Jesus and the Leper

Bobbles turn with me if you want to mark chapter 1 and were going to be looking at verses 40 through 45.

The leper came to him, imploring him and kneeling said to him, if you can make me clean. Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him I will be clean and immediately the leprosy left him and he was made clean. Jesus sternly charged him and send them away at once and said to him see that you say nothing to anyone but go show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them, but he went out and began to talk freely about it to spread the news so that Jesus could no longer openly enter town was out and desolate places people coming to him from every quarter that with me as we got our Lord in prayer.

Heavenly father, we come before you today with several of the request. We pray father for June Morgan is Mindy Turner's mom is in route to the hospital right now having trouble breathing and they think it may be a heart condition. We asked father that you have mercy on her and touch her and help her Lord that she might be made well in able to breathe. We continue to pray for Eugene as he is recovering from the surgery that he had this past Thursday.

We thank you Lord for the success of it but pray father you helping with pain helping to recover quickly and be able to be back with us.

Father continue to pray for my brother Randy Presley as he is still experiencing deep grief from the passing away of his wife, Joni. Father, I thank you for the peace that passes all understanding that you've given to Randy, I thank you Lord for the testimony of Joni and I asked father that you would bless Randy and his family very powerful and strong, mighty way.

Heavenly father day we look at leprosy that terrible disease.

The ancient world that we need a man's flesh to the bone, we see the results pain, numbness, physical, emotional, and spiritual isolation what is leprosy symbolize. It symbolizes sin in today's scripture we see that there was only one answer to leprosy, and that was Jesus. Jesus touched the leper and the leprosy was no more. The leper became physically and emotionally whole Lord in the story everyone except Jesus ran from the man they feared can tracting the disease themselves they had no power to help with his sickness. But Jesus did not run from them but to wean. He touched him and the man was healed instantaneously for what happened that our conversion you touched us. You became our substitute. You took our sienna gave us your righteousness.

Father, help us to view sin in the same way the leper reviewed is leprosy. May we hate it. And may we run to Jesus for help. 40 is the holy and precious name of Jesus that we pray.

Amen may be seated. Do we have recorded for us in Scripture.

All the miraculous healings that Jesus did in the answer that is absolutely not is very interesting and and John's Gospel P comes to the conclusion of that gospel and talks about this very thing in chapter 24 3331. He says this.

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ the son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name to John 2125, he added another. Also many other things that Jesus did were every one of them to be written. I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

John was saying there is no way in this world that that he could write down and tell us about all the miraculous healings that Jesus did, sometimes Jesus healed hundreds and one day, sometimes thousands in a month and brothers and sisters, can you just imagine the impression that that must've made on his real.

The commoner commoners the common people in Israel got excited and filled with joy over this and the religious leaders got mad and they got jealous. But no matter what no matter who you were. This was something absolutely could not be ignored. Now if you just a picture if this could happen in our day and time that Jesus could come over to her housemate with us and we would take him up to the hospital and he would go through the intensive care unit and in that intensive care unit. Many people are unconscious in their and comas in and they are getting ready to die. And Jesus goes to each room one by one walked into the room reaches over and touches that person and as soon as he touches him just like that they jump up out of the coma totally cognizant and their perfectly healthy and I reach up and they grabbed the oxygen mask and they rip it off and they grabbed the. The tubes in their arms and let them out and they start screaming to the to the nurses, get my wife or get my husband on the phone telling begin appear get me. I've never felt better in my life while that sounds impossible, understand, because we haven't seen anything like that in the last 2000 years. But in Mark chapter 1 the perfectly true, totally inerrant word of God tells us that that's Exactly What Took Pl. in Galilee. People that were on their deathbed people that were getting ready to die or all of a sudden may totally whale the blind now have 2020 vision the lamer walking and leaping and praising God the Dahmer speak in 100 miles a minute. The deaf are here and perfectly clear. This cannot be ignored. As I said there was joy and shouting among the commoners, but there was jealousy on the part of the religious leaders. The religious leaders can't deny that that these miraculous healings have been done because I got all of Jesus followers out there and end thereof that so many of them have been healed humming thousands and thousands of them so I can ignore that. I can't say it didn't happen because it didn't happen in all them give testimony to that. So they decide to try another angle and this is what they say Jesus did this healing by the power of Satan, I can imagine the reaction from the followers of Jesus. All those people that had just been healed and I would imagine they responded with mocking sarcasm. All this is what you're saying that the faith that is Satan came to kill, steal and destroy has changed his tactics and now he wants us healthy, strong and alive, all you can't believe that what's wrong with you. How did Jesus deal with that Jesus deal with these false allegations about him.

What did Jesus had to say when they accused him of of healing people, by the power of Satan. I can just imagine Jesus shaken his head and discussed syngas could you not find a better lie than that in Matthew chapter 12, or 25 to 26 is Jesus's response says.

Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand and if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand. There was no valid excuse for the attitudes of the religious leaders, the scribes and Pharisees were used to people coming to them for help and asking for guidance and counsel were coming to them anymore. They were coming to Jesus and they didn't like it. So what are they do about it. They took Jesus perfect love, and they nailed him to a cross. What was wrong with these people wanted they resist Jesus. What why did they do not buy out to the truth. Why did they repent of their sins and and get saved and come to know the Lord their sin nature was too strong. They were spiritually dead, so they did what their flesh wanted to do. They hated Jesus so much.

They nailed him to a cross I talk to people all the time you try to convince me that man is basically good and that he is totally free in his wheel to do what he wants to do and that man has the power within himself to choose for Jesus and be saved.

Will is a problem with that is not what the Bible teaches in Ephesians chapter 2, the Scripture teaches us that that we are dead before we were come to know Christ, that we are spiritually dead.

Dead in our trespasses and sins that we are controlled by three things the world the flesh and the devil that we are by nature children of wrath, but God who is rich in mercy hath quickened us and seated us in a heavenly player in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. For by grace are ye saved through faith that not of your sales is a gift of God not of works lest any man should boast. Who wrote those words, those words written by Paul, who at one time was a spiritually dead Pharisee. He hated Jesus he was putting Christians in prison.

He was killing other Christians he just absolutely hated Jesus with all of his heart and so what changed. Why did he change when he was walking on the road to Damascus to get letters of permission to persecute more Christians, all of a sudden, is he was rocking that road the Lord Jesus stepped out in front of him in his glorified body, and Paul sawing the Holy Spirit of God to the work in Paul's heart we call it regeneration getting eyes to see caving ears to hear, he gave them a heart to out to respond to Christ and there on that road is these line down there in the dusty looks up to Jesus and he calls him Lord and one split second. All of this took place.

All of this took place.

He is turned from like a sinner who hates the Lord to us to a Christian who lusting in one split second he went from being the enemy of Christ. To a disciple of Christ.

They all did Paul accomplish that by an action of his free will absolutely not God dating faith God birth TM into the kingdom little white in all these Pharisees had that experience what in all of these, though the ones actually crucifying what inlay had that same experience that the apostle Paul did, because God in his wisdom, let him do with their wicked hearts wanted to do and brothers and sisters at all to humble every single one of us.

It sure humbled Paul from Galatians chapter 6, verse 14, Paul said, for God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified to me and I into the world during Jesus ministry, Jesus healed a number of lepers your member the 10 lepers he healed. At one time and only one came back to giving thanks that was a Samaritan probably healed Simon the leper that Simon the leper had them over for supper after that probably is a thing attitude of thanksgiving to him for what he had done, but in this story we see a leper that's healed and is mentioned not only here in Mark but also in Matthew and Luke. This is a very important healing that takes place here and we see that by how often it's mentioned in the Scripture.

Why is this so important because after this healing the popularity of Jesus absolutely skyrocketed, and that popularity became so great that Jesus couldn't go in the cities anymore. He had to stay back in unpopulated areas. With that said, honest look at the text. Three points that I will share with you as we look at Jesus and the leper .1 the leper's problem. Look at verse 40 and a leper came to him, imploring him and kneeling said to him, if you will.

You can make me clean. Mark gives no details about this man, except to tell us he was a leper govern the Luke's Gospel. Luke tells us a little more details. The city was covered with leprosy as word leprosy comes from the root word left cross that means scaly skin and there's different categories of leprosy, some of it is not dangerous at all a sum of slight psoriasis or eczema or maybe a scalp fungus. But what this man had was call Hansen's disease and it was the worst form of leprosy that going back in archaeological studies and they traced it all the way back as far as Egypt where they were able to tell that said it was some of these mummies at these people had this terrible, horrible disease. One commentator described Hansen's disease. This way is it one of the most feared diseases in the ancient world. It was a communicable infection that could be spread by through the air and through physical touch. Even today, there is no cure for the disease.

Though it can be controlled with medication. Symptoms include spongy tumor like swellings that appear on the face and body. As the bacteria become systemic. It began to affect internal organs while causing bones to start deteriorating. It also weaken the victim's immune system, making leper susceptible to other diseases like tuberculosis in Leviticus 13, though the Lord gave Israel. Strict regulations concerning leprosy.

Anyone suspecting of having leprosy were required to go to the priest to let the priest examined him. The priest would examine them and if they saw that this was more than just a superficial skin condition that then if it was more than that. Then they had be quarantined for seven days and then they come back and get examined again and if it was if it was still they are or if it was worse than they were quarantined for seven more days. After 14 days. The priest would have to make the decision either to declare them clean or unclean. If he declare them clean and they went on their way to live there like to do what they wanted to do if they were declared unclean. Then it was a problem for that.

It was good of the long term quarantine.

If a person had Hansen's disease.

There was no temporary isolation. It was always absolutely permanent.

How bad was it in effect infects very quickly.

It is extremely contagious. It eats holes in the flash start, usually with the face and those holes are often time they they go all the way down to the bone. There is no medical cure for it and it always lead to death. Leviticus 1345 to 46.

The Lord gave this instruction.

The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out unclean unclean. He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean, he shall live alone is dwelling shall be outside the camp.

According to the town mood. The they incorporated social distancing what they said was you. The leper had to stay at least 6 feet away from everybody that was not a leper. I guess it's where Anthony felt he got his numbers but if the wind was blowing, then this social distancing move from 6 feet 250 feet with the horrible truth is these lepers most often sent in the leper colonies and it was a death sentence. When that happened, they could not go home they could not see friends they could not go back to work.

So besides the pain of physical suffering was the horror of social isolation is the priest sent you to a leper colony and you had a pretty good idea that you weren't going to make it that you were going to die and the one of the worst things about it was that you were not gonna be able to say goodbye to your loved ones you couldn't get in contact with them. They would let it happen. I think we have experienced some of that with this coded message taken place and in our nation and across the world where the hospitals will not allow us to to get up to see our loved ones and many have experienced not being able even to tell them goodbye one more thing Hansen's disease.

The worst form of leprosy causes numbness. You might think well that might be a good thing… Not so much pain.

Well, that's not necessarily true. In Philip Yancey's book called where are you God when it hurts. He spoke of Hansen's disease today and said this horrible side effect is numbness in villages of Africa and Asia. A person with Hansen's disease had been known to reach directly into a charcoal fire to retrieve a dropped potato nothing in his body told him not to do that patients at Brands hospital in India would work all day gripping a shovel with a protruding nail or extinguish a burning wick with their bare hands or walk on splintered glass. The daily routines of life ground away at the patient's hands and feet, but no warning system alerted him if an ankle turned caring, tendon and muscle, he would adjust and while crooked if a rat chewed off a finger in the night he would not discover it missing until the next morning, so consider the leprous problem. He is physically disfigured is socially isolated is religiously cut off. He can go to the temple and sacrifice and worship is God he can go to the synagogue to hear the word of God preached. He knows that death is certain, and there just is absolutely no hope. So what happened somehow this leper, this guy slipped out of the leper colony on a what he's thinking maybe Santa himself. What is it matter what illegal do to me, they will kill me get ready die anyway. I may be better just go ahead let this happen and so I did not hear nothing. Somebody told me about what Jesus was doing when he heard about Jesus.

It was a flicker of hope now can you imagine this guy what he must've looked like as he finds out where Jesus is and he is walking up toward the crowd.

The crowd would surround a scene coming. He's got deep holes all the way to the bone in his face. The stench of the decaying flesh is just so terribly, horribly, all full and people are just ranching and he can hardly move thing. His legs are non-so he just follows in the chronicle of the agreement. He hasn't to drag himself over to Jesus by this time the crowds get now the way and they don't get anywhere near him so their movement out of the way and he cries out master Jesus, have mercy on us all me, have mercy on me, and then he gets right in front of Jesus. Everybody else's just moved way out of the way and he's lying prostrate before the Lord's actions may have been socially unacceptable, but his attitude toward Jesus was reverent and very respectful. In Luke 512 we are told at this point he called Jesus Lord, and he then expressed his faith is not cocky and is not demanding. He is a pay that doesn't believe that Jesus owed them anything. He's just a is just humble and is hopeful. Look what he said, Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean. He did not doubt about Jesus power is not doubt Jesus's authority when he doubted was his unworthiness as a reason for this, the leper had been taught by the Pharisees that this sickness does leprosy that he was babbling with was a judgment from God on his sin and this is one of the reasons that that they had very little compassion for the people in the in the leper colonies.

I said all we know why they're there in the leper colonies. They committed some terrible, horrible sin and God's judge them by giving them this leprosy, and three have the poem layer and will really care too much about them.

Reminds me of the friends of Job member, the friends of Joe. They saw Job in his condition week he lost his children, we lost his health.

We lost all of his wealth and I said all we know what's happened to you.

God is judging you, and they just blistered him with criticism because they looked at his sickness and his his misfortune as a judgment from God.

But we need to be very careful when we criticize people about a certain lifestyle we need to remember this except for the grace of God that could be me. I used to have a smugness about people who are addicted to drugs or alcohol. And I would want to say to them you got no one to blame but yourself.

You don't need to worry about this. You take this addiction. Then just walk away from it 45 years ago my pastor Thurman Stone called up Gordon Weakley who was the director of the Charlotte rescue mission in the ask him if I could come and preach at the Charlotte rescue mission. Gordon Weakley was very prominent pastor at one time in Charlotte got hooked on alcohol.

It totally destroyed him. He lost his ministry. He lost his wife, he lost his children, he lost absolutely everything and he went to the Charlotte rescue mission got sober there.

He never drank again until much much later in his life and it happened again. He went for years as the director. They are in was just it did him a mighty and a wonderful job they call me up and Anat asked me if I would come in and preach at the Charlotte rescue mission not once, but he did this many, many occasions .ar never stood in the pulpit of the Charlotte rescue mission without feeling very powerful presence of the Holy Spirit of God, and it was nothing to do with me had to do with God's honoring the ministry. The Charlotte rescue mission. The first time I preach there.

There was a young man that came up to million and just was absolutely broken over his sin. I had the opportunity of just sitting down with the width of the gospel share the gospel with the miss man trusted Christ as Lord and Savior about 2 1/2 years later this man send a letter back to the Charlotte rescue mission and had my name on it so they forward of the letter to me by this time I was in seminary and in the letter he sent one to just thank me for preaching the gospel and then he said he said that he has not had a drink since that time, and he said I praise God for the Charlotte rescue mission because they did not give up on me and he said I just been elected as a Deacon in the church Baptist Church in Columbia. I praise God for that. The Charlotte rescue mission taught me this truth except for the grace of God that could be me. So don't give up because as long as somebody has breath. There is hope. Don't give up. Well what the Jewish community was doing was even worse, they had no compassion on this leper at all because of the horrible inaccurate theology that told him this man deserved what he was getting calls. The reason that he had leprosy was because of his sin. So the leper came to Jesus believing that about himself and so he wouldn't ask in Jesus for justice. He was asking Jesus for mercy is a Lord if you will. You can make me clean. I can imagine the crowd at just kind of backing away and back away, put their hands over their mouth. To be sure they wouldn't catch Woody's God maybe picking up stones to driving back to the to the leper colony that was the leper's problem right. Secondly, on us to look at the Lord's provision verse 41 through 44 moved with pity, stretched out his hand and touching and said to him I will be clean and immediately the leprosy left him and he was made clean, and Jesus sternly charged him and send them away at once and said to him see that you say nothing to anyone but go show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them. The crowd was moved with fear and loathing toward this man Jesus was moved with compassion toward them.

The crowd ran away from this man Jesus ran to the million. And Jesus said I will heal you be cleansed, touched him, touching his is the first hand that is touch this leper since he was diagnosed with leprosy a thought before he met Jesus that nobody would ever touch him again that he would die the and untouched in Leviticus chapter 5 verse three the Mosaic law included a regulation forbidding the Jews from touching anything or anyone unclean that included a leper and yet Jesus reached over there and touched him anyway like what John MacArthur said about this exhibit, Jesus could not be defiled by anything certainly could have healed him with a simple word the Lord wanted to make a point, one that would have left a lasting impression. The infinite compassion of Christ was dramatically illustrated in that profound act of kindness is love was such that he was willing to touch those who no one else would even come near the touch this untouchable man and said to him, I am willing be cleansed is no period of recovery. The rehabilitation time for him.

The leper was immediately transformed into a man of totally perfect health. Imagine this that the have holes all the way down to the bone in his face and all the sudden they are field in his face looks perfect.

His skin was falling off the bone and now the skin is perfect and clean and cures a little baby skin all that terrible, horrible smell is now totally absent. And now he doesn't stumble and fall anymore for his legs are perfectly whale and he can run a can a leap and he can jump so what did Jesus telling Jesus said that you go to the priest and have him examine you and declare you clean. Where was the priest. The priest was in Jerusalem.

How far away was that by 100 miles along way then Jesus gave the leper instruction. Not only was he to go to the priest. But secondly he was to keep his mouth shut.

Look at verse 44 and said to him, saying that you say nothing to anyone but go show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them. The leper was given to's stern instructions go to Jerusalem, show yourself to the priest that was part of the law had to be done because of the law, but it was also a testimony to these priest these priest are the ones who told him to go to the leper colony to begin with, and they thought that he's probably either dying in the leper colony. Or maybe that he'd already died they'd seen some people healed of eczema. Our those the lightest forms of leprosy.

They'd seen that before, had never seen anybody that was healed. Hansen's disease and not only was this man healed of the disease and better than all the deformities all over the the things that were wrong with his ski and all the things that were wrong. His body had been made totally and completely whale. The leper obeyed the first command, and the priest were blown away by what Jesus had done, but the second command.

The leper did not obey. That takes us to the third point and that is the Lord's predicament. Look at verse 45 we went out and began to talk freely about it to spread the news so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town but was out in desolate places and people were coming to him from every quarter the Lord's instruction to the leper will was clear it was totally unambiguous. Do not talk about this to anyone. The leper was so happy he was so excited he could couldn't keep it quiet and he starts going out everyone that he knows and need to start sharing it patient like it may pay said I was like a dying sick stinking leper and Jesus touched me, and he made me completely whale now my body is whale now got my relationship back with my family with my friends now gone back to work. Now I can enjoy life. This is so good.

And Jesus did it all be honest with you I've been in his place. I did it would be hard to keep your mouth shut. I mean, my goodness, what Jesus had done for him and how much he wanted to tell everybody about it. I think about my own self Jesus for gave me my sins imputed to me, the righteousness of Christ he made of me a new creation. He saved me from internal hail.

What if Jesus had said to me now. Don't tell anybody about it.

That would've been tough, but here's the kicker. This man, Randolph telling everyone. When Jesus said don't do it. The result was that Jesus's popularity skyrocketed so much that he couldn't go to the cities anymore. He couldn't go to the big towns anymore because the crowds were too big. Waiting on them so we had to spend his time out in desolate places so that the crowds couldn't get to people wanted his healing to know what they didn't really meet the gospel and Jesus.

His purpose was to get the gospel to them. They need to think more needed more than just to get physically healed what they needed was to be spiritually healed.

They needed to know Christ they needed to know what what what God and who God was and they needed to be saved for all of eternity. They needed that this man mess that up. He messed it up by his disobedience puts a story is recorded for us in Matthew, Mark, and Luke that tells us that it's important. So what's the message to us.

I think part of the message. This be obedient to Jesus no matter what your feelings are your emotions or your what excites you and what thrills you no matter what. All that says to you, be be obedient to Jesus why because Jesus knows best folks. The Scripture says that obedience is better than sacrifice. Jesus said if you love me and keep my commandments how important it would've been Jesus could have done so much more gospel preaching. If this man been obedient but he wasn't and it cost and it costs greatly.

Spray heavenly father. This story makes a sad the leper was healed.

He wanted to rejoice and tell everyone about it. He wanted to share with the world that Jesus was a healer and Jesus had power that no doctor or physician ever imagined.

Jesus told him to keep quiet. The leper did not take Jesus seriously.

He did not obey this hindered the ministry of Christ Jesus.

One of the world to see its need for a Savior, with the world only wanted a Messiah that can meet their physical and emotional needs. The leper's disobedience hindered the ministry of Christ. Father, help us to leave this place today with resolve not to do that help us to be obedient to whatever your call is to us forts in the precious name of Jesus that we pray. Amen