[Sunday Sermon] Why did 12 years repeat itself?
“40 Now when Jesus returned, a crowd welcomed him, for they were all expecting him. 41 Then a man named Jairus, a synagogue leader, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, pleading with him to come to his house 42 because his only daughter, a girl of about twelve, was dying.
As Jesus was on his way, the crowds almost crushed him. 43 And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years,[c] but no one could heal her. 44 She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak, and immediately her bleeding stopped.
45 “Who touched me?” Jesus asked.
When they all denied it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.”
46 But Jesus said, “Someone touched me; I know that power has gone out from me.”
47 Then the woman, seeing that she could not go unnoticed, came trembling and fell at his feet. In the presence of all the people, she told why she had touched him and how she had been instantly healed. 48 Then he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.”
49 While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” he said. “Don’t bother the teacher anymore.”
50 Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.”
51 When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child’s father and mother. 52 Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. “Stop wailing,” Jesus said. “She is not dead but asleep.”
53 They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. 54 But he took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!” 55 Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. 56 Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.”
Luke 8 presents the healing stories of Jairus’ daughter and the woman who had suffered from bleeding for twelve years, intricately intertwined. These two events are uniquely connected in terms of timing, situation, and content, both emphasizing the repeated time span of “twelve years.” As a physician, Luke highlights this number to contrast the vastly different life trajectories of two individuals—one who lived surrounded by love and attention, and the other in isolation and despair. This is more than a simple recounting of events; it carries a profound contrast and message.
Jairus’ daughter symbolizes the visible realm—worldly success and external concern. In contrast, the woman with the issue of blood represents invisible, internal suffering and frailty. Contrary to people’s expectations, Jesus first stops and gently heals the woman who had been suffering silently and invisibly. This shows us that Jesus prioritizes dealing with our inner wounds—our spiritual injuries and sin—before addressing the visible and external.
Sometimes, Jesus desires to transform our inner world even before restoring what we value most—our business, our children, our health. He wants to free us from transactional faith that sets conditions before God and instead lead us to a faith born out of desperation in the wilderness—where God alone is our hope. Just as the woman with the bleeding condition desperately reached for the hem of Jesus’ cloak, we too can experience true restoration from a place of brokenness.
And yet, Jesus does not neglect our external needs and pleas. Just as He turned to Jairus’ daughter and declared, “Talitha Koum,” He still heals and restores. Those who experience this grace no longer serve God conditionally, but live humbly, confessing that all is grace. The ultimate goal of our prayer is not simply receiving an answer but being transformed. Through life’s lowest valleys and wilderness seasons, God shapes us into holy people.
Prayer: Loving Father God, just as the woman with the issue of blood reached out in desperation and touched the hem of Jesus’ garment, we also come before You, confessing that Your grace is our only hope. Cultivate our hardened and insensitive hearts, and through seasons of hardship and wilderness, restore within us a poor spirit and a desperate heart of prayer.
Even in pain and loneliness, even through hurt caused by others, help us to see beyond that—to discern Your loving plan at work. Let us remain in the place of Your calling with faith and endurance, not with bitterness or despair. Amen.
(Note: This summary was created based on an AI draft.)