A Surprising Witness

Once again we experience the rush of Mark’s story of Jesus: the sense of hurry that permeates this, the earliest Gospel. The tales are always sparsely told: devoid of detail or depth of characterization — leaving us to speculate. Is the leper a good man or a bad one, is he old or young, married or single? Has he been sick for most of his life or only recently become ill? Is he rich or poor, Jew or Gentile, Greek or Roman, slave or free?

We do not know any of these things. We assume that Jesus does. Or perhaps none of them are important. Perhaps the only thing that matters to the Gospel writer — and the only thing that matters to the Lord — is that the man was suffering.

The Will of the Lord

Hearing the leper’s plea, Jesus responds at once; filled with compassion, he reaches out with a healing blessing: “Of course I want you to be healed! It is done!” The man doesn’t have to convince the Lord of anything: he doesn’t have to describe the scorn and suffering he has endured, the loneliness and isolation, the pain and poverty that fills each day, the fear and horror that his presence inspires in friend and foe alike.

He was not a man, but “a leper” — defined by his disease, and set apart from his society because of it.

The Lord speaks His healing word to this outcaste: “Be cleansed!” and he is made well. Immediately. Jesus does not praise nor scold him for what he has done or not done, he does not mention repentance, does not demand anything in return. He simply (!) heals the man and sends him to the temple to give thanks — and be sure the priests see that he has been made well.

Only One Condition

The one stipulation Jesus does make is that the man not tell anyone what has happened — only the priests. This sounds like an impossible condition. If you had just experienced a miraculous healing — from leprosy! — at the very word of the rabbi from Nazareth, what would you do?

If I were the guy in the story, I’d tell everybody I met: people in line at the grocery store, at the gas station, the dry cleaners, the post office. I’d send an email message to everyone in my address book and post it on my webpage. There’s no way to keep such a secret. That kind of great, good news has to be shared — it simply bubbles to the surface.

And of course people who knew him would have noticed the change. That would require some kind of explanation — and we certainly can’t expect the fellow to lie about his cure.

Surely the Lord realizes that his request will not — cannot — be honored. Wherever he travels the news of his powerful preaching, miraculous healings, and casting out of demons goes with him. Then why does Jesus issue this “charge of secrecy” to the leper?

Who Should Know?

I think we make a mistake in focusing on who wasn’t to hear what happened instead of the ones Jesus insisted needed to hear about it. Perhaps the point isn’t “Don’t tell anybody,” but “Do tell the priests.” This event is something that they must see — the priesthood must know that Jesus has healed the leper: “as a testimony to them.”

Why would that be so important?

Perhaps the answer lies in the nature of the healing which the Lord effected. Perhaps Jesus’ statement was about the person — rather than the disease. “Make a thanks-offering, and be sure the priests see you.” What if there had been no visible change? What if it was the power of God’s love that made the man whole?

What if his skin was still covered in scabs? If his feet were blackened, his fingers numb, his joints stiff, his vision failing, his gait uneven?

Perhaps Jesus sent the leper to the priests “as a testimony” that, despite the “imperfection” of his body, the man was a beloved child of God whose rightful place was in his Father’s house? No one is an outsider in the Creator’s sight; no one is excluded from God’s domain.

Restored to the Kingdom

In his authority as Messiah, Son of God, and Redeemer, Jesus proclaimed that the leper was cleansed. Reclaimed. Redeemed. Restored — to his community, his family, his God. Through the power of love and divine wisdom, one who had been exiled was established as a full citizen of the whole Holy Kingdom.

That is the Good News that is to be announced throughout the earth. It is the good news that we all need to hear, again and again. No matter what we have done or left undone, no matter who we are or how we look or where we live or what we do — we have not be cast out or cast aside. It is God’s will that no one should be excluded, but that all be restored in Christ’s gracious love. We all have a place, a task, a mission.

Our God is God of love, understanding, hope, healing ... and marvelous surprises. For who could have guessed that the Lord would call upon a leper to be the first apostle?

And yet that seems to have been precisely what Jesus did. He sent him on his way, saying, “Go to the priest and let him see you. Then make an offering as Moses taught, as a testimony to them.” Jesus sent the leper to minister to the ministers! What a great way to get his point across, and a fun surprise for everyone.

But I wonder.

The great good news of healing and restoration was brought to the temple by someone who would have been forbidden to enter. What if the priests refused to let the leper in?

Virtual hugs and real-time blessings,

Deborah +

This Week's Spiritual Exercise

To judge another’s worth based on physical attributes is a mistake — as Jesus warned us when he condemned the scribes and Pharisees as “whitewashed tombs.” Many have been misled by those who appear to be squeaky clean on the outside, but are “filled with hypocrisy and hatefulness” (Mt 23:27-28).

Has God sent you “surprising witnesses” who are bearers of the Good News? Have you barred the entry of any unexpected apostles?