Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 01 Sept 2013 by Rebecca, Sarah-Grace, and Captain Michael Ramsay
“The Miracle stories in [Matthew] 8:1-9:34 should not be interpreted in isolation, but each should be interpreted in the context of the section as a whole, since it was constructed by Matthew as “Messiah in deed” (cf. 11:2), corresponding 5:7-29 as “Messiah in word”. Today we will very quickly attempt to do just that while focusing on healings: the infirmity, the patient, who initiates the healing, what is the response, what is the directive, and then after we do all of this we will try to pull it together and ask ourselves how do all of Jesus’ healings here recorded apply to our lives today?
Matthew 8:1-4: When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
Infirmity: Leprosy (any skin disease)
Patient: Leper (social outcast)
Initiation: “A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing you can make me clean” (Matthew 8:2)
Response: “I am willing”, “Be clean” – Immediately the man was healed (v.3)
Directive: 1) Tell no one 2) Show yourself to the priest and offer sacrifices as a testimony (v.4)
This healing miracle is initiated by a man suffering from a skin disease. It may or may not be Hansen’s Disease –which is what we think of when we think of leprosy. This man, however, is shunned by his community: people with skin diseases are not allowed to take part in many social activities. He is an outcast. He is seen as unclean. There are a couple of important things that I notice off the bat about this healing. 1) The way the leper approaches Jesus: he approaches Him with deference and respect. He doesn’t command Jesus as if Jesus is some genie in a bottle. Instead the man says, Verse 2, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” And, Verse 3, then “Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’” And 2) as he is healed, Jesus tells the man to offer the appropriate sacrifices to God as a testimony to the priests. We need to thank God for what he does in our lives and we need to share that with our religious leaders so that they have the opportunity to offer Glory to God as well.
