The Fifth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 8) - June 28

Do Not Be Afraid
 Mark 5:21-43

I didn’t intentionally set out to makes this week’s sermon dovetail with last week’s, but it worked out that way. Both are about what it means to have Jesus with us. Last week one of my points was that when Jesus is with us, the very power of God can work through us. God’s power, working in us, can do more than can humanly imagine even when we face pervasive sin and social challenges in the world around us.

This week I’m going to talk about another outcome of Jesus’ presence with us. Starting with a discussion of fear. Jesus mentions fear in both of the Gospel readings, the one appointed for last Sunday and today’s. Last week Jesus and the disciples were in a small boat crossing the Sea of Galilee when a perilous storm came up, threatening to swamp the boat. Jesus was asleep on a cushion in stern. When the disciples wake Jesus up, he says: “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?”

This week we have the two healing stories. The healing of the woman with hemorrhages and the healing or raising of Jairus’ daughter. Towards the end of today’s lesson when Jesus finally gets to Jairus’ house and encounters people who fear that the young girl is dead, Jesus says: “Do not fear; only believe.”

This coupling of fear and faith in Jesus’ words has a tendency, I think, to encourage us towards an incorrect interpretation of Jesus’ statements. It’s easy to interpret these passages something like this: If only we have enough faith, then fearful things won’t happen to us. Or, if we have the right faith, then we will be spared fearsome things in our lives. And, then the other side of that interpretation is: when fearful things do happen (like storms or illness) it’s because we don’t have the right quantity or quality of faith.

This sort of interpretation is seductive, too, because so much of our life does work that way. If I just train harder, I’ll win more races. If I just work harder, I’ll be more financially secure. If I do more whatever, I’ll be happier… If I just “faith harder” life will be better.

Except faith doesn’t work that way.

And there are several challenges with this sort of interpretation. First, it’s not clear exactly what specific faith or belief Jesus might be calling for.

Second, the Scripture passages themselves don’t support this interpretation. Yes, Jesus stills the storm and raises Jairus’ daughter. But there is absolutely no evidence in the stories that it is because of some improvement in the quantity or quality of anyone’s faith. It is not as though the disciples manage to acquire some extra or better portion of faith and, as a result, Jesus removes the danger of the storm. It doesn’t happen that way. And when Jesus tells the people in Jairus’ house, “Do not fear; only believe,” they laugh at him.

The experience of Christians throughout history, from the time of the disciples up to today, has not shown that having faith means you will not encounter perilous or fearful things. Just ask the martyrs, for example. There has never been a correlation between quality or quantity of faith and an absence of fearsome events.

Faith does not inoculate us from fearful things. Faith is not a vaccine against frightening or perilous occurrences.

But faith can be an antidote to fear in the face of fearful things. Faith does calm and quiet fear in the face of dangerous or threatening things.

The reassurance that Jesus is offering is this: Do not be afraid, he says, I am with you. Do not be afraid because I am with you.

The particular faith that Jesus is encouraging us to remember is that Jesus actually is what we have being saying since Christmas… that he is Emmanuel. God. With. Us. The peace and comfort and love of God. With. Us. Do not be afraid; I am with you.

So look for the sweet and holy presence of Jesus in the fearful places of your life. He is there. With you. Bringing the peace and comfort and love of God to be with you no matter what.

Last week I stressed that Jesus’ power working through us enables us, beyond our wildest imagination, to change things we can change in the world around us.

This week we are reminded that Jesus’ presence with us brings comfort and peace and stills our fears in the face of things we cannot change in the world around us.

Whenever or wherever you feel frightened, look for the sweet and holy presence of Jesus with you. He is there. Bringing the peace and comfort and love of God.

Remember the well-known passage from Romans: Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. That’s what Jesus shows us in these stories. NO THING can separate us from God. I am with you. Do not be afraid. And it doesn’t depend upon the quantity or quality of your faith. It’s about the presence of Jesus. He’s there. Just hang on. Hang on to Jesus.