Jesus is Willing

INTRODUCTION

There are certain questions you learn not to ask unless you’re ready for the answer.

Usually these questions are less about what’s possible and more about what’s likely to happen.

In other words, it’s the difference between can and will; would or should.

Could they hire you? Sure. They have a job opening.

Could they call? Absolutely. Their phone still works.

Could they stay? They said they loved you. It’s possible.

But someone can have the ability to do something and still choose to withhold it. That is where the tension lives.

Could and would are often held in tension.

Most of the time, “could” is the easier question. Could is about power and ability. It’s a question of resources, opportunity and capacity.

But “would” is question aimed at the heart.

Would they move toward me when I have made such a mess?

Would they make room for me when I’m such an inconvenience?

Would they still want me when they find out what I’m hiding?

Poets have been writing about withheld love forever. You can read them in every human culture. 

It is not the inability that breaks the lonely heart. It is the ability sitting next to the unwillingness.

Power in the hands of someone who doesn’t want you isn’t any comfort to your soul. It’s torture. There’s a unique type of emotional pain in knowing they could help, but they won’t.

Some people ask this question of Jesus. They know the stories and even think they’re true.

They sing the songs. He can heal, forgive, and save. They know that HE CAN but question if he WILL. Especially when that sin and shame is theirs.

Will Jesus still act if it’s their wounds, their failure, and their secrets brought to the light? Worse than asking, some people answer for him. They pre-decide and call it humility.

What we see in our passage is a man who asks the question. But instead of pre-deciding, he brings his questions to the surface. He asks Jesus to his face, “I know you can, but are you willing?”

SET THE TABLE

For three weeks we have been standing at the end of the most famous sermon anybody ever preached.

When Jesus finished, we see the crowd’s response. They were astonished, "because he was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes."

For three chapters Jesus has been teaching on the mountain. When he comes down the mountain, the mode of ministry shifts.

These categories were established back in Matthew 4:23. Jesus was “teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness.” (Matthew 4:23)

Matthew ends this section with the exact same language. “Jesus continued going around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness.” (Matthew 9:35-36)

Everything Matthew does is in service of his thesis. Jesus is Christ the King who fulfills the Law and Prophets. The words of the King are Matthew 5-7. The works of the King are Matthew 8-9. In that way, these sections hang together.

Jesus had been accused of “abolishing” the Old Testament. His words and actions show that he fulfills it. Jesus is the one to whom the Law and Prophets point. The miracles of Matthew 8-9 show that fact.

Jesus breaks taboos and people lose their mind. But never once does Jesus break God’s Law. What he breaks were the extra fences built around it.

His actions raise the question, “What man is this?” Each encounter gives us an answer, “Jesus is the Christ.”

But the Christ looked different than what they had expected. That is the point of these miracles stories. Who is this Man?

He did not say the things they thought he’s say.

He did not do what they thought that he should do.

Jesus reaches out to people that no one else would touch. Jesus rules over power that no one else could tame. Jesus rescues the people that no one else could save.

Every week, each sermon will establish a claim.  We will answer the question “What man is this?” Each encounter will show why Jesus is the Christ, beginning with unique willingness.

Jesus is willing to do what others won’t.

Matthew 8:1–4 (CSB)

Matthew 8:1–4 CSB

1 When he came down from the mountain, large crowds followed him. 2 Right away a man with leprosy came up and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” 3 Reaching out his hand, Jesus touched him, saying, “I am willing; be made clean.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 Then Jesus told him, “See that you don’t tell anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

Four verses. One man nobody else would touch but Jesus was willing to do what they would not.

JESUS WAITS:

How Matthew tells this story is different than Mark or Luke. It’s the first story instead of the third.

This decision advances Matthew’s purpose for this Gospel: to prove that Jesus is the Christ.

Verse 1 begins with Jesus “coming down from the mountain” and verse 4 ends with a nod to Moses. Jesus is the greater Moses who brings a better covenant.

Matthew juxtaposes the popularity of Jesus with that of a social outcast. It’s hard to appreciate what Jesus does without some additional context.

Today, people hear leprosy and think “Hanson’s Disease” but the biblical term was broader than that. It applied to various types of bacterial infections whether or skin, walls or garments.

In humans, it spreads through breathing in droplets from an infected person’s nose or mouth. The infection starts quietly and can take years to show symptoms (sometimes 20 years after exposure).

If you had this condition in first-century Israel, there were sweeping implications. They weren’t just physical; they were social and spiritual.

“The person who has a case of serious skin disease is to have his clothes torn and his hair hanging loose, and he must cover his mouth and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ 46He will remain unclean as long as he has the disease; he is unclean. He must live alone in a place outside the camp.” (Leviticus 13:45–46)

Notice the repetition of the word unclean. In context, it’s the major emphasis.

Not only was he forbidden from community, he was isolated outside the camp. If people did get close he had to broadcast his condition.

Every time a person came up the road, HE had to be the one to say it. He wore the clothes of a mourner and shouted “Unclean! Unclean!” The idea was to prevent others from an accidental infection and defilement.

He lived alone in a place outside the camp. To be “outside the camp” would remove you from God’s presence. It was where they put things that were unholy and profane. It was a place of God’s judgment and wrath.

To put yourself in this guy’s shoes you must feel what he’s lost. It wasn’t just his health and bodily comfort. He lost his family and standing within the community. He was not even able to go to church. He was isolated and all alone.

He could not go to worship. He could not eat with anybody. He could not hold his wife or pick up his own children. He could not work a trade, sit in a doorway, or stand in a crowd. Nobody bumped into him at the market.

Jesus Waits

On the rare occasion that he was SEEN, the people would withdraw in fearful dread.

That’s what makes this response from Jesus so incredible in this passage.

When others walk away… Jesus waits for you.

You can see it in how Matthew paints the scene. The leper “comes up” which means he broke the social norms. He “kneels before Jesus” which means he likely got too close.

Any other person would’ve walked away in horror. But Jesus doesn’t move a muscle. In doing so, Jesus does what others wouldn’t. He’s in proximity to someone “good as dead.” (Num 12:12)

Both the leper and Jesus are bending the rules and they’re certainly breaking cultural taboos. Jesus is “breathing in his air” and exposing himself to contamination.

At minimum, he would’ve been misinterpreted. At worst, he could’ve been infected. But Jesus didn’t care. Because this man needed to know that he was not alone and that Jesus was willing to wait.

Are They Welcome

The willingness of Jesus to wait instead of walk away, raises an important question for we who represent him.

Every community draws a line. Every nation has a border. I’m not suggesting that to love people we must defile ourselves.

But many Christians withhold their welcome for reasons that are invalid. We start with coldness instead of relational warmth.

There are many people, like this leper, who feel like an outcast. (The Leper might’ve been a faithful Jew!) Others come to church with moral brokenness but what they need is for someone to be kind!

For someone to smile and say “Hey, I’m so glad you’re here.” Instead of creating distance like every other person in their life.

Consider the person who just got out of prison who’s trying to rebuild their life.

Or maybe the person who just went through a divorce and has lost all they hold dear.

What about the parents with a child trapped in addiction?

What about the well-known person who very publicly just wrecked his life?

What about the person with mental health struggles who scans every room for the exit?

We all come to Jesus with different levels of alienation. We know what it’s like to be an outcast. It’s terrible to feel like you don’t really belong.  

What they need to see is Jesus and his people NOT WITHDRAW. But stand and wait to receive them when the y come.

It breaks my heart when I hear people say they came into this church and they walked outside our doors never having felt more alone. It’s not something I hear often but I’ve heard it more than once!

We should be intentional to look for that dynamic. To find the lonely person and ensure that they feel welcome “Sit with us. What’s your name? How’ve you been?”

Do you welcome people no matter where they start?

I’m not even talking about the people that you “hate.” I’m talking about people we manage. The people we are kind to from a distance.

When others walk away - Jesus waits for people. What does our welcome say to those same people?

You can be perfectly polite with your words and a person still feel isolated.

This leper had learned the language of isolation. Yet he chose to draw near anyway. When people do that in our culture today, what will your response be?

Will we respond like the crowd or like the Lord who waits? Jesus broke a taboo to show the love of God. Are you and I willing to the the same?

He crossed a distance that was discouraged in the Law because he felt compassion for man in suffering.

But Jesus doesn’t just “wait.” He does something more.

JESUS WANTS:

Matthew has a play on words with the Greek word translated “willing.” The leper already knows that Jesus is able.

What he questions is whether Jesus is willing. “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’”

Notice where the if is situated. He’s not asking, “If you can heal me.” To that, he says “clearly, you can!””

He knows the level of Jesus’ ability what he questions is whether he would want to.

We’re not given any insight on this person’s frame of mind other than the nature of his question. He obviously had some measure of faith by the fact that he chose to draw near.

This man has likely had leprosy for years. He’s been avoided and rejected for as long as he can remember. He had ample evidence to think “this will never work.” But he moved past that doubt and came to Jesus.

He bows down before Jesus without demands or special pleading. He doesn’t point to himself or manipulate. He simply expresses what he knows and what he doesn’t. “Jesus, you are able but are you willing?”

These words are an expression of humility and deference to the wisdom and authority of Jesus. That he calls Jesus “Lord” shows a humble confidence and quiet submission to his will.

What Others Withhold

Jesus’ response is just as fascinating, and it also deploys this same Greek word.

“Reaching out his hand, Jesus touched him, saying, ‘I am willing; be made clean.’ Immediately, his leprosy was cleansed.” (Matthew 8:2b-3)

Between the question and the answer Jesus does something incredible. Everyone would’ve been amazed.

Before Jesus says he is willing to help, he SHOWS it by reaching out his hand. Jesus could’ve healed the leper without doing either one but he does both and in a certain order.

The hand of Jesus comes before the cure not to mediate the healing. The hand of Jesus mediated something that the man needed more than a cure.

It conveyed to the leper “You are seen. You are loved. You are valued. You are precious in God’s sight.” And while every other person might “withhold” their love. My desire is to give you what you need.

Doing this would’ve broken every cultural custom. No other person would’ve done it. But Jesus is willing to do what other’s won’t.

“What others withhold, Jesus wants for you.”

That doesn’t mean that Jesus answers every prayer or even that he heals every person. Obviously that’s not always true.

Some of you have prayed this exact prayer over a diagnosis, a marriage, or a child. For you, the answer was no or not at this moment. This verse is not a prayer technique for how to be healed.

But the heart of Jesus is that we would truly live and he wants that more than we can know.

 You cannot live a flourishing life in isolation. Jesus knows that. That’s the worst thing about leprosy and the protective rules around it.

While the rules did require the infected person to give the warning. Each person was free to respond. Most people responded by withholding their affection, their love, their mercy or even presence.

But Jesus responded with the opposite. He gave the man what he needed the most. What others would withhold, Jesus wants for you.

And notice he doesn’t say, “God is willing.” He says, “I am willing. Be clean.”

In the Old Testament only three people were ever cured of leprosy. In each case, it was a miracle of God.

Only God can raise the dead and only God can heal the leper.

Not a single infected Israelite had passed the standard for cleanliness as laid out in Leviticus 13. None of them had been welcomed back into worship inside the covenant community.

This man had likely lost all hope of restoration but that day his faith was rewarded. And the reward was not just a physical healing. It was a reminder that he was loved by God.

Words to Watch

This action from Jesus leaves us with a question about our words and how we choose to live.

Just like Jesus reached out his hand before he spoke, our actions add weight to what we say.

Do your words match what people see?

Jesus did not just say he was willing. The first thing he did was SHOW it through his actions. He put his hand on a person who had never been touched since the day he became unclean.

Church people can often be good with their words but we don’t always show it with our actions. But the people on the outside of this room are not grading our words. They are watching what we do with our life.

We say “All people are welcome here. We love our neighbors.” We put it on the website. But there’s a difference between what hangs on a wall and what happens at your dining room table.

Between a church that says "everyone is welcome" but nobody stops to learn your name. Anybody can be kind from a distance. But that isn’t what people need. They need to known and loved anyway. Faith working through love.

JESUS WILL WASH:

When others walk away… Jesus waits for people. So we welcome others no matter where they start.

What others withhold… Jesus wants for people. So our words must match what people see.

Now we get to the main point of this passage which Matthews saves for the end. Let’s pick it up in verse 3. "Immediately his leprosy was cleansed."

Note the word cleansed is used repeatedly. By the leper and also by Jesus. Now Matthew uses it at the end of verse 3 and not once do they call it a “healing.” That is not an accident of translation. It’s an intentional decision by Matthew.

The word “cleansed” is katharizō, and it’s used throughout the Old Testament law, especially in the book of Leviticus and the rules around skin disease. The word literally means to remove the condition of.

It was a verbal declaration by the priest that the leprous condition was gone. One word, two functions: a cure and a certification.

Uncleanness in Leviticus is a term of legal status, not moral virtue or vice. The same language was applied to human garments.

Being unclean was not the same thing as being guilty. The leprosy was not punishment for sin but it did cause spiritual separation.

This man was not worse than his neighbors but he was disallowed from God’s presence. That access to God is was what this man was after.

But before he could come he had to be cleansed. And his leprosy could not be washed away. No matter what he did. No matter how hard he tried. Only Jesus could wash away the stain.

What others wield against you, Jesus washes clean.

There is a stain on us that every person has. You know exactly what it is. You have scrubbed at it with resolutions and religion You have tried being better. You have tried being useful. You’ve tried to ignore it all together.

For some it’s not just your personal sin but the sin of someone else done TO YOU. Their actions left a stain that you cannot remove and you’ve never clean since that day. You try so hard but you feel so distant and separated from God.

The Testimony

Jesus does not just heal what hurts you. He cleans what you could never wash. Not only your sins but the sins done to you.

How does that happen? Let’s keep reading. The book of Leviticus gave a procedure for how a leprous man could be restored.

Jesus alludes to it in Matthew 8:4

Matthew 8:4 CSB

4 Then Jesus told him, “See that you don’t tell anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

On the one hand, Jesus tells him not to say anything. On the other he says “go show the priest.” The reason for showing the priest what happened is because of what it proved about Jesus.

What was "the gift that Moses commanded"? It’s prescribed in Leviticus 14.

The priest would take two bird birds. One was sacrificed over fresh water and it’s blood poured into the bowl. He would then take the wings of the other bird and dip it into the bowl. The same was done with Cedar, hyssop and a scarlet thread of yarn. The living bird would then be released to fly with it’s blood dipped wings.

The healed leper would wash and shave his body and come back into the city gates. He would live outside his tent for a total of seven days. On the seventh day he’d wash and shave again and on the eighth day make another sacrifice. (Two unblemished lambs and 1 unblemished Ewe and a grain offering of flour and olive oil.)

Then the priest would take the man to the tent of offering and put that sacrifice before the Lord. In the process, the priest would “make atonement” for the man making him ceremonially clean again.

That whole ceremony had been sitting on the books, unused. There is no record in Scripture of any Israelite ever being sent through it.

Jesus does not shortcut the rite. He sends him to the priest for all eight days. This is exactly what he said back on the mountain. "I did not come to abolish the Law and the Prophets, but to fulfill." (Matthew 5:17)

Jesus honors every line of the Law even as he shows himself as the Law’s fulfillment. That is why Matthew says "as a testimony to them."

Whatever else that means, it at least means this. This miracle proved that Jesus was the Christ. Not only is he the Christ he does what only God can do, beginning this this healing of leprosy.

This man walks into the temple carrying an offering that nobody in the history of Israel had ever had occasion to bring. Not only that, the priest has to certify it. The very priests who rejected the ministry of Jesus.

The priest's job was to certify that the cleansing had happened.

But it was Jesus who actually made him clean.

Clean in a second. Home in eight days. He doesn’t just get you well. He gets you back. Some people are forgiven instantly but restored slowly. Trust may take time to rebuild. That does not mean the cleansing was fake. It means restoration take time to fully manifest.

Your Witness

The ritual and the cleansing was given in the Law to teach about the ugly stain of sin.

God is holy and no tolerance for unholy things in his presence. On sin, God’s holy presence consumes with fire what is profane.

But because of Jesus, this man’s stain was removed and he could draw near to God in worship. Instead of being consumed by fire, the atoning sacrifice took his place.

His life was a witness that Jesus is the Christ: a king who has come to make us clean. If somebody examined your life for evidence, would would your testimony say?

Are you a witness that Christ alone can save?

Or does your life testify to something different? Some of us are living like lepers who’ve been cleansed but choose to remain outside the camp. Jesus has washed us and brought us near but we refuse to enter in.

You’re managing the shame of a thing that Jesus washed. You still define yourself by your worst chapter. And the tragedy of that is not just what it costs you. It’s the story left untold to other lepers.

THE CHRIST CONNECTION

When everybody walked, Jesus chose to wait. He gave us all what no one else could give.

Even though Jesus chose to never leave us, he was left forsaken on the cross.

Jesus became the man that nobody wanted. The man who bore the stain of sin. The man who touched an untouchable leper became untouchable himself. He was spit on, mocked and driven outside the gate to suffer and die on a tree.

Jesus recieved the treatment we deserved and that’s WHY the leper could be cleansed. Jesus washed away what that man could never wash.

2 Corinthians 5:21 CSB

21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Hebrews 13:12 CSB

12 Therefore, Jesus also suffered outside the gate, so that he might sanctify the people by his own blood.

For every single person who feels excluded, unwanted, defiled and put outside, Jesus became unwanted and excluded, defiled and put outside the gate. He was rejected so you could be accepted. He was condemned to see you free.

Jesus became the man with leprosy to heal the leprosy in us. Jesus is the offering as well as the priest.

He’s the sacrifice and one who makes atonement.  The resurrection is the proof that He has done it.

If the offering had been refused, the tomb would still be closed. It isn’t. The stone was rolled away.

Which means God looked at Jesus and his death for your sin and said, “It is finished, their sins are washed away.”

He didn’t save you because He had to. The Law gave him an out. He did so because he WANTED to. He wasn’t just able. He was also willing to do what others simply wouldn’t.

The question remains are you now willing to bow before Jesus and do the same? He touched what he could have healed from across the room.

He did not just get that man well—he got him back. This is the man who restores what no one else will touch. Come out of hiding. He is willing.