Touching a Leper

Scripture:
Mark 1:41 — Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.”

Observation:
A leper has approached Jesus and asked to be healed. Jesus is deeply moved and heals the man. This act of compassion was unheard of in that day - Jesus actually touched the man. Touching a leper would be a violation of the cultic law, yet Jesus understood that the law is not intended to prevent Him from an expression of love when appropriate. The man had asked to be healed, but he could not know how Jesus would respond. A leper was an outcast in their society, rejected and avoided, unclean. No matter who you were before you got leprosy, you were now an exile. Waiting anxiously to see what Jesus would do, the man must have wondered if he had come in vain and would be rejected by Jesus just like he was everyday. From the second Jesus begins to reach out his hand toward him, he must have been flooded with encouragement, he had asked for the impossible and his request was being answered.

Application:
Who are the lepers today? Who have I turned my back on, who do I try to avoid and ignore? It’s pretty obvious that desperate people live all around me, some with great physical need and some with great spiritual need, many with both. I like my buffer zone from the lepers and have found my comfort level in suburbia. Most days I just get wrapped up in life here in the Reservoir. Yet eleven miles to the west, lepers are asking for help. They are walking into shelters, soup kitchens, backyard worship gatherings, any place that might offer some compassion and a hand. Single mothers are trying to find a way to get a decent house and make sure that life won’t turn out for their children like it did for them. Elderly people are living out their last years unable to fix the leaks in the roof or heat their home adequately. It’s easier to just not know sometimes, but Jesus walked around with His eyes wide open. I won’t be able to fix every need, but no doubt Jesus calls me to work on what I can. I don’t want my children to grow up in a generation like mine who dreamed of a nice middle-class life, ignoring social injustice, poverty and deep spiritual need. It’s not going to be the easiest thing I have ever done, but for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Prayer:
Lord, I am sorry for all the years of neglect and avoidance of those who are in need. The task seems overwhelming, we need your help. I need your encouragement and your affirmation in this journey. Help me to make a difference for your Kingdom. I know that you will guide me if I just give myself to you. So here I am Lord — use me, use my life, use my family. We love you.  

— Chuck Newton, missions mobilization pastor