Touch (9-28-12)

Hebrews 5:14 - "But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil."

1 John 1:1-2 - "What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we beheld and our hands handled, concerning the Word of Life— and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us" This time we're going to focus on the sense of touch. How does touch play into our relationship with God? Here again John tells us about his close and personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ when He was walking on the earth. He says "our hands handled" another translation says "touched with our hands." John was very close to our Lord. This is the disciple who was leaning, resting on Jesus at the last supper. Of course John is not the only one who touched Jesus. We know that after He was resurrected Jesus said to His disciples in Luke 24:39 - "See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have." He invited all His disciples to touch His risen body and see that it was truly Him. Thomas wasn't there at that time but Jesus gave him the same opportunity in John 20:27 - "Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”" The Lord Jesus invited people to touch Him.

During the Lords earthly ministry crowds would swarm around Jesus in order to touch Him. They knew that there was something peculiar about Him. They knew that a simple touch would bring healing. We read in Luke 6:19 - "And all the people were trying to touch Him, for power was coming from Him and healing them all." And in Mark 3:10 it says - "for He had healed many, with the result that all those who had afflictions pressed around Him in order to touch Him." And again in Mark 6:56 we read - "Wherever He entered villages, or cities, or countryside, they were laying the sick in the market places, and imploring Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were being cured."

Jesus touched sinners and allowed sinners to touch Him. This is an amazing thing. According to the Law an unclean person was not supposed to touch a clean person lest they be defiled. But Jesus, although He touched and was touched by unclean sinners, was never defiled. In Mark 5:25-34 we read this account - "A woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse— after hearing about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind Him and touched His cloak. For she thought, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.” Immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?” And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.”" This is amazing. According to the Law of God in Leviticus chapter 15, this woman should not have touched Christ, or anybody else for that matter. She was unclean, and uncleanness is passed on by touch. According to the Law anyone she touched would be made unclean, but Christ cannot be defiled. It's impossible. Rather than defiling Him with her uncleanness, He purified her with His purity because she had faith enough to reach out and touch Him. This illustrates a biblical truth. Christ, according to Hebrews 7, is holy, innocent, undefiled, separate from sinners and exalted above the heavens. Man, because of our inherited sin nature, is unholy, guilty, defiled, sinful, destined to perish and suffer the consequences of our sin, which is eternal separation from God in the lake of fire. However, God in His great love with which He loved us, even when we were still helpless, ungodly sinners and enemies of God, sent forth His Son born of a woman and made in the likeness of men in order that we might be cleansed from our sins by touching Him. He made Himself available and came near to us in order that we might touch Him by faith and be cleansed of the defilement of our flesh, just like this woman was. Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him. Can you say that you touched Christ? This woman touched Christ in a crowd, and the only ones who knew it were the two of them. It doesn't matter what environment someones in, it doesn't matter what circumstances, Christ has made it so that anyone can reach out in faith and touch Him and be cleansed of our sins. 

Matthew 14:36 - "and they implored Him that they might just touch the fringe of His cloak; and as many as touched it were cured.”