Bible Study Recap, Feb 3, 2026

*Written for those that wanted to participate, but couldn't. #seeyounextweek

This week in Bible study (February 3), we spent time with The Chosen, Season 3, Episode 4, paying close attention to the intertwined gospel stories of Jairus and the woman with the bleeding. The episode takes creative liberties—many scenes are not found directly in Scripture—and that matters. Still, it offers something worth sitting with. It helps us imagine the complexity of following Jesus: the joy, the confusion, the exhaustion, and the burden that emerges when the law is present without love.

Ministry Looks Glorious… Until It Doesn’t

The episode opens with a montage of the disciples traveling throughout Judea. On the surface, it looks like a season of success: They preach.They heal the sick.They cast out demons.They reason with people.They care for those in need. It echoes Jesus’ own sending of the disciples, when he gave them authority and sent them out with little more than trust:

“He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.”— Mark 6:7 But authority comes with weight. And before long, the cracks begin to show.

The Weight of Responsibility

As the episode unfolds, the disciples begin to feel the cost of ministry.

Simon Peter and Eden struggle personally and relationally. Mary Magdalene and Tamar clash while trying to secure funding for the work. Their conflict feels familiar—not because they lack faith, but because faith does not erase human tension.

Even among the disciples, disagreement grows:

• How should money be raised?

• How much understanding is required before someone speaks about Jesus?

  
  

These questions feel especially close to Paul’s later reflection:

“We have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.”— 2 Corinthians 4:7

The power is real. So is the fragility.

A Poisoned Well and Competing Priorities

One of the most compelling storylines involves a poisoned well in Capernaum, triggering a public health crisis. Suddenly, water—essential for life, washing, and ritual purity—is unavailable. Peter and Gaius argue at the well. One sees the big picture. The other sees the immediate suffering in front of them.

The tension calls to mind the prophet’s warning: “Is not this the fast that I choose:to loose the bonds of injustice…and to let the oppressed go free?”— Isaiah 58:6

The question lingers: What does faithfulness look like when survival itself is at stake?

Jairus, Veronica, and the Burden of Purity

At the heart of the episode are two familiar gospel stories:

• Jairus’ daughter, gravely ill, with time slipping away

• A woman suffering from years of bleeding, unnamed in Scripture, later called Veronica in the show

Mark tells us:

“Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years… She had endured much under many physicians… and she was no better, but rather grew worse.”— Mark 5:25–26

Her condition places her squarely under Leviticus 15, a chapter about bodily discharges and ritual cleanliness. The law itself is clear—but not cruel: “If a woman has a discharge of blood… she shall be unclean until the evening.”— Leviticus 15:19

The law assumes time, water, space, and access to restoration.

But the episode quietly asks what Scripture itself invites us to consider: What happens when those assumptions collapse? In a town with a poisoned well, how does one wash? In a society without compassion, how does one return?

Jesus Breaks the Pattern

When the woman touches Jesus, something radical happens—not just physically, but theologically. “Immediately her hemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease.”— Mark 5:29

Instead of her uncleanness spreading to Jesus, holiness moves toward her.

Jesus does not scold her for breaking purity boundaries. He speaks to her directly: “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”— Mark 5:34

In the same moment, Jairus receives devastating news:

“Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?”— Mark 5:35

Yet Jesus responds with words that echo through the entire episode:

“Do not fear, only believe.”— Mark 5:36

Serving Jesus Is Emotionally Complicated

This episode refuses to romanticize discipleship. Sometimes ministry is exhilarating. Sometimes it leaves us depleted.Sometimes we return home joyful.Sometimes we return home to conflict we didn’t expect. Scripture makes room for this reality: “We were so utterly, unbearably crushed that we despaired of life itself.”— 2 Corinthians 1:8

And also: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”— 2 Corinthians 12:9 Both can be true at the same time.

Where Rest Is Found

The episode doesn’t resolve every tension. Instead, it points us back to Jesus himself. “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”— Matthew 11:28 Not after everything is fixed.Not after we understand it all.But right in the middle of the work.

A Final Word

Read alongside Leviticus 15 and the gospel stories, this episode reminds us of something Scripture has been saying all along: “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.”— Hosea 6:6, echoed in Matthew 9:13... God meets people in real bodies, strained communities, tired leaders, and unresolved questions. Holiness is not revealed through exclusion or judgment, but through mercy, presence, and restoration. Sometimes faith looks less like certaintyand more like trusting that Jesus meets us exactly where we are.

And that, for now, is enough.