ON THE VANGUARD

WHO TOUCHED ME?
“’Who touched me?’ Jesus asked. When they all denied it, Peter said, ‘Master, the people are crowding and pressing against you.’”
Luke 8:45

It was on Jesus’ way to the home of Jarius that He was detained, which then gave time for Jarius to receive the news of his daughter’s death. But as we see in reading forward, Jesus continued on to the home of the man and found the daughter lying limp. When He took her by the hand, saying that she should arise, the girl did so and her spirit was returned. Today, however, I want us to take a moment to look at the person who Jesus stopped for on His way to the ruler’s house. I want us to take a moment and reflect on the life of the woman we simply know as having an issue of blood.
In Luke 8:43 we are introduced to this woman, with her resume reading that she had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. We are never told her name, only her condition. And the condition seemed to be one that stumped many of the physicians of her time, for it is also recorded that no one could heal her. When she learned that Jesus was on His way, going past where she was, she came up behind Him and touched the hem of his garment, instantly finding healing.
Now while this is a miracle, I want to point out a few pieces of vital information pertaining to both the woman and the touch. First, as Jesus had preached that He had not come to do away with the Law, we must understand that the woman and all those in this story were still under the Law. This truth is for us as well. Yes Jesus came to fulfill the Law, but not to do away with it. As such, the Law stated that she was unclean. In Leviticus we are given a complete list of all that makes a person unclean, and the flow of blood from a woman was one such area. It was after a woman completed her bleeding that she would bathe and offer the needed sacrifices for cleansing. By all means, the fact that she touched Jesus as an unclean person should have been void. Yet she did, and healing flowed from Jesus, into her body, and made her whole.
But there is more that we must look at. The record of this event states that she touched the hem, or the edge, of His garment. To understand this we must understand the wardrobe Jesus was wearing. He was wearing a talit. This is common among Jews, and is typically worn when saying prayers and in moments of ministry. The edges of the talit contain a series of knotted tassles which serve to remind the one wearing the garment of the 613 commands listed in the Torah. The difference between the talit Jesus was wearing to the one I wear, however, is this. The Scriptures declare that the Messiah would come with healing in His wings. The corners of the garment, while called the hem or edge, are also called the wings. When her faith collided with the healing in the wings of Jesus’ talit, healing virtue flowed.
So the point I make in all this is hopefully simple to see. We, like the woman with the issue of blood, may be in need of healing. We may be seen by the others as unclean, but we should not let that stop us. Like her, we must be determined and focused, and reach out for the hem of His garment where the healing virtue is. We must press in, working our way through the crowds and risking their opinion, as we extend not only our hand to touch Him, but also our faith in what He has the power to do. Come now, let us find the healing we are looking for. Let us touch Him.