Jesus makes us Clean
I stand before you excited,
Excited because today I get to play a very active role in God’s plan,
Today, I will preach the Gospel,
Today I have the opportunity to speak to you about the greatest story ever told,
Today I speak to you about God’s redemptive plan.
I want to start off by saying that; I see that the entire Bible is the story of God’s redemptive work in his creation.
From the garden and the fall,
to the law and wisdom and the message of the prophets
to God amongst us - Jesus and the teaching of Christ,
to the cross- and the resurrection
to the founding of the church at Pentecost and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit
with the book of Acts the only unfinished book of the bible, unfinished because the work continues to this day,
and to the vision of glory, the vision from revelations of the great and glorious uniting of the faithful in the heavenly city
In all the Bible, each story is in some way connected to God’s redemptive work in humanity
Now the Old Testament reading for today is a story about the healing of Naaman, it is a powerful story, by itself.
It is a story of how a military leader, who is an enemy of Israel, comes to seek healing from a foreign prophet,
And leaves being so overwhelmed by power of his healing to declare God as the one and only true God.
It has many aspects and angles which merit further discussion, but I will leave that for you to explore on your own.
The Gospel reading today is about as clear an understanding of healing by Jesus as can be found anywhere, and it shows profoundly what God is doing when he heals. I would like to first go over the passage in a slightly different way…
Imagine for moment if you will, you are a Leper, there are many leprosies, many of them completely different. All you know is that because of your flaky white skin you are ostracized. You are forced to live outside the city in a tent, away from everything and everybody. You are separated from your whole family, friends and any possibility of work. Your sole means of getting any money for food is limited to begging and that is even very hard as you are supposed to stay away from everyone else by 30 paces.
Then you hear that a great healer is coming through your city. You decide that this is your chance, you are fed up with the life that you are forced to live, you are going to ignore all religious laws and will go to see him and ask him to heal you. You wait by the roadside… and wait… and wait… you are used to waiting but this time the excitement makes the wait feel like forever… There he is… Now is the moment that you have been waiting for. You run up to him… There he is right in front of you and all your plans to be bold, all of a sudden, seem frozen, all your convictions to stand up for what you want, melt into a more timid appeal and you meekly falling to your knees, you realize you may have contaminated him with your illness. Yet, all you can think of is that you want to be clean again. And you say “If you choose, you can make me clean?”
To your great surprise this Jesus touches you, he knows what you are thinking, he knows what you were just afraid of, of passing on your illness… and he touches you. And tells you “I do choose, be made clean” and immediately the leprosy leaves you.
Then he sends you away, he tells you go to a Priest to authenticate your healing and provide a thank offering to the temple, but tell no one else… Tell no one else? Tell no one else… of course you will do anything Jesus tells you… but as soon as you return to the city, your joy can not be contained, you are clean and you tell everyone that you see. “Jesus made me clean.”
(Pause)
Healing is a touchy subject. It is the source of a great deal of potential manipulation.
You only have to take a quick look at Benny Hinn to see how dangerous it can be.
It is filled with expectations;
Yet fears;
A desire to believe;
Yet worldly skepticism.
At the core it questions the power and influence of our faith on our earthly existence.
So I would like to share a few thoughts with you about what I understand as biblical healing:
Since ‘the fall from grace in the garden’ all sickness and disease was viewed by the Ancient Hebrews as a product of sin.
His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
Next, healing was connected to preaching or proclaiming the good news of God. Physical healing is a device for the message. Jesus’s intention was primarily spiritual healing.
“Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And instantly the woman was made well. (Matthew 9:22)
And in the small passage right before today’s gospel - which makes it sandwiched in between stories of healing - Mark says - Jesus answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.” 39 And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
Thirdly, healing was connected to illustrate or prove God’s authority, it was dramatic and public.
Then some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” 4 But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5 For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Stand up and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic—“Stand up, take your bed and go to your home.”
Those three principals of healing are important to put healing into proper perspective… but consider one more.
Consider God’s “big picture plan”
God’s plan of redemption
God makes those outsiders - - - insiders
God transforms by his healing grace…
Those that the world considered untouchable
God reaches out to them, touches them and brings them into belonging
Consider also why Jesus told the leper not to tell anyone -
Jesus must have known by choosing to make the leper clean he would be trading places with him,
Due to the crowds and his popularity, It is now Jesus that was forced outside the city
Here is a story about a speech a man made in support of a special school where his son attended.
Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they'll let me play?" Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team.
Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay could play, not expecting much. The boy looked around for guidance, and a few boys nodded approval, why not? "We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning." Shay struggled over to the team's bench put on a team shirt with a broad smile and his Father had a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible 'cause Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing the other team putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least be able to make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.
The game would now be over, but the pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game. Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the head of the first baseman, out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!" Never in his life had Shay ever ran that far but made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second!" Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to second base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball, the smallest guy on their team, who had a chance to be the hero for his team for the first time. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions and he too intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head.
Shay ran toward second base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home. All were screaming, "Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay" Shay reached second base, the opposing shortstop ran to help him and turned him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third! Shay, run to third" As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams and those watching were on their feet were screaming, "Shay, run home!" Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the "grand slam" and won the game for his team.
“That day,” said the father, “the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world."
Shay didn't make it to another summer and died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his Father so happy and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
2000 years ago God came in the flesh to live as one of us.
Jesus arrived in the flesh as a frail baby, grew up living a human existence.
And when the time came went about the land to preach and to heal.
God reached out and touched us, touched the untouchables.
Jesus choose to make us clean.
Now those boys on that baseball field didn’t heal Shay, and they
They didn’t reach out and touch Shay and have all his health problems immediately disappear.
Those boys made him feel like he belonged. They made him clean.
At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out.
and just as the book of Acts is unfinished, with the work continuing to this day. The Holy Spirit was poured into their hearts… and
Love on that baseball diamond was shared with each act of grace
Each person choose to make Shay feel clean
To make him feel that he belonged
Modern day lepers are not hard to find…
We all fall short of God’s glory
I look into my own heart and I know what it is like to be an outsider
To be out of step with others
But most importantly; to be out of step with God…
But I know that Jesus has invited me in.
I know that I will enter into that heavenly city and I can’t contain my joy either
Because Jesus choose to make me clean
In a few moments we are blessed to share communion with Jesus and one another.
To eat the bread in remembrance of his broken body for us,
To drink the wine in remembrance of his spilt blood.
To do all this, in the knowledge that Jesus choose to make us clean
Amen