There’s an interesting story in Mark 5:
25 Now a certain woman had a flow of blood
for twelve years, 26 and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had
spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. 27 When she
heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment. 28
For she said, "If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made
well."
29 Immediately the fountain of her blood
was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.
30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him,
turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My clothes?"
I rather love the fact that this woman was
healed. I love that she was healed by her faith, and that her faith was focused
by her words and activated by touching Jesus. I love that she immediately knew
that the condition she’d lived with for twelve years was instantly healed. All
that is well and good.
I’ve been reflecting on a single concept,
quite apart from all that glorious stuff: Jesus knew that power had gone out of
Him.
That’s an interesting thought, or rather,
an interesting group of thoughts, for it says several things:
1. Power
(greek dunamis) had been transferred.
2. The
transfer was out of Jesus.
3. The
transfer of power was discernable.
4. The
transfer was a surprise to Jesus, or at least a mystery.
Jesus was walking along in the midst of a
crowd of people (v31), minding his own business, and suddenly he knew (or
“perceived”: epiginosko) that power had gone out of him. It’s
interesting that the Lord didn’t say “power has come from God and gone through
me.” He said, “out of me.” Strongs describes the language as “a primary
preposition denoting origin.” It means “out of.”
His behavior (“Who touched my clothes?”)
suggests that he didn’t even know where it went, though that may just have
been an invitation for the woman to declare herself. It is was simultaneously
acknowledging both ignorance (“Who did it?”) and familiarity (“This happened
through touching my clothes.”). I wonder if it had happened before in one of
the untold stories of Jesus.
Power (dunamis) is always an interesting subject. Here it manifested as an
instantaneous physical healing. Other places it manifests as deliverance, and
it was the stuff that came upon Mary that made her pregnant with Jesus. I tend
to look on power as the energy from Heaven that accomplishes the work of Heaven
on Earth.
It seems to me that if Jesus could have
power drawn out of himself when he was not expecting it, then is it not
possible that you and I could have power drawn out of us when we weren’t
expecting it. Have you ever known people that are so hungry for more of God
that it’s nearly impossible not to prophesy over them? Or people that
so desperately need a father that it’s difficult not to father them? Or a new
believer that is so eager to grow that you find yourself talking about the ways
of God while they listen with rapt attention? Or have you ever been those people? I know I have.
Or even when we are expecting it, when we impart something
of God into the lives of someone else, power is spent. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4:20 that the kingdom of God is ‘not in
word but in power’: in other words, power is what this kingdom is about. Our
job is to handle power, to dispense power, so that there is more God-like stuff
and less stealing, killing and destroying stuff when we’re done. I must walk in power!
Here’s where these thoughts have taken me:
if this woman was able to draw power out of Jesus, and people are able to draw
power out of me, then where does that power come from, and what happens to me
when the power is gone? If doing the stuff of the kingdom spends power, then
what happens when the power is spent?
I can see three options here, and I’m not
sure I like the implications of some of them.
Option One: Hoard. We don’t spend power; we keep it
ourselves. I’ve seen people who don’t seem to spend any power, for whatever
reason. Whether they’re hoarding it, or whether they just don’t have any, they
don’t spend power: people’s lives are not changed; healings (physical,
emotional…) just don’t happen. I’ve been concerned lest I find myself here.
Option Two: Powerlessness. When the power is all
spent, then it’s gone, and we’re done; we’re out of business. When we’re out of
power, we find ourselves in option one: we got nuthin to give.
Option Three: Reload. We go get more power. Once we
have spent what we have, we go back and get more.
There are only a couple of places where
the New Testament talks about power on the increase.
· After
his temptation in the wilderness, “Jesus
returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee….” (Luke
4:14)
· The
disciples were encouraged, “You
shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be
witnesses to Me” (Acts
1:8)
· God
told Paul in his weakness, “My
grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect (teleióo: accomplished, completed) in weakness.” (2
Corinthians 12:9)
It’s easy to fall back on lazy theology
and say, “Well, it’s God’s power, so it must come from him!” TBI: That’s True But
Irrelevant: it doesn’t answer the real question; it just throws religious
vocabulary at it. Let’s dig a little deeper: what does the Book say about how
to increase the amount of God’s power in us and available for use? Let’s make
some observations from these few verses:
1) Power
comes from the Holy Spirit: it comes from relationship with God that lets Him
be in charge.
2) Power
is connected to my being a witness to Jesus (note that “witness” is something
that I am to be, not
something I do.)
3) I receive His power. It comes to me. I’m not
just a mindless tool in this process; I’m a participant in it. One could say
that it’s His power, but I wield it.
4) Power
is an expression of God’s grace: the free stuff God gives for accomplishing His
will on earth.
5) His
power shows up best or most when my weakness is evident.
Some of the appropriate conclusions here
are easy: if I want to have the power of God working in my life & ministry,
I need to be in a very fresh relationship with Holy Spirit and I need to live a
life that is a witness to Jesus.
I sometimes hear sermons about the power
of God. I don’t often hear it preached that the purpose for the power of God is
to accomplish that thing that we pray mindlessly in unison in thousands of
churches: “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.”
It’s not for me. It’s for Him, for His will – though His will includes me.
Another conclusion that I haven’t often
heard taught is that one of the best ways to lay hold of the power of God is to
practice weakness.
One of my mentors was a man who, for
nearly 30 years now, has worked at nearly minimum wage as a part-time teacher
in a child care center. His shift starts at 6:30 in
the morning, but he’s usually there a couple of hours early to pray for each
staff member, each child, each classroom. I suppose it wouldn’t be surprising
that he has changed the lives of hundreds of fellow teachers and thousands
(more likely tens of thousands) of kids. Wherever he goes, there is peace,
there is perspective, there is wisdom. Wherever he goes, fear flees,
hopelessness gives up, love thrives.
I have another friend who has lived
surreptitiously as a client in a recovery house. Officially, she’s there to
clean up her life. In point of fact, she pastors the other women in the house.
She’s chosen a life of weakness, of brokenness, and as a result, her life is
full of miracles, to the point that the women there regularly ask her why she
has so many miracles.
My personal application for this is a
change of my own perspective (as good a definition for ‘repentance’ as any). As
an American, I’ve been taught to seek my own will, my own good, my own
strength. As an American Christian, I’ve been taught to use my own will, my
good standing, my strength to help “those less fortunate.”
Rather, I hear here to abandon those goals entirely: instead, seek
the lowest places, the places that make room for others to be esteemed, not
abandoning what’s good for me (certainly not persecuting myself!), but making
room for weakness in myself – and not hiding it. In those places, I can expect
the power of God to work for His purposes.
4 comments:
Yes! Right on! Thanks!
Crap.
Now I have to let the world see my weakness?
But I don't waaaaannna doooooo thaaaaaat!!!!
I like what you've shared here. I think that spending power and reloading is designed to be a fairly ongoing process -- and by that I mean that in theory we should always have a river flowing from within us, such that there is never a deficit or need to reload.
While in theory it works great, I have not found it to explain certain phenomenon adequately, such as the concept of a corporate anointing. There are other things that explain it perfectly fine, but even those explanations lead to even more questions.
I can't wait to hear more!
scripture links appear to be gone. sorry.
You make it clear that followers of Jesus are not to abandon the intellect in order to embrace the Spirit. Thank you...welcome break from Jessie Penn-Lewis' stuff on spiritual warfare.
When we hear God and obey Him only, can we not expect His Kingdom to come and His will to be done in every circumstance and situation we encounter? If we intend to be part of His work (rather than opposed to His work), we need to walk in the mind of Christ.
The three options you mention appear to presuppose that the power Jesus sensed leaving him was in limited supply. How can that be? How is there lack in Him, even then?
While Jesus had not yet been to the cross, we know He was certain He had entirely overcome troubles .Pedigo paraphrase: Be cheerful those of you with difficult issues in your life; I have overcome them. Whatever they involve, I've taken care of it." Then after the cross He gives us that breathtaking declartion that ALL authority (power?) has been ascribed to Him. We are to be in Him and He in us. What power can be depleted?
Your conclusion..." seek the lowest places, the places that make room for others to be esteemed, not abandoning what’s good for me (certainly not persecuting myself!), but making room for weakness in myself – and not hiding it. In those places, I can expect the power of God to work for His purposes." is straight out of many scriptures-- 1 Cor 13:5 is the easiest.
I'm not sure we are to focus on our weaknesses: fixing our eyes on Jesus causes change as we mature in Him. Instead, we glory in the way He changes us, the way His image, His likeness comes forward in our character as we live and move and have our being in Him.
Tangent 1: is there any significance for this discussion that the power came via touching His tallit by faith? In humble prayer His power is supplied in all sufficiency?
Tangent 2: I need to verify my understanding of words in 1st Century language usage to go on with this. Can't do that today.
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