Reflection for Sunday February 15, 2009.

Mark 1:40-45

Jesus Cleanses a Leper

40 A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, ‘If you choose, you can make me clean.’ 41Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, ‘I do choose. Be made clean!’ 42Immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43After sternly warning him he sent him away at once, 44saying 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.’ 45But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.

Mothers - and fathers too, but mostly mothers – are amazing, really. From the time the first child is born until the last child is able to utilize a toilet and navigate to it in the middle of the night on her own without calling for help, a mother is called on countless times to deal with body issues (pun intended) that would turn the stomach of a childless person. Besides dealing with mind boggling numbers of poopy diapers, I cannot tell you how many times I was up in the middle of the night with a sick child cleaning the results of stomach flu or diarrhea off of them, off the sheets and off the floor. Yet I also cannot remember one time when, faced with a smelly gross mess, I had any desire to turn away from my child and let him or her wallow in sickness. I might not have enjoyed the mess but the mess in no way affected my love and concern for my child – in fact, my concern and desire to comfort and help that child was heightened by their illness. There is nothing more heart wrenching than a sick child.

Quite often we are encouraged to relate ourselves to the leper in this gospel reading, to see ourselves as the untouchable one whom Jesus saves. But, just for a moment first, put yourself in Jesus’ sandals.

A leper was repulsive to a healthy person, unclean and dangerous to be around. Open sores and missing fingers and toes and facial features made a leper a horror to look at and no one was allowed to touch a leper. Nobody wanted to touch a leper. But Jesus wanted to.

“Such a kind man.” We might think. Well, it wasn’t really just an act of kindness that made Jesus take pity on the man and reach out and touch him. This leper was not just an ugly, filthy, physically distorted person; this leper was his child. Jesus loved this man and he could no more turn away from his leper than a mother could turn away from her sick and helpless child. Can you understand the love now?

There are times when you feel leprous inside, as if all your faults and failings and inability to walk like you feel you should have caused open sores on your spirit. There are times in your life of great discouragement because it seems like the more you try to control your failures the more they get away from you. Like the person with leprosy, the sores of your inadequacies just keep appearing. It just doesn’t feel like Jesus would be very happy to keep company with someone who has such a diseased and disabled spirit. Yes, you know that he loves you and forgives you but does he really want to be with you? Does he like to be with you?

Tell me who made the heart of a mother? Now, let’s not be overly sentimental here. A mom’s heart isn’t always the epitome of patience, mercy and love. She gets tired and worn out and snaps when she’s pushed too far and has moments of resentment and even desperation, but when she has a sick little baby in her arms, a baby or a toddler who’s burning up with fever and can’t keep food down, the kind of patience and deep concern that fills her heart comes straight from the heart of God. She does not blame her child for being sick. She is just so sorry for the baby for being the victim of whatever virus or disease the child is fighting. She does not walk away from the child saying, “When you get over this illness and when you’ve cleaned up your messes, come and see me.”

Sin is an illness. Jesus said, “I didn’t come for the well but for the sick.” He doesn’t hold himself back from us when we are ill of spirit and mind. He is burning the midnight oil at our sides, cooling the fever, cleaning up the messes. He stays with us until we are better even if that takes until the breaking of the dawn. He will never leave us or get upset if we don’t seem to be getting better. He is also a physician so he knows much better than we do that we are on the mend. I know I have gone through physical illness where I was so discouraged with how long the illness or disability seemed to be lasting yet a doctor could have looked at me every day and seen definite signs that I was on the mend. Jesus can see what we can’t.

Jesus said he did not come to earth to judge it. He came with mercy, and did you know that the Hebrew word for mercy actually means the quality of love felt by a mother nursing her child?

If you’re feeling sick inside, let him nurse you back to health. Your sickness is not what breaks his heart, it’s when you don’t let him in to take care of you because you’re ashamed of being sick.

Thank God our babies and children don’t do that to us!