Mark 5:21-24a, 35-43 Jesus Has Power Over Death
21
When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered around him
while he was by the lake. 22 Then one of the synagogue rulers, named Jairus, came there. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his
feet 23 and pleaded earnestly with him, “My little daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that
she will be healed and live.” 24 So Jesus went with him.
35
While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. “Your daughter is
dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher any more?” 36 Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler,
“Don’t be afraid; just believe.” 37 He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James and John the brother of James.
38
When they came to the home of the synagogue ruler, Jesus saw a commotion, with people crying and wailing
loudly. 39 He went in and said to them, “Why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead but asleep.” 40 But
they laughed at him. After he put them all out, he took the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with
him, and went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which means,
“Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). 42 Immediately the girl stood up and walked around (she was twelve years old). At
this they were completely astonished. 43 He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to
give her something to eat. (NIV)
On a beautiful morning like this one, maybe the last thing you want to think about is death. There’s a part of us that
would much rather just go through life sort of whistling past the graveyard, pretending that death is for everyone else,
but not us. While we can try to sustain ourselves with a healthy diet and a lot of exercise, or distract ourselves with a lot
of work or a variety of hobbies, the reality of what is waiting for us at some point doesn’t change. Unless the Lord Jesus
returns first, one day we will all face death. Last week we saw how we can trust in God’s promises even when the going
gets tough, even during the raging storms of life. Today we see that our hope in Christ will never disappoint us – not
even when we face death itself, because Jesus has power over death.
This story really couldn’t be any more tragic! Jairus’ only daughter was dying. His little girl was slipping away and there
was nothing her father could do to help her. We don’t know how many doctors he had called or how many cures he had
tried, but nothing had worked. So now he comes to Jesus. It’s likely that he had heard about or seen some of the other
miracles that Jesus had performed in Capernaum. Perhaps he had been there when Jesus healed a centurion’s servant
without even going to the man’s house. Or maybe he had heard how Jesus told a paralytic to get up and walk and he
did. Whatever the case, Jairus turned to Jesus for help. “He fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, ‘My little
daughter is dying. Please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.’ So Jesus went with
him.”
We don’t know whether Jesus was Jairus’ first stop when his daughter grew ill, or his last resort. However, such an
immediate response from our Savior encourages us not only to bring our problems to him just as Jairus did, but more
than that, to make Jesus our first stop when we face any problem. Too often we exhaust ourselves trying to resolve
every problem by ourselves. Too often we worry ourselves sick when no solution seems to come. It’s certainly possible
to “get through” many of life’s “little problems” by relying on ourselves, but death is the one great problem we can’t
solve on our own. It stands there at the end, unmovable and unavoidable. When we are confronted with death, then
we understand just how helpless we are, just how much we need Jesus’ help.
So like Jairus, we must turn to the one who has power over death. Jairus was convinced that if only Jesus would come
and place his hands on his little daughter, he could prevent her death. Jesus could not deny this request from a loving
father, so he went with him. But a large crowd gathered around them and slowed their progress. Before long, the
news arrived. “Some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. “Your daughter is dead,” they said.
“Why bother the teacher any more?” The worst had happened. While she was still alive, there was hope. But now that
the girl was dead, why not leave Jesus alone? Who could argue with that?
It would have been very easy at this point for Jairus to simply thank Jesus for coming as far as he did and then turn away
from him and head back home. But Jesus wouldn’t allow it. Even if Jairus thought he should leave Jesus behind and
return home with the messengers, Jesus would not leave him. Look at how Jesus responds when the news arrived.
“Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Jesus doesn’t argue with the
messengers, he simply ignores what they said. As the one who has power over death, their news meant nothing to him.
Instead he turns to Jairus and encourages him to keep on believing even in the face of death. But believe what? Jesus
had not given him any specific promise. He wanted Jairus to find comfort and confidence in the fact that his Savior was
with him, no matter what the outcome on this day. When our own death or that of a loved one is drawing near, this is
also our confidence. We can simply rely on our Savior to be with us; even it means a trip to the cemetery.
But there would be no such trip on this day. When Jesus arrived at the house he said, “The child is not dead but
asleep.” It’s not too surprising to see how the people reacted to Jesus’ words. “They laughed at him.” The people who
had gathered at the house to mourn the loss of this child were not ignorant. They had seen situations like this one
before. The girl was not breathing. She was not moving and had maybe even begun to grow cold. Everyone knew that
she was dead, not sleeping. Everyone, except the one who has power over death, Jesus knew the truth and spoke it
clearly, even though all the evidence said otherwise.
Isn’t this how the unbelieving world today still looks at the faith we hold in the face of death? They see it as nothing
more than “pie in the sky” wishful thinking, and a crutch for those who are not tough enough to admit that death is the
end. We Christians gather at the graveside of a loved one and read words like these from our Savior: “I am the
resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.” And then we proceed to leave the graveside of our loved one so that the dirt can be filled in over their
casket. The world laughs at our faith in a Savior from death and there are plenty of graves to reinforce their ridicule.
But there would be no grave on this day. After clearing everyone else out of the room, Jesus took the child’s father and
mother and the three disciples that were with him and went into the room. He took the girl by the hand and called her
to life just as effortlessly as we would wake someone from a nap, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!” Immediately the girl
stood up and walked around.” And as if that were not enough, the tender heart of our Savior continued to provide for
the needs of this little girl. He instructed her parents to get her something to eat.
So laughter was replaced by astonishment, tragedy was replaced by triumph; and death was replaced by life. Jairus
couldn’t possibly have asked for a better ending, but what about us? Does it leave us wondering why Jesus doesn’t
intervene when our loved ones die? Why won’t he come to our house when death visits and quickly change everything
with a few words? If we see this story as just an isolated event, the comfort Jesus wants us to have quickly disappears.
But this story is not just a record of what Jesus did on one occasion for one individual who put his hope in him; instead
it’s a glimpse, a summary of how our Savior promises to deal with all of his people. Jesus has power over death and we
will all experience this power. The day will come when the words Jesus spoke in the bedroom of Jairus’ daughter will
echo throughout the world. The day will come, when as effortlessly as we wake someone from a nap, Jesus will speak
again and all who are in their graves will hear his voice.
In 1 Corinthians 15, the great resurrection chapter, the Apostle Paul calls death the last enemy to be defeated. His point
is that just as surely as Jesus defeated our other great enemies of sin and the devil, death too will suffer a final defeat.
On the cross Jesus cried out “It is finished”. Our debt of sin was paid in full, washed away once and for all by his precious
blood. Early Easter morning, Jesus descended into hell to proclaim Satan’s downfall. He could no longer accuse God’s
people. The rebellion he authored was stamped out completely and his fate was eternally sealed. With everything
complete, Jesus demonstrated his power over death. The life he laid down in order to rescue ours, he took up again and
he appeared to many people. Christ Jesus has destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the
Gospel. All that remains is for Jesus to speak once more. To raise his powerful voice and speak the same words to each
of us and all of his people, that Jairus heard him speak to his daughter: “Get up!”
Maybe death was the last thing you wanted to think about this morning. But notice how everything changes with Jesus
in the picture. Instead of being the final defeat, death is the ultimate triumph of those whose God and Savior conquered
death for them. It was Jesus’ voice in the gospel that awakened us to spiritual life and it will be his voice on the last day
that will awaken us to eternal life. Don’t be afraid, just believe - Jesus has power over death. Amen.