Breaking the Cycle of Pride....

The story of the woman who suffered from constant bleeding displays several points to ponder. First, according to Levitical laws, this woman’s bleeding would have made her unclean. That means she couldn’t present sacrifices in the Temple, touch any of the religious leaders, and had to publicly declare herself unclean as she went out into society (by shouting “Unclean, unclean”). She was an outcast. She was lonely, and certainly felt unworthy from the inability to be forgiven. And on top of all this, she wasn’t allowed to participate in any of the celebrations the Jewish people had. Secondly, she had spent all of her money on doctors, and her condition only got worse. Her hope for healing in life was non-existent. She was desperate. Lastly, in her desperation she did something that probably would have disgraced her even more, when she touched Jesus’ robe. According to Levitical law, when an unclean person touched you, you were made unclean. So by touching Jesus’ robe, she would’ve made Him unclean. Despite all of this, she risked all of this in faith, that Jesus would heal her, and it worked. How often is it that only out of desperation that we come to Jesus? Why does it take extreme circumstances to open the door to seeking God? I can’t fully answer that question, but I know it has something to do with our sinful, rebellious nature. Our pride keeps us well-grounded in it, and it’s not until we get desperate that we are willing to let go and humble ourselves. Instead of waiting for this to happen, why don’t we take this woman’s example and ask God today for spiritual insight. Ask Him for the ability to be honest with ourselves and to be humble. Desperation only gains momentum when pride is allowed to reign in our lives, and when it reaches maximum capacity, the result is always painful.

24 Jesus went with him, and all the people followed, crowding around Him. 25 A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. 26 She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse. 27 She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind Him through the crowd and touched His robe. 28 For she thought to herself, “If I can just touch His robe, I will be healed.” 29 Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition.30 Jesus realized at once that healing power had gone out from Him, so He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched My robe?”31 His disciples said to Him, “Look at this crowd pressing around You. How can You ask, ‘Who touched Me?’ ”32 But He kept on looking around to see who had done it. 33 Then the frightened woman, trembling at the realization of what had happened to her, came and fell to her knees in front of Him and told Him what she had done. 34 And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. Your suffering is over.” Mark 5:24-34