Do You Have the Gratitude of a Leper?

I am not a leper.

Nope. No leper here.

Not a leper. I have never had the horrible disease that rots the flesh and makes your limbs decay and fall off. Where you are shunned by everyone and must live a life of solitude.

But I remember 2020 and the quarantine life. Because of my chronic lung issues, Hubby didn’t let me out of the house for 6 whole weeks. Not even to sit on the front porch!

And yes, I still got COVID, and I was praising God for every breath and for pulling me through it.

Yet the leper life is so much worse. There was no human contact – except another leper – and no cure.

But, Jesus…

A single leper in need

Matthew 8:1-4 tells the story of the single leper who approached Jesus and fell on his face in worship, saying, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” You can see Christ’s compassion in both His words AND ACTIONS.

”I am willing,” He said. And He touched the leper! That’s something unheard of! Lepers had to live apart and announce their presence AND DISEASE by shouting “Unclean” whenever people approached.

So notice what the leper asked for: “You can make me CLEAN.” This demonstrates his faith that Jesus can help him return to his community and ease his lonely life.

BUT the leper’s request BEGINS with a seed of doubt. “IF YOU ARE WILLING.” So he didn’t fully understand who Jesus was. More on that in a minute.

Contact, command, and a cure

Jesus touched the leper – a clear violation of the law – which would make a man unclean. But He was man AND GOD and was not defiled. His purity and power passed to the man through this contact.

Then Jesus gave the leper a command: “Tell no one, but present yourself as clean to the priest and make the offering according to the law.” Two simple parts. First, keep quiet about this. And, fulfill the law’s requirements.

And the man received his cure.

BUT he wasn’t grateful – not really. A man who was grateful for a miraculous healing would do EVERYTHING as he was commanded to do. But in Mark’s version (Mark 1:40-45), the man openly disobeys. “Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. And the people still came to Him from everywhere (v. 45).”

One leper in ten

In contract to the single disobedient leper, the healing of 10 lepers in Luke 17 is remarkable in several ways.

First is the simple number of those healed. Here we have 10 men who found refuge together — allowed because they all had a common affliction. Leprosy was the great equalizer.

Second, instead of healing one leper in Cana, these 10 men were along the border between Samaria and Galilee. Just as a reminder, Jews and Samaritans had great disdain for each other. But here Jews and a Samaritan were unified.

”Have mercy.”

The 10 asked Jesus to have mercy on them, unlike the single leper who asked to be made clean. They didn’t directly mention healing – they just wanted mercy [compassion; patient endurance]. Yet, they received healing when they obeyed. Uniquely, their healing occurred when they were out of Jesus’ sight “AS THEY WENT.” So, indeed, mercy was granted.

Gratitude of a single leper

Only one returned to thank Jesus – even before he went to the priest to fulfill the law’s requirements. Even his voice – once damaged by the disease – had now been restored! And he used it to express his gratitude and worship the Son of God.

His focus was on the Healer. But his Jewish companions put all their focus on the healing.

Jesus asked about the 9. But the one leper wouldn’t speak ill of them. The one received even greater mercy – He received salvation! The 9 missed out because they thought they had no more need for Jesus. The 1 received new life for his body AND SOUL. And the cost? Going forward, this Samaritan will remain devoted to Jesus.

What this means for me:

Jesus IS willing. There is no doubt in my mind that Jesus IS WILLING to help. But we have to ask, and believe in obedience.
Faith matters. My faith BEFORE I ask matters. Do I have the absolute confidence in who Jesus is and what He can do? I should!
Gratitude is rewarded. The Samaritan leper got more than he expected – because of his grateful heart. All 10 received physical mercy, but gratitude led the ONE to spiritual mercy as well.