A Note From Rob ...
Week of June 28
“Do not be afraid, only believe.” These words of Jesus are spoken to Jairus as he comes to Jesus seeking
helpfor his daughter who is a death’s door. Like many words spoken to those who are in times of anxiety, they
may be easy to say. They may be true. They are also difficult to hear.
One can only imagine how fearful Jairus was. His daughter was dying and he was helpless. No doubt, he
had tried everything, save one. Jairus, the religious leader of Judaism, had not tried Jesus. Imagine how he must
have felt. Jesus was not considered a friend of how organized religion had become. Some suggest that may be the
case today. Imagine a physician trained at the finest hospitals in the world going to someone considered to be a
quack. That would be similar to Jairus seeking out Jesus.
Desperate times call for desperate measures. What did he have to lose: his pride, station in the community
and the synagogue? Better all of those than his daughter.
So Jairus comes to Jesus more in desperation and fear than belief. Jesus asks him to exchange fear for
belief. Maybe Jairus whispered with the countless fearful through the centuries, “Lord, I believe. Help my
unbelief.” Giving up fear meant giving up control. While fear may not be helpful, it is something we do. We can
be afraid. We know how to do that. It is a natural response we make. Jesus was asking Jairus to make an
unnatural response.
Placing his daughter in the hands of another meant he had to trust the one in whose hands she was placed.
He had to trust that Jesus could do and would do that which would make his daughter whole and well. In this case
the child rose and lived a full human life. However, in many cases the pleas and hopes of parents are not met in
the same manner.
Does this mean that Jesus cares more the daughter of Jairus than those of Bob, or Mary, or Sam or Sally
or….? No! It means that Jesus spoke the same word to them as he spoke to Jairus’ daughter, “Taitha cumi….
Little girl, I say to you, arise.” The parents of those children or loved ones who do not rise in our sight rise beyond
our sight.
“Fear not, only believe.”
RETURN
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