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Who Touched My Clothes?

On the way to a dying girl, Jesus stops for a woman in the crowd, then tells a desperate father, “Only believe”

  • 📖 Adult Sunday School
  • Week 10
  • 📅 Sunday, March 7, 2027
🏆 Showdown
💡 The big idea

Jesus Christ is never too busy and never too late: He stops for the one who reaches for Him from the edge of the crowd, and to everyone who is waiting He says, “Be not afraid, only believe.”

I can keep reaching for the Savior after long disappointment, keep believing while I wait, and notice the people others overlook.

Study it yourself firstRead Matthew 9–10; Mark 5; Luke 9 in Gospel LibraryCome, Follow Me manualOpen this week (Matthew 9–10; Mark 5; Luke 9)
Know the chapters

This week’s block is full of compassion in motion. In Matthew 9 Jesus forgives and heals, calls Matthew the tax collector, quotes Hosea (“I will have mercy, and not sacrifice,” 9:13), explains why His disciples don’t fast while the bridegroom is with them (9:14–15), and looks on the multitudes “as sheep having no shepherd” (9:36). In Matthew 10 He gives the Twelve power and sends them out with “freely ye have received, freely give” (10:8) and a promise that not one sparrow falls without the Father (10:29–31). Mark 5 frees a man possessed by Legion and raises Jairus’s daughter. Luke 9 feeds the five thousand, records Peter’s witness, calls disciples to take up their cross daily, and climbs the Mount of Transfiguration.

This lesson centers on Mark 5:21–43, two stories woven into one. Jairus was a ruler of the synagogue, a respected local leader, yet he falls at Jesus’s feet (5:22). The woman had been bleeding for twelve years. Under the law of Moses her condition made her ritually unclean, and anything she touched unclean too (Leviticus 15:25–27), so her illness brought years of isolation along with it. She had spent everything on physicians and only grown worse (5:26). The law also asked Israelite men to wear fringes on the borders of their garments (Numbers 15:38–39); many scholars think the “hem” she touched (Matthew 9:20) was one of these tassels.

Watch the details. The woman suffered for twelve years; the girl was twelve years old (5:25, 42). The footnote to “virtue” in 5:30 says the Greek means power. Jesus stops a crowd to find her, calls her “Daughter,” and sends her away whole in body and in standing. Meanwhile Jairus waits, and his daughter dies. The footnote to “only believe” (5:36) says the Greek means to exercise faith: keep acting on it. Mark preserves Jesus’s Aramaic words to the girl, “Talitha cumi” (5:41), and the tender practical instruction to give her something to eat (5:43).

Twenty-five minutes goes quickly. Let Mark 5 carry the lesson. Matthew 9:36–38 and 10:8 are a short second discussion that fits fast Sunday naturally. Luke 9 (take up the cross daily, the Transfiguration) and the man freed from Legion are ready in the extras if you have time.

Only have 5 minutes?

Read Mark 5:21–43 once. Open by asking, “When have you had just enough faith to reach, and no more?” Read the story together, then read 5:35–36 slowly and ask what Jairus had to keep doing after the bad news. Spend most of the time on the Twelve Years questions. Close by reading 5:41–42, bearing a short testimony that the Savior is never too late, and inviting everyone to notice one person at the edge of the crowd this week.

What to bring2 items

Tick what you have. Forgot something? Every step that needs a supply has a no-supplies version in the plan below.

Before class

  1. Read Mark 5:21–43 straight through, then Matthew 9:18–26 and 9:35–10:8. Mark Mark 5:25–26, 30, 34, 35–36 and 41–42.
  2. Ask two people ahead of time to read: one for Jairus and the messengers (Mark 5:22–23 and 5:35) and one for the woman (Mark 5:25–29). A quick text on Saturday is plenty.
  3. Bring the tassel, fringe or scarf and keep it out of sight until the hook.
  4. Think of your own honest answer to “When have I had to wait while the Lord seemed to help everyone else first?” If the room is quiet, you’ll go first.
  5. Pick the two or three discussion questions you most want to reach. You won’t have time for all of them, and that’s fine.

Discussion tips

  • Quiet class? Some may be fasting and running low. Give a minute to reread Mark 5:25–34 silently before you ask anything, and use the pairs moment; people who won’t speak to the room will talk to a neighbor.
  • One voice filling every pause? Thank them warmly, then say, “Let’s hear from someone who hasn’t had a chance yet,” or send the next question to pairs first.
  • Someone in the room may have prayed for a child or a spouse who was not healed, or may live with a long illness that hasn’t lifted. Don’t promise that enough faith always brings a cure. Honor their experience, and testify of what is sure: He stops for the one, He calls us sons and daughters, and one day He will raise every sleeper.
  • Keep the woman’s condition discreet and simple: “a bleeding illness that made her ritually unclean.” Adults understand; there’s no need for more.
  • Visitors and new members: explain what a synagogue ruler was, tap the references on the shared screen, and never ask someone to read aloud without checking first.

The 25-minute plan25 min + bonus

Bonus steps are for when you have extra time. Each “On the screen” line is what the class sees on a shared screen in Teach Mode in the Gospel Sparks app; on paper, read it aloud or write it on the board. On the web you can play Scripture Showdown from this page.

1. Hook

Just Enough to Reach

3 min

Opens with the image of the woman’s reach and a personal question about faith that feels small.

  1. Hold up the tassel or fringe.
  2. SAY“The law of Moses asked Israelite men to wear fringes on the borders of their garments as a reminder of God’s commandments (Numbers 15:38–39). Many scholars think the ‘hem’ a desperate woman reached for was one of these.”
  3. Ask: “When have you had just enough faith to reach, and no more?”
  4. Give 20 seconds of quiet, then take two or three answers.
  5. SAY“Today we’ll watch two people reach for Jesus on the same afternoon, one from the front of the crowd and one from the back.”

On the screen: 🤏 When have you had just enough faith to reach, and no more?

No supplies? Do this instead

Instead of: A small tassel, a length of fringe, or the fringed edge of a scarf

  1. SAY“The law of Moses asked Israelite men to wear fringes on the borders of their garments (Numbers 15:38–39). Many scholars think the ‘hem’ a desperate woman reached for was one of these.”
  2. Ask: “When have you had just enough faith to reach, and no more?”
  3. Give 20 seconds of quiet, then take two or three answers.
  4. SAY“Today we’ll watch two people reach for Jesus on the same afternoon, one from the front of the crowd and one from the back.”
2. Story

Read It in Context: On the Way to Jairus’s House

7 min

Reads the two interwoven stories of Mark 5 as one afternoon, so the delay and the waiting are felt.

  1. Open Teach Mode to the scripture scene. The shared screen shows one scene at a time.
  2. Read each scene’s context yourself, then let the assigned readers read the verses. You read the Savior’s words; no one is assigned to speak as the Lord.
  3. Keep it moving: context, verses, next scene. Save comments for the discussion.
  4. After the last scene, let a few seconds of silence sit before moving on.

On the screen: 👣 Mark 5: a dying girl, a desperate father, and a woman who reached from the back · Follow along in Mark 5:21–43

3. Scripture

Only Believe

4 min

Studies one verse closely so class members see faith as something we keep doing while we wait.

  1. Put Mark 5:35–36 on the shared screen and read both verses slowly.
  2. Point out “As soon as Jesus heard”: He didn’t let the news sit unanswered for even a moment.
  3. SAY“The footnote says the Greek for ‘believe’ means exercise faith. With the person next to you, look at verses 37–40. What did Jairus have to keep doing after he heard that his daughter had died?”
  4. After a minute, draw it out: he walked home beside Jesus, past the mourners, past people who laughed. Believing was something he did with his feet.

On the screen: 🕯️ Be not afraid, only believe. · Mark 5:35–36 · What did Jairus have to keep doing after the bad news?

4. Talk it over

Twelve Years

6 min

Helps adults bring long disappointment and hard waiting to the Savior, and see the people at the edge of the crowd.

  1. Pick two or three questions; don’t try to cover all of them.
  2. Start the second question in pairs: give one minute to talk with a neighbor, then invite a few to share with the room.
  3. Share President Russell M. Nelson’s words about the woman’s reach (in “From general conference” below).
  4. If the room is quiet, share your own answer first.
💬 Ask the class
  • The woman had spent everything and only grown worse. What does it take to keep reaching after years of disappointment?
  • She meant to slip away unnoticed. Why do you think Jesus stopped and insisted on finding her? (Talk with a neighbor first.)
  • She had been untouchable for twelve years, and He called her “Daughter.” What does that word tell her, and us?
  • Jairus had to stand and wait while Jesus helped someone else, and in that time his daughter died. How do we keep faith when the Lord seems to be helping everyone but us?
  • Who in our ward or neighborhood might be reaching from the edge of the crowd right now?

On the screen: 🧵 Twelve years of reaching. One word from Jesus: “Daughter.” · Mark 5:25–36

5. Talk it over

Freely Give

3 min

Connects the Savior’s compassion to our own ministering and to fast Sunday.

  1. Read Matthew 9:36–38, then Matthew 10:8.
  2. SAY“Right after these verses, Jesus sends the Twelve out to do what He has been doing.”
  3. Ask one or two questions, then move to the testimony on time.
💬 Ask the class
  • Where others saw a crowd, Jesus saw sheep with no shepherd. How does compassion change what we notice?
  • What have you received freely from the Lord that you could pass on this week?
  • How can a fast and a fast offering become more than going without food?

On the screen: 🐑 Moved with compassion … freely ye have received, freely give. · Matthew 9:36–38; 10:8

6. Testimony

Never Too Late

2 min

Ends with testimony of the Savior’s power over sickness, isolation and death, and an invitation to reach and to notice.

  1. Read Mark 5:41–42.
  2. SAY“From Jairus’s point of view, Jesus was late. From His, He was right on time.”
  3. Invite one or two people to share, in a sentence or two, a time the Savior noticed them or answered in His own time.
  4. Bear a short testimony that Jesus Christ is never too busy for the one and never too late to save.
  5. Invite: “This week, keep reaching for Him in whatever you’re waiting for, and look for one person at the edge of the crowd.”

On the screen: 🌅 Damsel, I say unto thee, arise. And straightway the damsel arose, and walked. · Mark 5:41–42 · This week: keep reaching. Notice someone at the edge of the crowd.

7. Talk it over

Take Up His Cross Daily

5 minBONUS

Adds Luke 9’s call to daily discipleship if you have time.

  1. Read Luke 9:18–24.
  2. Point out that Peter’s witness (“The Christ of God”) comes right before Jesus speaks of His suffering and of our daily cross.
  3. Ask one or two questions.
💬 Ask the class
  • Why do you think Luke adds the word “daily”?
  • What does it look like to lose your life for His sake in an ordinary week?
  • “Whom say ye that I am?” How would you answer Him today?

On the screen: ✝️ If any man will come after me, let him … take up his cross daily. · Luke 9:18–24

8. Game

Scripture Showdown

5 minBONUS

A light, friendly review if you finish early.

  1. Split the room down the middle into two teams.
  2. Launch Scripture Showdown on your phone or tablet and read each question aloud.
  3. After each reveal, read the reference so people can mark it.
▶ Play Scripture Showdown on the web

On the screen: 🏆 Scripture Showdown: how well do you know Mark 5 and Matthew 9–10?

Read it together

On the Way to Jairus’s House

Mark 5:21–43 ↗

Reading parts

  • Reader 1Reads Jairus’s plea (Mark 5:22–23) and the messengers’ news (Mark 5:35). You’re reading scripture, not playing a character.
  • Reader 2Reads the woman’s verses, Mark 5:25–29.
  • The ClassEveryone reads Mark 5:42 together.

Scenes

  1. 🙇 A synagogue ruler at Jesus’s feet

    Jesus crosses back over the Sea of Galilee and a crowd gathers. A respected leader of the local synagogue pushes through, falls at His feet and begs Him to come. His little girl is dying.

    🎬 The teacher reads Mark 5:21. Reader 1 reads verses 22–23.

  2. 🧵 Twelve years of reaching

    Jesus goes with him, and the crowd presses in. Somewhere in it is a woman who has been ill for twelve years, has spent everything on doctors, and has only grown worse. She has a plan.

    🎬 The teacher reads Mark 5:24. Reader 2 reads verses 25–29.

  3. 🔍 “Who touched my clothes?”

    Jesus stops. He knows power has gone out of Him. His disciples point out that the whole crowd is pressing against Him, but He keeps looking.

    🎬 The teacher reads Mark 5:30–32.

  4. 💗 “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole”

    Trembling, the woman comes forward and tells Him everything. The one who had been untouchable for twelve years hears a family word.

    🎬 The teacher reads Mark 5:33–34. Pause and let it land.

  5. 💔 “Thy daughter is dead”

    While Jesus is still speaking, messengers arrive from Jairus’s house with the news every parent dreads. Jesus hears it and speaks to Jairus immediately.

    🎬 Reader 1 reads Mark 5:35. The teacher reads verse 36.

  6. 🌅 “Talitha cumi”

    He takes only Peter, James, John and the girl’s parents into the room. Mourners laugh at Him. He takes her by the hand and speaks in her own language: little girl, arise.

    🎬 The teacher reads Mark 5:37–41. The Class reads verse 42 together, and the teacher reads verse 43.

Key verse

Mark 5:36 ↗
“As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.”
In plain words: The moment the worst news arrived, Jesus spoke to the father. His answer to fear is not a promise of an easy road, but an invitation to keep trusting and keep walking with Him.

More verses

Mark 5:34 ↗
“And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”
In plain words: Jesus healed her body and restored her place among His people, and He called her His daughter.
Matthew 9:36 ↗
“But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”
In plain words: Where others saw a crowd, Jesus saw weary, scattered people who needed a shepherd.
Matthew 10:8 ↗
“Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.”
In plain words: Everything the Lord has given us was a gift, so we can give just as freely.
Luke 9:23 ↗
“And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.”
In plain words: Following Jesus is a daily choice, not a one-time event.

Scripture Showdown6 questions

  1. How long had the woman in the crowd been ill?
    • A. Twelve years
    • B. Three years
    • C. Since she was born
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Twelve years Mark 5:25. Jairus’s daughter was also twelve (5:42).

  2. What did Jairus ask Jesus to do?
    • A. Pray for her from a distance
    • B. Come and lay His hands on her
    • C. Send one of the Twelve
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Come and lay His hands on her Mark 5:23: “come and lay thy hands on her, that she may be healed.”

  3. What did Jesus ask when He felt power go out of Him?
    • A. Who touched my clothes?
    • B. Why is this crowd so large?
    • C. Where is Jairus?
    Show answer

    ✅ A. Who touched my clothes? Mark 5:30. The footnote says “virtue” means power.

  4. What did Jesus call the woman He healed?
    • A. Sister
    • B. Friend
    • C. Daughter
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Daughter Mark 5:34: “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole.”

  5. What did Jesus tell Jairus after the news that his daughter had died?
    • A. Go home and mourn
    • B. Be not afraid, only believe
    • C. She will rise at the last day
    Show answer

    ✅ B. Be not afraid, only believe Mark 5:36.

  6. What did Jesus tell the Twelve as He sent them out?
    • A. Take gold for the journey
    • B. Stay in Jerusalem
    • C. Freely ye have received, freely give
    Show answer

    ✅ C. Freely ye have received, freely give Matthew 10:8.

▶ Play Scripture ShowdownTeams take turns on one screen.

From general conference

“This faithful, focused woman needed to stretch as far as she could to access His power. Her physical stretching was symbolic of her spiritual stretching.”

— President Russell M. Nelson, “Drawing the Power of Jesus Christ into Our Lives,” April 2017

Share in Twelve Years, after the class talks about the woman’s reach.

Read the talk ↗

Songs

  • I Know That My Redeemer Lives Hymns, no. 136

    A testimony of the living Christ who has power over death, fitting after Talitha cumi. Find it ↗

  • Come, Follow Me Hymns, no. 116

    Echoes the Savior’s call in Matthew 10 and Luke 9 to follow Him daily. Find it ↗

This week’s invitation

Reach and Notice

This week, bring the thing you’ve been waiting on the longest to the Savior again, and keep acting in faith while you wait. Then look for one person at the edge of the crowd, at church, at work or in your neighborhood, and let them know they’ve been seen.

Take it home

In Sunday School we read Mark 5: on His way to heal Jairus’s daughter, Jesus stopped for a woman who touched His clothes and called her “Daughter.” When word came that the girl had died, He told Jairus, “Be not afraid, only believe” (Mark 5:36), and raised her. Take it home: at dinner, ask what everyone is waiting for right now, and read Mark 5:35–42 together.

📝 After class

What worked? Who needs a check-in this week? Jot it here on a printed copy, or in the app’s private class notes.

Got extra time?

🏡 Go Home and Tell · 4 min

  1. Read Mark 5:1–20, the man freed from Legion.
  2. Notice verse 18: he wanted to go with Jesus, but Jesus sent him home to tell his friends what the Lord had done.
  3. Ask: “Why might the Lord ask some disciples to serve where they already are? Who at home needs to hear what He’s done for you?”

⛰️ On the Mount · 5 min

  1. Read Luke 9:28–36, the Transfiguration.
  2. Point out verse 31: Moses and Elias spoke with Jesus of “his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.”
  3. Read verse 35 and ask: “Of everything the Father could have said, He said, ‘hear him.’ What helps you hear Him?”

🐦 Not One Sparrow · 3 min

  1. Read Matthew 10:29–31.
  2. SAY“Two sparrows sold for a farthing. That was about as cheap as life got in the marketplace.”
  3. Ask: “When have you felt that the very hairs of your head are numbered?”

Sources

Scripture quotations are from the King James Version, the Bible used by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Tap or click a reference to open it in Gospel Library. Start with the official Come, Follow Me manual; these ideas are here to help it come alive.

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