14 Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” 15 And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. 16 No one puts a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch tears away from the garment, and a worse tear is made. 17 Neither is new wine put into old wineskins. If it is, the skins burst and the wine is spilled and the skins are destroyed. But new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.”
18 While he was saying these things to them, behold, a ruler came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 And Jesus rose and followed him, with his disciples. 20 And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, 21 for she said to herself, “If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.” 22 Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. 23 And when Jesus came to the ruler’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, 24 he said, “Go away, for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. 25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl arose. 26 And the report of this went through all that district.
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
John the Baptist’s disciples approach Jesus and ask why His disciples aren’t doing what they and the Pharisees are doing. They are fasting, but Jesus’ disciples are not. Fasting was typically associated with mourning over sin and suffering. It wasn’t appropriate for Jesus’ disciples to fast because He was with them and it was a time of life, celebration, and feasting. But He did say that a time would come when He would be taken away (in death) and then they would fast. Jesus continues with two illustrations of how new and old don’t mix together. New cloth patching an old piece of clothing would tear away and make the tear worse than before. New wine in old stretched wineskin would try to stretch the already stretched wineskin and burst it, ruining both the wine and the wineskin. Jesus brought in a new ministry of grace which was in contrast to the way of the Pharisees. Jesus brought the message of salvation by grace through faith which was incompatible with the Pharisees’ message of salvation by works. Do you find yourself trying to please God by what you do? Don’t put the cart in front of the horse. God has prepared work for you to do for Him, but your work for Him must flow from love and thankfulness for what He has done, not as a means for Him to love you for what you have done. Ephesians 2:10 comes after Ephesians 2:8-9.
The next story shows another ruler who has great faith, not only to heal but to raise someone from the dead. Mixed in is another story of a woman who had suffered for twelve years with a menstrual problem. For twelve years she had been unclean (Lev 15:19-30). Luke tells us that she had spent all her money on doctors trying to get well (Luke 8:43) but nothing had worked. She too has great faith realising that if she could just touch Jesus’ clothes she would be made well. This is another moment where we see that Jesus is no ordinary man. He is omniscient (knows everything) because He knew that He had been touched even though they were in a bustling crowd (Luke 8:45). Jesus tells her that her faith has made her well. Jesus continues to the ruler’s house where he tells the mourners that the girl is not dead but only sleeping—her death was temporary and she would be raised. Jesus then takes her hand and she is raised to life. Jesus is the object of our faith, He is the one who can fix our impossible situation and He is the one who is the ultimate power over sin and death we so desperately need.