00:19:49.979 You need to just obey him. 00:19:50.459 --> 00:19:51.399 You've been ignoring it. 00:19:52.059 --> 00:19:53.059 You need to obey him. 00:19:53.159 --> 00:19:58.199 Or maybe God's calling you to live your life publicly for him and to be a part of this church. 00:19:58.699 --> 00:20:00.240 And maybe he's leading you in that way. 00:20:00.259 --> 00:20:05.539 Or maybe there's a struggle that you have that you want somebody to pray with you about and those type things. 00:20:05.539 --> 00:20:13.519 There's all that stuff that whatever it is that God leads you to do, I'll never ask you to do more than what God tells you to do. 00:20:13.819 --> 00:20:16.879 And I'll never want you to be satisfied with doing any less than what God tells you to do. 00:20:17.019 --> 00:20:20.539 But whatever God tells you to do, that you would come and do that. 00:20:20.619 --> 00:20:28.460 But I don't, I wish I could count how many people have told me at the front door, back door, whatever that is in a Baptist church. 00:20:28.460 --> 00:20:33.539 How many people have told me, you know, preacher, I almost came. 00:20:34.960 --> 00:20:36.440 I felt like I needed to. 00:20:40.840 --> 00:20:46.799 And when they tell me that, I'll say with a smile on my face, being as nice as I can, 00:20:48.259 --> 00:20:49.920 well, you can trust the Lord for that. 00:20:49.980 --> 00:20:54.900 You can come when you, but in my heart, I'm going, you know what you could have messed up? 00:20:54.900 --> 00:21:05.840 Because the reality is when we fail to obey the Holy Spirit of God and do what he's told us to do, 00:21:06.320 --> 00:21:13.580 it quenches the Spirit of God and it can change the atmosphere in this very room. 00:21:17.300 --> 00:21:19.640 I mean, you've seen it in your own life. 00:21:19.640 --> 00:21:25.360 When somebody else will step out in some form or fashion, it makes it easier for you to step out and to go. 00:21:26.700 --> 00:21:30.759 And again, I never want anybody to orchestrate anything and come up with some scheme or plan. 00:21:30.900 --> 00:21:31.600 I'm not talking about that. 00:21:31.720 --> 00:21:32.740 I'm talking about obedience. 00:21:33.080 --> 00:21:34.580 When God speaks, come. 00:21:34.780 --> 00:21:38.759 Because when you come, you usher other people to respond in the same way. 00:21:38.860 --> 00:21:40.060 And it may not be immediately. 00:21:40.320 --> 00:21:41.340 It may be next week. 00:21:41.420 --> 00:21:42.320 It may be in a month. 00:21:42.440 --> 00:21:45.520 But you give other people the confidence to do that very thing. 00:21:45.519 --> 00:21:49.619 Simply because you've been obedient to do what God's told you to do. 00:21:49.900 --> 00:21:54.839 Don't ever leave this place going, I wish I had done what God told me to do. 00:21:55.680 --> 00:22:00.940 What if that day she had said, oh, I wish I had reached out for him. 00:22:03.339 --> 00:22:06.539 But thank God the story is different. 00:22:07.680 --> 00:22:09.940 Because she didn't worry about other people. 00:22:11.079 --> 00:22:13.039 Folks, quit worrying about other people. 00:22:13.240 --> 00:22:14.619 Get your heart right with God. 00:22:14.619 --> 00:22:17.459 We serve an audience of one. 00:22:18.219 --> 00:22:18.699 Period. 00:22:19.859 --> 00:22:21.539 And I want to be very clear about it. 00:22:21.699 --> 00:22:29.579 I work diligently to try my best to prepare what God says in his word. 00:22:31.119 --> 00:22:34.119 And to put it in a way that applies to your life. 00:22:34.199 --> 00:22:35.519 And it speaks to your life. 00:22:35.619 --> 00:22:37.899 And that I'm not a hindrance to that. 00:22:38.019 --> 00:22:41.259 But I just let the Holy Spirit work through me. 00:22:41.259 --> 00:22:45.980 I want to be very clear about it. 00:22:45.980 --> 00:22:50.740 And I hope you are challenged by it. 00:22:50.740 --> 00:22:51.960 I hope you enjoy it. 00:22:52.039 --> 00:22:54.000 I hope you want to come back. 00:22:54.079 --> 00:22:55.460 But I want to be clear about something. 00:22:55.460 --> 00:22:59.480 I serve an audience of one. 00:23:02.480 --> 00:23:07.920 And the most important thing I have today is to be obedient to Christ. 00:23:07.920 --> 00:23:15.960 God's taught me a long time ago that if I'll just trust him and do what he tells me to do, he'll take care of the rest of it. 00:23:16.960 --> 00:23:17.940 He'll take care of it. 00:23:18.440 --> 00:23:21.340 And he'll do that in our lives every time. 00:23:22.720 --> 00:23:24.600 Quit worrying about what other people are going to say. 00:23:25.640 --> 00:23:26.360 Please him. 00:23:26.360 --> 00:23:30.420 The reality is our disobedience in this room affects us all. 00:23:30.680 --> 00:23:31.980 Let me be clear about something. 00:23:31.980 --> 00:23:36.579 On that note, our sin outside of this room affects us all. 00:23:39.380 --> 00:23:43.740 You hurt the kingdom of God when you sin against God, if you're a Christian. 00:23:46.299 --> 00:23:48.279 I mean, it's real. 00:23:48.400 --> 00:23:51.420 Our decision for Christ at all times makes all the difference. 00:23:51.680 --> 00:24:00.360 And when we obey him and when we honor him, we build an atmosphere where others have the courage to trust Christ and follow him. 00:24:01.980 --> 00:24:08.079 Our individual walks of obedience help others to walk obediently. 00:24:08.180 --> 00:24:12.079 And then God begins to move in us and those around us as well. 00:24:12.380 --> 00:24:14.700 This woman stepped out and came to Jesus. 00:24:14.900 --> 00:24:16.019 She took a chance. 00:24:16.420 --> 00:24:18.420 She stopped caring about what others thought. 00:24:18.519 --> 00:24:19.579 She came at all costs. 00:24:20.299 --> 00:24:22.960 At the same time, we need to quit worrying about others and come to Jesus. 00:24:22.960 --> 00:24:36.840 Never put others and their opinions before your obedience to Christ, regardless of the cost, because when you do, they are between you and Christ. 00:24:37.200 --> 00:24:39.500 They're more important to you than Christ is. 00:24:41.279 --> 00:24:43.660 And you probably sometimes don't even know who you're talking about. 00:24:44.039 --> 00:24:45.319 You just worry about what somebody's going to think. 00:24:45.319 --> 00:24:52.240 I mean, it's easy for us to get caught up in that, and the devil loves it. 00:24:53.339 --> 00:24:57.159 This lady had so much at stake, a lot more at stake than we do. 00:24:57.439 --> 00:24:58.960 I mean, she would have been exiled. 00:24:59.339 --> 00:25:01.200 She would have been publicly rebuked. 00:25:01.599 --> 00:25:03.500 She would have been verbally humiliated. 00:25:05.159 --> 00:25:06.599 Yet she came anyway. 00:25:06.599 --> 00:25:12.480 Do you remember that look that you gave people when you went out during COVID? 00:25:12.480 --> 00:25:20.599 I mean, right in the first two weeks, and you had to venture out into open air and take a chance at life, 00:25:21.160 --> 00:25:23.880 and you saw somebody without a mask on? 00:25:27.039 --> 00:25:27.880 Why in the world? 00:25:27.920 --> 00:25:29.779 Is that a thin mask you've got on? 00:25:30.680 --> 00:25:32.039 Is the cloth going to work? 00:25:35.079 --> 00:25:35.980 How dare you? 00:25:35.980 --> 00:25:42.279 If you didn't ride in your car by yourself with a mask on, something's wrong with you. 00:25:42.319 --> 00:25:43.059 You're trying to kill people. 00:25:47.720 --> 00:25:53.339 That's the closest thing that we've got to what they thought about this lady. 00:25:54.420 --> 00:25:55.519 That was the circumstances. 00:25:59.299 --> 00:26:03.799 And she ventured out without a mask, I guess. 00:26:03.799 --> 00:26:10.539 She responded to her faith that God had given her to change. 00:26:12.220 --> 00:26:13.680 God gave her that faith. 00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:18.879 But she responded to it with obedience. 00:26:21.460 --> 00:26:23.720 Her only hope of change was in Christ. 00:26:25.899 --> 00:26:28.639 And of all the differences that was in this lady's life and our lives, 00:26:29.419 --> 00:26:30.819 that's not different. 00:26:30.819 --> 00:26:36.599 The only hope that we have is in Christ. 00:26:38.439 --> 00:26:39.939 And our obedience to follow him. 00:26:40.279 --> 00:26:42.079 She found hope by the testimony of others, 00:26:42.399 --> 00:26:43.799 by having the faith to change, 00:26:43.839 --> 00:26:45.720 and lastly, by the touch of Jesus. 00:26:46.419 --> 00:26:49.159 Because when she reached to Christ, her healing was immediate. 00:26:49.740 --> 00:26:54.319 Verse 29 says that her ailment was gone the moment she touched the hem of his garment. 00:26:54.619 --> 00:26:58.480 She immediately felt healing come through her body. 00:26:58.480 --> 00:27:05.000 The word for suffering in verse 29 is the same word that's used for somebody being whipped. 00:27:06.400 --> 00:27:07.759 She was whipped. 00:27:08.480 --> 00:27:10.500 She had agonized. 00:27:10.920 --> 00:27:12.920 And she was instantly healed. 00:27:13.059 --> 00:27:15.099 She didn't understand everything about Christian theology. 00:27:18.299 --> 00:27:20.440 She didn't understand everything about her own anatomy. 00:27:20.440 --> 00:27:26.740 She didn't know how God would work in her own body, but that wasn't necessary. 00:27:27.259 --> 00:27:29.759 She went to Christ by faith upon the testimony of others. 00:27:30.140 --> 00:27:34.400 And by her total, sacrificial, risky confidence in Christ, 00:27:34.960 --> 00:27:36.440 she was made whole. 00:27:36.500 --> 00:27:38.320 And she was made whole immediately. 00:27:39.000 --> 00:27:39.759 And you know what? 00:27:40.180 --> 00:27:43.759 God is still in the healing business. 00:27:43.759 --> 00:27:48.920 My friend, in an instant, you can be made whole in Christ. 00:27:49.079 --> 00:27:52.579 And the great thing about the healing of Christ is not only was it physically, 00:27:52.859 --> 00:27:53.839 but it was spiritually. 00:27:54.079 --> 00:27:55.819 She left him in peace. 00:27:56.180 --> 00:28:01.680 God filled her life for the first time in at least a dozen years with peace. 00:28:03.099 --> 00:28:05.180 And I'm not saying she never had another storm. 00:28:05.359 --> 00:28:06.160 I have no idea. 00:28:06.160 --> 00:28:11.300 What I am saying is she left with peace. 00:28:11.400 --> 00:28:12.800 There was a settling of her soul. 00:28:13.220 --> 00:28:16.080 There was a tranquility of her heart in the midst of her poverty. 00:28:17.580 --> 00:28:22.580 There was a building back of her reputation, a mental and emotional recovery. 00:28:22.740 --> 00:28:26.880 I want you to notice in verse 34 that Jesus called her daughter. 00:28:29.300 --> 00:28:30.800 That's an affectionate term. 00:28:33.120 --> 00:28:35.200 She came into this unnamed. 00:28:35.200 --> 00:28:36.720 She left in the family. 00:28:37.819 --> 00:28:40.000 She came into this unclean. 00:28:40.140 --> 00:28:41.539 She left renewed. 00:28:42.980 --> 00:28:45.500 She's family because she believes. 00:28:47.220 --> 00:28:50.500 Even outcasts are not outcasts when we put our faith in Christ. 00:28:50.920 --> 00:28:54.900 And that faith in Christ and his touch is what changed her life. 00:28:55.759 --> 00:29:01.340 And he sent her in peace and healed. 00:29:01.340 --> 00:29:04.860 And that's what happens when we reach the Christ. 00:29:06.120 --> 00:29:11.480 He takes away all of our infirmities and sends us down a healing road. 00:29:11.980 --> 00:29:14.660 He gives us a peace that is beyond understanding. 00:29:14.660 --> 00:29:24.540 You can reach out to him today with whatever ails you. 00:29:27.019 --> 00:29:31.140 He is a hope that's worth grasping for. 00:29:31.140 --> 00:29:35.120 And he'll meet you where you are. 00:29:35.120 --> 00:29:38.660 And he'll give you what you need. 00:29:38.660 --> 00:29:44.960 More and better and many times unexpectedly. 00:29:47.580 --> 00:29:48.740 When you come to Christ. 00:29:50.340 --> 00:29:52.180 With every head bowed and every eye closed. 00:29:52.180 --> 00:29:55.380 I want to ask you this morning. 00:29:56.100 --> 00:29:57.360 If you know the Lord Jesus. 00:29:58.860 --> 00:30:00.480 If you've ever given your heart to him. 00:30:02.360 --> 00:30:03.500 I want you to know. 00:30:03.900 --> 00:30:04.519 If you haven't. 00:30:06.060 --> 00:30:10.019 The spiritual infirmity in your life can be changed immediately. 00:30:10.220 --> 00:30:11.019 And be taken away. 00:30:11.600 --> 00:30:12.720 And you can be made new. 00:30:12.720 --> 00:30:17.299 By just a touch of Christ. 00:30:19.440 --> 00:30:23.460 Maybe you're here and you've never publicly acknowledged him. 00:30:25.059 --> 00:30:27.220 Well that's a hindrance in people's lives sometimes. 00:30:27.640 --> 00:30:29.339 To just have a private faith. 00:30:29.559 --> 00:30:31.799 When there's nothing biblical about that. 00:30:31.799 --> 00:30:35.480 We are to live privately for the Lord. 00:30:35.559 --> 00:30:36.839 We're to live publicly for the Lord. 00:30:38.259 --> 00:30:40.259 Jesus by his commission and by his example. 00:30:40.399 --> 00:30:41.940 Show us to do that through baptism. 00:30:43.359 --> 00:30:45.419 Maybe it's God's drawing you to this church. 00:30:45.879 --> 00:30:47.579 This is the place that he'd have you to serve. 00:30:48.539 --> 00:30:52.519 And it's a step of obedience for you to follow his will and his way. 00:30:53.299 --> 00:30:54.419 We'll guide you in that. 00:30:55.379 --> 00:30:56.159 Or maybe there's a. 00:30:59.159 --> 00:31:00.019 There's a struggle. 00:31:02.440 --> 00:31:05.139 There's a hardship that you need to lay down before him today. 00:31:06.099 --> 00:31:07.639 You need to reach out and touch. 00:31:09.519 --> 00:31:11.200 And let God do what he wants to do. 00:31:13.700 --> 00:31:15.299 Just be obedient and trust him. 00:31:16.700 --> 00:31:18.299 He'll meet you where you are. 00:31:18.399 --> 00:31:19.819 I'll never ask you to do. 00:31:20.419 --> 00:31:22.259 Something more than what he tells you to do. 00:31:22.940 --> 00:31:26.680 And I hope you're never satisfied with doing less than what he tells you to do. 00:31:27.299 --> 00:31:28.659 Just be obedient and follow him. 00:31:29.039 --> 00:31:30.700 Lord Jesus I love you and I thank you. 00:31:30.700 --> 00:31:37.400 For your word and for the example of someone whose life was changed because she reached out to Christ. 00:31:38.360 --> 00:31:41.620 Help us Lord to spend our lives reaching for Christ. 00:31:41.960 --> 00:31:41.980 Father. 00:31:43.120 --> 00:31:44.440 In Jesus precious name. 00:31:45.039 --> 00:31:45.380 Amen.