The following sermon was recorded during the Sunday morning gathering of Grace Community Church in Los Cruces, New Mexico. We are a group of Christians that exists to joyfully extol and magnify the true and living God, to faithfully proclaim the Christ-centered Word, to build each other up by speaking the truth in love, and to bring the good news of the gospel to our city and world, so that the land was slain may receive the full reward for his sufferings. For more information about us, please visit GCCLosCruces.com. Please turn in your Bibles to Luke chapter eight. And we'll begin with verse 40. Now, when Jesus returned, the crowds welcomed him, for they were all waiting for him. And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And falling at Jesus' feet, he implored him to come to his house. for he had an only daughter, about 12 years of age, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him, and there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for 12 years. And though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. And Jesus said, who was it that touched me? When all denied it, Peter said, master, the crowd surround you and are pressing in on you. But Jesus said, someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me. And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling and falling down before him, declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him and how she had been immediately healed. And he said to her, daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the teacher anymore. But Jesus, on hearing this, answered him, do not fear, only believe, and she will be well. And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him except Peter, and John, and James, and the father and mother of the child. And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, do not weep, for she is not dead, but sleeping. And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. But taking her by the hand, he called, saying, child, arise. and her spirit returned, and she got up at once, and he directed that something should be given her to eat. And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened. In the original, this passage begins with the word behold. Now your ESV and your NAS may not have that, Maybe if you have the legacy standard, it does. But in the original, the word is behold. It literally goes like this. And behold, came a man whose name was Jairus. Behold, communicate something. It's saying, look, it's saying, notice this. Now, everything in scripture is important. Amen. Everything that Jesus did matters. And yet there are times when the spirit of God intentionally puts this word there because you are going to see something that maybe you might overlook, or maybe you might just gloss over, but you, like in the psalm, pause, think about that. Selah, behold, kind of has the same idea. This account is in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, and in all three accounts, behold is there. And on this Father's Day, my Christian brothers and sisters, unbelievers, children, everybody, there is something for us to behold. And what we're going to behold is the love of Christ for a desperate father. So let us begin. The first point, the first thing we see is a humble and desperate father. Behold, there came a man named Jairus who was a ruler of the synagogue and falling at Jesus's feet, he implored him to come to his house. Now, what do we know about Jairus? We know that he was a man of authority. He was a ruler. The word ruler means governor, chief. People listened to him. He was over others. He had power. He had status. People looked up to him. And as men, we tend to respect that. When a man is a man's man and he can walk into a room and kind of get things in order, there's leadership there. This man was a leader. It's the same word that was used of Nicodemus. He was a ruler. But what kind of ruler was he? It says that he was a ruler of the synagogue. What was a synagogue? Well, a synagogue was an assembly of Jews formally gathered together to offer prayer and listen to the reading and exposition of the holy scriptures. Does that sound familiar? That's like what we do here, right? So this man would have been like a pastor. He was a ruler of the synagogue. He was someone who handled the word of God, expounded upon it, listened with a discerning ear as others did the same. He was a very important part in the community for the sake of God and his glory. He was a preacher. He was respected, he was admired, and he was loved by the people. He was very important. And important men in that day wore robes to demonstrate their importance. This is the kind of man that you can see from a distance how important he was. But what do we see this powerful man doing? It says, and falling at Jesus' feet, he implored him to come to his house. Now, why does the original say behold? Because that right there is something to behold. That right there is a sight to see. Children, can you imagine if your daddy was all dressed up, you know, shirt and tie, shiny shoes, he's wearing a coat, he's all... And then he goes and plays in the dirt. That would be crazy. You would say, Daddy, what are you doing? That would be something like what is happening here. This man, this important man, this powerful man dressed in the clothing that demonstrates his status now on his knees in the dirt, the dust, the filth of the land where animals would walk up and down the road and leave evidence behind. Here he is on his knees. This man who taught the Jews to bow down and worship no one but the Lord God Almighty is now on his hands and knees before Jesus. Earnestly begging, imploring, pleading, praying for this man to come to his home. And who was the man that he was bowing down before? This is the same man who claimed to be God in the flesh. The same man who claimed to be the son of the living God. The same man who claimed to be able to forgive sins. Who was hated by Jairus' superiors. A man who was the enemy of the scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, and lawyers. And what is Jairus doing? He is on his face at the feet of the same man begging for a miracle. We should behold that Jesus lets him do this. Because in Acts 10, right, when Peter entered Cornelius' home, Cornelius met him, fell down at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter lifted him up saying, stand up, I too am a man. We say, well, yeah, he's a pagan, of course. Well, fast forward to the book of Revelation, and here you have the beloved apostle John. I, John. and the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed them to me. But he said to me, you must not do that. I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers, the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God. Even believers, even an apostle can be tempted to worship, fall down. But every time that was not received, But here he is bowing before Jesus, and Jesus doesn't say, get up, I don't deserve this. Not at all, he receives it because this was the Christ, the son of the living God. Behold a desperate and humble father. Brothers, I wonder, Are you like Jairus in this respect, humble before the Lord Jesus? Now, you may have many accomplishments and many people following you. You may be over others, but before Christ, do you have the wisdom to bow, to fall down at his feet? Do you recognize, as Jairus did, that before Jesus, your power, your wealth, your authority, your education means nothing? Jairus understood when Jesus is before you, the only appropriate action is to bow down to your knees, fall on your face. Are we modeling this for our children? Do they see this kind of humility before the Lord Jesus in our lives? Because they're always watching, aren't they? Let me not neglect to point out the fact that falling before Jesus' feet was risky. The Pharisees hated Jesus, and Jairus worked for the same machine that the scribes and Jewish leaders were at the top of. He was in the religious system, a broken system. But what moved him to such an action? I mean, why is he doing this, knowing he could lose his position? knowing that he could lose his wealth, knowing that he could possibly even lose his life for being associated with this divine troublemaker. Something had to be more important to him. What is so important to him that he basically says, I don't care about my money, I don't care about my job, I don't care about my life, I need him, I need his help. We see, secondly, a loving and motivated father. For he had an only daughter, about 12 years of age, and she was dying. More than a ruler, more than a preacher, more than a minister, he was a father. The text says, he had an only daughter. Now, that could mean that he had sons, but just one daughter, or it could mean he only had one child and she was a daughter. Either way, this tells us something very significant about this man as a father. It's no secret that women have had it very hard in this fallen world. In China, for example, this account was recorded that when a young man had his first child, she was a girl. His parents knew exactly what they wanted from their son. They called him faimail, or produced descendants. Yet when their first grandchild arrived, they refused to step across the courtyard of the family home to see the new baby. Why? Their son's baby was a girl. When asked, how come you haven't brought your grandchild out for a walk? He would say, if it was a boy, I would have done. She's a girl, so I won't. But it gets much darker than just disrespectful actions. In India, the preference for male children among Indian families has resulted in about 63 million women statistically missing from the country's population. Analyzing birth rates and the gender of last born children, the report states that over 2 million go missing across age groups every year because of the murder of female babies. This is a historical reality. Men have always wanted sons. Kings wanted sons to continue the reign. Farmers wanted sons who were strong and could work the field. Soldiers wanted boys who could take up arms and go to war when they were no longer able. Business owners wanted sons who could carry on the family business. Daughters were seen as problems. that needed to be protected and provided for, while sons were seen as providers who could add to the family name. And in Rome, it was the right of the father to, when he saw the child, to decide whether that child lived or died. And far too often, when the child was a female, he would judge that that baby girl was to be left in the public square to die of exposure. That was the law. It's not shocking that sons were valued over daughters. We see the same even in the pages of scripture. Genesis 29, 34, again, she conceived and bore a son and said, now this time my husband will be attached to me because I have borne him three sons. Therefore, his name was called Levi. As godly as Hannah was, and she was, she wasn't praying for a child in general. No, it's clear what she wanted. She wanted a boy. 1 Samuel 1.10, she was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly, and she vowed a vow and said, O Lord of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, Then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life and no razor shall touch his head. This was the desire for most. The son gets the inheritance, the daughter has to be given a dowry. Daughters were not treated very well often in scripture. Think of how quickly Lot was ready to throw his daughters to angel rapers. Dinah, after she was abused, was locked away. David failed to protect his daughter Tamar from his son Absalom and what happened, I mean not Absalom, Amnon. And after that whole thing ended, she remained a destitute woman for the rest of her life. Most fathers want boys, even today. They look forward to boys. playing sports, fighting battles. Well, why am I saying all this? Because look at what we have here. We have a man who loves his baby girl at a time when most men didn't care much about their girls. He's a good father. He's risking all of this for his daughter. Not a strong, handsome, masculine boy, but for his daughter. He's not caught up in the only sons are valuable mindset that was so prevalent in that culture. He cared about his daughter. He was driven by love and concern for her. She was dying. Do you love all of your children equally brothers? Do we find ourselves with favorites? Maybe not hatred towards daughters like historically and in some of the other things I brought up, but isn't it true that there's a temptation to have favorites? the one who's maybe most like you, who likes the things you like and enjoys what you enjoy and will come to your defense. And then you may have a child who's not very much like you, isn't as interested in the things that you're interested in, and it can be very easy to lean more heavily towards spending time with that one who's most like you, who makes you most proud. And then you have this other one who gets kind of leftovers. We see this father loved his only daughter in an age when daughters were rarely loved at all. And the scripture says she was close to death. Put simply, she was in great danger. We can relate to this in a spiritual matter. I mean, is your child safe in the arms of Christ or are they in danger of death? So many children can be well off physically, economically, educationally, but you know, like I know on the day of judgment, none of that matters. For on the day of judgment, the rich of the world, the rulers of the world will beg and plead for rocks to fall upon them, to hide them from the face of the lamb. Fathers, mothers, isn't this where your heart aches? Isn't this what keeps you up at night? That the fact your children have souls. They're so cute, but they have a soul. They're so funny, but they have a soul. They're smart and helpful. but we can never forget that they have a never dying soul and soon and very soon they will stand before the king of glory and give an account and if they're not safe in the arms of Christ they are in danger and we feel it And this father cared about the reality of the danger of his daughter more than anything else he had. And brothers, I know that as we are seeking to provide and care and teach and all of this, we lay all that down when it comes to the necessity that our children know Christ. That's what we want for the most. And children, if you didn't know that, That's what your parents want most for you is that you know him. He found the Lord Jesus. He fell before his feet, put his face in the dirt and dust and begged him to heal her because she was going to die. He had a request. Come lay your hand on her. Jesus. He begged and earnestly begged. He kept asking until Jesus responded. He wasn't going to leave. Do we really see that the only hope for our child is Christ? Now we know that the answer is yes, of course. But then we put it to the test and prove that by how we live, what we emphasize, what we focus upon. If we were to have our children asked, what does your daddy, what does your mommy, What do they emphasize most in your life? What would they say? Morality, patriotism, homeschool education, manners, culture, ethnicity, politics. Not bad to have all of these things discussed and talked about, but we're talking about their souls. Well, good news, Jesus hears his cry for mercy. Mark 5.24, parallel of this account, it says, and he went with him. And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. What riches of kindness he lavished on us. Those five simple words, and he went with him. The image of the invisible God went with him. The one in whom all the fullness of the Godhead was pleased to dwell went with him. You shall call his name Emmanuel, which means God with us. This is our Lord. Christian, you may feel alone. Behold, he goes with us as our hearts are breaking over our children's souls. We cry out to him and he doesn't send us away, but he goes with us. This is the heart of our Savior. We've seen a humble and important father, desperate. We've seen a loving and motivated father. Now we behold a tempted and tested father. Luke 8, 42, as Jesus went, the people pressed around him and there was a woman who had a discharge of blood for 12 years. And though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. And Jesus said, who was it that touched me? When all denied it, Peter said, Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you. But Jesus said, someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me. And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling and falling down before him, declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him and how she had been immediately healed. And he said to her, Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the teacher anymore. Just as Jesus begins to go with Jairus to his house, we're introduced to another character in this account. She's well known, don't know her name, but she's the woman with the issue of blood. And it's a glorious account. I mean, we're rejoicing and praising God as we're reading this, like, wow, look at this, just the fringe of his garment. She had the faith, all the scene of it all. She hears about the great physician. All I gotta do is get close enough to touch that. Immediately, all of the failures of the doctors and physicians for 12 years meant nothing to one tiny touch. She got immediate results. She touched him, was healed immediately. It's like when you turn the light switch on, light comes on immediately. That's what it was like for her. 4,380 days counted of suffering gone as quickly as the light comes on when you hit the switch immediately. Absolutely amazing. The passage talks about Jesus talking with his disciples about who touched him. It seems to be this period of time where they're trying to figure out who among the crowd touched him. And in the midst of all this, we can lose sight of Jairus. I mean, really think about him. Put yourself in his sandals. His heart is leaping in his chest because Jesus is going with him, headed to his home where his daughter is dying. But now Jesus is on his way. He's gonna put his hands on her. All will be well. And suddenly Jesus stops. What's going on? Somebody touch me. Crowds, questions, trying to figure out. The clock is ticking. Why did we stop? Can we please keep going? My daughter's dying. There's a time limit here. And then finally she comes forward and says, the verse says, she told the whole truth. I don't know how you imagine this going. She just rattled it off real quick, but think about it. Children, you know how when you're in trouble, and you have to say what you did to your father or your mother or your boss or your teacher Do you just blurt it out real quick? Or is it like, well, to begin with, I'm sorry. That's probably what this was like. It says she came trembling. This was not a quick, rapid story. She told the whole truth. I don't know if that means she went all the way back to when she first got this issue and she's just rambling and she won't stop. I don't know. All I do know is time is passing. Jairus is there, his daughter is dying, and this woman is taking up time, and Jesus has stopped. He was tested. You being there, would you have some temptations going on in your mind and heart? He's waiting. His need is still present, and everything has stopped because of this woman. I was here first. I mean, can we see that in a... You've been crying out to the Lord for years for your child to be saved. And then somebody comes one time, hears the gospel, immediately their child is born again. This woman came up, immediately touched, healed. Why them? Why not me? Things were looking good and now everything has stopped. My boy is still lost. My baby girl is close to death. Maybe you have a child who you have been pouring the gospel into, and at one point things really were looking hopeful. That sermon you sent them, it seemed like something was stirring. Maybe you got them a book for Christmas or birthday or something and they were reading and everything was looking hopeful. They began to pay attention and family devotion and they're not falling asleep in the sermon anymore. And you're like, wow, it's really looking good. Like things are moving. And then it stops. Just like Jairus, the Lord was heading to his home. Jesus is getting closer to his sick, dying child coming to life. And then it stopped. It'd be a struggle. I don't know what was going on in the mind of Jairus. I know what I would be tempted with. Jesus, no, please don't stop walking. This crowd is so thick, the traffic is heavy. We're so close. This woman's not even supposed to touch you by law. I came the right way. She came in secret. I came to you face to face. I begged you, I pleaded, I fell on my knees. She tried to hide. Why is she getting the healing and my child is still dying? Can we please go? If I'm honest, I think those are some thoughts that I'd have. Or maybe wishing that she would just hurry up. Or maybe it's more hopeful. Maybe he's full of faith and hope and he's grateful for what the Lord did for this woman and he sees, wow, if he can do that with just a touch of a fringe of his garment, what's gonna happen when he lays his hands on my girl? Maybe he's pumped and he's motivated and he's excited. But as I said, we don't know. Regardless of what his thoughts were, we see that just as his temptation is at its fever pitch, we get the staggering statement while he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, your daughter is dead. Do not trouble the teacher anymore. While Jesus was telling this woman good news, the worst news came for this father. What was the news? Give up. She's dead. Leave Jesus alone. Stop praying. Your child is too far gone. There's no hope. It's over. I mean, after such a blow, who should we expect to come and begin to whisper, then the devil comes. Maybe if you would have come to him sooner, she'd be alive. Blame yourself. Maybe if you would have brought her to Jesus, she'd still be alive. Blame yourself. Maybe if you would have sent your servant like that other leader, then maybe she'd still be alive. Blame yourself. Brothers, sisters, doesn't the enemy tempt you with similar thoughts? Maybe if you would have been a better father, they'd be saved by now. You begin to notice all the failures in your parenting and you are overwhelmed with despair. Maybe if you were a better Christian, if you prayed more, if you did this or that, then maybe there'd be hope. And you start thinking of all the nights you skipped devotion, you got in an argument with your wife, you were not living up to everything that you had preached or proclaimed, and it all becomes like a cloud over you. You see the state of your child and you are tempted to blame yourself. It's hopeless, give up, it's too late. Oh, and it's probably your fault. It's not too much of a stretch to see the connection of our lost children, is it fathers? Do you still pray as earnestly as when you saw signs of life in them? Remember when you had hope for them because maybe something was happening, they soaped it up after a sermon, maybe they talked to you about a dream they had where they were afraid to die, and you were just really earnestly praying, and then it just seems like it all dissolved. Do you still pray as earnestly? Coming to the prayer meeting, asking, God, please, but now their names are not mentioned as often. The child is dead, why bother the teacher anymore? Well, this tempted and tested father, we behold that he was guided and assisted by Christ. But Jesus on hearing this answered him, do not fear, only believe and she will be well. Our Savior does not let those words linger for very long. He responds with the last word. Not the crowds, not the people, not the devil, not even you. Christ is the word and he has the final say. Do not fear, only believe. What do you do when the evidence says give up? Do you fear or do we believe? When the reality of a child's depravity flares up and you become discouraged and ready to throw in the towel, Jesus would say to us all, do not fear, only believe. Because even death is not a closed door to the King of glory. They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. And when he had entered, he said to them, why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead, but sleeping. And they laughed at him, but he put them all outside and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. Jairus may have been comforted by the words of the Lord. Do not fear, only believe. But then as they start making their way towards the house, what do they see? Commotion, wailing, weeping, a funeral procession. And just as he's starting to get encouraged, they're confronted with all of this sorrow, all of this sadness, all of these reminders of the word that was spoken, she's dead. Isn't it true that when you begin to trust the Lord, you're battling your unbelief? Something else may come across your path to pour water on that flame? This is very common. I'm trusting, all right, Lord, I do believe, I do believe. And then another blow. You hold on to what Jesus said, though. Don't fear, only believe. But Jesus, it looks like a funeral along the resurrection. Don't fear, only believe. But Jesus, my child's heart is so cold to you. They're godless. I turn hearts of stone into hearts of flesh. They don't care about your word. They don't care about your truth. Neither did you. Don't fear, only believe. She's not dead, she's asleep, and they laughed at him. It's amazing how they can go from weeping to laughing. But that's what we should expect from the world. Well, lastly, we see a loved and amazed father. Verse 54, but taking her by the hand, he called, saying, child, arise. And her spirit returned, and she got up at once, and he directed that something should be given her to eat. And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened. Mark's account adds this detail, but he put them all outside and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. We know Jesus could have healed this girl before he got to the house, right? He could have raised her with just his disciples in the room, but out of his infinite kind heart, he brought the father and mother into the room to behold his amazing, transforming grace and power. Why? Because he cares. He cares about fathers and mothers with dying children. He has moved with compassion to heal and raise the dead. And that's what he did. He raised this girl to life. That would be enough. But there's also the details of how he did it. Taking her by the hand, he called, saying, Child, arise. Her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Taking her by the hand. Again, Jesus did not need to touch her to heal her. Jairus asked him, in Matthew's account, lay your hand on her. A specific prayer request, honored by the Lord Jesus, taking her by the hand. He raised Lazarus from the dead without touching him. He cast out the legion of demons without touching him. He healed Bartimaeus and the 10 lepers without laying a finger on any of them. Why did he touch her hand? Because he chose to demonstrate closeness, his care and compassion. This is the Savior. And this is his whole ministry. He did not save from the throne. He came down into our midst tabernacle among us and touched us. What a savior, what love. Then we get this strange prohibition. Her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened. Have you asked yourself, why did Jesus do that? Why did Jesus ask or tell, don't say anything? Well, one thing is we know he didn't do it to gain social media followers. This is the day of everybody going out to do their good works with many cameras so they can post them humbly. Every act of kindness has to be posted and photoshopped in the right angle. And Jesus isn't that way. Jesus does this magnificent miracle of raising this dead girl and then says, don't tell anyone about it. My father saw it, you enjoy it. That's it. He did this to glorify his father and to show love to these parents. He knows your heart breaks over your lost children as well. And just like with Jairus, you have begged and pleaded for him to come and heal. and He hears you, and He is kind. And though there may be interruptions along the way, things to tempt you and test you to think, doesn't He hear? Doesn't He care? Why is everyone else's children being saved, but mine remains lost? And now not only do they remain lost, but it seems like things have gotten worse for them. Continue to trust the Lord. He is faithful and kind. Cry out to him. There is hope and no one else. Who else will you go to? Be like Jacob. I will not let you go until you bless me. Take comfort here. Behold the Lord Jesus in his kindness to this father. Behold the Lord Jesus in his care for this child. Behold the Lord Jesus in his power over sin and death. Behold the Lord Jesus in his word that confronts the commotion of our day. Behold the Lord Jesus who tells you and me as fathers do not fear, only believe. Behold the Lord Jesus who comes close when he could have healed from afar. This is our Lord and he's still raising the dead. He's still going to fathers and mothers who have lost children. He's still healing women with issues of blood. We live in a cancel culture, cancel this and cancel that. Well, Jesus cancels funerals. He cancels unbelieving commotion. So run to him, fathers. Run to him, children. Run to him, mothers. He is the one who has life, who is life. And by his death, he provides salvation to all who believe. No matter how sick, no matter how lost, no matter how gone you may be, there is hope and life found at the cross of Jesus Christ. He's still offering salvation to guilty sinners. Will you join the family of God today? Jesus went forth from that place saying, repent and believe the gospel. Later is not promised. Tomorrow is not guaranteed, but today is here. And you all are in an excellent church with an excellent shepherd who gives you the gospel regularly. You know what is required of you. If you'd like to give a gift to your father on this Father's Day, cry out to the Lord Jesus, for that is the one thing your father wants most for you.