Mark 3:7-10 – Jesus withdrew to the sea with His disciples; and a great multitude from Galilee followed; and also from Judea, and from Jerusalem, and from Idumea, and beyond the Jordan, and the vicinity of Tyre and Sidon, a great number of people heard of all that He was doing and came to Him. and He told His disciples that a boat should stand ready for Him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd Him; for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had afflictions pressed around Him in order to touch Him.
Can you imagine if Jesus was on earth today in 2020? Specifically what I mean is, what would it be like if we heard that Jesus was in the U.S. and had the power to instantly heal any disease and even raise people from the dead? In the midst of a global pandemic, how popular would Jesus be? If you knew someone could instantly heal your loved one of the Coronavirus, what would you do to get your loved one to Jesus? How fast would the word get out today? Social media, paparazzi and news networks would be ablaze no doubt. I’m not sure if we can even begin to comprehend just how popular Jesus was. We have a lot of celebrities that people go crazy over, but there really is no one comparable to Jesus of Nazareth.
But what would you do today in 2020 if you knew that this Jesus had the power to heal any disease? Most of us have had a loved one die from Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease, pneumonia, AIDS, etc. What would you personally do if your loved one was on the verge of death and you heard about this Jesus?
Would you push through the crowds to get your child to him? Would you spend thousands on plane tickets? Would you worry about being polite in the crowd; would you make sure to say “Excuse me?” Nope.
I can safely say without hesitation that if my wife or my son or daughter was dying that I would stop at nothing to get my loved one to Jesus. Manners and tact would be out the window, just a laser focus and desperation on reaching Jesus. If you read the gospel accounts, you will see that is exactly what happened. Look at these excerpts from Mark:
- Immediately His fame spread throughout all the region around Galilee (Mark 1:27-28).
- The whole city was gathered together at the door (Mark 1:33).
- “Everyone is looking for You!” (Mark 1:37).
- Jesus could no longer enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction (Mark 1:45).
- No longer room to receive them, not even near the door (Mark 2:12).
- The multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread (Mark 3:20).
Luke 6:17-19 – And he came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. And those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all the crowd sought to touch him, for power came out from him and healed them all.
Can you see in just the few examples above that people were going to all lengths to get to Jesus.
We are going to look at three specific examples in this article of those who pushed through the crowds to Jesus. People stopped at nothing to get to Jesus:
- For their friends (Mark 2:1-12)
- For their family (Mark 5:21-24,35-43)
- For themselves (Mark 5:24-34)
These 3 examples of people pushing through the crowds to Jesus have at least 3 similarities:
- Recognition of the hopeless condition.
- Belief in Jesus as the only hope.
- Laser-focused intensity on getting to Jesus.
The Paralytic and His Four Friends (Mark 2:1-12)
On one occasion, four men could not get their friend to Jesus in the house in which He was teaching, but that did not stop them, did it? They climbed up on the roof and removed a section from the roof and let their paralytic friend down with ropes (Mark 2:1-12). Mark records that “Jesus saw their faith.” I love that…I really love that. What did Jesus see? He saw four men who knew Jesus was the only answer for their friend. These four men would stop at nothing to get their friend to Jesus.
Think of the excuses they could have made to their friend for why it wouldn’t work. “There’s too many people here. This will be impossible to get to Jesus. We’ll be here till daylight trying to see Jesus. It’s better if we go home and try again another time.”
Let me ask you, does Jesus see your faith? Does Jesus see my faith? Are we truly convinced deep down in our hearts and souls that Jesus is the only answer for ourselves and our loved ones? If that is the case, that we really believe Jesus is the only way for our friends, what would Jesus see?
Jairus and His Daughter (Mark 5:21-24,35-43)
When Jesus had crossed over again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around Him; and so He stayed by the seashore. One of the synagogue officials named Jairus came up, and on seeing Him, fell at His feet and implored Him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death; please come and lay Your hands on her, so that she will get well and live.” And He went off with him; and a large crowd was following Him and pressing in on Him (Mark 5:21-24).
“911…What’s your emergency?” I’m sure we all either have had to call 911 at some point, or we have heard recordings on the news of 911 calls. What do you hear on those recordings? Desperation. Urgency. Tears. Raised voices. Confusion. Panic. “Get here now!”
That was no doubt the tone in the crowd on a daily basis as everyone was pressing upon Jesus to get either healing for themselves or for someone they loved. Here comes Jairus. Notice that he was a ruler of the synagogue. Most Jewish religious leaders hated Jesus and caused all kinds of trouble for Him in the synagogues.
I’m not sure if this Jairus was one of those troublemakers, but it really didn’t matter at this point, did it? His daughter was at the point of death, and if you read a little further in the account in Mark 5 she did actually die before Jesus got to her (Mark 5:35-43). His daughter was dying and only Jesus could save her. He would stop at nothing to get Jesus to his 12 year old girl.
So, let me ask you…at this precise moment in the life of a father whose daughter is dying, what mattered to that father? What didn’t matter?
- Did it matter at that point how pretty she was?
- Did it matter at that point if she would get higher education, honors and a 4.0 GPA?
- Did it matter if she would be successful at business?
- Did it matter if everyone liked her?
- Did it matter if she had all the best material possessions?
- Did it matter if she excelled in sports and music?
None of that mattered to Jairus as his daughter was at home dying.
As a minister, I have been with way too many parents who have lost children, and I have never once seen any of the above things matter at all to those grieving parents. April 26th is the anniversary of the death of my good friend’s son. I just happened to call him on that day, not remembering what day it was, and he asked me, “Do you know what day it is?” I said, “No, but now I remember.” This brother answered quietly, “The worst day of my life.” That was over 20 years ago and it is still like yesterday for this father. That, by the way, was the first funeral I ever preached. When I think of Jairus, I think of this brother.
I know for sure that if these parents who lost their kids knew Jesus was nearby healing people that they would stop at nothing to get their dying children to Jesus. Nothing else matters at that point.
The applications, I believe are obvious, but necessary to point out. Lots of parents push their kids to get into the best schools, to accumulate lots of money, to be the best in sports, and to achieve the highest levels in the professional world, but they do not push to get their children to Jesus.
Parents and grandparents, there is one thing, only one thing that matters in your children’s lives, and that is Jesus Christ. All that other stuff will burn up one day. My mom used to say to me something like this, “Aaron, I don’t care if all you have is a can of pork and beans and live under a tin roof, as long as you love Jesus.” She meant it. She pushed with all her might to get my brother and me to Jesus. Thank you, mom.
A Woman Who was Very Sick (Mark 5:24-34)
Mark 5:27-28 – She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.”
A very sick woman, desperate for healing realized that Jesus was the only hope she had in the world. She had spent all that she had on doctors and only grew worse. Then the news came of the great Physician, and her hope revived. This poor woman had to be very weak considering she was dealing with some kind of blood issue for 12 years. But her faith gave her strength to push through to Jesus in order to touch His clothes.
Consider her faith for a moment. Her conclusion in faith was that she didn’t have to call out to Jesus and beg for Him to personally come to her. All she needed to do was touch the hem of His garment. In faith she knew His power was there and if she could just touch the hem (fringe, Matthew 9:20) of His garment as He passed by in the crowd, that would be enough.
Where did she get this faith? By hearing the reports about Jesus. I’m not sure if it is implied, but it seems like she hadn’t seen Jesus or His miracles performed before this point. She had heard the reports. Do you remember Rahab the harlot? How did she come to faith in God? By hearing the reports of what God had done in Egypt 4 decades before (Joshua 2:10).
Romans 10:17 – So then faith comes through hearing and hearing by the word of God.
The news about Jesus and His mighty works and compassion produced faith in this very ill woman. She did not see, but she heard and believed. Jesus told Thomas after His resurrection that those who do not see but believe are blessed (John 20:29).
Mark 5:34 – And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
What made her well? Faith! Where did she get that faith? By listening to the good news about Jesus.
Another final thought about this woman. Jesus didn’t have to stop in the crowd, did He? He could have passed by and let this woman have her private miracle of healing. She would have gone on her way rejoicing. But He stopped everyone in the crowd, including His confused disciples to take note of this woman and point out her faith. She was trembling as she told Jesus and all present there what happened. Jesus lifted her faith up on a pedestal for all to see and learn.
Final thought, “Does Jesus know your touch?” Or is your touch just one of the crowd? Lots of people were reaching out to touch Jesus that day, but Jesus recognized the touch of faith.
Remember these 3 things:
- Your hopeless condition without Jesus.
- You must believe in Jesus as the only hope.
- Based on 1 and 2, you need a laser-focused intensity on getting to Jesus.