Fringe Benefits
Morgan Nel | ACSI Assistant Director
Sometimes it takes us too long to approach the Lord. There might be obstacles, barriers or issues that prevent us from boldly approaching Him.
When I think of the woman with the issue of blood, I see someone who had been suffering for years before she took the opportunity – a leap of faith – to be restored.
Just then a woman who had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding came up behind him. She touched the fringe of his robe, for she thought, “If I can just touch his robe, I will be healed.” Jesus turned around, and when he saw her he said, “Daughter, be encouraged! Your faith has made you well.” And the woman was healed at that moment.
Matthew 9:20-22 NLT
It was at the fringe of Jesus’ robe that she received what she had been hoping and believing for. Her “fringe benefit” was receiving healing from a lifetime of suffering.
This thought grabbed my attention. To touch a hem, you need to bow down or kneel. This speaks of humility and a physical act that is seldom seen nowadays – kneeling at the feet of a man in the middle of a crowd. Yet she did it.
Later, in Matthew 14:35-36, we notice that more “people with issues” heard of Jesus, came to Him and begged him to allow them to touch the hem of His robe. All who touched Him were healed.
So, the next question comes to mind. What is so significant about the hem of a garment? According to the Collins Dictionary a hem on something such as a piece of clothing is an edge that is folded over and stitched down to prevent threads coming loose. The hem of a skirt or dress is the bottom edge.
Delving deeper, I discovered the following reference to the importance of a hem in the Old Testament.
“Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: Throughout the generations to come you must make tassels for the hems of your clothing and attach them with a blue cord. When you see the tassels, you will remember and obey all the commands of the Lord instead of following your own desires and defiling yourselves, as you are prone to do. The tassels will help you remember that you must obey all my commands and be holy to your God.”
Numbers 15:38-40 NLT
The Lord instructed Moses, in much detail, about clothing. He was very specific about hems and the attachment of tassels to hems. These tassels were to be attached with blue cord and acted as a reminder that they were to obey His commands and be holy (The colour blue represents the heavens and the Word of God – see Exodus 24:10). This was to remind them to keep away from following their own desires and defiling themselves – as mankind is prone to do.
The woman with the issue of blood was well-aware that she was not even allowed within the city. In a way, she was seen as a defiled one by her community. She was perhaps even unholy in their eyes.
Her life had, in a sense, unravelled as her threads had come loose. Yet, she applied her risky faith, reached out and touched Him.
What obstacles, barriers or issues have you been struggling with? What prevents you from boldly approaching Him? Do you feel defiled and unholy? Does it sometimes feel like your life has unravelled and things have come loose?
Don’t hold back or wait any longer. Approach the Lord. Bow down, kneel at Jesus’ feet and reach out to touch the hem of His garment.
This requires a changed posture, faith, and the willingness to reach out. Be encouraged. It is at His hem that we receive what we have been hoping and believing for. Close to Him, at his feet, we are restored.