Faith that Counts

There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.” Immediately, her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Jesus being aware, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who has touched my clothes?” But his disciples said to him, “You see how the crowd is pressing on you and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?’” And looked around to see who had done it. The woman realizing what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction” (Mark 5:21-43).

Throughout Jesus‘ life, he preformed numerous miracles, such as changing water into wine, feeding multitudes of people with only two fish and five loaves of bread, and bringing back people from the dead. However, the most amazing and unbelievable miracles were that of healing the sick. He healed on the blind, disabled, paralyzed and a lot more. He manifested to everyone and almost everyone living those days can testify to that. But what is special in this particular scripture is that a woman was healed by merely touching Jesus’ clothes. There had no physical contact and Jesus had not even seen the woman.

The scripture has given emphasis not on how Jesus healed the people or the woman in particular, however, but on her faith. It was the intense burst of her deep-rooted faith in Jesus’ power and love for His people that cured her. It was so strong that unknown to Jesus, made His healing power released and flow into her body and stop the flowing of blood. The scripture describes the effect of her thus: “Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who has touched my clothes?”.

The woman’s faith is absolute. The Scripture clearly recognizes differently between the crowd’s pressing hard upon Jesus and this woman’s mere touching His clothes. In addition to that, the act of touching the cloth is a far less noteworthy than touching the very person. Even though the crowd virtually pressed on to his body, nothing remarkable resulted from it while the woman’s mere touch on Jesus’ clothes yielded one of the biggest miracles Jesus has manifested.

“Daughter, your faith has saved you… be cured of your affliction”-these words of Jesus is an exceptional testimony to the uniqueness of her faith. The scripture inspires and makes us believe that even the poorest of the poor can have the grace of Jesus. No academic standing or fat bank accounts can dictate who or what should be healed. It is the faith that counts. Do you want to have that kind of faith? His power is always available for anyone who asks. Jesus has the power to forgive, to save, to heal, to bless, and to transform. All you need to do is come to Jesus just as you are. Believe that He is all you need, and make Him your personal Lord and Savior today. Open the door of your heart and let Him in, will you?