WHO TOUCHED ME?- PART 1: PASTOR (DR) MENSA OTABIL – SPECIAL SUNDAY SERVICE, 8TH OCTOBER, 2023.

SPECIAL SUNDAY SERVICE WITH PASTOR (DR) MENSA OTABIL (GENERAL OVERSEER, INTERNATIONAL CENTRAL GOSPEL CHURCH (ICGC) CHRIST TEMPLE, ACCRA GHANA)

TOPIC: WHO TOUCHED ME? – PART 1 (THOSE WHO TAKE FROM US).

DATE: 8TH OCTOBER 2023

BIBLE TEXT: MARK 5:25-31

Let us rise up together as we make our “DECLARATION OF GATHERING” in this “YEAR OF GATHERING”.

Are you ready? Say with me:

I Proclaim Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour. The Lord is the Shepherd of my Soul, my Shelter by Day, my Light by Night.

In His Name, we Plough our fields, by His Spirit we gather the Harvest, in His Light we seek and find.

In this Year of Gathering, the Lord of the Harvest has commanded: Launch Out into the Deep. At His Words, we cast our Nets, we gather in Souls and Substance for God’s Kingdom.

The Lord is our Reward; in this Season I receive God’s Portion set aside for me: Full Measure, Pressed down, Shaken together and running over.

Nothing is Lost and Nothing is wasted in Jesus Name – Amen!

I’m going to do a 2-Part Message between this week and next week. And I Title it, “WHO TOUCHED ME?”

This is the Part 1 of “Who Touched me?” And my Sub-title for this Part is: Those who take from us.

We are going to look at a very Popular Scripture, very familiar. Most of the time we look at it as a Story of Faith and how to receive from God.

But I am going to look at that Scripture a little differently – Not in the Traditional way we have been looking at the Verses.

We are going to look at the Story of the woman with the Issue of Blood – Today we will focus on her and next week we will focus on Jesus.

We are going to look at the interface between the woman and Jesus; and a couple of things I believe that we should all learn from in.

Mark 5:25-31 (NKJV)

25 Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years,

26 and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse.

27 When she heard about Jesus, she came behind Him in the crowd and touched His garment.

28 For she said, “If only I may touch His clothes, I shall be made well.”

29 Immediately the fountain of her blood was dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of the affliction.

30 And Jesus, immediately knowing in Himself that power had gone out of Him, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My clothes?”

31 But His disciples said to Him, “You see the multitude thronging You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’”

… And we know the rest of the Story – The woman came up and confessed that she has been touched by Jesus.

What was the Motive behind her Action?

She said, “if only I may touch the helm of His cloth.” She believed that touching the cloth of Jesus will solve the Major Problem that she had.

Of course Jesus had a reputation as the Healer.

So, Three (3) Things I want you to Note:

1. This Woman had a Great Need:

She was sick and was getting worse. The sickness was draining blood from her for twelve (12) years.

Not only that, she was losing money and she almost lost everything that she owned.

So you could say that she has a Great Need and she is desperate.

2. She got Close to Jesus:

She determined to get to Jesus, and inspite of her weakness she Pressed to get close to Jesus. And she was thinking of getting close to Jesus in order to get help.

She was not getting close to Jesus to know more about Him. She wanted to get close to Jesus because that would solve her Problem.

It is just like you trying to get to somebody else for your own benefit; and not seeking to do anything for the Person you want to get close to.

3. She had an Agenda:

She said to herself, “if I touch His cloth I will be made Whole.”

Every part of this Agenda is aimed at the woman’s wellbeing and not that of Jesus.

We can all identify with this woman – When you have a Great Need and Life is difficult and you want to get help; you do everything you can to get help. And that is what the woman with the Issue of Blood is doing here Practically.

When a desperate and someone in need gets to know where the Solution is, they will do everything they can to get to where the Solution is.

For example:

If you have some Financial means, and People are desperately in Need, sometimes they do everything Possible to get close to you.

If you are at Advantaged Position, People don’t care what it takes, they would get close to you.

That’s what this woman is doing – She has to break Protocols and get close to Jesus.

As a Pastor, People come to you, not caring if you need help yourself. They just believe that if you Pray for them they will be made Whole.

That’s their Agenda – It’s not for your well-being, it is so they can get healed.

… That is the angle I want to bring to this Story.

When Jesus said, “who touched me?”; I am sure it was not immediately, it took some time. Trying to find out who touched Him. So Jesus stops, He is no longer going to Jarius’ house.

And the interesting thing is, whilst they were there, debating who touched Jesus, Message came from Jarius’house that the girl is dead. Of course Jesus has unlimited Power -. He still went to heal Jarius’ daughter.

But I want you to imagine – What if this was a Doctor; he packs his Medical bag and he is going to help this Person;

And then somebody interfers with the Process. He treats the fellow with the Medicine that is supposed to heal the others Person. So this one gets healed and that other one is not healed.

Because it tells us sometimes that, when People desperately need help, they become very insensitive to anything else – They don’t care about anybody else.

3. She Silently withdrew after receiving from Jesus:

The Passage is very clear. It says, this woman touched Jesus and immediately she felt the fountain of blood had ceased. She knew she had been healed. But just as she approached Jesus silently, she walked away from Jesus silently.

So she is coming to receive benefits and go without saying, Thank You Jesus.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t think that is a good behaviour.

I believe it is for that reason that Jesus asked, “who touched me?” Because He felt, “you can’t just come and receive and go, and not Pause to say, Lord I Thank You.”

And as I thought about it, I think about the many People who get desperate and go to People for help and after they get the help, never stop to say, “thank you for helping me”.

There are many People who benefit from you and never think that, ‘after I have found Solution to my Problem, I need to spend a Minute to tell this Person that, although you didn’t know I was in the crowd you touched me. And I am better because you touched me.

She was about to leave without Testifying and without telling the Story.

Can you imagine if Jesus had not asked, who touched me?” This Story would never have occurred in the Bible. Such a Powerful Testimony – Nobody would not have heard about it .

Because this woman decided, I would go in silently to take it. And I would leave silently, I would not acknowledge anybody..

Of course Jesus affirmed her Healing. He said, okay go home, your Faith has made you Whole.

Many times if you read such Story, you think Jesus should have said otherwise.

That’s what I am thinking – I am not Jesus. But looking at the Pattern of Jesus’dealings with People;

I. Remember the Syrophoenician Woman who came to Jesus directly, Lord help me, my daughter is at the Point of Death. Jesus said, we don’t give the children’s bread to dogs. And she said, Lord, even the dogs eat from the crumbs.

Jesus said, I have never seen such Faith. This is great!

II. The Centurion comes to Jesus and said Lord, help me.

Jesus said, I will need to come to your house. But the Centurion said, You don’t even need to come to my house, speak the Word and my daughter would be healed.

Jesus said, I have never seen such Great Faith.

For this woman, there is no commendation of that Nature. But what she has done should qualify to be called, “I have never seen anything like that.” Yet Jesus never sad that about her.

All He said was, you took it, you have it, go home! Your Faith has made you fine, you are happy – go!

And I believe there is a rebuke there.

Jesus did not withdraw the Healing, but it was not the best way to approach somebody who helps you.

Even if the People did not know they’ve helped you; you know they did.

You know many times we think, the end justifies the means – Once we get heal, that’s all there is.

But we have to also look at the Process.

Because sometimes, you get results: but in getting the results, you break too many rules. You intrude into People’s Privacy; you hurt too many People. But you still get results.

Can we just say simply, because she got results, we cannot examine the Methodology? No!

We have to examine the Methodology – although she got results.

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS MESSAGE?

It is that, sometimes when you have gathered so much in Life, there are People who would come to you. I call them “Takers”.

Jesus was Anointed from when He was in His mother’s womb.

John the Baptist leaped the first day the mother of Jesus (Mary) met Elizabeth (the mother of John).

Jesus is Anointed, He is the Son of God, He has the Power of God without limit.

But it doesn’t mean you can take Silently and leave Silently.

If you can take Silently and leave Silently, Jesus Christ could have been Silent. But He said, “who touched me?”

… Next week (Part 2); I am going to Teach from Jesus’ Point of view. Today I am dealing with the woman’s Point of view.

Jesus said, “who touched me?” – because I sense something left me.

Meaning, what she did was not an innocent thing. It affected Jesus deeply and He felt it. He could have kept quiet about it, but He didn’t.

It is like you giving People who asked for help some money and they didn’t say thank you. Because in their Minds, “what is that amount to you? You have so much money, I can Silently take and Silently leave because you would not feel it.”

But Jesus is saying, I felt it! And you can’t run away thinking I didn’t feel it. Because I did. (That’s for next week).

WHAT DO ‘TAKERS’ DO?

1. Those who Grab without Permission:

Unfortunately, some time they can grab till you get dry, and they will move away Silently.

Some of us have helped People who took from us and we became dry and they moved on.

I have always wondered, “all these People, where were they when Jesus was on the Cross?” – They took and took, at the time Jesus needed them to show up, were not there.

May it never be said of us that we are Takers: that we take, grab and never stop to say Thank You, until we are Prompted – Amen!

You know there are People who never say Thank You until you Prompt them, “so this thing I gave you, you won’t come and say Thank You? Then they would say, “Oh! Thank You (Laugher).

But most of the time when they say Thank You for, they are insulting you in their head: “this little thing you gave me? Thank You for what? You want Thank, okay I Thank You.”

2. Those who are Hiding after Taking:

Did Jesus ever touch with you?

Has God ever done something for you that you received Silently and have gone away Silently without ever spending time to Thank Him?

Remember the time when you were in trouble you Prayed – Oh GOD help me. And then it happened!

And now you don’t go for Prayer Meetings again, God doesn’t even hear from you again.

But when you needed help, you had attended Prayer Meetings, Midnight Prayers, Noon Prayers. You were always Praying.

When God did it, you Silently moved until God Prompts you and say, “who touched me?”

Nobody hears your Testimony.

Some of you made Promises to God – Lord, if You touch my Life and do so and so for me, I will do such and such for You.

He did it for you, and Silently you left!

Of course He would not take the Miracles back from you – God would not Bless You and take the Blessing back. All He would say to you is, “Go your Faith has made you well.”

If you took Silently, at least can’t you Testify Publicity without Prompting?

You say well, maybe he or she was feeling ashamed.

But the shame is gone! He took away your shame. The thing you were ashamed of, He has healed you of it. There is no shame again, now there is Joy.

You can say, maybe there are too many People, I don’t want to speak Publicity. There were too many people, yet you Pressed through the People.

Did it have to take Jesus to remind you, “Hey, where is your Testimony, where is the Story, the Honour and Glory?”

And beyond Jesus, other People you have taken from, you are well now, but they don’t know they helped you. They don’t know that but for them, you would not be where you are.

Are there People like that – People you touched and you are made Whole through their help?

But you never stopped to say, “Thank You for touching my Life – Without you, I wouldn’t have been where I am now. My children would not have had Education. I won’t have had a Testimony”.

Do you need to be Prompted before you show Appreciation?

Are you one of those who Plunder what People have gathered and never stop to say Thank You?

That is what we learn from the Woman with the Issue of Blood – We commend her Faith, her Tenacity; but we disapprove of Silent taking and Silent going (Laugher). We disapprove that!

And may God never make you Silently take and Silently walk away – Amen.

We can come boldly say – Our Faith is rewarded; that we must always Pause to say Thank You both to God and to the People who helped us – Amen.

Thank you so much for staying all through to read.

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