Luke 8:2 Mary called Magdalene
"Who was this Mary Magdalene that she should be honored with the first vision of the risen Christ? The account is brief, but we know that she was an influential woman from the town of Magdala, one of several women who gave her substance as well as her devotion to Jesus' mission. The scriptures tell us that she stood close by the cross when others, even the apostles, tarried afar off. When Jesus asked John to take his mother away, Mary Magdalene remained. The high regard in which the gospel writers held her is evidenced by the fact that she is mentioned by name fourteen times.
"Unfortunately, since medieval times Mary has been much maligned. Her name, 'Magdalene,' has come to mean 'reformed prostitute,' and artists have repeatedly depicted her as an immoral woman driven to the Savior by her sins. All this has come about because Bible scholars, beginning in the fourth century, chose to identify her with the unnamed sinful woman of Luke 7:36-50 who washed Jesus' feet with her hair. The first mention of Mary Magdalene in Luke 8:2 follows closely the account of the sinful woman, but there is no reason to assume that the two women are the same. And what is more, the early Christians did not regard Mary as a reformed prostitute. In light of that fact, I think it is safe to assume that Mary Magdalene was never a harlot." (Jerrie W. Hurd, Our Sisters in the Bible [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1983], 128.)
Sterling W. Sill
"Jesus went among people casting out devils. Before Mary Magdalene could solve her problems, the record says that seven devils had to be expelled. (Luke 8:2.) It is one of our primary responsibilities of life to learn to cast out devils in a very real way. The apostle James gave us one method when he said, 'Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.' (James 4:7.) However, if we do not resist him, we will soon have him on our backs. A little favorable entertainment, and Satan always tries to take us over... Satan has no power over us except as we give in to him...
"...Certainly our generation needs to work a lot harder on this technique of casting out devils and getting rid of our own weaknesses. If everyone in the world would always keep all of the commandments of the Lord, Satan would be completely powerless, and this earth would be God's paradise. It might help us in this art if we got a little more practice in casting out those seven devils-selfishness, weakness, sloth, hate, alcohol, immorality, and atheism. Then if we would like to try casting out another seven devils, suppose we start with our indecision, our ignorance, and our indifference. We sometimes develop a devil of a temper that we allow to rule over us. We also develop a devilish habit of rebellion against right. We would be a lot better off if we would cast out the devil of falsehood and the devil of unfairness." (Principles, Promises, and Powers [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1973], 211 - 212.)
Luke 8:3 Joanna the wife of Chuza Herod's steward
The fact that Joanna was married to a man who served Herod is an important detail. Have you ever wondered how the detailed story of John's beheading reached the disciples (see Mark 6:20-29)? The intimate conversation between the queen Herodias and her dancing daughter (Mark 6:24) has been preserved. But how? We imagine that Joanna's husband Chuza was the most likely source of that information.
Luke 8:10 Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God
Joseph Fielding Smith
"There are in the gospel such things as mysteries. A mystery is, of course, some truth which is not understood. All the principles of the gospel and all truth pertaining to the salvation of men are simple when understood. Until it is understood, however, a simple truth may be a great mystery.
"Gospel truths appeal more to the spirit, that is, they are spiritually discerned. A man may know a thing to be true by the teaching of the Spirit, but he may not be able to explain it to others. This may not be in keeping with modern worldly teaching, but it is true nevertheless. Revelations through the Spirit of the Lord, many times, cannot be explained...The best educated man in the world may not be able to comprehend the simple truths of the gospel because his soul is not in tune; he has not been enlightened by the Spirit of the Lord. He, therefore, fails to see and feel the significance of these principles. They cannot be seen except through the touch of the Holy Ghost. For this reason Alma explained to Zeezrom how gospel light may be known. Said he:
Luke 8:10 in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand
"A careful reading of the books of Matthew, Mark, and Luke (John has no true parables) reveals that Jesus used parables when teaching the multitudes and the Jewish leaders but rarely for teaching the disciples. Jesus did not use parables in the beginning of his ministry but adopted that method when opposition became strong against him. He was at least a year and a half into his ministry when he began to teach with parables (Matthew chapter 13).
"Jesus gave his own reasons for using parables, saying it was so that the multitudes would not understand: 'And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them [the multitudes] in parables? He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.' (Matt. 13:10-11.)
"His reason for using parables is emphasized by the Joseph Smith Translation. After a period of debate and conflict with the Jewish religious leaders, Jesus said: 'And, again, hear another parable; for unto you that believe not, I speak in parables; that your unrighteousness may be rewarded unto you' (JST Matt. 21:34)." (Robert J. Matthews, Behold the Messiah, 168 as taken from Latter-day Commentary on the New Testament: The Four Gospels, by Pinegar, Bassett, and Earl, p. 153)
Bruce C. Hafen
"The act of believing originates in the heart of the beholder. On more than one occasion the Lord said to those around him, '... He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.' (Luke 8:8.) Few of those who observed him truly understood the parables or perceived the miracles for what they were.
"...Scholars in the philosophy of knowledge tell us that people tend to see what they want to see, especially when the evidence is ambiguous. Perhaps that is why the mists of darkness in Lehi's dream are so descriptive of the conditions of mortality. God has chosen to leave us free, amid circumstances that do not compel our belief, to determine for ourselves, as an act of will, whether to grasp the iron rod in the midst of that mortal darkness. All four of Lehi's sons were born of those same goodly parents. The difference between the believers and unbelievers was not so much in what happened to them, but in their attitude toward what happened. That attitude originated within their own hearts, with each making his own free choice about being willing to be believing." ("Is Yours a Believing Heart?" Ensign, Sept. 1974, 53-55)
Luke 8:12 then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts
Alma taught, 'Now, we will compare the word unto a seed. Now, if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye do not cast it out by your unbelief, that ye will resist the Spirit of the Lord, behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts' (Alma 32:28). Satan, a sinister scriptorian in his own right, is very familiar with Alma's sermon. His plan is to destroy the seed before it has a chance to grow-before the seed begins to swell in the heart of the investigator. For him it is much easier to take 'the word out of their hearts' early on, rather than rely on a later temptation or the slow choking effect of the 'cares and riches and pleasures' of the world. Hence, most people that hear the word of God don't think twice about it. That is not by accident. He engenders that immediate unbelief by which the investigator casts out the good seed. He teaches: "That's ridiculous!" "These are just a bunch of religious fanatics." "Who needs religion?" "What a bunch of Jesus freaks!" And so, he 'taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.'
Joseph Smith
"This is he which receiveth seed by the way side. Men who have no principle of righteousness in themselves, and whose hearts are full of iniquity, and have no desire for the principles of truth, do not understand the word of truth when they hear it. The devil taketh away the word of truth out of their hearts, because there is no desire for righteousness in them. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 96.)
Luke 8:13 these have no root...and in time of temptation fall away
Marvin J. Ashton
"If we are unable to accept change, in the language of the parable of the sower, we are those with no root...If our roots are deep, we will welcome continuing revelation, change, and direction. We will develop the ability to accept releases, callings, and new challenges with enthusiasm. We will be too busy to be offended. We will be too big to be hurt. We will serve wherever we are called with anxious dedication. We will accept people for what they are and what they can and do become. Change will not only drive our roots deeper, but will also cause them to grow into new and fertile soil....
"Resistance to and resentment of change, of new assignments, of new opportunities are stony places that may keep our roots in the gospel from going deep and growing strong." (Ye Are My Friends, 67-69)
Luke 8:14 they...are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life
Bruce R. McConkie
"If the seed falls among thorns, it is in good soil, as is evidenced by the growth of the undesirable plants. But the good plant is soon choked and dies because it cannot overcome the influence of the weeds and thistles. So it is with the members of the Church who know the gospel is true, but who are not valiant in the testimony of Jesus, who are not affirmatively and courageously striving to further the interests of the Church. So it is of the saints who think more of the honors of men, the educational standards of the world, political preferment, or money and property, than they do of the gospel. They know the Lord's work has been established on earth, but they let the cares of the world choke the word. And instead of gaining eternal life, they shall be burned with the tares which overcame them." (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 1: 289.)
James E. Talmage
"In the parable we are considering, the Teacher depicted the varied grades of spiritual receptivity existing among men, and characterized with incisive brevity each of the specified grades. He neither said nor intimated that the hard-baked soil of the wayside might not be plowed, harrowed, fertilized, and so be rendered productive; nor that the stony impediment to growth might not be broken up and removed, or an increase of good soil be made by actual addition; nor that the thorns could never be uprooted, and their former habitat be rendered fit to support good plants." (Jesus the Christ, 265)
Hugh B. Brown
"Just as the garden needs fertilizing, cultivating, weeding-constant care and eternal vigilance-so our lives, if they are to be productive of good, must be constantly renewed by increasing knowledge, cultivated by activity, and weeded by repentance and good works. The rankest weeds in the garden may be found in the most fertile soil unless desirable crops are planted, watered, nurtured until the harvest. The prairie farmers in Canada have learned that it is better to leave the native sod unploughed unless one is willing to follow through with continued cultivation and constant war on weeds." (The Eternal Quest, 425.)
Luke 8:15 on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart...bring forth fruit with patience
Elder Eldred G. Smith
"The Lord describes those who are as the seed sown in good ground. Speaking of these he said some bear fruit or produce an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
"This means, then, that mere membership alone is not enough-no, not even if you have a testimony of the divinity of the gospel-if you are not producing or bearing fruit. Speaking of those who receive the word, which means those who are members of the Church, some produced one hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. In which category are you? Where do you find yourself? Are you producing? To what degree are you producing? What does it mean to produce?
"Are you doing anything to teach someone else the gospel, if this is where your abilities and opportunities lie, or are your abilities and opportunities elsewhere? Are you doing your share in family research, temple work, teaching a class, or some other activity? Are you doing something to be of service to someone else? Are you one who is tottering on the fence, staying away from church activities, not growing in spirituality?
"Have you become stagnant in priesthood advancement? Are you an adult but have not yet received the Melchizedek Priesthood or temple blessings? Are you working toward that end?" (Conference Report, April 1969, Afternoon Meeting 80.)
Luke 8:21 My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it
"Some have considered Jesus' words to be harsh. But the Savior knew what his family did not yet fully realize-that the bonds of faith and covenant are stronger than the bonds of blood, and that his role as eldest son in the family, which they honored, was of little significance compared to his role as Savior and Redeemer.
"He was, in fact, saying to them no more than what Abinadi had said almost two hundred years earlier. Speaking of the Christ who should come, Abinadi taught: 'When his soul has been made an offering for sin he shall see his seed. And now what say ye? And who shall be his seed? Behold I say unto you, that whosoever has heard the words of the prophets, . . . all those who have hearkened unto their words, and believed that the Lord would redeem his people, and have looked forward to that day for a remission of their sins, I say unto you, that these are his seed' (Mosiah 15:10-11)." (Carlfred Broderick, My Parents Married on a Dare and Other Favorite Essays on Life [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 112.)
Luke 8:24 he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water
"Pain, frustration, and discouragement are a natural part of life, but too often we permit these negative elements to rob us of our sense of peace-and I believe that only then have we truly lost something. Once, while the Savior and his disciples were aboard a ship, 'there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.' The disciples trembled with fear, certain of their impending doom, as Jesus slept. Fear overcame their faith, and the disciples awoke the Savior, 'Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm' (Mark 4:37-39).
"Regardless of the storms of our lives, despite the winds that blow and the waves that beat us, the message of the Savior's life is simple and clear: we can still enjoy a full measure of peace in our lives and receive comfort to our souls. Even while weathering the most violent storms, we can still sleep." (Art E. Berg, Finding Peace in Troubled Waters: Ten Life Preservers for When Your Ship Springs a Leak [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1995], 3.)
Luke 8:25 What manner of man is this! For he commandeth even the winds and the water, and they obey him
James E. Talmage
"Among the recorded miracles of Christ none has elicited greater diversity of comment, and in attempt at elucidation, than has this instance of control over the forces of Nature. Science ventures no explanation. The Lord of earth, air and sea spake and was obeyed. He it was who, amidst the black chaos of creation's earliest stages, had commanded with immediate effect-Let there be light; Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters; Let the dry land appear-and as he decreed, so it was. The dominion of the Creator over the created is real and absolute." (Jesus the Christ, 287.)
Luke 8:28 What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high?
James E. Talmage
"On these as on other occasions, we find evil spirits voicing through the mouths of their victims their knowledge that Jesus was the Christ; and in all such instances the Lord silenced them with a word; for He wanted no such testimony as theirs to attest the fact of His Godship. Those spirits were of the devil's following, members of the rebellious and defeated hosts that had been cast down through the power of the very Being whose authority and power they now acknowledged in their demoniac frenzy. Together with Satan himself, their vanquished chief, they remained unembodied, for to all of them the privileges of the second or mortal estate had been denied; their remembrance of the scenes that had culminated in their expulsion from heaven was quickened by the presence of the Christ, though He stood in a body of flesh." (Jesus the Christ, 170)
Luke 8:32 there was there an herd of many swine...and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them
Joseph Smith
"The great principle of happiness consists in having a body. The Devil has no body, and herein is his punishment. He is pleased when he can obtain the tabernacle of [a] man, and when cast out by the Savior, he asked to go into the herd of swine, showing that he would prefer a swine's body to having none. All beings who have bodies have power over those who have not. The Devil has no power over us, only as we permit him; the moment we revolt at anything which comes from God, the Devil takes power." (Kent P. Jackson, comp. and ed., Joseph Smith's Commentary on the Bible, 85.)
Brigham Young
"The Lord Almighty will not let anything endure that offers hospitality to the devil and his imps... they are trying all the time to get into our dwellings, because they have none of their own. Did you ever desire to take possession of another person's tabernacle, and leave your own? No rational person owning a tabernacle would wish to do so. The devils have no tabernacles, which is the reason of their wanting to possess human bodies. If any of you have suffered any of these houseless spirits to enter you, turn them out, and they will perhaps seek refuge in the body of an ox, or some other animal, or may be go into Jordan.
"Do you think the legion we read of, that entered the swine, in the days of Christ, had bodies of their own? No; they have no meeting houses but in ball rooms, gaming houses, brothels, gin palaces, parlors, bed rooms, and other places which they frequent in the bodies of those they lead captive; otherwise they are wandering to and fro in the earth, seeking to possess tabernacles that other spirits, not of their order, already occupy. They are in our midst watching for an opportunity to enter where they may. What will be the doom of those who give way to them, and yield to them the possession of their tabernacles? They will wander to and fro, happiness will be hid from them, they will weep, and wail, and suffer, until their bodies return to their mother earth, and their spirits to judgment." (Journal of Discourses, 26 vols. [London: Latter-day Saints' Book Depot, 1854-1886], 2: 129.)
John Taylor
"A legion had entered one man, and when commanded to leave, rather than have no bodies, they desired permission to enter those of swine, which they did, and the swine were destroyed. Man's body to him, then, is of great importance, and if he only knew and appreciated his privileges, he might live above the temptation of Satan, the influence of corruption, subdue his lusts, overcome the world, and triumph, and enjoy the blessings of God, in time and in eternity." (The Government of God [Liverpool: S. W. Richards, 1852], 32 - 33.)
Luke 8:37 the whole multitude...besought him to depart from them
Bruce R. McConkie
"Why did the whole city beseech Jesus to depart from their region? A dramatic miracle had come to their personal knowledge, and it created fear rather than faith in the hearts of the people. Why? Some few, perhaps, were fearful and angry because of the loss of their property. But the real reason was far more basic. These people, worldly and carnal by nature, actually preferred their way of life to that which they would have been obligated to pursue, had they accepted the gospel. Millions of people in the world today have a similar outlook. Such persons are not converted to the truth by miracles; they prefer to gratify their own sensual appetites rather than forsake the world. People whose whole hearts and desires are set on the things of the world would not accept the gospel, 'though one rose from the dead' and taught it to them. (Luke 16:31.) Similarly they would not believe the Book of Mormon even if they had a view of the Gold Plates and the Urim and Thummim. (D. & C. 5:8-10.) Men, in the ultimate analysis, are controlled and governed by the desires of their hearts. When they desire and love darkness rather than light, neither miracles nor any thing else is sufficient to convert their benighted souls. Rather they rebel against the truth, reject the prophets, and pray Jesus 'to depart out of their coasts.'" (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 1:313)
Luke 8:43 a woman having...spent all her living upon physicians
Luke brings a unique perspective to his account. As a physician himself, he becomes the greatest witness to the miraculous nature of Christ's healing power. Here he acknowledges that all of his colleagues had failed to cure this particular woman. "Though obviously not trained in modern science, the best educated Greek physicians had a scientific attitude and a better grasp of anatomy than was possible in the Middle Ages. Thus, it is powerful testimony when Luke reports miraculous healings by Christ and his apostles." (Richard Lloyd Anderson, Understanding Paul [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1983], 41.)
Luke 8:43-44 a woman having an issue of blood twelve years...touched the border of his garment
Vaughn J. Featherstone
"A woman had had an issue of blood for twelve years. I think of this story often because of the tenderness of the situation. (Luke 8:43-48.) Imagine any human soul having a constant fountain of bleeding. Consider the physical limitations this would place on the one so afflicted, the draining of her energy and health day after day, year after year. The woman must have been weak, pale, and anemic. She had been to various physicians over the years, none of whom had brought relief. She had spent all of her money and undoubtedly was nearly destitute.
"She may well have come near losing all hope. When hope dies, we die. Hope is essential to life's continuance. In our mind's eye we may catch a glimpse of her in her home. We see her desperate, heartsick, weak, and ill. Even she must have questioned why she had to go on living.
"Somehow in this final state of hopelessness, she heard about one Jesus of Nazareth who was healing the sick, causing the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the leprous to be cleansed. A fountain of hope must have sprung up inside her heart. She learned of His being nearby. Surely, she put on the best of her poverty-governed wardrobe and hurried to where He was supposed to be. At last, she saw Him amid the throngs of people. The disciples were near Him, and everyone was jostling, pushing, trying to get closer. Some were curious; others loved Him and followed out of reverence; still others hoped for a blessing.
"This woman, seeing the Master, thought, 'If I but touch the hem of His garment, I will be healed.' How it was that she mustered the strength to push through the crowd to get close enough to touch Him, we may never know. Drawing close, she reached out and was able to do no more than touch His garment. Immediately the blood was stanched. We picture the woman, sinking back into the crowd and perhaps even dropping to her knees in gratitude. The Savior halted and said, 'Who touched me?' Everywhere people were pressing and pushing, brushing against him constantly, and so the disciples responded that many people had touched Him, for they were pressing on all sides. However, only one had really touched Him. He turned and saw the woman, who must have known He was questioning after her. I suppose the suddenness of the blood being stanched, the Master's stopping, the crowd quieting down to hear what He was saying, and the full attention being drawn to this woman would have been more than she could bear. She must have felt as if she were spotlighted on center stage. Rapt attention of all the crowd focused on her. She may even have felt guilty.
"Luke's record of the event states, 'Jesus said, Somebody hath touched me: for I perceive that virtue is gone out of me.' ("Luke 8:46Luke 8:46.) Again we consider Jesus' sensitivity to know and feel a 'healing' virtue leave Him. He knew that someone had, through faith, drawn healing from the well of His soul and had more than brushed against Him.
"'And when the woman saw that she was not hid, she came trembling, and falling down before him, she declared unto him before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was healed immediately.' (Verse 47.)" (The Incomparable Christ: Our Master and Model [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1995], 135.)
Luke 8:45 Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?
The afflicted woman was not the only one to touch the garment of Jesus that day. Yet, she was the only one of them who was healed. She was the only one who exercised the faith, sought out the Master, and reached out for a blessing. Certainly, the Lord was capable of healing all of the multitude-their spiritual ailments, their mental torments, their physical handicaps-all of them could have been healed, but only one sought out his healing power. So it is with us. Many praise his name. We want to be a part of the multitude that follows him. We associate ourselves with his disciples. We are part of the "throng" and the "press", but we lack the faith to reach out for that healing power which can change our lives.
Luke 8:46 I perceive that virtue is gone out of me
Bruce R. McConkie
"Giving blessings and performing priesthood ordinances is often the most physically taxing labor which the Lord's true ministers ever perform. There is nothing perfunctory or casual about the performance of these holy ordinances; great physical exertion and intense mental concentration are part of the struggle to get that spirit of revelation so essential in an inspired blessing or other performance.
"Joseph Smith, under date of March 14, 1843, wrote in his journal: 'Elder Jedediah M. Grant enquired of me the cause of my turning pale and losing strength last night while blessing children. I told him that I saw Lucifer would exert his influence to destroy the children that I was blessing, and I strove with all the faith and spirit that I had to seal upon them a blessing that would secure their lives upon the earth; and so much virtue went out of me into the children, that I became weak, from which I have not yet recovered; and I referred to the case of the woman touching the hem of the garment of Jesus. The virtue referred to is the spirit of life; and a man who exercises great faith in administering to the sick, blessing little children, or confirming, is liable to become weakened.' (Teachings, pp. 280-281.)" (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3 vols. [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1965-1973], 1: 319.)
Luke 8:48 Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace
Vaughn J. Featherstone
"He undoubtedly detected her guilt, embarrassment, or humiliation and said, 'Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.' (Verse 48.)
"What a comfort, what solace, what power in the few simple words of the Master of heaven and earth! The peace she received may have been equal to the healing blessing. When the Son of God blesses with peace, it is an absolute fact that peace will come. Nor could the crowd find fault, for He said, 'Go in peace.'
"Though not recorded in scripture, undoubtedly the halting of the issue of blood was followed by an outpouring of an issue of tears. It usually takes an issue of tears to prepare us for the benefits of the Atonement." (The Incomparable Christ: Our Master and Model [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1995], 135.)
Luke 8:49 Thy daughter is dead; trouble not the Master
The story of Jairus' daughter is a metaphor. Imagine this daughter as a spiritually sick and dying young woman. The cast of characters includes a set of loving parents, their well-meaning but faithless friends, the servants of the Lord, and the touch of the Master's hand. The child has been sick for some time. She has strayed from the commandments of God and is suffering the spiritual consequences. Jairus' friends are not hopeful that the daughter will ever recover. They have already given up, "don't bother the Master, there is no hope for your daughter." How often do we falsely judge the prodigal sons and daughters as too far gone? We don't really believe that they will ever recover. They appear dead as to the things of the spirit. And so when the Master declared, 'she is not dead, but sleepeth,' they 'laughed him to scorn.'
Meanwhile, the faith of Jairus was great. He had been told, 'Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.' He was exercising faith with all of his heart. But he and his wife had done all they could. They had been at her side, trying to nurse her back to health, but she just kept getting worse. Finally, the loving parents realized that this sickness was beyond their power to cure. They needed divine intervention and sought it. While the crowd had given up long ago and the disciples didn't know what to think, the parents held on to hope. Their faith was necessary for their daughter to be healed.
Not by accident, the faithless were not in the room at the time of the miracle. Their faithless contributions were not needed. Who was there? The loving parents, the interested disciples, and the Master. As is so often the case, the parents provide the faith, the servants of the Lord provide support, and the Master performs the miracle. So next time you hear someone say, "I have no hope that she will ever return to church." Think to yourself: 'she is not dead, but sleepeth,' 'fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.'
Ben B. Banks
"Perhaps few human challenges are greater than that of being good parents. Yes, even with the best intentions, conscientious, good parents sometimes experience feelings of despair, failure, and hurt when children do not make right choices and turn out the way we would like. Even in those circumstances it is so important for parents to love, pray for, and never give up hope for a son or daughter who may have strayed or brought disappointment." ("Take Time for Your Children," Ensign, Nov. 1993, 29)
Luke 8:54 he put them all out, and took her by the hand, and called, saying, Maid arise.
Thomas S. Monson
"Once again, the Lord had stretched forth his hand to take the hand of another.
"The beloved Apostles noted well his example. He lived not so to be ministered unto, but to minister; not to receive, but to give; not to save his life, but to pour it out for others." ("With Hand and Heart," Ensign, Jan. 1995, 4)
Luke 8:56 her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done
Marvin J. Ashton
"During his mortal ministry, Jesus raised Jairus's daughter to life. 'And her parents were astonished,' Luke says, as well they should have been, 'but he charged them that they should tell no man.' (Luke 8:56.) Mark's account says, 'he charged them straitly that no man should know it.' (Mark 5:43.)
"This wondrous deed that turned death into life, that bore record of the divinity of the One who even now was forecasting his own future victory over the grave, and that could be performed only in righteousness and only by the power of God-this mighty miracle should, as Matthew says, send Jesus' fame into all the land on its own merits. (See Matthew 4:24.)
"Indeed, the parents of the young women could not enshroud in secrecy what was already public knowledge. Because of the way Jesus himself had handled the successive events, everyone in the whole area would soon know that the girl who once was dead now lived. Her death had been announced openly to the multitude. Jesus himself had replied before the multitude that, notwithstanding her death, she would 'be made whole.' ("Luke 8:50Luke 8:50.) All the people would soon know that she now lived, and they could only be expected to wonder how and by what means life had come to her again. Though the parents were charged to 'tell no man,' they told of this wondrous event to outsiders who were aware of the miracle.
"We counsel and encourage those who enjoy the gifts of the Spirit and who possess the signs that follow those who believe that they must not boast of these spiritual blessings. In our day, after naming the miraculous signs that always attend those who have faith and those who believe the very truth taught by Jesus anciently, the Lord has said: 'But a commandment I give unto them, that they shall not boast themselves of these things, neither speak them before the world; for these things are given unto you for your profit and for salvation.' (D&C 84:73.)
"Perhaps Jesus' charge to 'tell no man' meant that Jairus's family were not to tell the account in a boastful way, lest a spirit of pride-a spirit of self-adopted superiority-should come into their souls. There were times when Jesus told the recipients of his healing power to go forth and testify of the goodness of God unto them, and other times when he limited the extent and detail of their witness." (The Measure of Our Hearts [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1991], 57.)