“Then he said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace.’ (Luke 8:48, NIV).”
I love the story of the woman with the issue of blood in Luke 8. It is a story of having overcoming faith and being brave enough to push through obstacles. It should be a picture of every Christian – nothing will get between us and Jesus.
But my favorite part of the story is Jesus’ response. True, this woman was boldly pushing through the crowd, but she was sneaking up on Jesus. She was not asking for face-time, she was just trying to touch the hem of his robe. So when Jesus stopped because he felt the power leave him (45-46), she had to be – as my kids say – “freaking her freak out.” She’s unclean. She shouldn’t be there. She definitely shouldn’t be touching a holy man.
She’s fearful. She’s expecting a rebuke…a severe sermonic tongue-lashing. What was Jesus’ response: “Daughter.”
One of the greatest challenges Christians often face is believing that God loves us. We are OK with the idea that God loves “the world” and that he loves others…but believing he loves us is sometimes a challenge.
Jesus’ response to this woman reminds me (and I hope it does you, too): God is favorably disposed to you. He loves you. C.S. Lewis reminds us: “Though feelings come and go, God’s love for us does not.”
