I Need to Get to Jesus

Do you remember the story about the woman who touched Jesus’ robe?  Do you remember the details?  Jesus was walking through a crowd, heading to a centurion’s house because his son was sick and dying.  Luke tells us that as He walked along, people were pressing in around Him.  But a woman, who had been bleeding for twelve years, needed to get to Him so she could touch His robe and find healing in it.  Her persistence is impressive!  Jesus was surrounded by a crowd of people who were pressing in on Him.  This wasn’t a matter of just walking up to Him on the street… she had serious faith and determination!

But there’s more to the story.  If you think back to the Old Testament and the Jewish ways, a woman was declared to be unclean when she was bleeding.  She was not allowed to fellowship until her cycle was over.  This wasn’t just a woman who was sick and needed healing.  This was a woman who had been declared unclean by her family and her church.  For twelve years, if the laws and rituals had been kept, she was banished by those closest to her.

We still mess up today.  As Christians, we are far from perfect.  I pray that we never, ever ostracize those who are hurting and in pain.  But I pray for the ones who get left behind… I pray that in our ignorance, they will still seek Jesus!