Back in the early 1960s, songwriter Bill Gaither was asked to play the piano at an evening service where an evangelist was scheduled to speak. Though he was busy, he agreed to take time out to do it. He was glad he did. As Bill watched, hundreds of people flooded the “stage” that night; and he witnessed a tremendous outpouring of the miraculous power of the Holy Spirit. In fact, the power of the Holy Spirit was so prevalent that night that on the way home the evangelist turned to Gaither and said, “Why don’t you write a song about what you experienced tonight?” Gaither gulped and said, “Maybe some time I will.”
That night he couldn’t sleep. All he could think about were the words, “Why don’t you write a song about God’s touch?” By morning Bill Gaither had written it. You’ve probably heard it a thousand times - He Touched Me.
Shackled by a heavy burden,
‘Neath a load of guilt and shame.
Then the hand of Jesus touched me,
And now I am no longer the same.
He touched me, Oh He touched me,
And oh the joy that floods my soul!
Something happened and now I know,
He touched me and made me whole.
Throughout the New Testament more than a dozen times Jesus is said to have touched someone. I think of the blind man Jesus healed by touching his eyes with the mud He had made. I think of the daughter of Jairus whom He raised from the dead by taking hold of her hand. There are many similar accounts. As John might tell it, “If all of them were recorded, all the books in the world would not be able to contain them.”
But this week, as we begin a new section of Living a Transformed Life, I want to focus our attention on the one person in Scripture who is said to have reached out and touched Him. In this account, recorded in each one of the synoptic gospels, we find a perfect picture of the power of Jesus to heal and transform lives. On this Communion Sunday we will be in Luke 8:40-48 to draw a powerful example of hope. In preparation for Sunday’s study you may wish to consider the following:
1. Of all five senses, how important is touch to you?
2. What is the significance of Luke’s record of this woman’s touch?
3. What is the context for her touch?
4. Where is she when she “touches Him”?
5. What is her condition and the costs associated with coming to Jesus?
6. Where does she “touch” Him? What does it mean?
7. What is the meaning of Jesus’ words in verse 46?
8. What do you make of His declaration in verse 48?
9. How important are the 12 years of her suffering?
10. What does Jesus mean by calling her “daughter”?
May the Holy Spirit touch all this Sunday!
