From Isolation to Restoration: The Healing Touch of Jesus

Bible Passage: Mark 1:40-45

INTRO

I was a victim of bullying growing up because I was a chubby but outspoken kid

This got a little better as I got older, got in better shape and gained more social awareness. but elements of this definitely followed me into my high school years.

I remember the first day of high school baseball practice my freshman year, everyone was choosing who would be their catch partner for the whole season.

There was an odd number of players on our team and wouldn’t you know, I was the odd man out.

It was my first year at a new school, wanted to make friends and have a tribe to run with but was left by myself without a catch partner.

I felt like a reject, an outcast surrounded by people but never seen or cared about by anyone.

I thought starting fresh at a new school, being an athlete, dating a pretty girl would make people wanna be my friend and know me. But none of those things made a difference.

Has anyone in the room ever felt like an outcast?

Unseen, misunderstood or unwanted?

Today in Mark 1:40-45 We are going to see Jesus take a reject of rejects, an outcast, the most looked down upon person you could think of and take him from Isolation to Restoration.

BODY

Last week, we left off watching Jesus tell His disciples that they were headed to the next towns outside of Capernaum so that Jesus could continue to preach.

He actually states that this is the reason that he came out

Read Mark 1:38-39

Jesus was primarily concerned with the word he preaches over the signs he performed.

It is the word of God that saves us. The word that he speaks over his children that leads us into life everlasting with Him.

That will be important to remember for where we are headed this morning…

While Jesus is out preaching and healing…

Read Mark 1:40

A leper comes and boldly approaches Jesus and full of faith tells Jesus what he is capable of doing.

We have to understand how scandalous this would have been at the time. touching another person would have made them ceremonially unclean.

The leprosy that is described in the bible is not the leprosy that we know of today. We get a very clear description of what leprosy then was like in Leviticus 13 as God gives clear commands for how his people and specifically the priests are supposed to handle people with this awful disease.

It is described as boils that are oozing. Whatever these boils were would have hairs that grew from them and turned white. It would often spread to multiple parts of the body, sometimes from head to toe as it progressed.

Sometimes it was also described as an itchy patch found in a persons hair or a mans beard that would turn their hair yellow

If a person had this disease God said commanded the priest to…

Leviticus 13:45–46 ““The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.”

Imagine with me for a moment being in that position…

Just about the worst disease you can think of, no one wants to be within 100 yards of you, in order to be around people, you have to cover yourself and announce to everyone that you are unclean and if you touch someone they would be called unclean as well.

That is an outcast of outcasts

For him to approach Jesus would have been scandalous. The people would have been appalled by this mans boldness to come that close to another person

But full of faith, this man comes up to Jesus and speaks of his power to save and to heal

He doesn’t ask to be healed, he simply says, “Jesus if you will it, it will be done.”

Its important to note that biblical faith is powerful not because of the act of faith itself but the object of faith, in other words the power is who we place our faith in

The leper has placed his faith and trust in Jesus

He has faith in his character and heart for the broken. He has faith in his divine power to heal. He has faith in his openness to receive those who would fall at his feet. He had faith that Jesus is indeed who he claimed to be.

The object of the lepers faith held the power

Jesus is moved by this type of faith. This type of faith is what leads to salvation and healing

Read Mark 1:41-42

Mark says that Jesus was “Moved with pity”, some translations say “Moved with compassion”, Jesus stretches out his hand to touch this man.

As scandalous as it would have been for the leper to approach Jesus, it would have been even more jaw dropping to see a rabbi like Jesus reach out to touch this man with compassion for him and with but a word, he heals this man

I think this is a moment when we really get to see the character of God himself.

This is when we get to see Exodus 34:6

Exodus 34:6 ESV

The Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,

Or Matthew 11:29

Matthew 11:29 ESV

Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

Jesus said in John 14:9, that if you have seen Him then you have seen the Father.

If you wanna know what God looks like, if you wanna see His heart, then look no further than Jesus.

He is gracious, kind and compassionate.

Jesus goes on in verse 44…

Read Mark 1:44

Jesus commands the newly healed leper to follow the instructions of the law in Leviticus 14 for being pronounced clean. This would have allowed him to reintegrate into normal society and reenter the city of Jerusalem.

This is an extensive process of sacrificial offerings, washings and ceremony that was over a week long

But Jesus says to do this as a proof to them.

Jesus knows that the leaders of the jewish faith were hard of heart and failed to be believe in who he was. So he sent this man to be a proof to those who are skeptical and lack faith in Christ as the Messiah.

I can imagine this man going back into the city to see people who had seen him outside or known him for a long time wondering what happened.

This man was so grateful and overjoyed that…

Read Mark 1:45

This is now the third or fourth time that we have seen a miraculous healing or deliverance in the gospel of Mark…

We had the demon possessed man in the synagogue

Peter’s Mother in law

The whole city of Capernaum coming to Jesus

Now, the leprous man

At face value, we can walk away today with a feel good story of Jesus’ power to heal us of our disease. But I believe there is more…

What does Jesus healing a leper have to do with us?

Our sin is a cancerous, horrific and awful disease.

It harms our bodies, our minds and our souls. It separates us from others and most importantly from God.

No human has the ultimate cure for this awful sickness and state we find ourselves in.

In our sin, we are hopeless, alone, tattered, worn, sick, depraved and helpless.

But Church, there is a man!!! Did you hear me say there is a man?!?!

There is a man Who’s touch will make you whole.

There is man who’s words hold the power of eternal life.

There is a man who is closer than close.

There is a man who’s blood speaks a better word.

There is a man that is full of compassion that has said come to me and I will heal you.

There is a man who has come for the unlovable and the untouchable.

His name is Jesus!!!

You and I are the leper in this story. Nothing to offer but bloody sores sprouting white hairs.

But those are the people whom Jesus looks at with compassion and makes clean. Those are the people that Jesus chooses to touch.

Do you believe that?! Do you believe that Jesus touches those who are gross with sin?!

Do you believe that if Jesus has touched you, you are clean and nothing you do can change that?!

Do you believe that Jesus takes sinners from Isolation to Restoration?!

CLOSING

I’ll never forget that first day of practice, when I realized that I was the odd man out. No catch partner

I saw our assistant coach, Coach Campbell, run over to me with his glove.

Coach Campbell was my catch partner for my entire freshman season of baseball.

That is a moment that has stuck out to me profoundly for the past 10 years of my life now.

Coach Campbell saw the need that I had and he met it.

He made me feel seen, known and cared for.

Sinners in the room today, know this; Jesus sees your need and he longs to meet it… Will you receive that today?

Believers, if you have been touched by Jesus, will you stand firm on your belief that He has taken you from Isolation to Restoration?