We don’t like things that make us uncomfortable. There are many things in life that require discomfort to achieve a result; like diet and exercise or dealing with confrontation. The truth is that friction is necessary for change to happen.
In biblical times, a person with leprosy was labeled an outcast. They were the dirty, the lowest of the low.
Leviticus 13:45-46 “The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ 46 He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.”
This was the way things were done. It was understood. You just did not go near a leper. Ever.
But Jesus did.
Luke 5:12-13 “While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, ‘Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.’ 13And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, ‘I will; be clean.’ And immediately the leprosy left him.
Jesus touched him. TOUCHED him! And he not only touched the man, He healed him completely, giving him back a life that had been destroyed.
Do we touch the lepers, giving them the hope of the gospel we hold? Or do we resign them to leper camps outside the safety of our circles? Do we disdain, write-off and gossip about the people who are created in the image of God, just as we are?
We have a world full of figurative lepers; people whose ideas or lifestyles don’t follow the ways of Christ. We are called to love them and share the hope of Jesus, even if it makes us uncomfortable. Our job is not to point out how they’re wrong or tell them how to clean up their lives. That is the work of the Holy Spirit. We are to love them as we love ourselves.
Older
Top
