WONDERING GURU
Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24; 2 Cor 8:7, 9, 13-15; Mark 5:21-43
Fr. Nelson Lobo OFM Cap
Introduction: Mark’s Gospel brings us face to face with two stories of God’s amazing healing power. We find a woman who had been sick with an incurable condition for 12 years, and a little girl who had been well for 12 years, but now at the point of death. Let’s focus on the father figure of that little girl named Jairus.
Modern Tragedy: Many homes today are suffering from the phantom father or the absent father. The father who is not there & in some homes even when he is there, they’re not there. Thousands of men have fathered children, & simply walked away from the family. Other men though living in the family, are so absorbed by their careers that they seldom spend time with the children the effects have & are devastating, not only to the family unit, but also in our society. Off late, the number of murders committed by teen is increasing year by year. Some would like to blame poverty, broken homes, physical & mental abuse. Psychological findings tell us that the lack of father figure in the Homes in the past few years have seen tremendous increase in violent crimes, illegitimate births, teen pregnancies and teen suicides. In America alone nearly 70% of all juveniles in state reform institutions come from fatherless homes. The home doesn’t need a man in the house, it needs a father!
Let’s revert back to Jairus the father of that dying 12 year old girl. Here we see a man with a high social position, a man known among the people, a man of prestige & power, but a man who had a desperate need. This man’s little girl, the apple of his eye, was dying. Those of you that have children you can feel the feelings that man may have felt.
Fatherly lessons from Jairus:
Lesson 1. He was not ashamed to seek out Jesus: He did not send his wife or someone else to take his place but he as the father sought out the Lord himself. Regardless of his social position, regardless of the onlookers of the town, Jarius humbly knelt before Jesus pleading with him: Please come, for my child is dying. It’s so important in todays world that fathers play an important role in bringing not only themselves but their whole family to the Lord. As the head of the family a father’s role in leading his family to Jesus cannot be underestimated. Fathers in the families need to be seekers of Jesus who is the wisdom, strength, guidance and healing. Children must know, that their parents are not ashamed of the Gospel, nor the God of the Gospel. It like one preacher said, “it’s time for some men to get off their blessed assurance (empty promises), & start being fathers & the leaders of the home god intended them to be”.
Lesson 2. he was not afraid to bring Christ into his home: One thing that the world today needs is some Christian homes, home where Christ resides. Homes where Christ is welcome, homes where Christ is more than a picture on the wall, but a place where his presence is acknowledged, his name is honored, his word is obeyed. Psalm 127:1 says “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain”. Parents should realize that there could be death angel passing through the world. He’s coming with drugs, sexual disease, & rebellion. He wants to enter through the TV, laptops, ipads, through all of social media. He wants to enter through acquaintances and through wrong or bad friendships. John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. This thief may steal your children’s virginity & dignity and may be even their bodies & souls.
Lesson 3. He loved his daughter-the girl child: What took him from his daughter’s side, to seek out a Jewish teacher, what compelled him to fall at Jesus feet & cry out I beg you, please come, what would cause a man to forget his place in society, and what others might think or say. Love--He loved his daughter. We don’t know how long she lived but I am sure she said “I’m alive today because of my daddy’s love. May be just maybe she grew to have children--Those grandchildren heard the story of how grandpa sought a man put his reputation on the line, how their mother was brought back to life--Because of a daddy’s love for his child. Her life, her living was an example of the power of God
Conclusion: The absence of a father in the house and worse the physical or sexual abuse in the families can cause unimaginable pain in the family. Unfortunately, pain is the only constant reality of life. We all live with pain. The No one can go through the pain for us. We don’t have to bear it alone. We ask where is God when life hurts? Jesus offers hope in the midst of our pain. Jesus is never too busy for you. Jesus will never leave you or forsake you. Jesus cannot help you unless you go to Him. Jesus cannot heal your hurts until you offer them to Him. Jesus offers healing for our pain. The peace Jesus offers allows us to live. Peace gives us power for life. This peace gives us the ability to weather any storm that life may bring. The love of Jesus transforms life. The love of Jesus begins the healing process. There is nothing Jesus doesn’t already know about you. He knows your every weakness, your every care, your every difficulty, your every heartache. So start handing your hurts and pain over to Christ. Jesus wants to restore your life. Jesus wants to restore your wholeness. Jesus makes life worth living. Jesus takes the old pain and offers new living. Jesus allows us to find wholeness. Without a personal relationship with Jesus; you will never be whole. Wholeness begins and ends with God. The Father created you. Jesus restores you. The Holy Spirit empowers you.
“Christ did not come to do away with suffering; He did not come to explain it; He came to fill it with His presence” – Paul Claudel.
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