4^th September

“As He entered a village there, ten lepers stood at a distance, crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” He looked at them and said, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy.”

Luke 17:12-14

In the Bible, leprosy was a disease that led to insolation, loneliness, and severe pain. Due to its title of being an ‘unclean’ disease, those who had it, could not associate with anyone else. This is why the lepers could only stand at a distance and shout out to Jesus for their healing.

However, as soon as they saw Jesus, they acknowledged straight away that He was no ordinary man, hence why they called Him Master. They knew that Jesus could heal them. They knew He had the power as they cried out to Him for mercy. So Jesus in His mercy, healed all ten of them. Yet interestingly Jesus’ healing required a step of obedience and faith from the lepers too.

The law requires that after you are healed from leprosy you must present yourselves to the Pharisees, so you can be given the all clear to interact with society again. It was only the Pharisees that could say you are completely healed. So in asking them to go to the Pharisees, it was like Jesus had already healed them. It needed a huge step of faith though. They knew they could not associate with ‘clean’ people, especially those who thought they were the cleanest of all, the Pharisees. Yet, they had nothing to lose. They had to trust Jesus; and because of their trust, they were all healed as they walked to meet the Pharisees.

Sometimes, Jesus’ healing comes in ways and forms that we don’t expect. However, what we can expect is that Jesus is a healer. He graciously and merciful healed the lepers. Yet again Jesus showed His compassion for the marginalised and His grace to heal to sick. May we too live as Jesus lived, imitating His heart for the lost and praying in His Name for healing for the sick. God is alive!