Mark 1: 40 -45 Jesus meets a Leper

Jesus meets a Leper

A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”  Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. 

“I am willing,” he said.  “Be clean!”  Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.

            Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning:    “ See that you don’t tell this to anyone.  But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”  Instead, he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news.  As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in the lonely places.  Yet the people still came to him from everywhere. 

Leper:  A first-century curse word.  It is a horribly disfiguring skin disease with no cure – It is considered highly contagious.  Those with the disease were forced to live in remote valleys together, cut off from others.  They were considered to be cursed.  Cut off.  Outcasts.  They were considered to be hated, feared and abandoned by man and God. 

            This particular leper boldly runs up to Jesus, throwing himself at Jesus’ feet.  The normal response was to run away, cursing the leper and throwing stones at him.  But Jesus doesn’t run away.  He stays.  He listens.  It is an incredible and unexpected response.

            The leper says, “If you want to, you could make me clean.”  He doesn’t doubt Jesus’ ability to heal him.  But, he doubts that Jesus would want to.  You see this leper needed two healings … One from the leprosy itself, and one from his loathing self-image from being disowned by society.  Jesus’ response is breath-taking.  He says of course I want to and then he does the unthinkable.  He touches the leper while he pronounces his healing.  This leper is considered an ‘untouchable’ to all who see him.  He possibly has not known human touch for years, but now he is being touched by ‘God made flesh’, who created him, and loves him.  He is fully healed. 

            I’ve been with thousands of kids with disabilities over the last 40 years, kids who are sometimes treated as ‘untouchable’ in their communities.  They are often misunderstood, unwanted and not taken seriously.  In Emmaus we draw near to them as Jesus did with the leper.  We listen to their story, we embrace them where they are, we take them seriously.  And, just as it did for the leper……. life transformation and healing comes. Together we shout for joy!