A Man with Leprosy Came to Me

Meditations based on readings from

The Story of My Life As Told by Jesus Christ

August 22, 2019

A Man with Leprosy Came to Me

Page 77

Matthew 8:2-4; Mark 1:40-45; Luke 5:12-16

When Jesus healed the leper, he revealed his authority and power to instantly heal and make whole the lives of those who suffer. He also revealed that his mission to bring God’s Kingdom on earth was turning cultural norms upside down. The healing of the leper, who lived on the edge of Jewish culture, is an example of such upheaval.

In his preaching, Jesus described life in the Kingdom of God and invited all people to come and live under the reign of God. The healing of the leper makes it clear that when Jesus invites all people, he means ALL people. In Jesus’ Kingdom, we all, especially those now on the edge of human culture, are invited to sit at the head table.

Too often when churches want to grow their congregations, they see their sanctuary filled with more people, just like the people who are already present.  When that notion reflects the thinking in our churches, there is still much more that needs to be plowed under to make room for the Kingdom of God.

My Takeaway: As I meditate on Jesus’ healing of the leper, I look at my life to see what God has turned upside down in me, because if there hasn’t been massive upheaval in my life, then I haven’t encountered the Kingdom of God.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Copyright © 2019 by Alex M. Knight

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

• Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

• The second edition of  First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.