Jairus was exhausted. He had had little sleep for more than a week. His only daughter would be dead soon. He had kept watch over her and cried as he watched her fade in front of his sight. Just a few weeks ago, she had been bouncing around the house as she helped her mother cook. She was twelve years old, and she had had all the energy of youth. Watching her sometimes made him tired. Now, it hurt to look at that pale still form lying in front of him and know that with in a few hours. Maybe, even a few minutes, she would be gone from his life forever.
Everything was prepared for that event. He was a rich and important man, so he had hired the best mourners available to pay a great tribute to his beautiful daughter. It was the only thing he could do for her now. He had even brought in flute players to play the beautiful psalms that she had loved so much.
Jairus rubbed his tired eyes as he got up and left his daughter’s side to check that everyone was ready for when she took her last breath. As he walked out, he heard some of the mourners gossiping that Jesus of Nazareth had just arrived back in town on Peter’s boat and was down at the docks speaking to crowds of people. Jairus stopped in his tracks as a tiny hope opened inside of him. Could it be? Could there possibly be a chance for his daughter? He was the ruler of the synagogue and had personally witnessed Jesus’ ability to heal one Sabbath. He knew that Jesus could do it, but would He? After all, Jairus was one of the Pharisees who had condemned Jesus for that healing. His fellow Pharisees would ostracize him if he went to the young rabbi, but if Jesus chose to heal his beloved daughter it would be worth it. Without realizing that he had even made the decision, he found that he was already out of the house running toward the water.
He got to the edge of the crowd surrounding the teacher from Nazareth and began to push through. He used his position of authority to ruthlessly shove ahead of everyone to the front of the crowd. His only thought was of somehow convincing this rabbi whom he had opposed in the past that Jesus should help his daughter. When Jairus reached Jesus, he threw himself down on the ground in front of the teacher and begged him, “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.”
Jairus looked up at the rabbi ready to say more words to convince Him to come, but the words choked up in his throat as he saw Jesus nod and stand up. Jairus scrambled to his feet and began pushing an opening through the crowd while looking back to make sure that Jesus was coming. He sighed in relief as Jesus and His twelve disciples moved forward to follow him.
As Jairus pressed through the crowd that jostled him from every direction, a new fear opened up in his heart. What if they were too late? If they could just get there in time, he knew that Jesus would heal his daughter, but what if she had already died? Urgency rose in him as it seemed to take forever to reach the end of the throng. They had to get to Jairus’ house as soon as they could, and everyone was moving so slowly! He looked back to check on Jesus and stood still in horror as he realized that Jesus had stopped. He did not dare object as Jesus took time to question and heal a woman in the crowd. He had hardly believed that Jesus would agree to come with him, so he could not jeopardize his daughter’s only hope by antagonizing this young religious leader who had no respect for Jairus’ own lofty position and great wealth.
Finally, finally, Jesus began moving forward again, and Jairus hurried ahead sure that the delay had been fatal to his beautiful child. As he neared his house, he heard the mourners begin crying out and the music of flutes rose above the wails. His fears were realized. His daughter was already dead. He stopped in the middle of the street, not knowing what to do next. It was over. A man came running from his house and stopped in front of him. It was his friend. With tears running down his face, his friend spoke to him gently, “Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher anymore.”
There was nothing more that Jairus could do. He was defeated. All his effort had been for nothing. She was gone. Then, he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up into the rabbi’s kind eyes. Jairus heard the words, “Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well.” It took a second for Jairus to process the words; they were so unbelievable, but the gentle smile on Jesus’ face showed, not sorrow, only confidence that everything was fine. Jairus looked at Jesus and trust rose in him. Yes, Jesus was the Messiah. He was sent from God. He could do what He was promising.
Jairus whipped around and began striding toward his house with Jesus by his side. As they reached the door together, Jesus instructed His disciples to keep the people out and motioned for three of the men to follow Him into the residence. Jairus, Jesus, and the three disciples entered the reception room of the house where the wails of the mourners and the notes of the flutes filled the air so loudly that it was hard to think. Jesus’ voice which could be so soft and gentle did that remarkable transformation that allowed it to be heard to the farthest edges of a crowd, and He silenced the crowd with the words, “Stop your wailing. The girl is not dead. She is only sleeping. Go away you’re not needed here anymore.”
Silence reigned for a moment and then the mourners began laughing at Jesus. They mocked His naivety. The girl was dead. It had been confirmed before they began their wailing. They were not amateurs to make such a mistake. They were the best. They had double checked before they started lamenting. Who was this faker that he should interrupt the grief of the family with false hope?
Jairus clenched his hands in frustration. Would these people cause Jesus to leave with their mockery? He called out to the people, “Leave, come back tomorrow for your pay, but leave now.” Jesus’ three disciples began going around to people and encouraging them to pack their stuff and depart. It seemed to take forever to clear the room, but finally all the mourners were gone.
As they entered his daughter’s room, Jairus’ wife looked up at him and the four other men with confusion as tears flowed down her face. He smiled at her and nodded at Jesus trying to indicate to her that there was hope. Then, his heart stopped as he looked over at his dead daughter. Could Jesus really bring her back to life? He looked over at Jesus again and his confidence returned. He watched as Jesus went over to the bed and looked down at his daughter with all the love that he himself felt for her. Jesus reached down and took the little hand in His own big one. In a gentle quiet voice that seemed to radiate power around the room, Jairus heard Jesus say, “Child, get up.” Jairus saw redness return to his daughter’s pale cheeks as the blood began flowing through her body again. He saw her limp body become firm and watched in joy as she sat up in her bed. He and his wife rushed over and held her tightly as joy filled his heart. After a while he looked up at the rabbi from Nazareth who had just given his world back to him not knowing what to say or do. Jesus simply told him with a smile. “Go get her something to eat” before turning around and leaving with His three disciples trailing behind Him.
Two groups of people were asked to trust God’s word that day. One group believed the impossible. The other group laughed at God. What was the difference? Well, Jairus and his wife did not have the option of laughing. It was either this miracle or their daughter was lost to them forever. They loved greatly, so they were willing to believe the impossible. In addition, they had past experience with Jesus. They had watched Him do the impossible before. There was evidence upon which to base their trust. The other group were hired to mourn. They had no emotional connection to the little girl. They had nothing to lose by being skeptical. They did not know who Jesus was, so they did not understand what He was capable of. They laughed out of ignorance of who they were dealing with and what He could do.
They were not the first people to laugh when God promised to do the impossible. Abraham’s wife Sarah laughed at God also. Genesis tells the story of angels visiting Abraham: They said to him, “Where is Sarah your wife?” And he said, “She is in the tent.” The LORD said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure?” The LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. He said, “No, but you did laugh.” (Genesis 18:9-15)
Sarah laughed, but a year later, she was pregnant, and she gave birth to a son that she named Isaac, which means laughter or mockery. Why? because God had had the last laugh on her and her lack of faith.
What lesson do I want you to learn from these two stories? Simply that it does not matter how many people mock and laugh at the impossibility of God’s promises, or even if they deny that He exists at all; none of this is important. The mockers speak in ignorance of God. They laugh because they think that they have nothing to lose by laughing. In contrast, Sarah laughed even though she had great knowledge of God and respected Him. When Sarah realized that her laughter had been wrong, she denied it because she realized she might have offended God. However, He was not offended. Because of His great love for us, offending God with laughter is impossible. In the end, it did not matter whether people laughed in mockery or disbelief. An old woman gave birth to the child of promise, and a dead girl was raised to life again because God’s impossible promises are not dependent on the mockers.
On the other hand, Jesus tells us that we must trust Him in order to access those promises. If Jairus had left Jesus on the seashore rather than approaching Him to plead for his daughter’s life, his daughter would have remained dead. God will not force His promises on us, but He will deliver them to you when you ask Him, even if your faith is so small that it is no bigger than a mustard seed. He will deliver his promises even if, like Sarah, you have laughed in disbelief at His words in the past.
On one level, whether the world mocks God or has faith in Him, is irrelevant. God is still God. He accomplishes impossible promises. Because of this, there is no reason to be discouraged if others ridicule you or laugh at your belief in God. You are not dependent on them. On the other hand, you know that you can count on God. You can trust Him because He is God whether a person believes in Him or not. No one can diminish Him, and no one can stop Him.
Well, I’m wrong there. You can stop Him from helping you. Simply refuse His help. But why would you? In the end, it is your choice. Are you going to go to Jesus and trust Him with your impossible problems? Or are you going to laugh at Him, not believing He can do what He has promised in this modern day and age? I know my choice; what is yours?