THE BARRIER OF DISTRACTION
Barriers to Bridges - Part 5
Sunday, February 9, 2020
Mark 5:22-43
While Jesus was still speaking with her, messengers came from the synagogue leader’s house, saying to Jairus, “Your daughter has died. Why bother the teacher any longer?
Mark 5:35
I don't know about you, but I must confess, I get frustrated when other people are late. When I am waiting on someone else to complete their portion of a project so that I can do my part, I get very anxious because I want to do my part on my timeline, not theirs. I tend to run life ahead of schedule to alleviate stress, but working with procrastinators sometimes forces me to delay the schedule I have set up for myself.
There are two key scenes in the gospels where Jesus is "running late" and on both occasions, his delay is literally a matter of life and death. One is of course the death of Lazarus, where Lazarus' sister Martha is furious that Jesus didn't arrive sooner. "Martha said to Jesus, 'Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died'" (John 11:21). Of course we know that in this case, Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, but Martha couldn't have anticipated that outcome at the time.
Similarly, we find Jesus in today's story heading to heal Jairus' daughter when he is delayed in the crowd. Someone has touched the hem of his cloak and he knows his healing power has gone out to this anonymous individual. There is seemingly no reason for him to stop. He knew a little girl's life was on the line and he made a promise to Jairus that he would come. But he delays. He stops in the middle of the crowd to find this anonymous person who had just been healed by his power. I understand to some degree the importance of Jesus looking this woman in the eye and affirming the value of her faith, but at the same time, I can feel the anxiety of Jairus and the disciples all through this scene. When Jesus turns to the woman, it's as if the rest of the world fades away and only the two of them exist, but we know better.
We are quickly snapped out of this healing encounter by the messenger's announcement that Jairus' daughter has died. There is no need to bother Jesus any longer (Mark 5:35). This woman would have been healed whether Jesus had stopped or not. Surely Jairus must have been crushed, perhaps even angry, that Jesus delayed at the expense of his daughter's life.
Again, we know the end of the story. Jesus raises her from the dead. But the important piece is that Jairus didn't know this would happen.
In our everyday lives, we don't have the hindsight that Martha and Jairus gain after their loved ones are raised. Most of us are living in that in between. Our circumstances seem impossible and we know Jesus could do something to help, until it's too late. And then somehow we feel as if God has failed us. God waited too long to act. We had hope and faith to a point, but then time seems to run out and all hope is gone.
What would it look like to be fully present with Jesus in those moments of delay?
Do we truly believe that even when all hope is lost, God is always right on time?