The Raising of Jairus’ Daughter
Text: Mark 5:21-43
Introduction: This section of Mark’s Gospel is filled with impossible cases. It has been called the Home Of The Hopeless. There are four impossible, hopeless situations recounted in Mark 4:35-5:43. There is the Troubled Sea, the Tormented Sinner, the Traumatised Sufferer, and the Tragedy of the Schoolgirl. We see how the Lord overcame the depths, the demons, disease and death.
Each case is beyond help! The disciples thought they were going to die in the storm, Mark 4:38, but Jesus was able to calm the storm with a simple command. No one could tame the demoniac, but Jesus set him free from his bondage with a simple command.
As we move through the rest of the events in this chapter we will soon discover that Jesus is more than adequate for every situation. There are no incurables with Him. There are no hopeless situations with the Lord! Your situation is not hopeless! Your loved ones are not hopeless!
Now come with me as we encounter Jairus:
I. A Man of Renown – vss 21-22
A. Having been urged to depart Gadara, Jesus odes just that, he leaves its shore behind and makes His way back across Galilee, back to the shores of Capernaum.
1. If He was unwanted in Gadara, he was more than welcome in Capernaum; there a crowd was gathered waiting on Him.
2. Here He was a hero, one who preached with authority – they liked that, One who healed the sick – they licked that even more, and One who challenged the religious status quo. He was a folk hero, the most popular preacher for miles, and so there was a sizeable landing party waiting for Him as he stepped foot upon the shore.
B. Among their number was this man Jairus.
1. Just as Jesus had to cross the sea to heal the demoniac, so too He must return, for He a Divine appointment with the ruler of the synagogue.
2. Now make no mistake about it, Jairus was a figure of respect in this town.
3. His role was to oversee the worship of God and to supervise the affairs of the synagogue. As such he was the head of that local community, a position he held by means of election, so he was a man who had earned the trust and respect of the people.
4. On the Sabbath days it was Jairus who read the Scriptures and led the prayers, it was Jairus who invited speakers to the pulpit, to hold this office was a matter of high honour.
5. In many ways he was the judge, counselor, lawyer and general confidante of the people of Capernaum, - he was without a doubt a figure of renown in that place.
C. He is as eager as anyone for Jesus to return, in fact he more eager than most, you see his daughter is dying.
1. And so when Jesus breaks shore Jairus pushes his way through the crowds, and with big tear filled eyes “he fell at His feet.”
2. You see He knew Jesus was a healer, in all likelihood he had already witnessed His power with his own eyes – Luke 7:1-10.
a. Was Jairus one of those elders? It seems very likely.
b. As guardian of the synagogue he would greatly appreciative of the centurion’s generosity, but as a guardian of the faith he would have been suspicious of Jesus.
c. Oh he would have been happy enough that He should bless Gentiles, but by the same token he would have been as threatened as any other Jewish leader of the time by the things the Lord Jesus said and taught.
3. So for him, of all people, to come to the Lord in broad daylight took quite a bit of courage, and yet what other option had he? His daughter was dying.
II. A Major Request – vss 23-24
A. I am going to tell you something, and you had best take note of it, tragedy, distress, disease and death are no respecter of persons.
1. Jairus’ position could not by pass his problem.
2. Though he was a devout man, though he carried authority and commanded respect, still the angel of death had come knocking on his door.
3. How many there are who think because they are young, or because they are healthy, or because they have means, or because they have faith that some how death and dying is just going to pass them by – what folly!
a. Listen to me, bereavement and death comes to us all.
b. The Bible says, “For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.” (Jas 4:14)
c. The first death in Scripture was not an old man, but a young man, not a father, but a son, not a natural death, but a tragic death.
d. And here we see the same thing in Mark 5, a twelve year old girl is breathing her last, the doctors have shaken their heads, there is no more they can do, and they have walked out leaving grieving parents in despair, hugging the lifeless form of a sick and dying child.
4. This is no time for religious pride, this is no time for playing politics, this is an emergency, and Jairus knows exactly what he needs to do.
B. So he comes before the Lord, falling at His feet, and crying, “My little daughter lieth at the point of death: I pray thee, come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed; and she shall live.”
1. He came to the right place, and He came to the right person.
2. In fact, I dare say the Lord had been expecting him.
3. And so, “Jesus went with him.” You see Jesus cares.
4. Frank Graeff was a Methodist pastor, serving some of the leading churches in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. And throughout the area, he was known as the “Sunshine Minister,” because of his optimistic attitude. he was an encouragement to everyone who knew him. However, what those people never knew was that Frank Graeff went through some enormous times of trial and temptation and many times of intense, personal grief. One evening, as he looked to the Word of God, he came to this verse in 1Peter 5:7, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” It leapt out to him and discovered to him a new joy. He was so touched that he wrote a hymn, “Does Jesus Care?”
Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
Too deeply for mirth or song,
As the burdens press, and the cares distress
And the way grows weary and long?
Oh yes, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.
5. We read in response to Jairus’ request, “Jesus went with him”, and Jesus goes with us too, and He cares about our grief’s and our pains, He walks with us in our trials and temptations.
C. However, before Jesus gets much further, he is distracted and delayed by the need of another, the woman with the issue of blood.
1. We will consider her next time, but for the time being understand there is a period of delay, until we pick up Jairus’ story in verse 34.
III. A Moment of Reassurance – vss 35-36.
A. By the time Jesus has finished dealing with the woman vital moments have passed, and as they approach Jairus’ home someone emerges to tell him his daughter is dead.
1. “Thy daughter is dead: why troublest thou the Master any further?”
2. There is not much tact in the bearing of that shocking news, and yet is that not often the way.
a. I have heard many testimonies from people of how terminal illness or death was abruptly announced by a doctor in the hospital, or by another bearer of such bad news.
b. But the truth is, that no matter how such news is delivered it numbs the soul – it is the last thing we want to hear.
3. Not only was the news bearer blunt, they were evidently unfamiliar with the Lord, “Why troublest thou the Master any further?”
a. Our burdens are never a trouble to Jesus.
Are you weary, are you heavy hearted?
Tell it to Jesus, tell it to Jesus.
Are you grieving over joys departed?
Tell it to Jesus alone.
Tell it to Jesus, tell it to Jesus,
He is a Friend that’s well known.
You’ve no other such a friend or brother,
Tell it to Jesus alone.
B. Jairus’ face must have revealed his despair.
1. If only the Lord had not gone to Gadara, if only he had been nearer when the illness started, if only He had gotten here sooner, if only He had not stopped to speak with that wretched woman… if only.
a. Now all he sees is an empty chair at the table, an empty bed at night, an empty house devoid of childish laughter, and empty heart bearing its grief day by day.
2. Life is full of “if onlys”
3. And Lord reading such thoughts running through this poor man’s mind, frustration, grief, fear, and regret turned to him and said, “Be not afraid, only believe.”
a. Fear and faith pull in opposite directions.
b. This man had just witnessed an exercise in faith and heard the sermon, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole.”
c. Now he needed to do some trusting of His own!!
4. Now they are ready to face the problem. But the house is crowded, there are professional mourners making an unholy racket.
IV. A Melee of Ridicule – vss 37-40
A. Grief is expressed differently from culture to culture, from people group to people group.
1. We have all witnessed Middle Eastern grief through news stories coming out of Israel, Palestine, Iraq and Iran.
2. Theirs is not a quiet dignified expression such as we see in England, but what appears to Western eyes to be an almighty rabble of pushing and shoving and crying and screaming.
3. No sooner had the girl died than this home was full of professional mourners wailing, accompanied by musicians, flautists who made an awful racket to accompany the fleshly banshees of Capernaum.
4. But the Lord would not contribute to the circus, and so taking Peter, james and John, His inner circle as witnesses, He decries the actions of the wailers – “Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth.”
5. Now notice how quickly their mourning turns to mirth – “And they laughed Him to scorn.”
a. These people were hirelings – no more, no less.
b. There will always be those who benefit from death – have you noticed the recession hasn’t hurt the funeral business?
6. The Lord would hear no more of it – this was no time for debate, and so he put them all out.
a. A wise preacher once told me that a funeral is no time for battling – and I think that is true.
b. It is no place for theological argument, or personal conflict – there are people who need to know God’s compassion there, who need to experience God’s grace, and so the Lord dismissed the jeering mockers, and put them out. He had things to do here.
c. There are many who jeer and scoff at the Son of God today, who mock His voice and blaspheme His Person, they have their day, but there will come a point when He puts them out.
B. Now He enters into the room where the pale, lifeless body lay.
1. He takes with Him His three closest disciples, along with Jairus and his wife.
2. What would happen here was not for every eye to see. This was family matter. Jesus was never interested in putting in a show, He was no modern faith healer advertising “signs and wonders”, and He was never one for playing to the gallery or seeking an audience.
3. He had come to save, to serve and to minister.
V. A Marvellous Resurrection – vss 41-43.
A. Taking her by the hand, the Lord, speaking in the Aramaic tongue native to the ancient Palestinian peoples says, “Talitha Cumi”, “Maid, arise.”
1. “And straightway,”… there is one of Mark’s favourite terms.
2. In that moment, at that instance, at the sound of His Word she arose.
a. Unlike a healing, a resurrection cannot be contested.
b. A sickness, it may be surmised, could be healed naturally, but death has no human cure.
c. You folks, who struggle with the idea of healings, should ask yourselves this: are the healers ever able to perform resurrections? Now that would be impressive!!
3. You know the Lord only conducted three resurrections throughout His ministry.
a. This is the first, and it happened shortly after death.
b. The next was the widow’s son at Nain, and that happened the day after death.
c. And the last one was Lazarus, who was resurrected 4 days after death.
d. And some day, after many, many days, “all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”
B. Having restored her life and reunited her with her parents, the Lord commanded two things.
1. No man should know what should happen.
a. Why? We are dealing with a child here; a twelve-year-old girl.
b. Why should she be subject to sensation seeking crowds? Why expose her to the professional mourners, and the curious crowd? She didn’t need it, and so the Lord, again unwilling to advance His own popularity protected her privacy.
c. Jesus believed in child protection.
2. That she should be given something to eat.
a. How practical!
b. She had been ill for some time, and she had woken on an empty stomach.
c. How well the Lord knows young people!! I am sure, like most people of her age one of her first questions was “Is there anything to eat?”
Conclusion: This miracle is very helpful for us, and I will tell you why. It shows the care and compassion of Christ for people. What He did here was not for mass consumption, it was not even designed necessarily to impress upon people the credentials of His Messianic claim, but was an expression of care for a father, a mother and their personal problems. The Lord cares about our personal problems. This miracle declares not just His power, nut His love and His grace.
Then secondly, though He is Almighty, and though there was natural amazement at this act of resurrection, He was also concerned about the little needs. Concerned not just that this child should conquer death, but concerned also that she should be fed breakfast. That’s our Lord, that’s Jesus, and that tells us something about the great heart of God for us. His concern is not just for the big problems, but for the small things too, and even in these He shows His love and care for us.
