“When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” (Mark 5:27-28 NIV)
If you want to be healed, walk closely with Jesus. In a recent podcast, I can’t remember which one, I was introduced to the phrase, “cover himself in the dust of the Rabbi’s feet. ” When someone wanted to become a disciple, they would live with a Rabbi. They would spend 24 hours a day together, walking everywhere. They walked so closely, the disciple would get the dust from the Rabbi’s feet on him. Jesus, being of Jewish descent, is a Rabbi. When we follow Jesus closely, we are covered in His dust. When we are that close to Jesus, we’ll be healed.
The woman in today’s story was following Jesus so closely she was covered in His dust. When she touched His robe, she was healed of her infliction. For 12 years she had lived with constant bleeding, but once she touched Jesus cloak, the bleeding stopped. The first step in healing is to stop the bleeding.
The first step in healing is to stop the bleeding.
When you have a cut, one of the best ways to stop the bleeding is by applying pressure to the wound. The pressure causes the blood to flow less, which gives it time to coagulate, which causes the bleeding to stop. God does have the power to heal us instantly, but often, we heal in stages. Small wounds heal quicker than larger wounds. When the bleeding stops, a scab forms that protects the wound from infection. The entire process for the wound to heal takes weeks to complete. The body has to have time to repair the broken blood vessels and new tissue to form. Healing does happen over time. But first you have to apply pressure to the wound.
For Christ follower’s, one way we apply pressure to our wounds is by reading God’s word. Each day we can let His promises stop the bleeding. We can allow His strength to repair what is broken and bring new life from our wounds. When we read and apply His word to our lives, we’re touching His robe. We’re following Him so closely, we’re covered in His dust. When we are covered in Jesus dust, we will be healed.
Question of the Day:
Are you getting covered in Jesus dust?
Further Reading: Leviticus 11:1-12:8 NIV, Mark 5:21-43 NIV, Psalm 38:1-22 NIV, Proverbs 10:8-9 NIV
