Ephesians 1:3-14; Mark 5:21-43
Whenever we pray the Lord’s prayer,
we make the claim to be God’s children. We say “Our Father,” or “Abba” which
means “Papa.” We make a claim to be part of God’s household, God’s family. But
what does that mean?
In relation to God, it means we are
God’s dependents. We are dependent on God for the stuff of life. It means we
are God’s heirs, recipients of a legacy.
In relation to each other it means
we are equals: equally deserving of all the good gifts of God, the pledge, the
inheritance.
This relationship is demonstrated
by Jesus in the gospel story. The daughter of the leader of the synagogue and
the unnamed woman, both received the gift of life, the healing power that
pulsed through Jesus. I don’t think anyone on the scene would have been
surprised that Jesus rushed to the aid of the leader of the synagogue. That
would have been considered his due. The daughter of the leader of the
synagogue—the pastor’s daughter—probably had a place of distinction in the
community.
But what about the woman who was no
one’s daughter, no one’s sister, no one’s wife? The woman who had no man who could
approach Jesus and plead on her behalf? She was perpetually ritually unclean,
because of the unceasing flow of blood. Whatever man touched her would be
ritually unclean. Whatever, and whomever she touched would become unclean. When
she reached out and touched the hem of his garment she made Jesus ritually
unclean.
So when he turned around in the
crowd and asked “Who touched me,” the woman came forward in fear and trembling
because she had been found out. She was expecting to receive a public scolding.
But instead, Jesus called her—if you weren’t listening carefully you might have
missed it—Jesus called her “daughter.” He claimed her as family. That was a
revelation to her and to all who heard. Perhaps a more miraculous revelation
than the fact of her healing—she was a “daughter,” a member of the household of
God.
As I walk this world, I wonder, how
many people go through life believing themselves to be unclean, unworthy,
untouchable, because that is the only message that they have heard and
received? That is the message they received from parents and teachers from a
young age, and no one has ever contradicted it. So they live in a state of
isolation, not believing themselves worthy of love or the things that make for
life.
How can we, as a church, initiate
healing by giving people a new message, claiming them as kin—brothers, sisters,
sons and daughters of God.
I believe that is the consequence
of our legacy as children of God: we are responsible to each other, our
brothers and sisters. If we have faith that God wills good things for all God’s
children, then we must do all that is in our power to see that all God’s
children have a share of God’s gifts.
Sharing possessions, this was the
way that the church in Ephesus lived their faith. The book of Acts depicts the
response to the gospel as spontaneous sharing of possessions, communal living.
How might we demonstrate the will of God, the righteous ordering of society? How
might we join with God in creating the “kingdom” or kin-dom of God in this
world, now?
