“Dare to touch,” Mark 5:21-43

Mark 5:21-43

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Pastor Tom Johnson, June 27, 2021

The Law of Moses are the many requirements and prohibitions that flow out of the Ten Commandments. Some of these rules can be difficult for our contemporary minds to understand. This morning we have two examples. The first is the woman living 12 years with bleeding.  Leviticus chapter 15 states that she is unclean as long as the bleeding continues and must live separate from the community. Everything she touches—her bed, her clothing, other people, the tabernacle or Temple—everything she touches is defiled by her impurity—for 12 years! The second is the dead body of Jairus’ 12 year-old daughter. Leviticus chapter 21 states that to touch a dead body also makes one unclean. Numbers chapter 19 says that to even enter the home with a dead body in it would make that person unclean. One dared not touch these “untouchables.” If you did touch someone unclean, or if someone unclean touched you, it would make you unclean and you also would have to live on the margins of religious and social life. 

That is what makes the faith and action of this woman bleeding for 12 years so bold. She dares to believe that Jesus would heal her if she just touched his clothing. Think of all the people, furniture, places, and clothing she defiled by her touch for 12 years. The clothing she touches gets defiled and people who touch her clothing get defiled. In her own mind, she flips her burden upside down. If she can just touch Jesus’ clothing, she will be well. She dares to enter a crowd of people pressing against one another to see Jesus. She dares to touch Jesus.

While all this is happening, Jairus dares to ask Jesus to lay hands on his daughter—to touch her and heal her. Jesus cannot get to the 12 year old girl soon enough. She dies. They tell Jairus not to trouble Jesus anymore. But Jesus plans to keep his promise to lay hands on his daughter. So Jesus dares to touch a corpse which would also make him ritually unclean. In each case, human touch is forbidden by the Law. In each example, someone dares to break the rules.

Sadly, we have our own societal and religious stigma we assign to certain people. There are still people living on the margins—not yet fully enjoying what it means to be a child of God or part of a loving and nurturing family or community. It is well-documented that newborns, infants, and toddlers who are deprived of loving and nurturing touch will not physically grow and can even die. There is real psychological and physical harm that has been inflicted on children who are separated from their families and those who would give them nurturing touch. There are devastating consequences from the idea that any of us is unworthy of the most basic need for human affection. We will live outside the margins of what we all need as those who are created in the image of God. We all need the touch of someone who has our best interest at heart. 

We have yet to see the full devastating consequences of 15 months of social and physical isolation resulting from the pandemic. We dared not touch one another for months and months. We don’t want to minimize the toll of those who got sick and lost loved ones. But we also must not minimize the social and psychological toll. It is darkly ironic that the “me too” movement began shortly before this global prohibition of touch. We should note that there is unwelcome touch, harassment, and even assault. It is a violation because it exploits others. God has designed touch to nurture healing, wellness, and innocence—not to take it away.

That is what Jairus and the woman dare to believe—that Jesus’ touch is divine—Jesus is the nurturing and healing hand of God extended to every soul. They dare to approach Jesus for his touch. Jesus dares to touch them.  What makes Jesus different is that the ritual uncleanliness of those bleeding and the dead is no threat to him. Jesus does not feel the uncleanliness of the woman enter his body. Jesus feels the power to heal her leave his body. It’s not what the woman transmitted to him but what he transmitted to her—his gracious healing. Jesus dares to touch those who are unclean because that is what he came to do. He did not come for the righteous but the unrighteous. He came for the downcast and the outcast—those living in isolation and on the margins. His touch transcends all the obstacles that we put between each other that prevent nurturing and healing touch. His touch goes beyond just a point of contact. He takes on our humanity. He shares our suffering. Soon, he will be arrested, imprisoned, and on the margins of the condemned and dying. He will be scourged and crucified. 

Like the woman bled for 12 years, Jesus will nearly bleed out to death—hemorrhaging on the cross for the sins of the world. He will die. And like the 12 year-old girl’s death, Jesus’ death is mere sleep because of his divine touch. The third day, he will rise to touch the world with the same power of the resurrection. This morning, we dare walk into this crowd. We dare to press upon Jesus together as we seek his graceful touch in our lives. We dare walk up to the Altar. We dare extend our hands to receive the bread and the wine. Christ dares to extend his body and blood to us. With this touch and taste we have the assurance of forgiveness and his abiding presence in our lives. We have been touched by Jesus whose touch stops our hemorrhaging—and death by a thousand wounds. He takes our hands and raises us up to eternal life.

In patient trust await his leisure
In cheerful hope, with heart content
To take whate’er your Father’s pleasure
And all discerning love have sent;
Doubt not your inmost wants are known
To him who chose you for his own.
          (“If You But Trust in God to Guide You” LBW 453, v. 2)

“Wondrous and Flourishing Kingdom” (Mark 4:26-34)

Mark 4:26-34

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Pastor Tom Johnson, June 13, 2021

What great timing to talk about Jesus’ parables of the Kingdom—how it is planted, how it grows, and how it flourishes. Today is the first Sunday of no restrictions on the number of worshipers. We are just a week away from the official beginning of summer. There is relief and a renewed sense of hope. 

Jesus says the Kingdom of God is like a farmer who scatters seed on the ground. That is nothing special. All farmers do that. They sow seed with the expectation that it will grow. What makes this farmer unique is that he goes to sleep and wakes up each day—not just noticing the growth but—being in wonder of growth. He does not know how—even after generations, his own experience year to year, and now day by day. He witnesses seed sprout roots, stems, leaves, grow tall and broad, and then yield grain and bear fruit. Even though he has seen it over and over again, he has not lost his sense of wonder. That is what the Kingdom is like.

Jesus says the Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, the smallest seed many people of Jesus’ day were acquainted with. And yet, when planted, it grows into one of the largest plants in the garden. It is large enough for birds to find their home, their shelter from the sun, predators, and a place to raise their young. On the surface of things, our expectation of such a small seed should match its size. A small seed should yield a small plant. But it does not. It defies our expectations. It turns our understanding of one little part of the world upside down. That is what the Kingdom is like.

God extends his reign to us and to the world. We get to participate in his work. It is a privilege. It is a joy. And it is wonderful—full of wonder. The universal, worldwide Church sows the seed of God’s Word generation after generation for 2,000 years, First Saint Paul’s for 175 years, year after year, day after day. Each season and each day it grows and bears fruit. The wise and faithful farmers lay themselves down to sleep pondering the miracle of Kingdom growth. Worshipful and prayerful sowers wake up and begin the day with a joyful spring in the their step and the marvels of God on their mind.

In dozens of psalms, hymns, and songs in Scripture, the mystery and wonder of God’s creation is celebrated. His work in creation and through us is the fuel of worship, praise, and thanksgiving. As the psalmist says in Psalm 72 (v. 18), “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things.” In the book of Job, the prophet (Elihu) charges the other prophet (Job): “Stop and consider the wondrous works of God.” So Jesus, in helping us to understand the Kingdom, tells us to pause, take some time to ponder how the natural world can teach us something about the spiritual realm.

Maybe that is why so many have grown bored with the Christian faith. Perhaps that is why many do not appreciate the artistry and fascination of creation and the One who made heaven and earth. Even we who believe do not faithfully appreciate nor communicate wonder. The lack of wonder will slowly kill our joy and curiosity. It is foolishness to think that we can explain and understand everything Jesus says or what is written in Scripture. We risk swelling up with pride and arrogance if we think we have an answer for everything.  It may seem counterintuitive, but saying “I don’t know” actually may give us more credibility. I have more faith in medical doctors who know their discipline so well that they understand the limitations of what they know for certain. They are still learning, growing, and perfecting their craft.

So we as the people should be like that farmer who prayerfully lays himself down to sleep and gets up each morning with a sense of wonder—wonder of God’s creation and wonder of what God is doing through him. Even Mary, the mother of our Lord, who was visited by the angel Gabriel and given words of promise directly from God—even she asked, “How can these things be.” For the remainder of her life, she pondered and treasured in her heart all the promises, acts, and unfolding life of her son, Jesus. Today feels like a return to pre-pandemic normalcy. But we should want something even better—even more marvelous in our eyes. How about a new normal? Jesus himself says, “Look, I make all things new.”

In the last year, I learned what a peony is—it’s a wonder-full plant. It grows tall and narrow in early spring. It’s nectar coats the outside of the flower bud before it blossoms. Ants eat the nectar and protect the plant from destructive insects. It’s a marvelous, symbiotic relationship. Several weeks ago, I took a picture of one of the peonies in front of the church. It was a Thursday afternoon. The bud had grown to about the size of a large marble. It was green all around except the top where it was a deep red. I came back the next day, and in place of this bud, bloomed a very large, red flower. It was like an explosion of flower-pedal fireworks. A woman walked by with her dog. She shared my joy and wonder. She said, “That is what peonies do. When they decide to bloom they just do it overnight.” She went on, “I take pictures of the church’s garden every day and send them to my daughter. My daughter is very sick. But these flowers lift her spirit every day.” That is what the Kingdom is like. That is how God reigns.

On what has now been sown
Thy blessing, Lord, bestow;
The pow’r is Thine alone
To make it sprout and grow.
Do Thou in grace the harvest raise,
And Thou alone shalt have the praise!
          (“On What Has Now Been Sown” LSB 921, v. 1)

“A house divided” (Mark 3:20-35)

Mark 3:20-35

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Pastor Tom Johnson, June 6, 2021

Three years before Abraham Lincoln became president, he gave the historic House Divided speech in Springfield, Illinois. He names the division in the United States over slavery. He quotes Jesus: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” Some historians say we are at our most divided since the Civil War. We are the United States of America. And yet, we demonize one another just as we see the scribes demonize the ministry of Jesus. We fear-monger and tear others down to build our own coalitions just as the scribes do in our text. In the current political climate, it seems that one is either a fascist or a Marxist. As Jesus says, it causes kingdoms and households to fall. It has become impossible for many houses to gather around the table—even on holidays—without great division arising. It has become so toxic, that many have decided that it is healthier to agree to disagree from a distance than to unite in thanksgiving to God for all his blessings that we enjoy. This is true of even the household of faith.

We are Christ’s Church—God’s people. God calls us to be in the world but not of the world. Sadly, we are all too often a reflection of this world and not light. There is a steady flow of fear-mongering all over social media by leaders of the church. But our call is not to point out the Beezebuls behind every bush. Our call is to share the Good News of Jesus. Our call is not to tell the world who we are against. Our call is to tell the world who we are for. We are for Jesus. He is first for us. He did not come for the righteous but the unrighteous—Jesus is for the sinner.

Jesus says that a kingdom or a house divided cannot stand. The irony, as Jesus points out, is that our adversary and his legion of evil enjoy great unity. Satan, Beelzebul, demons, and all agents of evil harmoniously work together to adulterate, divide, and purge this world of faith, hope, and love. So Jesus deconstructs the fear-mongering of his day. Jesus came to liberate those who are captive to fear, sin, and evil. Jesus came to unite himself to all humanity to build a new kingdom and a new household of faith.

The one sin that Jesus is alarmed by is attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to the work of the adversary. Accusing Triune God of having division is an eternal sin. As long as we believe the lie that the Persons of the Holy Trinity are not united against evil, so we cannot put our full trust in God and receive forgiveness. The adversary’s goal—and all of those united in his kingdom of darkness—the goal of evil is to undermine our confidence in the ministry of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Satan’s goal is for us to doubt that God is for us.  The adversary does this by his smear campaign against God and his people. He is the accuser, the gas-lighter, and the one who makes us question our own reality. “Did God really say?” is his clever question. His greatest lie is to make God out to be rigid, joyless, and condemnatory. So the scribes join forces with the satanic kingdom when they accuse Jesus of an unclean spirit. And if we are not careful, we too as religious leaders and believers in Jesus can also join forces with the agents of darkness.

Our call, sisters and brothers, is not to demonize our perceived enemies. Our goal is not to put fear into the hearts of God’s people so that they will vote red or blue. Our mission is not to purge sinners out of the church.  When we lose focus on our core beliefs, we let those cracks fracture us even further. We make division even worse when we do not rally around what unites us. God calls us to love our enemies and pray for our enemies. The great command is to love God with our whole being and our neighbor as Christ loved us—to fear, love, and trust God above all things. Jesus calls himself the friend of sinners. That is our center. That is what will unite us. We lift up Jesus who loves the world. The good news of our text is that Jesus is fully aligned with the Father and his Kingdom. The Holy Spirit is one with the Father and the Son. They are united together as one God. They have united themselves against evil and the captivity of evil in this world. All this because they are for us.

Jesus was not disrespecting his family when they came to him thinking he had gone out of his mind. Rather, he pointed to those around him whose bond is thicker than blood relation. You are my mother, my sisters, and my brothers! What unites us as followers of Jesus far surpasses anything that threatens to divide us. As Scripture says, “my father and my mother may have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me in” (Ps 27:10). And the proverb says, “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother” (Pr 18:24). The early church in Acts chapter four (v. 32) is described as having “one heart and soul.”

We are the baptized people of God. We are now royal daughters and sons of God. We are the family of God—the new household—the new Kingdom that he is building and unifying from all nations, tribes, tongues, and peoples. There is so much more that unites us than could ever divide us. God has accepted us—sinful as we are. As Romans 6:5 says, “For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” Jesus unites us to himself and to one another. He unites us in his death and resurrection—and not just us—but even those who have yet to hear and to trust in him. Centering on the good news of Jesus alone will unite us.

Rise, shine, you people! Christ the Lord has entered
Our human story; God in Him is centered.
He comes to us, by death and sin surrounded,
With Grace unbounded.

See how He sends the pow’rs of evil reeling;
He brings us freedom, light and life and healing.
All men and women, who by guilt are driven,
Now are forgiven.
          (“Rise, Shine, You People” LSB 825, vv. 1 & 2)