Read: Mark 5:34   [Jesus] said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

During His public ministry on earth, Jesus met a woman who had suffered greatly from a bleeding condition for 12 years (Mark 5:25–34). She had consulted many doctors, but her condition had only worsened. Luke 8:43 notes that “no one could heal her” ailment, and that the poor woman had used up all her money trying to find a cure.

The woman had no opportunity to meet Jesus in private, for there was a large crowd following Him. Even if she were to push herself to the front, what could she say to Him? How could she tell Him about her embarrassing condition in the presence of the crowd? So she resolved to try something else: hidden in the crowd, she squeezed in near Jesus and stretched out her hands to touch His cloak, thinking to herself, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed” (Mark 5:28).

Remarkably, she was healed immediately: “Her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering” (v. 29).

“If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed” (Mark 5:28)

Quietly rejoicing that she had been healed at last and in such a miraculous way, the woman must have thought of slipping away. But Jesus knew what had just happened, and asked, “Who touched me?” (v. 31). Trembling with fear, the woman fell at His feet and confessed. Jesus, however, was not looking to scold her. Instead, He commended her for her faith, telling her, “Go in peace and be freed from your suffering” (v. 34). He also addressed her in a unique way, calling her “Daughter”—a term He did not use directly with any other woman in the Gospels. Jesus gave the woman dignity and assured her that she was truly a daughter of God. He raised her status in front of the crowd; now she could hold her head high and be freed of her embarrassing condition. Jesus had healed her fully—physically, socially, and spiritually. Only Jesus, who created us and knows all about us, can offer such profound healing.

When you hear Jesus call, “Come to Me”, you are hearing a call from your Creator, the heavenly Physician who can truly heal you. It would be wise to heed His voice and to respond to His call, for your only hope is found in Him. Many people ignore Him or do not realise who He really is. Others may come into contact with things associated with Him, like church or Christian activities. But like the crowd that jostled Jesus, their contact with Jesus may be merely accidental.

Like the woman, we need to deliberately reach out and touch Jesus. We need to respond intentionally; no one comes to Jesus carelessly.

Only then will we find the true Healer and be healed.

Consider this:

  • Is there an area of your life that needs a healing touch from Jesus, or needs to be saved by His redeeming hands?
  • Are you holding on to something so tightly that it prevents you from holding on to Jesus, the true Treasure of life?

Excerpted and adapted from Finding Rest for the Soul by Robert Solomon. © 2016 by Robert Solomon. Used by permission of Discovery House. All rights reserved.

 

Related Resources:

The Lord Is My Shepherd: Rest and Renewal from Psalm 23. Finding your way through life can be easier when you have the right One leading the way. Gain insight from the lives of David, Isaiah, and others who found hope, encouragement, and rest under the watchful care of God. Find out more here.