Matthew 9:18-19 23-26 Mark 5:22-24 35-43 Luke 8:41-42 49-56

http://biblehub.com/parallelgospels/The_Raising_of_Jairus_Daughter.htm

Jesus has the power to conquer death.  The promise of the Gospel is eternal life which means that death must be conquered.  Today’s text gives us the first glimpse of the power of Jesus over death when he raises a twelve-year-old girl from the dead.  This will not be the last time we see Jesus doing this but it is the first time that Jesus demonstrates His power over death.  Eventually He will rise from the dead in a glorified body in what was truly a resurrection.  This and the others who have or will be risen from the dead would be more accurately described as resuscitations because they would eventually die again.  Jesus was resurrected just as all who have trusted in Him for salvation from sin will be resurrected to live for all of eternity in the presence of God.  Death is a tragedy brought on by sin but for all who have place their faith in Christ it is only a temporary condition because Christ has conquered death.  In Jesus we can all have the hope of eternal life.

A CRY FOR HELP: When Jairus saw that his only child was sick and that the illness was so severe that her death was very likely; he ran in desperation to find Jesus.  Jairus was one of the officials at the synagogue so He had heard Jesus teach and had most likely heard the criticism of the Scribes and Pharisees against Jesus and His teachings.  However, in light of his daughters impending death; his status at the synagogue mattered very little to him.  He made a desperate cry for help from Jesus to come and make his daughter well.  Jesus agrees to go to his home and one the way there is when the narrative about the woman with the twelve-year hemorrhage touched Jesus and was made well.  This woman had been sick as long as Jairus’s daughter had been alive but now she had been made whole.  This must have given great encouragement to Jairus but at the same time he could have become impatient at the interruption.  Jairus was in desperate need of help and He was confident that Jesus had the power to help Him.  God calls us to trust Him and cry out to Him in our times of need.

A CALL TO FAITH: While Jesus is on the way to the home of Jairus, the little girl dies.  A servant comes to him and tells him that there is no use in bothering Jesus any longer because the girl had died.  This devastating news must have been the worst thing that he had ever heard in his life.  His only child, just as he had feared, had died.  In his mind and in the minds of everyone else Jesus had been called too late.  I’m sure his mind was racing with “what if’s”:  what if I had sought Jesus sooner, what if Jesus had come quicker, what if the woman had not interrupted…  Jesus sees and knows the desperation that Jairus is feeling so He tells him three important things.  First, Jesus tells him not to be afraid.  Second, He tells him to have faith.  Third, he tells him that the child would be made well.  These three words of encouragement must have been very special to Jairus as they moved forward into his home.  Jairus did not know how any of this would happen but he had faith in the ability of Jesus to do anything.  No matter what we face in life; we can rest in the power of Christ and trust Him to meet all of our needs in accordance with His will.

A CURE OF DEATH: When Jesus walks into the house the family and the servants are all there grieving over the death of the young girl.  Jesus tells them to stop because the girl was just sleeping.  This statement turned their tears into laughter.  They didn’t laugh because they thought that what Jesus said was funny; they laughed because they knew that the girl had died now this “great man” was now here and didn’t know the difference between sleep and death.  There must have been several people there who were giving Jairus the “I told you so” look because they did not believe that Jesus could heal the girl.  Jesus takes control of the situation and tells everyone to leave them alone and then He goes with the parents as well as Peter, James and John into the room.  He calls out to the girl, takes her by the hand and she comes back to life.  Jesus tells them to get her some food.  Jairus and his wife are amazed at the power of Jesus and must have felt such a huge relief to receive their daughter back from the dead.  There is nothing that is too difficult for the Lord.  He has authority over life and death.  We can rest assured in His power.

APPLICATION: In our times of need we can call out to the Lord Jesus Christ.  No matter how difficult the circumstances of our lives may become we must learn to trust Him and know that He is in control even when it feels like all is lost.  We can look forward to and rest in the promise of eternal life in the Lord Jesus Christ because He has power over death.