The wise are happy to listen to what others have to say, in the hope that they might learn something. Fools are too busy telling everyone what they already know to learn anything new. The result is that the fools will fall flat on their faith, tripping over obstacles that others had tried to warn them of.
Those who are clear and honest about their goals can walk safely, but those who dodge and weave in an attempt to conceal their intentions will be exposed for the liars they are.
Let us confess our sins and acknowledge to ways in which our suffering is a result of those sins. It is only when we do so, and truly regret our sins, that we will be prepared to receive God’s healing. That healing may not come at once, but let us remain silent before God until He sends us that healing. Let us not complain when we suffer because of our own sins.
In today’s passage we have two people who are desperate for Jesus’ healing power. We have a father who asked Jesus to heal his daughter and a woman who believed that just touching Jesus’ robe would bring her healing. The woman discovered that there is more to receiving healing from Jesus than just touching His robe and going on your way. Even though she just wanted to touch His robe and move on, healed, Jesus demonstrated that He truly cared about those He healed. Even if we do not ask for it, Jesus will take the time to acknowledge each and every person whose life He touches.
Jairus was willing to face the ridicule of those around him to see his daughter healed. When the crowd laughed at Jesus, Jairus did not waiver. Even after it was reported to him that his daughter was dead, he continued to have faith that Jesus could heal her. Those who brought the news of her death told Jairus to stop bothering Jesus, there was nothing He could do now. Jesus told Jairus not to be afraid, to just have faith. That message is for us as well. In the face of death, we need not fear, we just need to have faith.
This passage contains instructions regarding what food the Israelites were allowed to eat and how to treat a woman after childbirth. It was not a revelation to me that the food rules were common sense instructions on how to avoid sickness. With a little thought it becomes clear that the instructions on what animals to eat, or not eat, and on handling the dead bodies of such animals, are health related. There may be exceptions, but there are many animals that fit the description of those they were not allowed to eat that present health risks if eaten.
The thing that caught my attention was that, by declaring a woman “unclean” for a period of time after childbirth, this passage gives a new mother time to rest and recover from childbirth AND time to bond with her new baby. In addition, by giving extra time for the birth of a daughter, the passage encourages a mother to spend more time with a daughter than with a son. This is significant in a society which often held women and girls as of less value than men and boys.
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day, or more. in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
If you are trying to decide if you are wise or foolish, ask yourself this question, how do you feel about someone giving you instructions? Are you happy to listen to(and follow) those instructions? Or are you too busy telling them what you think about the subject?
Do we feel about our sins the way the psalmist felt about his? Does the very thought of our sins make us physically sick? Are we willing to confess our sins? Do we feel remorse and sorrow for them? Do we turn to God and ask Him for His forgiveness?
This passage contains two stories of faith. The first is a father who is desperate to save his daughter. the second is a woman who had been suffering for years. In both cases they turned to Jesus. The woman’s thought was, “If I can just touch His rob, I will be healed.” Do we have that kind of faith? There is a truth here that we all need to remember. If we get close to Jesus and “touch His robe” we will be healed. Do we desire Jesus’ touch the way this woman did? There is something more for us to see here as well. When the woman came to Jesus, her suffering was over because of her faith. She had faith that Jesus could relieve her suffering and as a result He did. Do we have faith that Jesus can relieve our suffering?
In the other story, people came to the father and told him it was too late, that not even Jesus could help any longer. Jesus had a message for him, them, and us. “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith.” No matter how bad things appear. Do not let people tell you it is too late. Just have faith. The crowd may laugh at us, but Jesus’ touch can make things better, no matter how far gone it all is. Everyone thought the man’s daughter was dead, but Jesus said she was sleeping. He took her hand, told her to get up, and she got up and walked around. If we know those who need Jesus’ touch, let us have faith that He can heal them. It is never too late for them to take His hand. Two people were healed in this story. One went to Jesus, touched Him and was healed. For the second, someone brought Jesus to them, He touched them and they were healed. Do you need healing? Go to Jesus and reach out to Him. He will heal you. Do you know someone who needs healing? Bring Jesus to them. He will reach out to them and heal them. In either case, just have faith.
This passage gave the people of interest a list of animals they could and could not eat. In addition to listing many of the animals they were allowed and not allowed to eat, the passage explained what distinguished between these groups, going so far as to offer examples. Looking at the list it quickly becomes apparent that those which they were not allowed to eat posed a significant health risk if eaten (especially when we consider the food storage and preparation techniques available to them). In the modern day we have seen why it is not a good idea to eat just any animal. There have been several outbreaks of disease that resulted from people eating animals that it is unwise to eat. One interesting things about these outbreaks is that they were not the result of the impoverished eating whatever they could lay their hands on. Rather most(if not all) of them were the result of people who were eating these creatures as a delicacy.
I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them. I hope that the Spirit is moving in others through these posts as the Spirit has definitely been convicting me.
The passage gives an account of what types of animals may be eaten. It does not list out all of the animals that may be eaten. Rather it gives the characteristics that determine whether an animal may be eaten. In order to make clear what types of animals may and may not be eaten it gives examples of both and why they fall into the category they are in. The rules then go on to spell out what to do if a clean or unclean animal dies and touches containers (or clothing) made of various materials. Based on what we know today about food preparation and disease transmission, these rules make very good sense for a culture with the technologies that were available to the Israelites (and for many centuries after).
The passage goes on to describe the length of time a woman is ceremonially unclean after giving birth. This is the time that her husband cannot have sexual relations with her, she cannot prepare food for others or handle clothing or utensils that others will use. People have often used this passage about a woman being ceremonially unclean after childbirth as an example of a biblical law which mistreats women. However, this law actually enforces that a woman be given a period to rest after she gives birth. I am not sure why she is given longer when she gives birth to a daughter, perhaps to offset the greater social prestige of giving birth to a son.
This passage is one that has an account of a healing inside of an account of another healing. It starts off telling us that the leader of a local synagogue, Jairus, came to Jesus and pleaded for Him to come and heal his daughter. Jesus accompanied Jairus along with a large crowd that pressed in on Jesus from all sides. In that crowd was a woman who had suffered bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal and had spent large sums of money on many doctors, but she only got worse. When she heard about Jesus and that He was coming nearby, she thought that if she could just touch the mere edge of His clothing she would be healed. She approached Jesus from behind in the crowd and touched His cloak. Immediately the bleeding stopped along with her other symptoms. Jesus turned around and asked who had touched Him. His disciples response was, “In this crowd, who can tell?” However Jesus was aware that someone had been healed so He continued to look around. When the women realized what had happened to her, she fell at His feet and told Him the entire story. Jesus responded to her story by telling her that her faith had healed her and to go in peace.
This has always been a story that indicated the power and importance of faith to me. However, a year or two ago, when my wife was struggling with something, she would start to pray, “Just let me touch the hem of His cloak.” This opened up a new insight into this story for me and gave it greater meaning. The woman in this story did not feel that she needed Jesus’ full attention, she just wanted to be in the bare periphery of His presence, the merest touch of His cloak. Do I have similar faith that if I can merely touch the edge of God’s presence, my struggles will be resolved? Do I have the same desire to fight my way through the crowd so that I can experience just the very periphery of God’s presence? There is more to the story than just that. All the woman desired was just the merest touch of Jesus’ cloak, that was all she needed. But when she touched it and experienced His healing, that was not enough for Jesus. He wanted to know who she was and what her story was. It is the same with God, we may be satisfied with just the barest touch of His presence, but He is not. We often feel that God is too big and has more important things to deal with than our little problems. This story is about how Jesus made time for this woman. I will touch on more of that in a moment.
As this interruption came to a conclusion, some people came from Jairus’ house and told him that his daughter was dead, there was no point in bothering Jesus anymore. The delay had cost him his daughter’s life. Except, Jesus didn’t see it that way. He told Jairus not to be afraid, just to have faith. Jesus allowed only Peter, James and John to accompany Him the rest of the way. When He got to the house, Jesus saw the commotion made by the people going into great show of mourning. Jesus asked them why they were making such a fuss? He told them that the girl was merely sleeping. They laughed at Him. They thought He was crazy. He made them all leave. Then He took the mother and father and the three disciples that were with Him in to where the girl lay. He called out to the girl and told her to get up. She did so. Jesus told the parents to not talk about it and to give the girl something to eat.
Notice what happened here. Jesus was delayed and now it was too late, the girl had died. There was nothing more to be done. But that’s not the way it works with God. He does things in His own time and it is never too late as long as we have faith and patiently wait for His action. God may have more important things to deal with than our problems, but He has all the time He needs to deal with our problems and those more important problems. We also need to remember that we do not know which problems God thinks are more important. I am tempted to tell a story here to illustrate the point I am about to make, but the story is too long and takes too much explanation. The point is that we should never be afraid to “interrupt” God with our problems because He cherishes us bringing them to Him. And not just our problems, but our successes and joys. That is what Jesus meant when He said we should be like children. Think about how little children are constantly following their parents around and interrupting them with their joys and their sorrows. That is what God wants from us.
The psalmist cries out to the Lord for rescue. He expresses how his troubles are more than he can bear. He calls on God because he is at the end of his strength and cannot go on. He acknowledges that his troubles are the result of his sins and confesses to God that he has failed to live according to God’s commands. He lays himself before God and begs for His forgiveness. The psalmist has faith that God will answer his plea and patiently awaits God action. I will strive to depend on God and wait for Him, even when I am desperate and nearing the end of my strength,
Today’s proverb tells us that the wise accept commands, while the fool is busy talking about why they should or should not follow the instructions they have been given. The wise understand that there is a time for taking action and doing what those in charge instruct and a time for talking about why things are done the way they are. Those who want to debate every action, no matter how minor, before it is taken are foolish.
Those who have integrity walk in safety and do not need to fear their motives being revealed. Those who attempt to use indirection to get their way will, sooner or later, be caught out as people realize that their stated goals are not what they are truly striving for.
