TROUBLE THE FATHER!

 BY PASTOR T. O. BANSO

Mark 5 tells us the story of one of the rulers of the synagogue whose daughter was sick. Jairus came to Jesus to beg him to come to his house to heal his daughter who was “at the point of death” (KJV). Verse 23 says he was “pleading fervently with him. ‘My little daughter is dying,’ he said. ‘Please come and lay your hands on her; heal her so she can live’” (NLT).

Looking at verse 23, one can see clearly that Jairus had faith in Jesus’ ability to heal his daughter. But despite this faith, I have found it difficult to understand why he chose to leave the daughter at home but rather came to Jesus first falling at his feet begging him to come and lay hands on her “that she may be healed and she shall live” (KJV).

Since that daughter was at the point of death, I don’t know why he didn’t carry her straight to Jesus as an emergency? Jesus didn’t have to enter his house to heal the daughter. Jairus, due to this approach of seeking the healing of his daughter, which I consider as time wasting, almost lost a 12-year old daughter.

Although Jesus granted his request to come to his house to heal his daughter who was sick to the point of death, the daughter died before Jesus got there. It wasn’t that Jesus delayed to go to heal the daughter as He did in the case of Lazarus. “So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, he stayed where he was for the next two days. Finally, he said to his disciples, ‘Let’s go back to Judea’” (John 11:5-7 NLT).

A woman of faith

What happened was that a woman who was more desperate in getting her miracle, a woman who was not even prominent for her name to have been recorded in the Bible – just “a certain woman” – came and broke into the itinerary of Jesus to receive her miracle. She had nobody to send to Jesus to invite him to her house to come and heal her. As weak as she was, she cast aside tradition which considered her unclean because of her menstrual period and a hemorrhage of 12 years for that matter (Leviticus 15:25-30).

She wriggled her way through the crowd to touch the hem of Jesus’ garment – a taboo for a woman doing her menstrual period. She said, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.”The woman was more determined than Jairus therefore she got her miracle “Immediately the bleeding stopped, and she could feel in her body that she had been healed of her terrible condition” (Mark 5:29 NLT). She was healed instantly without Jesus touching her. That was the first time someone would touch his robe and be healed. The normal thing was for Jesus to touch sick people to heal them.

You can imagine how anxious Jairus was while all this was going on. He had an emergency at hand but it didn’t appear that he handled it correctly. While the woman with the 12-year old issue of blood was receiving her miracle Jairus’ 12-year old daughter was dying.

In fact, just as Jesus finished confirming the healing of the woman, a report came from Jairus’ house that the daughter was dead. What a sad new! If Jairus were to play the blame game, his first reaction would have been to blame the woman. But was it her fault that she broke protocol to receive miracle for a 12-year old problem? No. Don’t forget how the Bible described this woman: “A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse. She had heard about Jesus, so she came up behind him through the crowd and touched his robe” (Mark 4:25-27 NLT).

She had a 12-year old problem. Jairus could wait for Jesus to come to his house, maybe because his daughter’s sickness was just 12 hours old or 12 days old. This woman wouldn’t wait until Jesus would come to heal her 12-year old sickness, like Jesus went to heal the man at the pool of Bethesda who had been sick for 38 years (John 5). Even at that, Jesus healed only that man at the pool of Bethesda; He left the rest there!

Jesus might never have gone to heal this woman if she waited for Him to come. Nevertheless, the woman, who had tried several doctors without success, came herself to the Great Healer. Though she had no prior appointment with Jesus, she got herself appointed for healing. Therefore, it would have been wrong for Jairus to blame her.

The second person Jairus could have blamed was Jesus; after all, Martha blamed Jesus for the death of her brother, Lazarus. “Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died’” (John11:21 NLT).

Jairus could have blamed Jesus for wasting time by allowing the woman with the issue of blood to interrupt the journey to his house. Again, it wasn’t Jesus’ fault. Jesus didn’t stop to heal the woman. Did you hear what Jesus told the woman? “Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace. You have been healed” (Mark 5:34 NLT). Her faith healed her. God honours people’s faith. One can say that the woman had more faith than Jarius who couldn’t choose to act on the truth that Jesus didn’t need to come to his house before the daughter would be healed. The woman set her point of contact for herself: “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.”

Jairus’ daughter died because he didn’t behave like that centurion in Matthew 8, who said, “‘Lord, my young servant lies in bed, paralyzed and in terrible pain.’ Jesus said, ‘I will come and heal him.’ But the officer said, ‘Lord, I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it” (Matthew 8:6-9 NLT).

What was the response of Jesus to this centurion? Verse 10: “When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to those who were following him, he said, ‘I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel! And what was the outcome?” (NLT).  Moreover, what was the outcome of this novel encounter? “Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, ‘Go back home. Because you believed, it has happened.’ And the young servant was healed that same hour” (verse 13). If Jairus had gotten faith up to the point of requesting Jesus to speak just one word of command, his daughter wouldn’t have died at all.

Problems don’t solve themselves!

Do you have faith to be healed? Do you have faith to receive that miracle from God? Are you as determined as that woman or you think the problem is just a small problem or you feel you still have time? That was probably how the problem the woman had started. She never knew she was embarking on a miserable journey that would last 12years. It was first blood she started losing until she started losing all her money on the sickness moving from one doctor to the other but her condition grew worse.

How long have you been in that negative condition? How soon do you think you will be out of it? Don’t be deceived, problems don’t solve themselves. If they’re not solved quickly, problems give birth to other problems. Sickness can give birth to poverty, neglect and eventually premature death.

Alas, Jairus daughter died! But thank God that Jesus has the power to bring back to life a dead child, a dead marriage, a dead career, a dead business etc., even if it is as a result of your carelessness or indiscretion, as in the case of Jairus.

However, if you‘re going to experience a divine turnaround, you must be ready to trouble the Father. Those who came from Jairus’ house said, “Your daughter is dead. There’s no use troubling the Teacher now”(Mark 5:35 NLT). King James Version says, “Thy daughter is dead: why trouble thou the master any further?” Why won’t they say that? It’s not their daughter that died!

You must not to listen to this kind of people – those who think it’s over for you, those who think you can’t make it again, those who think there’s no more need for you praying. Jesus told Jairus, “Don’t be afraid. Just have faith” (Mark 5:36 NLT).

In addition, because Jairus chose to believe the words of Jesus, his daughter was restored to life. Even if your present condition is because of your sin, God is able to forgive anyone who genuinely repents. He’s a merciful God.

Don’t give up over that negative condition. You know where the shoe pinches you. Don’t let anyone discourage you by saying “trouble not the master” You must keep on troubling the Father in prayers until God answers your prayers and the answers manifest. I say to you, trouble the Father. God the Father will never complain that you’re troubling Him. Trouble the Father in fervent prayers. That is what the Master himself taught while on the earth.

In Matthew 7:7-8, Jesus says, “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened” (NLT).

Don’t give up praying

Trouble the Father! Jesus taught the same thing in Luke 11: 5-10:“Then, teaching them more about prayer, he used this story: ‘Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You say to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit, and I have nothing for him to eat.’ And suppose he calls out from his bedroom, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is locked for the night, and my family and I are all in bed. I can’t help you.’ But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. ‘And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened’” (NLT).

Take note of what Jesus said in that passage: Though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence. Friendship is important, but sometimes it may fail to produce the desired answer unless we add persistence. The other was forced to act because his friend continued to trouble him – persistence. Keep knocking! Trouble the Father!

Trouble the Father like the widow in Luke 18 troubled that unjust judge and got her request granted. “A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’ The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’ Then the Lord said, ‘Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?’” (Verses 3-8 NLT).

Trouble the Father! Don’t fold your arms and be waiting for Jesus to come to your house; take your case to Jesus. Don’t sit down holding a pity party. Trouble the father! Don’t wait for a church annual convention, one special programme, one anointed man of God. Don’t give up in prayers because of no manifestation of answer yet. Pray without ceasing (1Thessalonians 5:17 KJV). The New Living Translation says, “Never stop praying.” Man ought always to pray and not to faint (Luke 18:1 KJV). Trouble the Father with your case today, prayer changes situations. God answers prayer. Don’t tell me you have prayed and prayed and prayed; keep praying until your answer manifests. Trouble the Father! You have been listening to the testimonies of others; people must listen to your own testimonies too. Trouble the Father!

If you’ve given up praying over that case, resume fervent prayer now. Never stop praying. NOTHING IS FINAL UNTIL GOD HAS SPOKEN! Give God no rest. Trouble Him today. “O Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen on your walls; they will pray day and night, continually. Take no rest, all you who pray to the Lord. Give the Lord no rest until he completes his work, until he makes Jerusalem the pride of the earth” (Isaiah 62:6-7 NLT). That’s God’s word for you. Take no rest over that case; give God no rest until God gives you your miracle.

Hear what Jesus said. “Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full” (John 16:24 NLT). In this dispensation we don’t ask from Jesus again. He taught us to ask the Father in his name. “At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy” (John 16:23-24 NLT).

Earlier Jesus told the disciples, “You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!” (John 14:13-14 NLT). John 15:16 underscores the same truth: “You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name” (NLT). Make your specific requests in the name of Jesus.

God is not complaining!

Trouble the Father! He’s a good Father. He won’t give you stone when you ask Him for bread or give you snake instead of fish that you ask for. (Matthew 7:9-11) He does not even consider your constant asking in prayer as troubling Him; He knows it is an expression of your faith in Him, and faith pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). Also, Proverbs 15:8b says, “The prayer of the upright is His delight” (NKJV).  God loves your dependence on Him in ceaseless prayer.

D. L Moody said, “Some people think God does not like to be troubled with our constant coming and asking. The way to trouble God is not to come at all.” Did you hear that? You think you’re troubling Him, but He doesn’t see it that way. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16 NKJV)

Never stop praying. You will soon laugh over that situation. Your change – positive change – will come. I’ll be expecting to hear your testimony soon.

TAKE ACTION!

If you’re not born again, I urge you to take the following steps: *Admit you’re a sinner and you can’t save yourself and repent of your sins. *Confess Jesus as your Lord and Saviour. *Renounce your past way of life – your relationship with the devil and his works. *Invite Jesus into your life. *As a mark of seriousness to mature in the faith, start attending a Bible-believing, Bible -teaching church. There, they teach you how to grow in the Kingdom of God.

Kindly say this prayer now: O Lord God, I come unto you today. I know I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. I believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died on the cross to save me and resurrected the third day. I repent and confess my sins. I confess Jesus as my Lord and Saviour and surrender my life to him today. I invite Jesus into my heart today. By this prayer, I know I am saved. Thank you, Jesus, for saving me and making me a child of God.

I believe you have said this prayer from your heart. Congratulations! You will need to join a Bible believing, Bible teaching church in your area where they will teach you how to live your new life in Christ Jesus. I pray that you flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar of Lebanon. May you grow into Christ in all things and become all God wants you to be. I’ll be glad to hear from you. The LORD be with you.

 PRAYER POINTS

1.Father, intervene in my trouble today and give me victory.

2. Heavenly Father, deliver me from the trouble that is not allowing your purpose for my life to be established and give me rest.

3. Every power that is troubling my life, be destroyed today in Jesus’ name.

T. O. Banso is the President, Cedar Ministry International, Abuja, Nigeria.
Phone No: +2348155744752, +2348033113523
WhatsApp No: +2349081295947
Email: cedarministryintl@yahoo.com,
cedarministryng@gmail.com
Website: www.cedarministry.org