The Compassionate Father's Little Daughter
If you were to use a single image to describe the current state of your life, what would come to mind?
In Jeremiah 2:13, the LORD uses the image of broken, leaking cisterns to describe Israel at that time: “My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug for themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
A cistern that is not connected to a water source—one that only leaks and never receives—lies dry and cracked, everything it once held having drained away. Is this not like ourselves, or the condition of so many people around us in body, mind, spirit, and relationships? Is the only way forward not to mend the cistern at once and reconnect it to the spring of living water? Then how are we to “stop the leaks,” how are we to “reconnect,” so that we may once again be filled with blessing?
What fresh insights can we read from the familiar Gospel story of "the woman with the issue of blood being healed"? Let us look closely together at how the Lord's mighty power causes those who seek and depend on Him to stop the "bleeding" of body, mind, spirit, and community, filling their lives with the "peace" (shalom) He bestows, and enjoying wholeness.
Body, Mind, Spirit, and Community—Drained Dry
This woman had been suffering from bleeding for a full 12 years. Bleeding meant a woman bleeding continuously outside her menstrual period. According to the law in Leviticus 15, if a woman suffered from prolonged bleeding, she would be considered unclean: everything she had lain on, worn, or used would be considered unclean; if anyone touched her or touched anything she had lain on, worn, or used, they too would be considered unclean.
She had spent all she had on doctors, but no one could heal her (see Luke 8:43-48); not only was there no improvement, but her condition had grown worse (see Mark 5:21-43). It could be said that physically, mentally, spiritually, and socially, she had been completely "drained."
Physically (physiological): She suffered from illness, exhausted her wealth seeking medical treatment, yet was declared incurable by one doctor after another. Prolonged blood loss must have left her gaunt and emaciated, possibly carrying an odor. After spending all her money, she was likely dressed in rags.
Mentally (psychological): With no hope of recovery, she likely experienced low self-esteem, dejection, depression, anxiety, despair, and withdrawal.
Spirit (Spiritual life): Complaining against God and doubting Him are natural responses for many who suffer from chronic illness or prolonged hardship. Because she was considered unclean, she was unable to take part in any religious rites, and thus felt far removed from God.
Socially (interpersonal, social, faith life): Based on the regulations in Leviticus 15, if this woman was married, she was likely already divorced; if unmarried, she could not possibly be married; if she had children, because she couldn't have intimate contact, family affection was thin or nonexistent; if she had no children yet, because bleeding could lead to difficulty conceiving, she would have been viewed as worthless at that time. She couldn't appear in the synagogue or temple, had no participation in communal faith life, and neighbors would try to avoid any contact with her. She could be said to be the most vulnerable among the vulnerable, the most marginalized among the marginalized!
How did the woman who was completely "drained" physically, mentally, spiritually, and socially receive the Lord Jesus pouring living water into her life and obtain holistic healing? I hope you and I can learn three life lessons: step out of our echo chambers to care for and shepherd all seekers; establish an individual and intimate connection with the Lord; desire to receive holistic healing of "body, mind, spirit, and community."
Serving Beyond the Comfort Zone
There are surely people around us from many different backgrounds and with many different needs. As the church and as disciples of the compassionate Lord, we are called to step beyond our comfort zones—that is, beyond circles of people who share our background, social class, or economic situation—and to care for and shepherd all who seek the Lord and are in need of Him.
A comparison of Luke 8 and Mark 5 shows that Jesus very likely ministered to three different kinds of people on the same day—perhaps even within a few hours: he first cast out demons in the region of the Gerasenes; then Jairus, a synagogue leader, came to plead for his sick daughter; on the way to Jairus’s house, a woman suffering from a bleeding disorder touched Jesus’ garment; and finally, Jesus raised Jairus’s daughter back to life.
Some scholars say that Jesus did not take the nearest, most direct route, but deliberately took a detour because He knew that in the vast sea of humanity, there was a pitiful little daughter of the Heavenly Father desperately seeking Him.
This "Gerasene man" possessed by evil spirits seemed to have completely collapsed and lost control physically, mentally, and spiritually, which can be extended to those bound by drug addiction, gambling addiction, sexual addiction, alcohol addiction, internet addiction, and so on. The "woman with the issue of blood" resembles those who are disabled, chronically ill, or have a shameful past, poor background, are trapped in long-term psychological trauma, or have experienced broken relationships—those who are self-deprecating, withdrawn, self-isolating, or rejected by others. "Jairus" is like those with reputation and status, respected professionals, social elites, and so on.
In the church, in the gospel and cultural harvest fields, all three types of people actually exist and all need the Lord's acceptance, salvation, and healing. Unfortunately, we often find it difficult to break through the constraints of worldly values, tending to invest most resources in the "Jairuses," while consciously or unconsciously avoiding or neglecting the relatively thorny "Gerasene" or "woman with the issue of blood" groups.
What Is the Church Really Like?
What is the church really like? Some say it's a "family" because it's about love and care; some say it's like a school because it's a place to teach and learn the truth; some say it's like an army, where we must train for service, cultivate faith and courage, learn obedience, and go to battle as the Lord commands. However, the church is also like a hospital!
The Lord Jesus declared: "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." (See Mark 2:17)
Precisely because it is a hospital, there will be "Gerasenes," "women with the issue of blood," and all kinds of patients who need healing physically, mentally, spiritually, and socially. If we can understand that "the church is like a hospital," we won't be too surprised or disappointed that "there seem to be more odd people in the church than outside." Moreover, the more "patients" there are, the better the hospital's medical ethics and skills. If a hospital has few visitors, would you feel comfortable going there for treatment?
Why not view "the church is like a hospital" this way—because the "Great Physician" Jesus Christ there sees every person seeking help as a pitiful daughter or son of the Heavenly Father, and He can heal all their complex ailments physically, mentally, spiritually, and socially. What's more special is that the other medical staff in the hospital were all once patients themselves who, after being healed, stayed out of gratitude to work alongside Jesus Christ.
And KRC? Of course it can also fulfill the functions of a "family," "school," "army," and "hospital"!
I once heard the testimony of an African American pastor named William (pseudonym). He was born and raised in a black ghetto in a big city, his father was unknown, and his mother wandered around, taking drugs and living on welfare. He was basically left to fend for himself. William was short and fat, and from childhood he was the target of severe and continuous bullying year after year. The school cafeteria, storage rooms, school bus, and bathrooms were places he had to go every day but feared most. Because every day someone would bully him without restraint.
William worked desperately hard, but the money he earned was to meet the extortion demands of bullies—he was essentially a slave. He also stole from his employer because he never knew what integrity, honesty, or self-respect meant.
During the summer of his high school year, a Christian family moved in next door. When this family saw William often wandering around the neighborhood, they cared for him and showed him love. He quickly understood that nobility, kindness, and warmth still existed in the world; it was also the first time he witnessed what a family that pleased God looked like.
Most importantly, this family had two tall and strong boys who attended the same school. On the first day of school, they discovered William's miserable situation. So they put out the word: "William is our close friend. Anyone who wants to bully him will have to go through us first!"
From then on, his life was completely transformed; from then on, he had a correct understanding of the Heavenly Father; from then on, he felt that the hole at the bottom of his life's pool had been repaired and connected to the source of living water, beginning to accumulate blessings he had never imagined or enjoyed before. Through a Christian family conveying and sharing the Lord's mercy and compassion, he went from being the lowest nobody on the entire campus to becoming somebody in God's family. After William worked his way through college and seminary, he became a pastor and spared no effort in promoting the anti-bullying movement in American elementary and secondary schools, changing the lives of countless children.
Isn’t William a classic example of a patient becoming a caregiver?
Establishing an Individual and Intimate Connection with the Lord
Another life lesson we learn from the woman with the issue of blood receiving holistic healing from the Lord is: salvation is universal to all people, but to be saved one must establish an individual and intimate relationship with the Lord. When the Lord Jesus asked, "Who touched my clothes?" He was both addressing the woman with the issue of blood and reminding the disciples.
The woman with the issue of blood reaching out in the crowd to touch the Lord's garment and being healed tells us: proactive and active faith in action is the key to receiving grace. The Lord Jesus's determination to "single out" this habitually hiding woman from the crowd was precisely to establish an individual and intimate relationship with her, making salvation her personal and genuine experience, not merely something heard about, observed, or taught.
What about the disciples? Peter, representing the disciples, said that they and the crowds were all "pressing against" the Lord. Their contact with the Lord seemed close, yet their hearts might have been far from Him.
Are we also serving in ministry fields inside and outside the church, feeling that we are close to Jesus every day, yet unable to understand His heart—like a compassionate father waiting at the door for the prodigal son, like a shepherd determined to find the lost sheep?
In a large group, the individual seems to be submerged. But when our attention is constantly drawn to the congregation, readers, and followers, isn't it easy to miss that person who is longing to make a touch of faith in order to receive holistic healing, to stop the leakage in their life and be filled with blessing?
In the book *Reading You in Eternity*, author Faye Mo points out in the chapter "A Touch of Faith" that the Lord Jesus was determined to have the woman with the issue of blood bravely face her hidden problem and publicly reveal her hidden faith, while giving her the opportunity to both strengthen herself and glorify the Heavenly Father by giving testimony.
This is why Jesus had to immediately ask, "Who touched me?" That's right, publicly testifying for the Lord is originally part of the healing.
A Touch of Faith, Holistic Healing
Salvation is "personal," but not "private." We certainly must establish an individual and intimate relationship with the Lord, but we cannot stop there. The Lord heals our body, mind, and spirit, and at the same time wants to heal us at the "community" level; only when body, mind, spirit, and community are all healed is there complete "shalom" (wholeness/peace).
There's a saying: A song that isn't sung is not a song; a bell that isn't rung is not a bell; love that isn't expressed is not love; blessing that isn't shared is not blessing.
In addition to helping the woman strengthen her faith, Jesus required her to testify publicly also so that the community would know she had been healed and could accept her again, allowing her to restore her family life, social life, and public worship life. Yes, we all have a "song" (life story) to "sing" (to proclaim with mouth and hand); we all have a "bell" (important message) to "ring" (to proclaim and remind); we have the "blessing" of "eternal life and present blessings" to share; and we have the "love" of "glorifying God and benefiting people" to express.
Mark 5:29 says the woman felt that her affliction was "healed"—in the original text this refers to physical healing; in verse 34, when Jesus told her, "Your faith has saved you," it refers to healing of body, mind, and spirit; finally, the Lord said, "Go in peace!"—referring to reestablishing harmonious relationships with God, with people, with oneself, and with the community. This is the complete shalom of body, mind, spirit, and community!
When this woman who had been bleeding for 12 years desperately pushed through the crowd and finally touched Jesus's garment, Jesus immediately asked, "Who touched me?" Everyone denied it, and Peter said, "With so many people pressing against you, how can you ask 'Who touched me?'"
But Jesus said, "Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me." This was different from the crowd's pressing—it was a touch filled with faith.
Jesus said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you." She originally had no name, no face, no identity, but with one touch of faith, she instantly became "the pitiful little daughter of the compassionate Father."
Jesus proclaimed to this woman with the issue of blood whom He called "daughter": "Your faith has healed you." As if saying: "You are saved because you proactively took action in faith!"
Becoming a member of God's family is an instantaneous decision, a touch born of faith. At the moment healing occurred, this nameless, faceless woman who was nothing instantly became the pitiful little daughter of the compassionate Father. And the key to all of this was because she reached out and touched the Lord Jesus's garment.
Being the Tassels on the Lord's Garment
Matthew 9:20-21 specifically points out that this woman came up behind Jesus and touched the tassel of His garment. We can imagine: desperately stretching out her arm, unable even to grasp the hem of Jesus's garment, barely able to touch the tassel of His garment!
Dear family members, we too can become the tassels on His garment, allowing His power to flow out through us.
In the crowd there are too many lost daughters or sons—when they reach out their hands, do we sense Christ's power flowing through us? It's not that we ourselves have anything, but that the Lord's power, working through us, produces transformative effects in their lives.
May you and I constantly remind ourselves—I am not the healer, I am not the answerer. I am just a tassel, a small tassel, but as long as I remain tightly connected to His garment, power will continue to flow. Let us pray to the Lord: "Lord, let Your power flow through me. Let me become a conduit of Your power. A conduit of Your infinite power, not my own."
Family members, may you and I in the church, in KRC, and in the broader environment, not just be bystanders—but channels through which God manifests His power to those little daughters and little sons who reach out their hands, longing for healing of body, mind, spirit, and community!
Pour out your heart to the Lord
Let us place our hands on our hearts and come before the Lord in prayer:
Lord, yes, no matter what life circumstances we are currently in, we long to be like the woman with the issue of blood we've seen today, to become people whose lives are renewed!
Merciful Heavenly Father, we also long to participate in Your mission to seek and find Your daughters and sons. But all we can do is become the tassels on Your garment for people to grasp tightly. May Your power flow and be manifested through us, so that the people we encounter in church, family, workplace, and community may all receive holistic healing of body, mind, spirit, and community, stopping the leakage and being filled with blessing and shalom.
Grant us a father's and mother's heart, able to see in the crowd those children who are seeking You, longing for You, to serve them according to Your will, and accomplish the Great Commission You have entrusted to us.
In Jesus's name we pray, Amen.