21 Jesus crossed the lake again, and on the other side a large crowd gathered around him on the shore. 22 Jairus, one of the synagogue leaders, came forward. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet 23 and pleaded with him, “My daughter is about to die. Please, come and place your hands on her so that she can be healed and live.” 24 So Jesus went with him.
A swarm of people were following Jesus, crowding in on him. 25 A woman was there who had been bleeding for twelve years. 26 She had suffered a lot under the care of many doctors, and had spent everything she had without getting any better. In fact, she had gotten worse. 27 Because she had heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his clothes. 28 She was thinking, If I can just touch his clothes, I’ll be healed. 29 Her bleeding stopped immediately, and she sensed in her body that her illness had been healed.
30 At that very moment, Jesus recognized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched my clothes?”
31 His disciples said to him, “Don’t you see the crowd pressing against you? Yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?’” 32 But Jesus looked around carefully to see who had done it.
33 The woman, full of fear and trembling, came forward. Knowing what had happened to her, she fell down in front of Jesus and told him the whole truth. 34 He responded, “Daughter, your faith has healed you; go in peace, healed from your disease.”
35 While Jesus was still speaking with her, messengers came from the synagogue leader’s house, saying to Jairus, “Your daughter has died. Why bother the teacher any longer?”
36 But Jesus overheard their report and said to the synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid; just keep trusting.” 37 He didn’t allow anyone to follow him except Peter, James, and John, James’ brother. 38 They came to the synagogue leader’s house, and he saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing loudly. 39 He went in and said to them, “What’s all this commotion and crying about? The child isn’t dead. She’s only sleeping.” 40 They laughed at him, but he threw them all out. Then, taking the child’s parents and his disciples with him, he went to the room where the child was. 41 Taking her hand, he said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means, “Young woman, get up.” 42 Suddenly the young woman got up and began to walk around. She was 12 years old. They were shocked! 43 He gave them strict orders that no one should know what had happened. Then he told them to give her something to eat.
Saint Blaise, Bishop and MartyrLittle girl, I say to you, arise! (Mark 5:41)
Some versions of the Bible put the words of Jesus in red print as a way of drawing our attention to what the Lord said as he walked the earth. This isn’t a bad idea, even if it’s still a translation of the actual words Jesus spoke. Today’s Gospel passage, however, goes further. Talitha koum isn’t a translation; they are the exact Aramaic words that Jesus would have spoken.
Imagine yourself in this scene. Perhaps you are the anxious parent or a scornful mourner or one of the disciples. Linger with these bystanders as long as you like. But then lie down in that bed of nothingness as that lifeless girl. Suddenly two words break into your darkness: talitha koum!
At this moment there is no one else in the room. Jesus is speaking these words to you alone. He has made it possible for you to hear his voice. Then you notice that he is holding your hand. Power flows from him, enabling you to do the impossible: to get up from your deathbed. But don’t hurry off just yet. Jesus is smiling at you. Just as he singled out one bleeding woman in a crowd of people a few moments earlier and fastened his eyes on her, he is looking intently at you. With a firm love that can heal any disease and calm any storm, he is telling you to get up: arise!
God often tells his servants to arise. He told Elijah, “Arise, go to Zarephath… . I have commanded a widow there to feed you” (1 Kings 17:9). He told a dead man, the only son of a widow, “Young man, I tell you, arise!” (Luke 7:14). A blind man outside Jericho heard, “Take courage; get up, he is calling you” (Mark 10:49). An angel told the deacon Philip, “Get up and head south” (Acts 8:26).
Arise! Get up! I have a plan for you! We may not know exactly what will happen next, but we can be sure that God has everything in hand.
Today during your prayer, stand up straight and tall. Ask God what he wants you to do next. Don’t worry if it sounds impossible. Just keep your eyes “fixed on Jesus” (Hebrews12:2). If he can raise the dead, he can surely take care of you!
“Jesus, I stand ready to do whatever you call me to.” Amen!
Hebrews 12: Let’s also run the race
1 So then let’s also run the race that is laid out in front of us, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us. Let’s throw off any extra baggage, get rid of the sin that trips us up, 2 and fix our eyes on Jesus, faith’s pioneer and perfecter. He endured the cross, ignoring the shame, for the sake of the joy that was laid out in front of him, and sat down at the right side of God’s throne.
Run the race with discipline
3 Think about the one who endured such opposition from sinners so that you won’t be discouraged and you won’t give up. 4 In your struggle against sin, you haven’t resisted yet to the point of shedding blood,
Psalm 22:26 Let all those who are suffering eat and be full!
Let all who seek the Lord praise him!
I pray your hearts live forever!
27 Every part of the earth
will remember and come back to the Lord;
every family among all the nations will worship you.
28 Because the right to rule belongs to the Lord,
he rules all nations.
30 Future descendants will serve him;
generations to come will be told about my Lord.
31 They will proclaim God’s righteousness
to those not yet born,
telling them what God has done.
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