Mark 5:35-43, “Talitha Koum, Little girl, arise!”
Today’s scripture comes from Mark 5:35-43; it is about Jesus raising a dead girl. We know from our text that the girl’s father’s name was Jairus, a synagogue leader who had faith in Jesus that he had the power to heal his dying girl. That was why he came to Jesus to ask for the healing of his daughter.If we read the previous portion of the story, on his way to Jairus’ house accompanying him, Jesus healed a woman from bleeding for 12 years, and our text starts, “While Jesus was still speaking to her,” while Jesus was still speaking the words of healing to this woman of bleeding for 12 years, Jesus overheard the conversation Jairus exchanged with the people from his house, “Your daughter is dead. Why bother the teacher anymore?” We see that people from Jairus’ house thought there was no more need for Jesus since the girl was dead already. The “teacher” was needed while the girl still had life in her, but when she died, Jesus was no longer needed since there was nothing Jesus could do. It was too late. While there was life, there was hope and room for the use of means, but when life is gone, it is the past, something no one can do anything about. Here, we see that people boxed Jesus in and decided what Jesus could or could not do. To know Jesus for who he is, they should come out of their own box and behold Jesus as the life-giver and the greatest healer for who he is. But unfortunately, we see this attitude until the end of the story in our text. People laughed at Jesus when he said, “She is not dead but sleeping.”People say that there is no more hope in dead people, physically or spiritually, for drug addicts and alcoholics; they decide what Jesus can or cannot do when it comes to healing, renewal, and recovery. They do nothing to do with whom they consider dead or worthless and discourage others who try to help, saying, “Why bother?” Last Friday, when we had a VBS celebration on the last day, I visited patients at the hospital. My chaplain colleague gave me the list of people she visited throughout the week and recommended me not to visit this certain man with the saying, “You know the sort, those whom we tend to avoid visiting.” He was admitted for a cocaine overdose; he was a 26-year-old young man, a cocaine addict. I visited him, regarless, because I believe everyone needs Jesus. His eyes were open, but he was staring in the air, not focusing. After introducing myself as a chaplain, I sat by the bed, meeting his eyes, and said, “James, God loves you very much, and He wants to bless you!” He replied, “I sure hope so.” I continued, “I sense that you feel like God has abandoned you and not caring for you, but NO, he loves you very much, and God wants you to know that.” He again said, “I sure hope so. I pray every day.” I said, “James, do not give up; Jesus loves you to death. As long as you are holding onto Jesus asking for help, He will rescue you, giving you strength to help yourself, and with God’s help, you can rise from where you are.” We prayed the “Lord’s Prayer” together, and I gave him a hug with a silent prayer that he might feel God’s loving arms around him through my hug. I saw the tears welling up in his eyes. I knew why I had to be at the hospital that day. I was God’s messenger to him to tell him not to give up, reminding him of God’s love for him. Are we onlookers or Christians? If we are Christians, we cannot box Jesus in and determine what he or he cannot do, discouraging others who want to believe in Jesus and His power that passes beyond all human understanding and capabilities. Jesus is the life-giver and healer; all things are possible with him. God doesn’t give up on anyone; God wants to heal and give life to everyone, renewing, recovering, and resurrecting. As instruments, God sends us to those who need help, encouragement, and hope regardless of who and what they are. So, I am asking: Are we onlookers who remain within their own human limitations and capabilities and define Jesus on their own terms, deciding what He can or cannot do? Or are we Christians who believe in Jesus as the life-giver and healer? Are we the messengers of God to those who need hope, encouragement, and help from God? Being messengers of God means we must sacrifice, take risks, and come out of our comfort zones. That is what Jesus did. To save us, being the hope of the world, he not only took risks but sacrificed his own life; He left His Heavenly throne, out of his comfort zone, and came to this dark, devilish world. If we do not practice our religion, our religion means nothing. That leads to the second point.Only those who believed in Jesus and His power as the life-giver and healer witnessed His miracle of raising a dead girl. When Jairus heard the news that his daughter was dead, he had a choice: whether to believe Jesus, who said, “Don’t be afraid; just believe!” He had a choice; he could trust Jesus’ Word or consider it hopeless or meaningless. But against the reality that his daughter was dead, Jairus believed Jesus; he came out of his own box and beheld Jesus as the life-giver and healer. That was how he experienced and witnessed the life-giving power working in his dead daughter’s body, soul, and mind. Only Jairus, his wife, and his core disciples, Peter, John, and James, were in the room where Jesus raised a dead girl in verse 40. Those onlookers who laughed at Jesus, sneering, Jesus put them all out. Jesus would have nothing to do with these people who didn’t believe in Him and His word. It is quite a picture, isn’t it, that the faithful get to remain in proximity with the Lord while the unbelieving onlookers are put outside, missing the eyewitness of the miraculous? Christ put those out as unworthy to be witnesses of the miracle, who were noisy in their sorrow but were so ignorant of the things of God.The benefit of those who eye witnessed Jesus raising the dead girl before their eyes is that they were convinced more about Jesus that He was not just a teacher but was the Son of God, who came from Heaven since they knew that only God could raise the dead to life. At the same time, onlookers remained as onlookers even after seeing the once-dead girl walking around them. Jesus was just a miracle worker to them who didn’t have much to do with their salvation. In other words, those who have faith, their faith gets deeper and deeper in their faith. Those who have been onlookers and bystanders will remain onlookers, being obstacles to Jesus and His ministry, never getting to experience who Jesus really is. In other words, goats and sheep are already separated on earth even before facing the judgment seat. Lastly, Christ raised the dead girl to life with a word of power: Talitha, koum; Little girl, I say to you, Arise. Christ works while he commands; he works by the command. He raised even the dead. Christ speaks to us who are by nature dead in trespasses and sins. Koum, Arise! Christ commands those who cannot rise from death by their own power. He is the life-giver, sanctifier, and sustainer! He is constantly calling everyone Koum, Arise! That was how we were woken up and risen to life. At this point, another important point we want to focus on is that the little girl arose and walked as soon as life returned to her in verse 42. Spiritual life will appear by our rising from the bed of sloth and carelessness. When life is returned to us, we are to rise from the bed of slumber, hopelessness, despair, alcoholism, and addictions. And then, we are to walk on a Christian journey of growth, learning the word of God, walking up and down in Christ’s name and strength, and strengthening and empowering others. That is how we know that we are alive. Are we alive? Are we growing? Are we walking in Jesus’ name and His power?