Do
any of you wish there were never any pain?
Anyone wish we could be free of pain forever? No more aches? No more shooting pains? No
more throbbing? If I could wave a wand
or say a prayer and pain went away forever, how many of us would be on
board?
Anyone
think it might be a problem? Why?
Today’s
story focuses on the leper. Anyone have
any ideas about what that means? What do
we think of when we think of lepers? Boils? Limbs falling off? Skin peeling?
Right. And in the ancient days, and probably today too, we think that leprosy
is contagious by touch. No one wanted to
touch you, for physical reasons and spiritual ones. Like most illnesses in the
first century and before, if you were sick in these ways, you were deemed
unclean. And if you were unclean you couldn’t draw close to God, you couldn’t
go to the temple and worship, and you couldn’t be in contact with others
because you run the risk of infecting them and making them unclean too.
But
there’s something we don’t all know or understand about leprosy. Leprosy[1] is
a bacterial infection that can lay dormant in the body for 5-20 years. It can cause a number of impairments
including blindness and numbness and lack of sensation. By in large, it’s not the infection that
causes the loss of limbs and odd symptoms and problems. Instead, it’s the
symptoms that provoke greater problems. I
mean, it’s not the infection that eats away at a limb or causes major skin
damage. It’s most often the lack of
feeling, the numbness that does it. When
the leper feels no pain, it’s hard to comprehend that there’s a danger. If he puts his hand on a hot griddle, he
feels no heat, and hence no pain and doesn’t know to move his hand
rapidly. Other lepers have developed
problems because of repeated behaviors, from mopping, to scrubbing, to
scratching and again, because of the lack of pain, she doesn’t know when her
body needs to stop, so she pushes beyond the limits and causes injury. In essence, the inherent problem for lepers
is not the existence of pain, but the lack of it. If they experienced pain, their bodies would
alert to danger, fatigue, and injury and they would know to stop or to seek
help. But without the sensation of pain, they are left vulnerable to a variety
of casual sources of harm.
So,
today we have this leper, this unclean man, was on the margins of his
community. He was not welcome in and would not be welcomed back until he was
healed and redeemed through a sacrifice.
He was sick. He was numb. And his body didn’t have clear signals to help
him prevent future pain or injury. He
needed help and so he sought Jesus.
The
leper, who is never named, goes to Jesus and says, “If you will, you can make
me clean.” There’s an interesting point
with the translation here that tells us the phrase “If you will” is not simply
one that is completely subjective, waiting on Jesus’ willingness. Instead, “If you will” in the Greek implies
an inherent expectation and assurance. It might better be translated, “If you
will, and I know you will, you can make me clean.” Or, “If you want to, and I
know you do, you can make me clean.” The
language here says the leper is convicted of the truth that Jesus will do this for him. All he needs to do is ask.
And
immediately Jesus replies, “I will. Be made clean.” And he instructs the man to
go to the temple and offer the required sacrifice. That would be his ticket back into the
community. And it wasn’t a simple,
“here’s my bird, here’s my sacrifice, have a good day!” The rituals for cleansing of a leper required
a good bit. First he would be examined
by the priest. They he would offer two birds as a sacrifice. Then one bird would be offered as a
sacrifice. The other would carry out part of the cleansing ritual. You might wonder how others would know he was
clean. A sacrifice or offering after all doesn’t reflect on our outside. The
sacrifice wasn’t all that was required. The man then had to wash his clothes,
take a bath, shave his head and stay alone for a week. After a week, he had to shave again, all his
hair, his head, his eyebrows, his beard and he had to offer 2 lambs as a
sacrifice. Again, one would be sacrificed and one would remain. The blood would be used to anoint the man.
And then he would be anointed with oil.
Then he would offer a grain offering. And then he would be clean. And
everyone would know he had been healed.
And he would be welcomed back to the community.
So
Jesus’ next statement is almost ridiculous. He says, “Go and tell no one.”
Really?! Go and tell no one?! Everything from your head to your toes will
declare something has changed, that you have been healed, and that you are
welcome back into the community. But
don’t tell anyone! Not only would it be
natural for him to want to share his story and celebrate not being sick, and
being able to feel again, and being able to spend time with family and friends,
but what was required by Torah law would have testified for him. His faithfulness and obedience to the law
alone would have spread the word. And so
when people asked, he told them. He shared all about it. And the news spread,
and spread and spread.
The
scripture tells us that Jesus could no longer go to town, he would be swamped
there. So he stayed in the outskirts, but even that didn’t work. People sought
him out. They came from every corner and found him. The gospel writer makes it sound regrettable,
“Poor Jesus, he couldn’t even go to town anymore.” And maybe I’m a little
calloused, but I think, “What did He expect was going to happen?!?!” He changed
a man’s life. He performed a miracle. He
healed him of one of the ugliest diseases of the day. And he expected life
would just carry on as if nothing had happened?! Fat chance!
The
work that Jesus does in our lives is worth sharing! He has the power to help us overcome all
kinds of adversity. Through him we can
be healed physically, emotionally, and relationally. Through him we are forgiven of countless
sins. In him we find acceptance for all
that we are and all that we are not.
Because of him we are forgiven and are given the power to forgive others
and that forgiveness saves marriages, and families, and friendships. And yet despite all of that, some people
expect us to keep silent. They want us to not say a word, to just keep it to
ourselves. And yet, the things that happen as a result of being healed and
renewed by Christ are a testimony in and of themselves. The peace we experience, the release from
anger and bitterness, the joy despite hardships and trials, the hope for our
future, all of those things are a testimony in and of themselves. And they make people ask and wonder, what
happened? What makes it different for
you? How did that come to pass?
And
in those moments, when people wonder about our generosity, or our willingness
to forgive, or our ability to overcome, or the change in our lifestyle, or our
joy, we are being invited to witness and share our testimony. It may not seem as grand or as dramatic as
being healed of leprosy, or maybe it does, but Jesus has done things for us and
in our lives. And if we can’t see it, if
we’ve never dared to walk up and ask him for it, then why not today? Why not dare to approach Jesus and say, “Lord
I need to be healed.” Or “Lord, I need to be changed.” Or “Lord, I need to be
forgiven.” Or “Lord, I need to have hope.” “ If you’re willing, and I’m going
to trust that you are, will you do this for me?!”
All
we have to do is ask. Jesus wants to restore
our lives. He wants to make a difference.
And when it happens, we need to acknowledge that action and spread the
word. After all, if it’s made a real
difference in our lives, why wouldn’t we want to share that with others?!
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