The world is full of people who do incredible things for others who will never hear accolades from a crowd. They quietly go about their business and make a difference. They teach each of us by the life they live. Sometimes, these people get lost in the crowd and we see the results of their lives but we never know who they were. Today’s unnamed hero is one such woman. She teaches us that when we have a need, we must believe that Jesus is enough. We must seek Him and Him alone for the answer.
When this woman sought Jesus she had a physical need. She had gone from doctor to doctor to find answers for her continual bleeding. She had spent all her resources and now as her last resort, she seeks out Jesus. In Mark 5:27 this woman finally hears about Jesus. This is the one people are talking about. He is the one with the healing touch. This knowledge must have been talked about a lot because Jairus was seeking Jesus at the beginning of the chapter to heal his daughter. After twelve years of suffering, she believes that Jesus is the answer to her suffering.
Mark 5:25-26 “And a certain woman, which had an issue of blood twelve years, And had suffered many things of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing bettered, but rather grew worse. When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment.”
When she heard about Him she wasted no time seeking to get to Him. She was willing to take whatever strength she had left to find Him. In verse 28 she believes so strongly that He is the answer that she says, “If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” The Bible tells us she was correct in her assumption. In verse 29 we find she was healed!
Mark 5:29 “And straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.”
Her faith was so strong there Jesus did not require her to do anything else. She didn’t have to go dip in a pool, talk to a priest, or sell her goods as Jesus had required of others to prove their faith. He immediately healed her. Jesus asked who touched Him because He felt His virtue had gone out of Him. The word virtue in Greek means power. The power to heal her had left Him. He then asks “Who touched my clothes?” The disciples thought this to be a strange question since there were people on every side trying to get to Him. He did not ask because He didn’t know, He asked so that the woman herself might confess that it was her. If she acknowledged what had happened the power of her faith and the greatness of the miracle would bring praise and glory to God. It gave further evidence that Jesus was who He said He was.
Mark 5:30-31 “And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?”
In verses 32 through 34 we see the rest of the story. As He looked around the woman was trembling in fear. Knowing the possibility of scorn from the crowd she approached Him and fell down in worship and told Him what she had done. Jesus so tenderly honors her faith. He tells her to go in peace because her faith has made her whole.
Mark 5:32-34 “And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”
This unnamed woman gives us a beautiful picture of what can happen when all of our faith and hope is in Jesus. She had sought Him as a last resort. She had heard about Him but did not know any other way to get to Him. Because she believed she acted on that belief and was healed. We have been so blessed to have the gospel in our hands, on our televisions, phones, and churches. Many who read this have been taught from birth about Jesus, yet when we are sick or something is wrong we try to fix it on our own. We run to medical doctors first and seek out Jesus when nothing else works. We seek Him as a last resort instead of a first.
This woman also teaches us how weak our faith truly is. She goes against all the odds to get to Jesus. How eager are we to get to Him? How much one-on-one do we spend with Jesus? Have you spent enough alone time with Him that you are anxiously awaiting time to be with other believers to worship? Is your time at church just part of your weekly routine? How much time have you spent praying for the salvation of the lost, and being so sure your faith reached the heart of God that you could not wait to see the results at church? Examine your actions and your heart to find out how strong your faith truly is.
Matthew 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
