Mark 1:40-45

Mark 1:40

CIT

Introduction

3 observations of this text

The Desperation of an Outcast (40)

Mark 1:40 “40 And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.””

Explanation

Leprosy is a terrible skin disease and until 1940 people with leprosy were considered to be under a death sentence.

The Jews in the 1st century believed that leprosy was an act of divine judgement. There were a few cases in the Old Testament of leprosy. One of the most notable ones was with Miriam, Moses sister. Miriam and Aaron devised a plan to overthrow Moses and become the leaders of the Israelites. Miriam tried to turn the people against Moses because he married a Cushite woman… Moses was God’s appointed leader… God caused her skin to become white as snow… Moses prayed for her and then 7 days later she was healed…

So what was life like for a leper in the 1st century???

Culturally - Outcast…

Had to wear torn clothes to signify who they were and their uncleanliness

Leave their hair unkept

had to remain at least 50 paces away from people at all times

If someone came into a lepers vicinity the leper had to cover his face and cry out “unclean”

Legally

Too unclean to be in society or in the temple

missed out on the worship of God.

Leviticus 13-14 give instructions on how to handle someone with this disease and how they are supposed to be reintegrated back into the society…

They were to be treated like the walking dead.

Socially

the people believed the leper was cursed by God… it was a living death

“a leper was in no way differing from a corpse” - Josephus

For the people it was evidence of divine judgement…

So here you have this outcast of the world…

Breaking all the rules culturally, legally, and socially. This outcast comes to Jesus out of complete desperation begging Jesus to make Him clean…

His faith is on full display!

For this outcast the issue was not whether Jesus could heal him it was a matter if Jesus would heal him… He had faith that the Lord had the ability to heal him but he wasn't sure of His desire to heal him.

This leper did not approach Jesus with a name it and claim it mentality… He did not come to Jesus and speak his cleansing into existence… He did not come to Jesus and manifest his thoughts to become reality… no He came to the only one who could help him and he came in the only appropriate way… broken and desperate…

and despite all the rules and regulations of the day… He was willing to take the risk… He had nothing to lose and everything to gain…

Illustration

Life presents us with many risks and if we are smart we analyze those risks and weigh the outcomes and then make a decision..

When it comes to evangelism… sharing the gospel with others… there are risks…

Last week in London your team considered those risks and despite fears and doubts they chose to tell others about Jesus…

I had a conversation with a young man that made me realize what real risk was… met a young man at the university we were working at and we got into a gospel conversation and he told me that he did in fact believe in the Jesus of the Bible but if he converted to Christianity then his country would kill him… He was facing a risk that I have no idea about…

The leper of this passage was facing great risk, consequences were high and Yet He willing to break all the rules to come to Jesus… would this Rabbi be different than the other Rabbis of the day? would this Rabbi show compassion?

The Compassion of the Savior (41-42)

Mark 1:41–42 “41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” 42 And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean.”

Explanation

Moved with Pity

The Compassionate Savior who is full of mercy and grace saw this man in his desperation and destitution and was moved with pity…

Another translation of the word here in the greek could mean moved with anger its the same translation of when Jesus was moved when he raised Lazarus from the dead… it could have been that Jesus seeing this man in his misery was angered by sin and its consequences…

He stretched out his hand and touched him and at His command this leper is made clean in an instant.

The lepers bold risk paid off… Jesus met him with complete compassion…

we have no context for how long this man was living as a leper but one could assume that it has been a long time since someone paid this man any positive attention or him feeling another human beings touch…

There is a question one may ask about this passage???? According to the law by Jesus touching the leper wouldn't that make Jesus unclean and wouldn't that mean that Jesus too would need to present Himself to the priest to offer what Moses required for an offering ? According to some “God broke the Law for Love” …. It would be true if this were an ordinary man… but Jesus is no ordinary man… He is the God-man… fully God and fully man.. This Jesus is the Lord of the Law because as God He is its author! and He has the authority to set it aside for His own redemptive purposes…

At a traffic jam the law-enforcement officer shows up to direct traffic… Sometimes this means that the traffic light is red and the law enforcement officer will signal you to come through… The officer is telling you to disobey the red light… (Could you imagine???) How can he do that??? When the law enforcement officer is present His presence supersedes the written law. So we must obey the embodiment of the law that is found in the law enforcement officer rather than the red light.

Jesus is the author of the law. Jesus is the embodiment of the law… Jesus is the enforcer of the law… and His presences supersedes the written law… so in His compassion He touches the leper…

Not only does His actions speak about who He is/ The God-Man … His words reveal Him to be the Lord of all Creation.

by his divine command “be clean” the leprosy left this desperate outcast instantly…

who else but God has the authority to command and all of creation obey instantaneously???

By His command Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead… “Lazarus come out” and lazarus obeyed…

By His command Jesus calmed the wind and the sea in Mark 4 “peace, be still” and the wind and the waves immediately obeyed Him.

Just as God brought the world into existence by the Word of His Divine Command so we see Jesus exercise that same Divine Command on this disease….

Colossians 1:15–20 “15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”

John 1:1–3 “1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.”

John 1:14 “14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

The Divine Command from the Divine Man… By his action and by His Word Jesus is revealing to all that He is no mere man… He is the Divine Son of God… and if all of creation obeys His Word then so should we…

but unfortunately in our free will we have the freedom to disobey …

The Consequences of Disobedience (43-45)

Mark 1:43–45 “43 And Jesus sternly charged him and sent him away at once, 44 and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” 45 But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places, and people were coming to him from every quarter.”

You would think that after Jesus performs this incredible miracle that He would be delighted to have a walking and talking billboard for his ministry! Instead He tells this man to not say a word to anyone…

If it were one of us being healed by Jesus of leprosy we would most likely start a podcast… or a youtube channel…

Compare This passage to Mark 5 …

Mark 5:18–20 “18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. 19 And he did not permit him but said to him, “Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” 20 And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled.”

Why does Jesus tell the Leper to remain quiet but not the demon possessed man?

Place , People, and Purpose.

Place - He is in Galilee … (5) He is in the Decapolis… Greek or non-jewish province

People - Here this man runs the risk of derailing the Lords plans to go into every town, the greek man was not allowed in the synagogue…. (5) Jesus sends the man to be a witness because He was not present in the Decapolis

Purpose - The main purpose for the ministry of Jesus according Mark 1:15 “15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”” was to preach the breakthrough of the kingdom of God.

Preaching the Good News concerning His life, His death, and His resurrection was the Lords top priority…

The healing ministry and the miracles of Jesus were a door to the message of His preaching ministry… “the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Good News concerning myself”

This does not mean that His miracles were not important… but rather that it was not His Chief End… The miracles of Jesus authenticated who He was and is!!!

John 10 Jesus says that I and the Father are One

John 10:31–33 “31 The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” 33 The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.””

John 10:37–38 “37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38 but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.””

One of the reasons why Jesus tells this cleaned Leper to remain silent is because once the word got out that He was a miracle worker then people flock to come to him to see a miracle and the hope was that they to would receive some type of material blessing…

John 6 Jesus feeds the 5000… John 6:15 “15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.”

John 6:27–28 “27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?””

They came to Jesus not because of who He is but because of what He could give them!!!

The disobedience of the leper caused Jesus to continue His ministry in the wilderness… They traded placed… the outcast was now allowed in the community… and Jesus now because of his reputation couldn't go into the towns do what he desired to do… preach the gospel in every town…

Lessons for us today…

We need to seek Jesus for who He is… not just for what He can give us…

God miraculously rescued Isreal out of Egypt but then God would spend 40 years getting Egypt out of Isreal… They failed multiple times to see that having God with them in the dessert was far better than having material blessing in Egypt without His presence…

Seek the Face of Jesus Not Just His Hands…

Behold our God, seated on His throne, come let us adore Him…

Obedience to Jesus must be our priority

If we believe that God is all knowing and all good… then we do well to obey Him even when it doesn't make sense to us…

Ask Abraham when God asked him to sacrifice Isaac

Ask Joshua as they marched around Jericho…

There is a disease far worse than leprosy

This story is a picture of sin and how it effects all of humanity… Jesus is the only one who can bring healing…

Invitation