Saturday, March 2, 2013

RESTORED TO LIFE

Mark 5: 38-42

When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. When he had entered, he said to them, “Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha cum,” which means, “Little girl, get up!” And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age).


   IN TODAY’S STORY, THE LAY LEADER of the synagogue was a man named Jairus. His twelve-year-old daughter was very sick at home, and he had fallen at Jesus’ feet, begging Jesus to come and heal his daughter. Jesus immediately left with Jairus, but while they were on the way home, friends came to say that the daughter had died. Jesus turned to Jairus and said, “Do not fear, only believe” (Mark 5: 36). Jairus, but while they were on the way home, friends came to say that the daughter had died. Jesus turned to Jairus and said, “Do not fear, only believe” (Mark 5: 36 NRSV).   
 
   Jesus took Jairus, his wife, and a few disciples to the girl’s room and asked the mourners to leave. He took the girl by the hand and spoke, commanding her to get up, and immediately she was well! What a remarkable scene.
 
   This was the second instance in the Gospels of Jesus restoring someone to life. The first, recorded in Luke 7: 11-17, took place in a town called Nain, where Jesus had seen a widow grieving the death of her son. His heart had gone out to the widow, and he had stopped the funeral procession, saying to her dead son, “Young man, get up!” The boy sat up, very much alive (Luke 7: 14-15).
 
   A third incident of Jesus raising someone from the grave is found in John 11, where Jesus was moved to tears at the grief of Lazarus’ sister. Jesus went to the tomb and shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” To everyone’s astonishment, Lazarus stumbled out of the grave (John 11: 43-44).
 
   These stories have two things in common. First, in each instance Jesus was moved with compassion for those who were grieving. He knew that on the other side of death was life, and that those who have died live again; nevertheless, he was deeply moved by the sorrow of those who mourned. Second, Jesus spoke to the people who had died, and by his word their bodies were reanimated. The biochemical processes of death and decay were instantly reversed, and their souls reentered their bodies— all at the sound of his voice.
 
   Some years ago, a twelve-year-old girl in our congregation named Katie died of a rare disease. Her mother and father, like Jairus and his wife, loved their daughter very much. I shared this story from Mark’s gospel at Katie’s funeral. It served as a reminder of Christ’s compassion for grieving parents. But this story, and the other stories of resurrection in the Gospels, point to the hope we have in Christ. Katie died at 8: 30 a.m. on a Sunday morning. I’m convinced that on that day, at that very hour, Jesus said to her, “Talitha cum” (“ Little girl, get up!”).
 
   Jesus is deeply moved by our grief. And he is “the resurrection and the life.” Those who believe in him, “though they die, yet shall they live.” In the words of Charles Wesley’s famous hymn, “He speaks, and listening to his voice, new life the dead receive!”

Lord, I remember now those whom I have loved and lost to death. Thank you for the Gospel stories in which you spoke and people rose to life. I trust that my loved ones are with you and that one day I will see you, and them, face to face. Amen.


Adam Hamilton,  The Way: 40 Days of Reflection: Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus