The touch

I love the stories in the gospels. They give such a wonderful picture of the love of God as Jesus touches the needs of people.

One of my favorite stories in the gospels is in Mark 1. May I share it with you, and then make some observations?

Mar 1:40-45- And a leper came to Jesus, beseeching Him and falling on his knees before Him, and saying, "If You are willing, You can make me clean." Moved with compassion, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed." Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away, and He *said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them." But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news around, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everywhere.

Each time I read this story I have to stop and just pause for a moment...it takes my breath away. You see, this is an amazing story of the love of God.

The problem for us is that we miss so much because we don't know a lot about the times in which this happened. In this time in Jewish history lepers were common. The law required they live apart from those who were well, and if someone came near they were to holler, "unclean, unclean!"

For a jew to touch a leper meant they were unclean as well. It was a very isolating illness. Not only was it incurable, but you had to leave family, friends, and community and live apart, untouched. Untouched by your wife, untouched by your sweet children, untouched by anyone. It wasn't just the illness that was the problem...it was also a complete loss of human contact.

This man, in desperation, did the unthinkable- he came up to Jesus UNANNOUNCED! In Luke the story tells us that this man was covered with leprosy. He had been sick for a long time, and had been alone for years…away from anyone he loved. He broke the law, he came to Jesus unannounced and asked for a miracle.

I can just hear the disciples and the Pharisees when they realized who this was that had come in unannounced. Their voices of protest, their screams of rage, their revulsion over this breaking of the law must have caused a great commotion.

And yet this man came, and asked for a miracle, “if you want to, you can make me clean,” but the miracle he needed was more than healing from leprosy. He didn’t know that it wasn’t just a disease that had scarred him. He needed the touch of God in his life as well. He needed a human touch.

And that’s what Jesus did. He did the unthinkable. I can just hear the protests as Jesus reached out his hand and TOUCHED THE LEPER and said, “I want to!” The screams from those around must have been deafening! "Oh, no…now Jesus is unclean as well!" And yet, it was the very thing this man needed most….the touch.

Yes, he was healed. Yes, in that moment his life was changed. But something more happened- God touched the leper, while he was still in his sickness, unclean, dirty, ugly. The love of God touched the broken, lonely heart of this man and changed his life.

It’s a wonderful picture of what God did for me! While I was still a sinner (leper), Christ touched me, and he did it even while I was lost, sick, a sinner. He touched me, and forgave me, and gave me the very thing I didn’t even know I needed- His love (his touch).

It changed this man’s life. It has changed my life. This man couldn’t stop talking about it, and I know he physically touched each person he told.

God’s love has changed my life. I can’t stop talking about it either.

Do you know what he’s done for us? Do you realize that even when we were lepers he touched us? His love reached us even when we were lost and forgave us, and made us clean—inside and out.

The touch of God’s love- how amazing! That God would reach out to me, love me, forgive me, and touch me…I’m awed in that reality. I must tell someone….there are still lepers out there who need to be touched….they don’t know yet…..more later, I have to find a “leper” to touch........