And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with Him said, Master, the multitude throng Thee and press Thee, and sayest Thou, Who touched me? Luke 8:45
Consider a hospital, a huge building with its beds filled to capacity with the sick and the dying, and somebody asks how many beds does it have. Somebody else looks up the figures and declares that the hospital has 560 beds, and 558 of them are occupied. The numbers sound impressive! That’s quite the hospital, and it’s doing very well at its mission to serve the community. But the numbers carry absolutely no emotional impact; they are just figures that describe how large and how busy the hospital is. Pick a number at random, and ask who is occupying the hospital’s Bed 235. Scrolling through the hospital admissions list, somebody checks for Bed 235, and comes up with a name: Ellen Davis. Now the numbers start to take on a little more significance; one of those numbers is actually identified as a person. We need to know about her, what kind of person she is, what her health problem is, but we know that she is a sick woman. And that means something. Just as one sick woman reaching out to the Lord Jesus in a crowd meant something.
At first, Jesus’ question would not make much sense to the disciples. As He walked along the street toward Jairus’ house, people crowded about, and He would have to push some of them aside as he made His way through the press. Physical contact was occurring constantly and was involving dozens of people every minute, as people would try to get closer to Him and as He would try to make His way along. The disciples would see those people as a large number, but the Lord Jesus would see those people as individuals, each with their specific personalities and problems. So when somebody touched Him, He would identify with that person and know the full story behind the touch. His question was not to discover the identity of the toucher, but to have the toucher identify herself to Him. And He is still open today to have us reach out and touch Him with our need.
The woman had a problem, and she had simply reached out to One Who could resolve her problem. She was not looking for a fancy healing ceremony or for any personal attention. She was convinced that contact with the Lord Jesus was all that was needed. And she was right. Her issue of blood stanched (verse 44) But the Lord Jesus wanted more than to heal the woman; He wanted her to communicate with Him. He wants the same with us. Yes, He is willing and able to resolve our problems and trials, but He wants us to talk with Him about them and to thank Him for resolving them. He is interested in us as individuals and not just as problems to resolve. He appreciates our faith in Him, and welcomes our worship.
The Lord Jesus is not just a source of help; He is the Helper Who delights in communion with those who appreciate His help. – Jim MacIntosh