Lord’s Day, Vol. 13 No. 47

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Lord’s Day, Vol. 13 No. 47

Luke 5:12-16 (KJV) And it came to pass, when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 13 And he put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will: be thou clean. And immediately the leprosy departed from him. 14 And he charged him to tell no man: but go, and shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. 15 But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him: and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities. 16 And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed.

The healing ministry of Christ attested to His Deity, that Jesus is God. He has the power to heal serious ailment like the disease of leprosy. That power of Christ to heal human diseases draws us to understand the deeper problem that plague mankind. It is the disease of human. The prophet Isaiah pronounced this heinous spiritual nature of sin in Israel likened to the physical disease of leprosy when he said in Isaiah 1:6 (KJV) From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.

The leprous man came to Jesus and was gloriously healed as the prophet Isaiah well said in Isaiah 45:22 (KJV) Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. Truly, when Jesus touched the man, he was healed – Psalm 33:9 (KJV) For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast.

In the Old Testament, there was the leper Naaman, the Syrian general, whom Elisha healed, attested to the power and will of God – 2 Kings 5:10 (KJV) And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean…. 2 Kings 5:14 (KJV) Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

Jesus explained in Luke 4:27 that Elisha did not heal other lepers in Israel but this Gentile general to manifest His glory. Namaan submitted to the LORD by obeying Elisha’s command to wash in the Jordan. Even the yielding of the heart to God is for His glory – Ezekiel 36:26-27 (KJV) A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.

Jesus demonstrated the compassionate heart of God to save sinners – Ezekiel 18:32 (KJV) For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.

What was starkly clear was that this man came to Jesus and was gloriously healed, he found rest for His soul – Matthew 11:28 (KJV) Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Jesus retreated to a quiet place to commune with the Father. That communion was the heavenly link for strength and refreshing that attested to His humanity for our emulation. Amen.