This is one of my favorite examples of Jesus' compassion on others. At first glance, this particular healing may not stand out as extra-special when compared to the other healings Jesus performed. But if you'll allow me to delve a little bit deeper, perhaps we'll gain a better understanding of the story.
Jesus is walking along with a large crowd of followers. Suddenly, a leprous man comes and throws himself in front of Jesus. The crowd cowers back from the terrible sight. The man garbles, "Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean."
The crowd looks to see what Jesus' response would be. Then, Jesus did the unthinkable. Jesus reached out and touched the man. This wasn't just a glancing touch either, but the Greek translates to something more like, "the grip you need when you are pulling someone up from over a cliff's edge," more like a strong embrace than a touch. The crowd was shocked. Not only did Jesus do what was forbidden by law, but He risked contracting a terrible, uncurable disease.
But when Jesus looked at that man, I believe He saw more than just a sickly leper. He saw a man separated from the rest of humanity by a terrible disease. The man had no hope of ever being cured, outside of Christ Himself. His existence was cold, devoid of any human affection. Then, Jesus reached out and embraced the man. Outside of healing the man, the touch included something that he had not experienced in years--the embrace of another human.
Jesus didn't see a leper. Perhaps he saw a former family man, someone who, because of his disease, hadn't been able to hug his wife or daughter for years. The man's heart must have been torn in two. But then, Jesus reached out and changed his life forever.
You know, there are people all around us suffering from spiritual leprosy. There are people who have never been loved. There are people who have never known the embrace of another human. If we only look on the outside, these people may look disgusting to us. We need to learn to see people with compassion, for the eyes of compassion look beyond the surface and see into the heart.
Pray that God will teach you how to show compassion, how to become personally involved with the lost, to meet them where they are and guide them to Him through your love. Remember, these people are people just like you. The only difference is, we've found the Saviour, and we have Someone to guide us now. We need to lead others to Him so they can experience His true love as well.
Ideas for this study were taken from "Coffeehouse Theology" by Jim Thomas.
