In today’s post in our series, New Creation, we’ll be looking at the story of Jairus’s daughter found in Luke 8:41-42, 49-56a. Just as Jesus called a dead girl to life, He calls each one of His beloved children into new life with Him!
Even though I’m a creature of habit and newness sometimes frightens me, I find the New Year exciting.
I’m ready to make new plans, set new goals, and move forward, away from the struggles of the past year. I look forward with anticipation at what God might do.
And I’m ready to leave winter behind.
I’ve never really cared for winter. Even here in central Texas, I find it cold, dark, dreary. And for other reasons, winter can be hard for me.
In this excerpt from that post, I mentioned that though I don’t like winter,
Christmas is the bright, shining star in a dark, dreary season. It’s the promise of growth and life eternal in the atmosphere of death and stillness and waiting. It’s the sweetness in the bitter bite of cold and the joyful signing of angelic voices into black, silent night.
But there’s one really good thing about winter. It reminds me that without light, the world is cold, hopeless, and dead. Just like our souls without Jesus.
Jesus Brings Hope
Yes, we need Jesus for our physical and spiritual lives! Maybe that’s why the story of Jairus’s daughter appeals to me. Though we don’t see a radical transformation in her life of her turning from “bad to good,” we see a transformation by Jesus’ resurrecting power that reminds us we are never beyond His reach.
Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. 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, for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. (Luke 8:41-4)
By the time Jesus made it to the house, Jairus’s daughter was dead. Without a miracle, the situation was hopeless. (I wonder how many times I’ve looked at a situation and thought it was hopeless.)
Because we are humans, we tend to look at the world through our broken, limited perspective. The guests in Jairus’s house did the same. They even laughed when Jesus told them that the girls wasn’t dead, but was sleeping. Later, Jesus proved that He brings hope.
While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler’s house came and said, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more.” But Jesus on hearing this answered him, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, “Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. (Luke 8:49-53)
Only Believe
Before He ever arrived at the house, Jesus said to Jairus and the messenger, “Do not fear; only believe…” (Luke 8:50)
I wonder, what exactly was their fear? Was it death, since the report was that she’d died? Or was it that Jesus might be powerless to do anything about it?
It makes me think a bit about fear. Looking through a broken, limited human perspective, I might see a bad report and focus only on that. In a hopeless situation I might think that nothing could be done to fix things.
But Jesus says, “only believe…”
In order to only believe, there must be no room for fear. (Father, help me leave no room for fear!)
Satan loves for us to fear. When we’re busy fearing, we aren’t busy believing God.
Spiritual Newness
The Devil comes to steal, kill, and destroy, right? But Jesus comes that we might have new life. (John 10:10) And while we may not experience the physical resurrection that Jairus’s daughter did, Jesus calls each one of His beloved children into new life with Him! Through saving faith in Jesus, we are promised eternal life in His presence.
And more than eternal life (as if you can get better than that), He promises us spiritual newness and His nearness. He provides an answer to every concern, every fear, and every hopeless situation. He meets our every need!
But taking her by the hand he called, saying, “Child, arise.” And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. And her parents were amazed… ( Luke 8:54-56 a)
While I make plans and look forward with expectations to the newness of 2019, I also must remember that I don’t know the future. I don’t know the good or bad this year will have in it.
But I do know this: Jesus is the resurrection and the life that gives us light.
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live…” (John 11:25)
In him was life, and the life was the light of men. (John 1:4)
When there seems no way possible, Jesus steps in and creates newness. He reaches out to us, His beloved children, and says to us, “Child, arise!”
Do you have a hopeless situation? Thank God that He creates new life!
Remember, like Jairus’s daughter, we, too, are new creations molded by the Master! We are never beyond His extended hand.
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