Mark part 11…April 1, 2015
Chapter 1:40-45
As you read through the N.T. and life of Jesus while on this earth you will see where Jesus
healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons, fed multitudes, calmed storms and
walked on water.
Whenever Jesus performed a miracle it was not to please people or just to help people out.
Jesus did the miraculous in order to validate the fact that He is the Son of God.
But the most important thing to Jesus was not performing miracles it was preaching the
truth.
Jesus came for the purpose of causing sinners to hear a message that would lead them to
repentance and salvation.
Preaching was Jesus’ purpose the miracles were just to validate the message.
Tonight in verses 40-45 we will see where Jesus healed a person with leprosy.
Verse 40 says…Now a leper came to Him.
That’s all we know about this person, is he has leprosy.
The word leprosy comes the word lepros which means scaly.
It is a term that is used to mark scaly skin.
Today leprosy would be known as Hansen’s disease.
When it was deemed that a person had leprosy they were put out of society all together.
They were labeled as unclean and according to Lev. 13 a person with leprosy had to say the
words unclean, unclean, unclean everywhere they went in order to warn people of their
condition.
They also had to shred or rip and tear their clothes so that it would be apparent to everyone that
they were in fact lepers.
What leprosy does is attack the nerves in the skin and below the skin.
And what it does is essentially numb the feeling or feeling disappears.
1
Because of the loss of feeling due to nerve damage the victim destroys his own tissue because
they have no feeling.
A person could wear off their fingers simply by tying their shoes, raking or washing dishes.
Leprosy at times caused blindness and could cause a person’s teeth to fall out.
Leprosy would penetrate the internal organs and even caused sterility.
Leprosy also attacks the larynx and the leper’s voice starts to become hoarse.
So that means a leper could be recognized as a person with bad eyesight, no feeling, their smell
and their rasping voice.
Leprosy was and is a horrendous disease.
Leprosy was very communicable or contagious.
Transmission occurred when the bacillus was inhaled, or by bodily contact or by contact with the
person’s clothes.
That means a person with leprosy had to live alone or outside the camp or the city.
This meant a person with leprosy was cut off from society and family.
They could not go to the Temple, they couldn’t go home they couldn’t associate with their
family…
The only association they could have is with other lepers in the leper’s camp.
If a leper came near a synagogue they would be rejected and sent to a small holding room
until they could be dealt with.
In Israel lepers were barred from the city of Jerusalem all together as well as any other walled
city.
Lepers were treated as if they were dead men or corpse.
Luke 5:12 tells us the severity of this man’s condition…he was full of leprosy.
I said all that because I want you to see what this man was dealing with.
In verse 40 we read that he came to Jesus that was forbidden.
Outcasts were forbidden to come near anyone they had to keep their distance.
2
Upwind a leper could not come within 6 feet of another person…
Downwind it was 150 feet.
This man in his desperation violated all necessary standards of exclusion.
He came to Jesus imploring Him or begging Him to heal him.
Mark tells us the man kneeled down to Jesus this shows us the man is respectful and humble.
Matthew tells us the man worshipped meaning he had a worshipful attitude.
Luke says he fell on his face meaning the man flattened himself in humble adoration before
Jesus.
Luke also adds that he called Jesus Lord.
This man was desperate and willing to risk the consequences for going where he was not
supposed to go.
That shows how desperate he was in his situation…
But it also shows how confident he was in the power of Jesus he had heard about.
He approaches in desperation…
He approaches Jesus with reverence…
He has an attitude of worship…
He comes with humility…
He comes with confident faith…
He comes with respect…
And he comes knowing what he is in need of…cleansing.
Verse 40 he says to Jesus if You are willing, You can make me clean.
This shows he had no doubt about the power of Jesus.
The only thing he didn’t know was whether Jesus would be willing to do it.
3
Verse 41 we see Jesus’ response.
Then Jesus moved with compassion.
Now make sure you see that even though the man did all the right things that is not what was
behind his healing.
The only thing that moved Jesus was His own compassion.
Mark says Jesus was moved with compassion.
In other words Jesus felt the man’s pain…
Jesus felt the agony of this man situation…
Jesus felt the pain of this man’s isolation both physically and spiritually.
God is a God of compassion…
God feels all the pain that sin does to people…
Jesus was motivated by compassion not the level of the man’s faith.
To me this is a very important thing because there are times when our faith may not be where
it ought to be.
So I am glad that God doesn’t base His response on our level of faith…
But looks beyond our faith and sees our desperation and situation.
Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him.
His touch was a touch of compassion…
But His touch was also a touch of connection.
The touch was Jesus linking Himself directly to the man’s condition and healing.
Throughout Mark you will that Jesus loved to touch…
He touched with compassion…
He touched with tenderness…
He touched with kindness…
4
He touched the untouchables or people that no one else would dare to touch.
Whoever Jesus touched was affected His touch…
But at the same time whoever or whatever touched Jesus did not affect Him.
In Lev. 5:3 there is a law forbidding anyone to touch a leper as it brought defilement to them.
But Jesus couldn’t be defiled by anything that touched Him.
There is no record in Scripture that during Jesus’ life on this earth of 33 years that He ever
had an illness, disease, cold, cough, He never sneezed there is no record that He ever had any
infection or infliction.
Nor was Jesus affected when Mary washed His feet with her perfume and then let her hair
down and dried His feet.
No illicit thoughts no fantasy in His head.
Jesus had a perfect sinless body and mind.
Jesus touches the man and says the words that I am sure the man was holding his breath
for…
I am willing be cleansed.
Verse 42 As soon as Jesus had spoken immediately one of Marks favorite words…
Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.
Immediately means on the spot, or at that moment, instantaneously and completely the leprosy
left him and he was cleansed.
There were no medications that could stop, reverse or restore what leprosy had done.
Medication had its limitations Jesus had no limitations.
When Jesus cleansed the man it meant everything the leprosy had destroyed was made new.
The man’s body was instantly restored.
But he was not only well he was back in shape or fit physically as well.
Leprosy would have worked hard on his system on the inside or on the organs.
5
Just like Peter’s mother in law there was no recovery time.
Verse 43… we see what I am talking about…
And He strictly warned the man and sent him away at once.
Verse 44…And He said to him, see that you say nothing to anyone, but go your way show
yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded as a
testimony to them.
To do that the man would have to go to Jerusalem to the temple to an on duty priest.
The walk would have been 60 to 70 miles to Jerusalem.
That’s how we know the man was made physically fit.
When Jesus touches there is no rehab.
The instructions Jesus gave the man is very interesting
Jesus in verse 43 strictly or sternly warned him.
The word sternly or strictly comes from the word that means to snort.
Not snort like a person snorts cocaine…
But snort like a horse.
It means to make a loud snort as if irritated and impatient.
This is a verbal noise that came to refer to a very strong demand.
So Jesus is using very strong language in other words what Jesus tells the man is not a
suggestion.
The Lord snorted at him and warned him to go right then.
Jesus gives the man two commands.
One is positive and the other one is negative.
First Jesus said to him see that you say nothing to anyone don’t tell anyone what I did for you.
Second the positive…go show yourself to the priest, offer for cleansing what Moses
commanded.
6
Lev. 14 says if a leper thought that they were cured there was a process they had to follow.
It was a process of examination and process of offerings and sacrifices that were to be done at
the temple.
The priests were seen as the health officials of the nation.
So Jesus is upholding the medical and the moral law when He says to go to the priests.
The examination consisted of two birds, one would be killed over running water.
Then the priest took cedar, scarlet and hyssop blended them together and then took the living
bird dipped it in the blood of the dead bird and then the living blood was allowed to go free.
The man then washed himself and his clothes shaved himself and then waited for 7 days.
At the end of 7 days he was reexamined.
At that point he had to shave his hair and his eyebrows and make certain sacrifices.
The sacrifices consisted of two male lambs without blemish one of which was a ewe lamb…
Then he had to have three tenths of an amount of flour mingled with oil and the restored leper is
then touched in the tip of the right ear, the right thumb, and the right big toe with a mixture of
blood and oil and then examined again.
If the person is really cured then he is allowed to go with a certificate that he is cleansed.
Jesus tells the man to go do all that.
The end of verse 44 Jesus told him one reason why He wanted him to do that…

Jesus wanted the miracle confirmed to and by the priests.

Jesus wanted to make sure the priests saw what He did and couldn’t ignore it.

Jesus wanted the priest to have to face His power and Jesus wanted the priests to know
that He upholds the Mosaic Law.
Keep in mind the priest’s had an anti-Christ attitude because Jesus had been there and cleansed
the temple.
So Jesus tells the man go through the tests.
7
If the priests faced the reality that he was a leper who is now completely restored and then still
reject Him they will condemn themselves by their own findings.
Jesus wants to convince the priests so that they might be convicted and not condemned.
This miracle involved the man but it was not about the man it was about the priests.
But also Jesus at the same time is establishing whether or not the man meant it when he
worshipped and called Him Lord.
When we call Jesus Lord of our life I believe there will be times He will test us to prove if He
really is Lord of all or Lord at all.
Two tests of obedience…
Don’t tell anyone and go show yourself to the priests.
Verse 45 we see the man’s response to Jesus’ command.
However he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the matter.
He didn’t do what Jesus told him to do and did exactly what Jesus told him not to do.
He was totally disobedient.
And his disobedience was extremely costly.
Not to him so much but to others.
Always keep in mind when we do not do what God tells us to do…it is always costly.
Not always costly to us, but costly to others and even more costly to the Lord.
This man’s disobedience possibly cost the priest’s the opportunity for salvation.
This man’s disobedience cost the Lord the opportunity to prove who He was to the priests as
well as that He followed the law.
Jesus wanted to use the miracle as way to enter cities to preach.
The man’s disobedience also spread what Jesus did so that Jesus could no longer openly or
publicly enter a city
Which meant Jesus had to minister in unpopulated places.
8
So what we will see from now on is Jesus ministering in the wilderness and on the seashore
and at times in a boat.
And when Jesus does come back to His home base in Capernaum He is swamped by people
coming to Him because they have heard the report of the healing.
Jesus wanted the healing to cause the priests to face His divine power…
He wanted to be able to go into each city like He wanted to do to preach.
It’s such a sad thing when a person gets what they want…
But Jesus doesn’t get what He wants.
Disobedience of one man cost many people the blessings of God.
We call on the Lord when we need something but many times fail to call on Him when we
get it.
It is said that a minister is a person who lives with a broken heart.
I have to say that it is a true statement.
I have often thought I had maybe mild depression but then I realized that was not the case at
all…
Instead I have learned it is a broken heart not depression at all.
My heart breaks for the lost…
My heart breaks for the sick and the poor…
My heart breaks for the outcast…
My heart breaks when a person loses a loved one…
My heart breaks for people who do not believe in God and who don’t care about the
judgment…
My heart breaks for those who are disobedient to the Word of God.
But my heart breaks the most for God.
When I see what He does for people and how He is treated with such disregard.
9
My heart breaks when I see someone that is well or been healed or set free and they won’t even
stand to praise Him (of course if they are able)…
I am not complaining but being open and honest I live with a broken heart as a Pastor…
And sad to say I am sure Jesus did and does as well.
Because people will not obey His Word.
I believe the heart of Jesus is broken because of all the blessings people miss because of
disobedience.
10