The intersection of the two stories found in Mark 5 teaches us a vital truth; someone else’s blessing from God doesn’t take away from our own ability to be blessed also.
We tend to worry that we won’t get our share or our turn, even from God. When we are working through infertility and every woman we know seems to be pregnant. When someone else gets chosen for the ministry position that we were praying for. When one of our loved ones continues to choose a life far from God and our friend’s wayward child humbly comes to faith in Christ. Is there still enough left for us? The Bible tells us, “Yes!”
When Jesus was rushing to heal a dying little girl, He was interrupted by a woman who desperately needed healing herself. He healed her and stopped to minister to her emotional needs. People in the crowd (especially Jarius) were probably impatiently worried that Jesus was wasting valuable time. After all, the little girl was dying right then and this woman had already been sick for many years. She could be healed later.
And then the worst news came. Jesus was too late! The little girl had died. If only Jesus hadn’t stopped to heal someone else!
Jesus was not then, and is not now, constrained to a certain number of miracles per day. His power is infinite! Healing the woman with an issue of blood did not keep Him from also raising the young girl from the dead. When jealousy starts to rear its ugly head in our spiritual lives we can know that it is only because our human minds cannot fathom the power and love of our Heavenly Father.
Instead of looking around at all of the things God is doing for other people, and wondering if their blessing has taken something away from us, we can rejoice with them fully knowing that it has not. God is bigger than that. Aren’t we glad?
(For those who have missed any of the previous lessons, you can go to https://comethirstyministry.com/blog/ and view all previous postings.)
Week Thirty-Four
Day 1: Mark 5:25-34 (Healed Woman)
Day 2: Mark 6:1-29 (Herodias)
Day 3: Mark 7:24-37 (Daughter Healed)
Day 4: Mark 14:66-72 (Peter and the Servant Girl)
Day 5: Mark 15:1-47 (Women at Jesus’ Death)