Mark 6:1-13

6 Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. 2 The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” 3 Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him.

4 Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” 5 And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief. Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people. 7 And he called his twelve disciples together and began sending them out two by two, giving them authority to cast out evil spirits. 8 He told them to take nothing for their journey except a walking stick—no food, no traveler’s bag, no money. 9 He allowed them to wear sandals but not to take a change of clothes.

10 “Wherever you go,” he said, “stay in the same house until you leave town. 

 But if any place refuses to welcome you or listen to you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”

12 So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to repent of their sins and turn to God. 13 And they cast out many demons and healed many sick people, anointing them with olive oil.

Comments

I want to be careful here because a lot of bad teaching has gone out regarding the relationship between faith and healing. This passage clearly indicates that such a relationship exists, but we have to read it carefully to get the relationship right. Faith is so important for healing that it even limited what Jesus was able to do (yes, I said that exactly how I wanted to there) in this instance. But it was not the faith or lack thereof of the people who were in need, it was the lack of faith of all the people who were saying, no, he’s just a carpenter. (Aside: you’re not alone, you see, when people tell you the same sort of thing, you can’t do what God has gifted you to do because you’re just a _______. Don’t ever, ever listen to that nonsense.) After they leave the he’s-just-a-carpenter crowd, the healings recommence as before and now even the disciples are casting out demons. This leads me to two points:

1. Don’t ever let someone tell you God won’t/hasn’t/can’t heal you because you don’t believe. Don’t let them tell you that your lack of healing proves your lack of faith. That is not true. Jesus raises people from the dead. Not much faith happening in a dead person, is there?
2. Don’t expect to see much in the way of healings or deliverance if you are hanging out with people who don’t believe such stuff happens. Faith does matter. Their collective lack of faith does inhibit what God is able to do in the confines of that community (yes, I meant what I said again). I’m not a big fan of church shopping, but I highly recommend you find a community of faith that believes, seeks, and practices letting the power of God flow for healing, for deliverance, for the sort of life change that Jesus has been bringing since way back when. He still heals. Believe it.

New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Mark 5.21-43

21 Jesus got into the boat again and went back to the other side of the lake, where a large crowd gathered around him on the shore. 22 Then a leader of the local synagogue, whose name was Jairus, arrived. When he saw Jesus, he fell at his feet, 23 pleading fervently with him. “My little daughter is dying,” he said. “Please come and lay your hands on her; heal her so she can live.”

24 Jesus went with him, and all the people followed, crowding around him. 25 A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. 26 She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse. 27 She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe. 28 For she thought to herself, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition.

30 Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my robe?”

31 His disciples said to him, “Look at this crowd pressing around you. How can you ask, ‘Who touched me?’”

32 But he kept on looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the frightened woman, trembling at the realization of what had happened to her, came and fell to her knees in front of him and told him what she had done. 34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over.”

35 While he was still speaking to her, messengers arrived from the home of Jairus, the leader of the synagogue. They told him, “Your daughter is dead. There’s no use troubling the Teacher now.”

36 But Jesus overheard them and said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith.”

37 Then Jesus stopped the crowd and wouldn’t let anyone go with him except Peter, James, and John (the brother of James). 38 When they came to the home of the synagogue leader, Jesus saw much commotion and weeping and wailing.39 He went inside and asked, “Why all this commotion and weeping? The child isn’t dead; she’s only asleep.”

40 The crowd laughed at him. But he made them all leave, and he took the girl’s father and mother and his three disciples into the room where the girl was lying.41 Holding her hand, he said to her, “Talitha koum,” which means “Little girl, get up!” 42 And the girl, who was twelve years old, immediately stood up and walked around! They were overwhelmed and totally amazed. 43 Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone what had happened, and then he told them to give her something to eat.

Comments

Don’t be afraid. Just have faith. Don’t be afraid. Just have faith. Don’t be afraid. Just have faith. We know that faith is something we only have because Jesus gives it to us. When he says, “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith,” Jesus is not telling us just to buck up. He says that the way we would say, ‘here, have a muffin.’ When Jesus says here, have faith, it’s because that’s what he is giving to us. Hear the Spirit of Jesus saying this to you today. Hear the Spirit saying it over and over again. Don’t be afraid. Just have faith. Just like the little girl, you are not dead. Your situation is not hopeless. Jesus will give you faith like he gave that dear woman crawling on the ground behind him, sure in the Spirit that her healing was within reach. Your healing is within reach. Your deliverance is within reach. Your breakthrough is within reach. Because Jesus is right there with you, reaching to you and saying, “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith.”

New Living Translation (NLT)

Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.