Some years ago, on a bus trip through Italy we stopped at a restaurant to eat. We Americans dutifully formed an orderly line to buy our lunch tickets. The Italians, on the other hand, crowed around the pay station, holding their money high as the pushed their way to the counter. Quickly we learned the Italian “system” and joined the crowd in pushing our way to the front of the “line.” Otherwise, we’d have missed lunch that day.
Today we meet two “pushy” people who received amazing favors from Jesus. They give us a lesson on pushiness (Mark 5:21-43).
“A large crowd gathered around Jesus…One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus, came forward. Seeing him (Jesus) he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him saying, ‘My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on her that she may get well and live.’”
Jairus pushed his way to the front of the crowd, found his way to Jesus, and fell on his knees at his feet. This man was desperate because his little daughter was dying. He believed that his request was more important than anything else.
“Jesus went off with him and a large crowd followed.”
Jairus’ need moved Jesus to abandon his plans and head toward the man’s house.
Then Jesus was interrupted again by a pushy woman.
“There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.’ Immediately her flow of blood dried up.”
This woman pushed her way through the crowd and ended up behind Jesus. She dared to reach out to touch the cloak that Jesus was wearing. Imagine her desperation. Her life had been consumed with doctor’s visits, and their treatment made her worse. Now she was flat broke. Jesus was her only hope, and so she fought her way to make contact with him. Instantly divine power flowed from Jesus through his cloak into the woman’s afflicted body and she was cured on the spot.
Jesus continued his journey to Jairus’ house only to be met by some people who said that the little girl had already died. No point in Jesus going any further. Then Jesus became pushy.
“Disregarding the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official, ‘Do not be afraid; just have faith.”
He pushed his way past these messengers of bad news. Then he met another crowd of mourners who had gathered in Jairus’ house.
“So he went in and said to them, ‘Why this commotion? The child is not dead but asleep.’ And they ridiculed him.”
Jesus pushed his way through the mourners and went into the dead girl’s room. He took her hand and raised her from the dead. Her dad’s pushiness paid off.
Jairus and the woman with the hemorrhage both realized that their only hope was Jesus. They did not let the crowd prevent them from pushing their way up to him. Sometimes pushiness is a virtue. Sometimes we let over-politeness keep us from making contact with Jesus and allowing him to meet our deepest needs, and so we miss out on life’s greatest gift.
Today we make a resolution to push our way through the crowd of distractions until we make contact with Jesus.
