Garments Part 1

It has been a while since I’ve written a post on this blog. Sometimes life really gets in the way of dreaming. Whenever I write in this blog, I dream. I dream of God’s glory overflowing in our lives and impacting every soul that touches it.

Like the woman who touched Jesus' garments in Mark...

^24b And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. ²⁵ And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, ²⁶ and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. ²⁷ She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. ²⁸ For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” ²⁹ And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. ³⁰ And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” ³¹ And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’”³² And he looked around to see who had done it. ³³ 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. ³⁴ And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”-Mark 5:24-34

For twelve years, this woman was in bondage by her disease. For twelve years she sought treatment from doctors. She wanted to get better, thus spending her entire life savings. Nothing that money could buy was able to cure her. Her condition worsened.

By the time she approaches Jesus, this woman had no money and no health. There was nothing that she can physically give Jesus in return for what she wanted. She invested so much money and time into promises of health, but nothing delivered such promise.

Have you ever invested time and money into false promises? I know I have. I've invested in relationships that promised love and joy, but instead delivered bitterness and a broken heart. I invested money into clothes and fashion because it promised confidence and beauty; it delivered insecurity and discontentment.

Sometimes, I just want to crawl in a hole with my dog. I get tired of unfulfilled promises that I become afraid to invest in any promise. I get sick of dreaming because they never come true. I just want to be alone by my bitter, lonesome self and become a heartbroken cat lady.

That is why this woman is so remarkable. She had an overwhelming amount of hope that I cannot comprehend. She fought for her health for twelve years and allowed her hopes to shatter every single time. Instead of building cynicism and bitterness towards her pursuit, she still had hope.

She still had the ability to dream.  

This woman didn't know who this Jesus was. All she heard were the reports of him. Isn't that crazy? There were no Bibles in that time and we don't know if she's even a Jew; we are unaware of her religious background. She was only described as a woman who overheard people talking.

We have no idea how powerful our tongues are. In the Bible, our tongues are often compared to a double-edged sword that can be used for or against God. These reports of this Jesus came from people just talking about him. These reports, in my opinion, were God's instruments.

We are instruments that God uses to declare his glory to the world. You are unaware of the power you have when you use your tongue for God's glory. You never know who hears you when you talk about Jesus. Your words about Jesus may be God's way of pursuing people that surround you. Jesus pursued this woman through "word of mouth".

These reports of Jesus gave the woman enough faith, hope, and confidence to pursue Jesus back. She was aware of the power that lies in Jesus. I think she was also aware of how much she didn't deserve any of it. After all, she physically had nothing to offer. To me, that explains why she only touched his garments, not grab the entire thing. Yet even with that touch, she knew it was enough to make her well.

She was right.

The woman got what she wanted and could of bolted immediately after being healed.
Jesus felt power coming out of him and asked in the middle of a crowd, "Who touched my garments?"(v.30). It appears as a dumb question for two reasons.

1. He walked through a middle of a crowd. Of course someone may make physical contact with him...
2. If Jesus knows everything, he definitely knew who touched his garments. So why ask a question that you already know the answer to?

To answer the question in #2...I need another post. Look out for Part 2!