When We Cannot Help Ourselves
Steve N. Wagers
Mark 5:25-34
January 25, 2005
Someone has defined help by saying, "Help is the cry of a mother with 4 children, 3 dogs and 2 cats after a week at home while the husband is away on a business trip. Help is the cry of a man sitting at a table of unpaid bills, hungry children, and an empty bank account with no job in sight. Help is the cry of a parents who have poured their lives into the lives of their children, only to come home one day and find a note that reads, "I'll leaving and I'll never be back." Help is the cry of a man who has watched his life go up in flames because of bad choice and the wrong crowd."
I have often heard it said that "God only helps those who help themselves." While that is an old cliché, and sounds good, it is not theologically, or experientially correct. As one browses the pages of the Bible we quickly find many people who could not help themselves, but found help from the Lord.
Mark 5 has been referred to as Mercy Hospital. It is a hospital for incurables. It is a hospital for those who could not help themselves. This hospital has a men's ward, a women's ward and a child's ward. As you stroll through the Mercy Hospital of Mark 5 we find a Demonized Man, a Desperate Woman and a Dead Child.
Let's look at a woman who proves that God helps those who cannot help themselves.
1. A Woman DESPERATE for the Lord!
This woman was to the place where she could do nothing for herself, and thus was desperate for the Lord.
A) PHYSICALLY BURDENED
[v. 25-26]
Here is a woman suffering with a blood disease for 12 years. In those 12 years, she has seen no improvement whatsoever. In fact, we're told that she "grew worse."
Many believe that she suffered from a female hemorrhage that was totally incurable. It was a permanent condition, and one that she had suffered with for 12 years.
B) SOCIALLY BELITTLED
According to O. T. ceremonial law, this woman was considered ...
Steve N. Wagers
Mark 5:25-34
January 25, 2005
Someone has defined help by saying, "Help is the cry of a mother with 4 children, 3 dogs and 2 cats after a week at home while the husband is away on a business trip. Help is the cry of a man sitting at a table of unpaid bills, hungry children, and an empty bank account with no job in sight. Help is the cry of a parents who have poured their lives into the lives of their children, only to come home one day and find a note that reads, "I'll leaving and I'll never be back." Help is the cry of a man who has watched his life go up in flames because of bad choice and the wrong crowd."
I have often heard it said that "God only helps those who help themselves." While that is an old cliché, and sounds good, it is not theologically, or experientially correct. As one browses the pages of the Bible we quickly find many people who could not help themselves, but found help from the Lord.
Mark 5 has been referred to as Mercy Hospital. It is a hospital for incurables. It is a hospital for those who could not help themselves. This hospital has a men's ward, a women's ward and a child's ward. As you stroll through the Mercy Hospital of Mark 5 we find a Demonized Man, a Desperate Woman and a Dead Child.
Let's look at a woman who proves that God helps those who cannot help themselves.
1. A Woman DESPERATE for the Lord!
This woman was to the place where she could do nothing for herself, and thus was desperate for the Lord.
A) PHYSICALLY BURDENED
[v. 25-26]
Here is a woman suffering with a blood disease for 12 years. In those 12 years, she has seen no improvement whatsoever. In fact, we're told that she "grew worse."
Many believe that she suffered from a female hemorrhage that was totally incurable. It was a permanent condition, and one that she had suffered with for 12 years.
B) SOCIALLY BELITTLED
According to O. T. ceremonial law, this woman was considered ...
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