Fourth Sunday after Pentecost
June 28, 2009
The Gospel: Mark 5:21-43
Sermon: "Why Bother?
The Rev. Dr. Vicki L. Smith, Rector
The Gospel: When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered around him; and he was by the sea. Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet and begged him repeatedly, "My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live." He went with him.
And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, for she said, "If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well." Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, "Who touched my clothes?" And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, `Who touched me?'" He looked all around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease."
While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader's house to say, "Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?" But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, "Do not fear, only believe." He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. 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). At this they were overcome with amazement. He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.
Mark 5:21-43
Why Bother? Fourth Sunday after Pentecost - June 28, 2009
Why bother?
We say that a lot, especially when we are frustrated or tired. We say it about small things: Why bother picking up the baby’s toy, he’s just gonna throw it again. Why bother cleaning the house, it’ll just get dirty again? We also say it about important things: why bother to give him money, he’ll just drink it up. Why bother to work on a relationship, she’s never going to change?
Our gospel lesson today is full of “why bother?” The crowd comes to Jairus to tell him that his daughter, for whom he had sought Jesus’ help, has died, so there’s no point in bothering the teacher anymore.--- And while the words “why bother” aren’t explicitly written into the story of the woman with the hemorrhage, the sense is certainly there. She had suffered for 12 years and spent all she had on doctors who could not help her. The situation seemed hopeless and I suspect all those around her “why bother”. Even she herself may have thought, Why bother? Why try one more healer after so many failures? And even if it was worth bothering, it was unseemly for someone as unclean and unsavory as her to bother anyone, even an itinerant preacher.
Why bother?—words of frustration, fatigue and ultimately of hopelessness.
But Jesus bothers, always. Despite our frustration, our despair and our hopelessness, Jesus always bothers with us. Jesus bothered with a woman that society had written off. She was isolated and unclean. She was poor, with no power or authority to commend her. And yet Jesus bothered with her, when her society didn’t.
And Jesus bothered with a child declared dead, a child lost to her family and beyond hope of human intervention. If we read our Bible, we find that Jesus always bothered with children. In a society that didn’t pay much attention to young people, Jesus bothered with them, telling the disciples to let the children come to him. In another instance, Jesus bothered with the woman taken in adultery, when everyone else condemned her and nobody really cared what happened to her. Jesus bothered.
Jesus bothered with all sorts and conditions of people when society couldn’t or wouldn’t but certainly didn’t. No one is too far gone for Jesus to bother with. No one is too isolated, too unclean, too sinful, even too dead; Jesus always bothers.
And because Jesus bothers, he answers our frustrations, our fatigue and our despair with hope, and not just hope but new life.
When Jesus bothered with the woman with the hemorrhage, he gave her back her life. By restoring her to health and her community, he gave her new life and a new beginning. The life all around her was the same, but she was changed and new.
Jesus gave Jairus’ daughter literal new life, restoring her to her family to grow old in their midst.
When Jesus bothers with us, we too receive new life. He heals our wounded souls, eases our pain, and comforts us in our losses. His healing restores us to our community and our families. His healing brings us out of isolation into relationship, with God and with other people. His healing gives us a new beginning and a chance to start over.
Of course we know that physically we are all going to die. There will come a day when our mortal bodies cannot be restored and Jesus is probably not going to resuscitate us as he did Jairus’ daughter, but even then, even when we die, Jesus bothers with us, giving us not resuscitation but resurrection, new life in his heavenly kingdom and eternal life with him forever.
If we are honest, we all stand with the woman with the hemorrhage and Jairus’ daughter, in need of healing and new life in Jesus. Perhaps our need is great and our wounds are deep, or perhaps they are more chronic, bringing us steady pain and sorrow. In each and every case, no one is too far gone—too lost in pain, too depressed, too addicted, too sinful, for Jesus to bother with. We may be frustrated, despairing and desperately tired—we may feel “why bother?” but never ever will Jesus say it. Jesus will always bother with us, and I suspect he finds it no bother at all.
As with that crowd so long ago, Jesus stands in our midst offering us healing and new life. Like the woman with the hemorrhage, let us reach out and touch his garment; like Jairus let us ask him for what we most truly need. By his grace he touches us, and to him, we are always worth the bother.
In the name of our gracious and generous healer,
Amen