TRADING PLACES

Mark 1:40-45
40 A man with leprosy came to Him and begged Him on his knees, "If You are willing, You can make me clean." 41 Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. "I am willing," He said. "Be clean!" 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured. 43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 "See that you don't tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them." 45 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. Yet the people still came to Him from everywhere.

He shouldn't have been there and he knew it. But the pain, the isolation, the humiliation . . . he was desperate. Was this the sum total of his life--to scream "Unclean! Unclean!" to anyone within earshot? To wear torn clothes that signaled his diseased status to the community? To feel so sore? To feel so lonely?

He hadn't been embraced in a long time. A hug would defile his wife, his family, and friends. That's what the law said about touching leprous souls like him (Leviticus 5:2-3). He knew the law well, both in word and experience. It said, "He must live alone; he must live outside the camp" (13:46). And so, he did.

But could this rabbi make things different? He had healed others. Would He be willing to risk seeing him? I've got nothing to lose and possibly everything to gain, he thought. I believe He is who He says He is. I'll try. Just got to get near Him.

He approached, a little fearful. Rabbis knew the rules-- but He wasn't abiding by the rules. This Man was so different from the other teachers of the law. So, well . . . compassionate.

"Please," he pleaded, dust aggravating the broken skin on his knees. "Are you willing?"
"I am willing," the rabbi replied. The holy man touched him! And . . . the skin! It began changing!

Yes, of course he would go see the priest, offer the sacrifices, do the religious stuff. Keep it quiet? Well, if Jesus insisted. (Although he would possibly mention it to Erasmus and Tobias. They needed healing too. They would keep it secret, to be sure.)

They didn't keep it secret. And soon Jesus could no longer enter a town, but headed to the community's outer periphery. To isolated, lonely places.

With one compassionate touch Jesus restored a man's physical and social life. He broke the religious rules, touched the untouchable, and wound up outside the camp.

Call it "trading places."

Call it "compassionate love." --Sheridan Voysey

DESTINATION POINTS

• In a way, this story expresses the very essence of Jesus' mission. How else did Jesus "trade places" with humanity, and with me personally?
• What words can I use to praise God for His work on my behalf?

LINKS:God's Message of Love
http://www.christianitytoday.com/moi/2001/005/oct/13.13.html

bottom line: God stepped into our place and paid the penalty.

soul journey