Social Distancing
Social Distancing, Masks, & Quarantine are the buzz words floating around on the lips of all the newscasters, medical scientists & political leaders.
Since the coronavirus has spread across the nation like a race car, the concept is that we stay quarantined in our homes and stay at least SIX FEET apart.
The reason is that the virus is so contagious, that if someone sneezes, the virus can float in the air that far, continuing the spread of the virus. It is a worldwide scourge & plague.
Isn’t it interesting that NOW is NOT the first case of social distancing, masks, & quarantine?
You’ll see it dusting the pages of O. T. lit. Then resurfacing in the N. T.
Let me read you something. Luke 17:11 “And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, (Notice that there were 10 men. The limit allowed to be together. ? Which is the same limit that is allowed at present for those gathered.)
? Let’s read on, “which stood afar off:” (Social Distancing) ? The recommendation & requirement at present is SIX FEET. Did you know that in Bible times, the lepers were to stand at least, SIX FEET from others?”
In his book The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Alfred Edersheim reports the standard practice of the day. ? He writes, “No one was to salute a leper...no less than a distance of six feet must be kept from a leper or if the wind came from that direction, a hundred were scarcely sufficient.”
WHY? Because of their illness being contagious and that sneezes carried germs into the air.
? Leprosy, or Hansen’s disease, is known from ancient writings (c. 600 B.C.) from China, India, and Egypt, and from mummified remains from Egypt.
It was common enough in Israel to warrant extensive regulation in the Mosaic Law of those suffering from it and related skin diseases (Lev. 13–14). The disease is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium leprae, discovered by the Norwegian scientist G. H. A. Hansen in 1873 (it was the first bacterium to be identified as the cause of a human disease). The bacterium was communicable through touch and breath.
So, what did they do to keep from spreading the germs more than standing 6 FEET away? Let me read it to you. Lev. 13:45 says, “And the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean.” What is that? It’s basically a MASK, to keep germs from spreading.
? Please allow me to go back to the scripture I was reading: 13 And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. 14 And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed. 15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, 16 And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. 17 And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? 18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. 19 And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.”
? Here’s a man, not only was he UNCLEAN by leprosy, but he was a Samaritan. No wonder he returned to thank Jesus. He could certainly cry out, “Unclean, unclean,” TWICE, for he was.
??? Before I go on, let bring to your attention that those with this contagious disease called leprosy, if suspected, they would quarantine them. ? “But if the spot on the skin of his body is white and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and the hair in it has not turned white, the priest must quarantine the infected person for seven days.” Lev. 13:4 And then in V. 5, “The priest will then reexamine him on the seventh day. If he sees that the infection remains unchanged and has not spread on the skin, the priest must quarantine him for another seven days.” ? In another day there were wearing a MASK, Social Distancing, & Quarantining.
? There are several things I’d like to say from this STORY.
I. Notice their CONDITION – It reads that they were lepers. Ten of them. V. 12, And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: That phrase, “they were lepers,” says it ALL. The worse plague that one could be condemned by. Leprosy. That rotting, flesh eating, smelling, exposing disease.
(1) Leprosy was a LONELY disease. The Bible lists Quarantines 16 times. Think what it meant to be banned from society.
It meant that you could NO longer live among society again. Imagine when they realized they had leprosy; they were immediately put out of their hometown. No longer could they meet their kids coming home from school. Never to attend daughter’s wedding. Never to hold a newborn baby again. Never were they allowed to reenter their home. Never would they feel the kiss or warm embrace of their mate.
Totally ostracized. They could not work among others to make a living. It was a LONELY disease. It was against the law to GREET a leper.
They lived in caves and on the outskirts of the city. Never to get within SIX FEET of another healthy person.
As they would walk along, they had to cry out, “Unclean, Unclean.” And people would pick up STONES to throw at them so they wouldn’t come near.
(2) It was a LASTING disease. In Bible times, there was NO known cure. When you woke up in the morning, it wasn’t a BAD dream. It was a reality. The remainder of their life, that disease LASTED. (3) It was a LETHAL disease. From the very start, it became a progressive death. While it started off as a white spot on the skin and the hair in that spot turned white. It went from that to disfigurement of the body. Ears & nose rotting off. Fingers & toes rotting away. Leprosy was a Death Sentence. There was no CURE for it in Bible times.
Lepers were to dress as mourners going to a funeral service: their OWN funeral. Their clothes were to be torn in such a way that all could SEE they were a leper.
(4) It was a disease without LIMITS. It didn’t matter whether you were Jew or Samaritan. It didn’t matter whether you were a civilian or like Naaman, captain of the army. It didn’t matter whether you were poor or wealthy. It didn’t matter whether you were a graduate or a gravedigger. It was a disease that LEVELED all to the same playing field. (5) Leprosy caused the LOSS of feelings. They could put their hand in a pot of boiling water and never feel it. They could sleep along the roadside and rats would come along and gnaw off their fingers and toes because they never felt it.
II. Notice their CRY – On the outskirts of an unnamed village on the borderlands of Samaria and Galilee, ten leprous men stood before Jesus in various stages of decay, their clothing torn in perpetual mourning, their skeletal heads uncovered, their lips unveiled as they warned others, “Unclean, unclean!”
They looked as though they had climbed out of the graves. But they were alive, sensitive human beings, feeling souls living in the nether world of society’s fringe while they rotted away.
So, from a safe distance they shouted the traditional plea, “And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” V. 13
Grace is getting what we DON’T deserve. Mercy is NOT getting what we deserve. They WANTED MERCY.
I’m not sure how LOUD their voices would have been. Leprosy makes the voice raspy & hard to be understood.
They knew HE was Jesus. And they knew THEY were lepers. ? And it’s one of only two times in New Testament in which Jesus is called MASTER. They acknowledged that He was in CHARGE. “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” They’d heard that He was the Master of the Winds & the Waves.
III. Notice for a moment, the COMPARISON – Leprosy was far more than a disease, it was ALSO a TYPE of SIN in the Bible.
Sin like leprosy levels us all. Our sins place us on COMMON ground. “For all have sinned and (all) have come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23.
We ALL come running up like wretched lepers, Crying, “Unclean, unclean, Master, have mercy on us.”
Sin brings down the CURTAIN. Sin brings the penalty of eternal death. Sin is CUTE to begin with. It is so subtle at first. Just a spot. A spot that you could cover. Something you could hide for a while. Something you could ignore for a while.
Sin like leprosy, has no HUMAN CURE. No amount of good works / strong personality / good character will be enough to cure this grip of sin in your life.
Sin like leprosy is CONTAGIOUS. One sin calls for another sin. One drink calls for another drink. And then a stronger drink. One look calls for another look. Next a more graphic look.
And the look at the APPLE in the tree was not the problem. The problem was the PAIR on the ground.
? Sin like leprosy could deaden the nerves until they no longer could feel. ? I’ve watched people over the years, continue to sin until they had no remorse. No conscience bothering them. They reached a place where they never felt anymore. Those that gossip about others and no longer have any conscience about it. They just go on and never straighten out their lies and many are defiled as a result.
IV. Notice the COMMAND – It is found in V. 14, “And when Jesus saw them, he said unto them, Go show yourselves unto the priests.” In Leviticus 13 & 14, God gave Moses extensive instructions of how to deal with leprosy. They were to go to the priest.
Jesus knew that the families and the towns & society would never accept them if they did not have certifiable proof from the priest.
V. Notice the CURE – V. 14b, “And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.” Trust & obey is what the SONG shares, for there’s no other way.
All TEN knew to go to the right source. All TEN believed. All ten went to the priest. I’m sure all received a Clean Bill of Health.
VI. Don’t overlook the CLEANSING - Notice that they needed more than HEALING. They needed CLEANSING.
There are three Gospel accounts of Jesus and a leper. It could be three different men or three accounts of the same man. They are found in Matthew 8:2-4, Mark 1:40-45 & Luke 5:12-16. They all READ ALIKE.
Here’s the way it reads: “A leper came to him saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me CLEAN. And Jesus put forth his hand, and TOUCHED him, saying, I will; be thou CLEAN. And immediately his leprosy was CLEANSED. And Jesus saith unto, ‘See thou tell no man; but go thy way, show thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a TESTIMONY unto THEM.”
Elisha knew better than to go outside his house and TOUCH Naaman the leper. He sent his word. II Kings 5:10.
VII. Notice the Carelessness – V. 15 “Only one when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God. 16 And fell down on his face at his feet giving him thanks.”
The Bible said that “he was a Samaritan.” V. 16. The nine Jews never returned. ? For Jesus said in V. 17, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?
(((I came across this interesting story the other day. A father and mother whose son - a young man killed in the military, were members of a little church. One day they came to the pastor and told him that they wanted to give a monetary gift as a memory to our son who died in battle. The pastor said, "That’s a wonderful gesture on your part. “He asked if it was ok to tell the congregation and they said that it was.”
So, the next Sunday he told the congregation of the gift given in memory of the dead son. On the way home from church, another couple were driving down the highway when the husband said to his wife, "Why don’t we give a gift because of our son?" His wife replied,
"But our son didn’t die in any conflict! Our son is still alive!" Her husband replied, "That’s exactly my point! That’s all the more reason we ought to give in thanks to God.")))
? If we take nothing else away from today’s lesson, let us resolve to give God thanks in all he does for us.
??? I want to go back to conversation Jesus had with this returning Samaritan. 18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.” A Samaritan. A half-breed. One who was despised by the Jews. One who was twice SOILED. Jews had to go to priest to be cleansed after doing business with those despised Samaritans.
(((If you’d been cleansed by Jesus, would you have been willing to be the Good Samaritan and go to the beaten-up man left in the ditch for dead. ? Beat Up by the World, Passed Up by the Church & Picked Up by the Samaritan. Could this be the same Samaritan?)))
? Those Samaritans were classed as STRANGERS who were to Stand Afar Off. But notice this scripture:
Ephesians 2:12, “That at that time YOU were without Christ, being aliens from the common wealth of Israel, and STRANGERS from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 13 But now in Christ Jesus YOU who sometimes were FAR OFF are made NIGH by the blood of Christ.”
??? We who were SINNERS. We who were LEPERS crying, “Unclean, unclean.” No longer do we have to stand AFAR OFF but can be made NIGH by the blood of Christ.
WHY? Because we’ve been CLEANSED.
? Go with into the Old Testament to a quick story. Leprosy was certainly an attention getter. ? Here’s what the Bible said in II Kings 5:1, “Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria was a great man with his master, and honorable … he was also a mighty man in valor, but he was a leper.”
Money couldn’t change his situation. Position didn’t impress anyone. Relationships & connections didn’t help him. ? Under the facade of his royal military garments was a leprosy. He could hide it from others but not himself. He hoped it would go away. He could WISH until he died, but he was none the better.
But God placed a little unknown, unnamed maid in the very house of Naaman. ? In the midst of this diseased ridden world, God has placed the CHURCH in its path. To be a witness.
The little unnamed maid in the house of Naaman saw the concern written across the face of her master and said, “Maybe you’d better go see the man of God.” She was there to POINT toward healing & hope. Cleansing & cure.
If things continue in America as they are, we are going to have to apologize to Sodom & Gomorrah at the judgement for our sins. ? We’ll need more than SEVEN DIPS in the muddy Jordan.
We’ve legalized immoral acts and lifestyles. Old line denominations are ordaining and putting their stamp of approval upon all kinds of degeneracy.
Our hands are dripping with the blood of more than 60,000,000 babies. If the blood of Abel cried out from the ground for justice, then does NOT God hear the voices of the innocent?
Porn is a billion dollar a year business. Alcohol drenches the streets of our cities. Drugs have drained the very life out of the American youth and lined the cemeteries with their corpses. Our colleges have produced a generation that know not God. Our penal institutions are bulging at the seams. The court system is short circuited with an overflow of frivolous cases.
America has bowed down to the gods of the sports’ world. Maybe God has shut down the sport arenas. We worshipped at the altar of Hollywood until perhaps God has shut down the theatres. We’ve worshipped the stars of music idols and perhaps God has shut down the great music halls. ? Since America hasn’t been interested in the church, perhaps God has allowed the church doors to be closed.
“In the day ye seek me with your whole hearts, I’ll be found of you.”
I do think it’s time the church crowd gets concerned. We need to miss God as much as we miss the fellowship of each other.
A rumble on the Reicher scale of 6.5 was felt out across Idaho from the earthquake. Is there any kind of rumbling of Revival today? What would it take to get our attention? Does anyone feel concerned about a worldwide virus? Or are we just inconvenienced?
“If my people will humble themselves & pray…
