These are shocking words, “there came a leper.” Leprosy was so horrible that lepers were quarantined. If a leper came near another person he had to cry “Unclean, unclean.” Can you picture this scene? As the people stand clear for fear of touching this leper finally he gets to the Lord Jesus Christ “and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.” I picture the crowd silent in suspense. What will the Master do? “And Jesus put forth his hand, and TOUCHED him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.” Mercy is obtained when mercy is truly sought. May we see in this leper what it is to truly seek mercy in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Come to Christ in Desperate Need Leprosy is one of the best representations of the plague of sin: sin makes everything we touch unclean, sin is incurable by us and sin means death. The leper realized his desperate case. Do you? You may not have leprosy but you have a disease worse than that, you have the disease of sin. Do you know your need of cleansing? Do you know that without Christ you will surely perish forever? Before any sinner will seek mercy, we must first have this desperate need. Seeking mercy is to come to Christ with a need none but Christ can cure.
Come to Christ in True Humility The leper came and worshipped him. Luke says, “Seeing Jesus, he fell on his face.” Christ is worshipped with a heart broken and contrite. When the Spirit of God gives a new heart then we see who and what we are in the Light of who Christ is. Our best deeds are filthy rags; Christ is Holy and Righteous. We are full of uncleanness; Christ is the Fountain open for cleansing. Seeking mercy is to come down: down from pride, down from self-righteousness, down from self-sufficiency, all the way down to the feet of Christ. Has your heart been broken and humbled at the feet of Christ? (Mt 5: 3-6.) Only when we become poor in spirit will we repent from ourselves, fall on our face and worship Christ (Job 42: 5-6.)
Come to Christ Submitting in Faith The leper said, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.” As bad as his disease was yet Christ had said, “Ask, and it shall be given you” (Mt 7: 7.) He came making no demands but casting himself on the will of another, “Lord, if thou wilt.” Are you depending on your will or to the will of God? Salvation glorifies the will of the Lord not our will (Ro 9: 15-16.) The leper acknowledged Christ’s sovereign right to give or withhold grace according to his own sovereign pleasure. Mercy seekers come to Christ believing he is able to do what no one else can, “thou canst make me clean.” Do you believe Christ is who he says he is?—the Son of God. Do you believe Christ has finished the work of salvation so that there remains nothing for you to do? Do you believe that if it is his will Christ can make you clean? Come to Christ submitting to his will, believing on him (He 11:6.)
Mercy Found The God of all grace has never rejected a sinner who cast himself upon the King, Christ Jesus. -- Clay Curtis
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