Love for a Leper
Matthew 8:1-4
A Reminder of Jesus’ Mission in His Ministry in Matthew is to demonstrate the King and the Kingdom of God. Matthew 4:23: “Jesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people.” Matthew adds a “parentheses” with the Sermon on the Mount.
We studied Jesus’ first discourse, in chapters 5-7 where Jesus demonstrated His Kingly Wisdom and Authority in being and teaching the Word of God. The last sentences of Matthew 7 were: “The crowds were amazed (struck out of their minds) at His teaching; 29 for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.”
We see Jesus returning to what He was doing in Matthew 4, namely, healing the sick: Matt. 8:1 says: “When Jesus came down from the mountain, large crowds followed Him.” (Why were the crowds following Jesus? Was it because they loved Him? There’s no indication of that: Probably the greatest hint is from 7:28-29: They were probably extremely “curious” because of His Authoritative teaching. It was far different than the wishy-washy teaching of the scribes.)
2 “And a leper came (literally, “approached”) to Him and bowed down before Him, and said, "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean (katharizô)."
3 “Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him (to fasten to, adhere to, or to set fire to something), saying, "I am willing; be cleansed." And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 And Jesus said to him, "See that you tell no one; but go, show yourself to the priest and present the offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."
The Leprous Condition
Leprosy was, and still is, a horrible bacterial disease. Leprosy, as it's called in the Bible, was no doubt picked up in Egypt, and probably originated in Egypt; the children of Israel were infected with the disease while there and when they came into the Promised Land, they carried this disease with them.
Leviticus 13:45 gives a clear picture: "As for the leper who has the infection, his clothes shall be torn, and the hair of his head shall be uncovered, and he shall cover his mustache (mouth, because it is spread is passed from the mouth when it is inhaled through the air) and cry, 'Unclean ! Unclean !’ (It’s from Leviticus that we teach our children to “cover your mouth” when you cough or sneeze.)
In the Bible, leprosy was the most graphic illustration of sin: Sin defiles the whole body. Sin is ugly, loathsome, incurable and contaminating. It separates, alienates and makes outcasts of men. In the same way, every leper not only lived with the stigma of his own disease, but he lived with having to be a walking illustration of sin and was ceremonially unclean...wretched.
One of the rabbis in the Talmud said, "When I see lepers, I throw stones at them lest they come near me."...Another said, "I would not so much as eat an egg that was purchased on a street where a leper had walked." They hated, despised and feared them. It is shocking that Jesus, in presenting the credentials of His Messiah-ship, begins with such a man?
The Path of the Leper
Matthew gives us a clear picture of the Path of the Leper in these few verses: Like a sinner on the road to repentance, the leper recognized his extreme need for the touch of the Savior upon His life, and so he turned to Jesus. In order to do so, he had to set aside his own pride and the social stigma that accompanied his terminal condition that was known by all. He wasn’t afraid of what others would say, besides, everyone could SEE that he his condition was terminal, besides, he was required to vocalize his condition wherever he went by yelling: “Unclean! Unclean!”
How he heard about Jesus doesn’t really matter. He approaches Jesus, he turns from the way he WAS going, and the leper bows before Him. The word used for “knelt down” or “bowed” is most often translated “worshiped”. (proskyneô) He exercised worship and humility using the word “Lord”, but his actions show that it was not just out of courtesy or respect: His physical posture demonstrated his heart position in reverence before the Lord Jesus. Those who truly know themselves and their tremendous need before God, come to Jesus FIRST OF ALL and worship Him.
The leper also begs Jesus. Our text in Matthew uses the word “said”, but in Mark 1:40, which records this miracle, Mark uses the word “beseeched” or “begs”(paraklesis). “Paraklesis” is not obnoxious pestering, but rather, humble pleading. The act reminds you of Jesus’ example of penitent “asking and seeking” before God when you realize your need (Matt. 7:7).
Thirdly, the leper Believes Jesus: He says: “If YOU are willing, YOU can make me clean.” It is very important to understand the leper received healing, not according to his will, but upon God’s Will. We looked at what faith is on Sunday past: it is being convinced in your heart that God HAS the power. It is only exercising and resting in the power of God. Exercising faith is being convinced in your heart that God has the power and ability to do what no one else is able to do, but HE IS ABLE: The ability to BELIEVE GOD is a gift of grace FROM God.
The Miracle of Jesus’ Touch
Lepers were examined over the course of several weeks by priests, according to Levitical law, in order to make certain that the symptoms and the disease were diagnosed properly. Without the knowledge of antibiotics, the diagnosis of leprosy was a death notice: You would die a horrible, painful, disfiguring death. There is no denying the power of God in miracles when He chooses to heal by defying the natural order of things. Here Jesus performs this miracle by extending a simple loving “touch”, accompanied by two powerful words: “Thelô, katharizô!” ( I am willing, or I will; be cleaned!) Those words demonstrate the power and the person of Christ’s Love, Healing, and His Forgiveness.
When Jesus stretched out His hand and touched the man, Jesus acted on HIS OWN will, not the will of the man. The leper is merely the recipient of the power of an awesome God who chooses to place His Hand of mercy and healing upon sinners (in the same way that He chooses and forms clay). Jesus certainly was compassionate toward the leper, and when Jesus chose to heal, the leper was cleansed immediately: No waiting period, no works to be done by the leper, no stipulations or strings attached to pay Jesus back.
But everyone has an obligation to obey Jesus. Jesus told him 3 things: Don’t tell anyone, show yourself to the priest, and present the offering. In the Mark 1 account, we read that the healed man disregarded the first command and immediately told everyone he met. This caused a burden on the ministry of Jesus, causing Him to minister away from the cities.
Jesus wanted the man to present himself to the priest first, so that there was no break in the chain of evidence between Jesus, the leper, and the priest. He didn’t want the word to spread until the leper presented himself to the priest, as was required by the law. In essence the healed leper went out and said: “Look what Jesus did. My life was changed by Jesus,” and when others said: “Did you present yourself to the priest as required by law? You have to go there first.” the leper implied by his DISOBEDIENCE, that obedience could wait. To obey is an obligation not an option! Disobedience to God is like leprosy; It is sin. If a person receives faith, obedience should be the heart’s reaction, having a heart changed by and a life that has been covered with Christ’s righteousness.
Obedience is the sign that, not only did you receive physical healing, but that you also received forgiveness of sins. A number of times but in different words, Jesus said that even more important than physical healing is the forgiveness of sins. These kinds of miracles were revealing, not only His power over disease, but His power over and to FORGIVE sin.
Lastly, this miracle and all miracles represent a pattern for Prayer and Repentance: The way to new life is to call on, believe, repent, receive and follow Jesus. James 4:6-10 tells us: "GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE." 7 Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners ; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep ; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.”
These verses are all based on the Old Testament; it is not a new teaching. (2 Chron. 15:2, Isa. 1:12, Job 22:29) It is not a new Gospel, but Jesus is God in the flesh, representing what was hidden in times past.
Jesus comes to rescue “us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the KINGDOM of His beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities -all things have been created through Him and for Him.” (Col. 1)
In Jesus’ day, no one could ever be healed of leprosy WITHOUT a miracle by God; In all on humankind, no one can be healed of the disease of sin, without a miracle of God’s grace by the touch of the Almighty.
Once, we are all lepers, not with the bacterial disease but with the disease of sin; without the miraculous touch of the Spirit of God upon our hearts and lives, we were terminal, lost in our sin. But, “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:12-14)
OUTLINE Authoritative Deeds of Jesus: Love for a Leper
Matthew 8:1-4
Introduction:
1. Jesus’ Mission in His Ministry in Matthew demonstrates the King and the Kingdom of God.
2. Chapter 4:23: Jesus demonstrates His Authority in the Gospel of the Kingdom by healing every kind of sickness
3. Chapters 5-7: A Parenthesis in Matthew which Demonstrates His Kingly Authority IN teaching and AS the Word of God.
4. Chapter 8:1 Jesus resumes Demonstrations of Divine Authority
I. The Leprous Condition: Leprosy was a graphic illustration of sin.
II. The Path of the Leper
1. Recognized his extreme need and set aside pride and social stigma.
2. Bows before Jesus: Worships Him.
3. Believes Jesus: He exercises the gift of faith.
III. The Miracle of Healing Demonstrates
1. The power and person of Christ’s Love, Healing, and Forgiveness.
2. An obligation to obey Jesus.
3. The power of Jesus over and to forgive sins.
4. A pattern for Prayer and Repentance: call on, believe, repent, and follow Jesus. (2 Chron. 15:2, Isa. 1:12, Job 22:29)
