“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”- the ten lepers of Luke 17:13
Leprosy.
The flesh consuming disease that destines its prey for
certain death. The contagious plague that caused infected people to be exiled to
the outskirts of the city. And although some cases of leprosy still exist in Middle
Eastern and North African countries, it is largely dismissed by Bible readers
today as an archaic condition.
But boy- Oh Boy! – could we be more wrong?
Leprosy
is alive and well today because leprosy is metaphorical for our spiritual
condition.
And just as the leper’s only choice was to call out to Jesus
for mercy, we too are doomed to an eternal life of death without the deliverance of Jesus Christ.
But- what happens when the leper does not want to be cleansed?
What happens when the contagious leper walks boldly into the
midst of the people, spreading the disease of sin?
What happens when leprosy
becomes so common that those who are whole have become the minority?
Well, in my mind I see a picture of the walking dead!
Indeed, we are living among the walking dead! Our generation
has become so self-consumed that they refuse the balm of Gilead, attempting to justify
the leprous condition of their souls.
But whenever one seeks
to justify their sin, they continue in leprosy. This is a great application of
the prophecy that in the last days men would be “lovers of themselves.” (2 Timothy
3)
The love of our own flesh makes it where we cannot
resist the desires of our own flesh. We literally become irresistible to
ourselves, and what our flesh wants, our flesh gets. Even if it defies the desires
of the almighty God.
This is because there is strong demonic influence at work
in the gratification of self. As the devil himself was in complete rebellion to
God, so he gains entry and access to our hearts when we walk in rebellion against
the revealed (written) will of God.
The devil loved himself so much that he believed that he deserved to be God. He loved himself so much that he became disillusioned and eventually began to believe that he could assert himself above God and be victorious! Satan became so jealous of God that he HATED the very words that God spoke and began to believe that his own thoughts and opinion mattered more than God’s. His emotions took the driver’s seat, and he became the embodiment of rebellion.
Is this you child of God, walking in emotion and rebellion against God’s word? Is it you that feels that your opinion and feelings on a matter are more righteous that the Lord’s? Is it you that feels anger and resentment rise in your flesh when you read or hear scriptures that go against your urges to gratify your flesh? Is it you that has no problem with leprosy, and possesses no desire to be cleansed?
Revelation may come
when we see that this disease, of which pride is the root, actually consumes
the host, not protects them! For continuing in sin is like continuing in
leprosy, willingly subjecting the person to a fate of pain and death,
As I conclude, I am reminded of a story from
the book of Numbers (Numbers 25) where idolatry and sin had crept into the camp
of Israel. Many of the young people were committing sin, and then boldly
walking into the presence of God in a defiled state. They had gotten out of line
(There IS a line!) and they refused to cleanse themselves!
But Phinehas, from
a priestly lineage, was strong enough to stand up for righteousness. Wearied of
the disrespect, the Bible says he leapt up and drove a stake through the torso
of one particularly blasphemous young Israelite and the representation of his fornication
with sin, a Moabite woman. God was pleased, not with the people’s words and excuses,
but with the zealous actions of this young man to stop sin in its tracks.
Which side do you stand on, child of God? Contrary to popular (false) doctrine today, God’s word is truly black and white. If you are not for God’s word, you are against it (Luke 11:23). If you do not stand with God, you stand against Him. Many ministers today attempt to preach from God’s word to prove one point and then discredit the scriptures to prove another. But when you refuse to forsake and renounce sin as sin, you reject the truth of God’s word altogether. To be healed from leprosy we must see our condition in light of this truth!
God sees the condition of our hearts and knows when we are avoiding being fully healed. He perceives our motives as we reject his true prophets and listen to whomever causes us to feel content and motivated to continue in sin.
As a former leper, may I encourage you to cry out to the master for total healing? After being set free from the chains of death and depravity, I now see that the opportunities offered to gratify my flesh were really bondage and infection to destroy my future.
I am now committed not to spreading leprosy, but spreading the cure.
Will you be made free?
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