Luke 8:40-48 (ESV)

40 Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. 41 And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And falling at Jesus’ feet, he implored him to come to his house, 42 for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. 43 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. 44 She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. 45 And Jesus said, “Who was it that touched me?” When all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!” 46 But Jesus said, “Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me.” 47 And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. 48 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.”

Jesus returned to Galilee and was met by a very eager crowd. One person in this particular crowd was a man named Jairus, a leader and possibly even the primary ruler of the local synagogue. His daughter was seriously ill and about to die. Jairus heard about what Jesus did and humbly fell before him in a posture of respect. He begged Jesus to come to his house and heal his only daughter before she left this life. Although Jairus was a respected community leader, he didn’t let his social status keep him from honoring Jesus. Time was short though! The girl was near death (v. 42), and they needed to move quickly. A great crowd was pushing in on, even crushing Jesus. Suddenly, Jesus stopped and asked, “Who touched me?” Those with him must have thought he was losing his mind. Who touched him? Umm… many people “touched” him. But this “touch” was different. Power left him. The person he referred to was a woman who realized he was no ordinary human. She knew that if she could even touch him, or the hem of his garment, she could be healed. She had been sick for twelve years with a bleeding condition that made her unclean. When she touched him, she was healed immediately. But why was Jesus calling her out? Maybe he was angry because an unclean person touched him. Although she was scared, the woman had to confess. Jesus knew what happened, but he wanted to see the woman face to face.

After the woman made herself known, Jesus graciously addressed her as “Daughter” (v. 48). Jesus was probably younger than this woman, but he called her daughter to emphasize the close relationship with those who trust in him. He also told her she was made well because of her faith. Both her physical and spiritual healing were the direct result of her faith. What is faith? A good replacement word for “faith” would be “trust.” Faith is trust in who God says he is, what God says about humanity, and what Jesus has done to reconcile us to the Father. Faith believes that God can and will do whatever he wants. If what he wants doesn’t line up with what we want, we trust that his will is better in the end. Even though we don’t know what will happen tomorrow, God does. We can trust him with the future.