Lent 2026 Day 19: Wed 11 Mar
Mark 5:35-36
35 While He was still speaking, messengers from the house of Jairus arrived and said, “Your daughter is dead; why bother the Teacher anymore?” 36 But Jesus overheard their conversation and said to Jairus, “Do not be afraid; just believe.”
How polite are those messengers, if seemingly rather blunt?! Your daughter’s died. Why bother the Master? The messengers were reporting things as they saw them. To the household the little girl had died. It was worth a try to fetch Jesus, but we’re wasting his time, and he should be getting back to the crowds. Jairus, let the Master go, and come home with us. You did your best.
The world sees things as they appear. Our experience tells us that when someone has died, they are not going to un-die. Jesus sees things differently. He sees the things we see, but he sees them as they really are or should be. The girl has died. Jesus knows that to the world this is the case. But he also knows that this is not her time to die. We don’t know what was wrong with her so we can’t speculate, but some illnesses are known and their progress can generally be predicted, but they may lead, in some people, to more serious outcomes. The daughter had been in a serious state in the first place, and Jesus may have been aware of the urgency of the situation.
Jesus has stepped out on a mission. Jairus had come to him, and Jesus turned and followed him to his house. The moment Jesus turned was the point at which his faith led him forward to meet the daughter. Jesus did not necessarily know that she would die on their way to the house. We should be careful not to assume Jesus knew everything. If he did, he wouldn’t have asked who touched him. Father God informed Jesus through the Holy Spirit on a “need to know” basis, just as he does us.
He hears the conversation between Jairus and the messengers and issues the command, “do not be afraid; just believe”. They must have wondered what planet Jesus was on, but Jesus knew that he was going to complete the task he’d taken on. I wonder what Jairus was thinking at this point. Should he believe the messengers, whom he most likely knew and trusted (why send a stranger with news like this?), possibly someone from the household or a close friend, and send Jesus back? Jairus is faced with a concrete fact – she’s died. Jesus saw something different – life.
Whatever Jairus’ state of mind and heart was at that moment, Jesus steps in with faith and authority. Faith and fear sit on opposite sides where Kingdom principles are involved.
Is death the end? Have you talked seriously with others about this?
Are you afraid?
Father God, your word says that faith is our assurance of what we hope for, and the certain reality of what we do not see. I ask you to grow my faith to trust your promises even in the face of seeming impossibility. Amen.
Paul