Care and Feeding

Care and Feeding
Words of Faith 12-8-2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2023
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Mark 5
[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.

Had Jesus messed up? Should He have taken a different route or hurried through the crowd? How could Jesus have made such a serious scheduling error that this little girl died? No, everything was in its proper time and place.
Jesus separated from the larger group of disciples and brought only Peter, James, and John. When they arrived at the house of Jairus, the mourning process had already begun. But this was not a time for mourning. Jesus dismissed the mourners and, by Word, called the little girl to life.
We should be clear that this was not "resurrection" in the same sense that we will be resurrected to eternal life. Jesus was the first fruit of that resurrection. This little girl went on to live an everyday life and then died a natural death, just as Lazarus did. But this raising of the dead gives us a powerful image of God's determination to overcome the power of death.
Are people raised from the dead today? There are stories of such things happening. They may seem unbelievable, but we should not doubt. More important, we should learn the faith of Jairus, who walked with Jesus no matter what. Even in the face of death, we hear no complaint from him. Even when people were laughing, Jairus did not reject Jesus.
We may face divine delays that require us to wait for the resurrection. Nevertheless, we can be confident that Jesus will always come through. Even if we wait for healing at the great resurrection of the believers, we are blessed to walk with Jesus and know that in His time, there will be no more pain or sorrow or death‑‑ for the old things have passed away.
This incident was beautiful and amazing. After Jesus put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and the disciples with him, and went to where the child was. He took her by the hand and said, "Little girl, get up!" Immediately, the girl stood up and walked around, and they were completely astonished.
But don't miss this. Then, Jesus told them to give her something to eat. How do you treat a person who has been raised from the dead? Well, it is not that common an occurrence that we should know. But Jesus tells us. Feed them!
We may think this is an unusual story, but the truth is we are called to deal with people daily whom Jesus is raising from the dead. Every day, His Spirit brings to life those who were dead in their trespasses and sins. How are we to respond? We are to feed them. The care and feeding of the resurrected is vital.

Father God, give me faith so that I might trust you with divine delays. Give me eyes to see those You are bringing to life who were formerly dead. Give me the courage to feed those who have come into your kingdom. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2023
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2023 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.