20150909 SHH!

SHH!

Matthew 8:4 Then Jesus said to him, "Don't tell anyone about this. Instead, go to the priest and let him examine you. Take along the offering required in the law of Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy. This will be a public testimony that you have been cleansed."

Why would Jesus not want everyone to know that He could heal even the most loathsome of diseases? Here are some thoughts. Mark 2:4, 3:20 and 7:24 all talk about the “press” (KJV) of the crowd. A roof had to be torn off so some friends could get a sick man to Him. He and His disciples didn’t even have time to eat and He had very little time to be alone.

It may seem a bit selfish of Jesus to want to be alone, but He came, in part, to show us how to live. We often find Him out alone with the Father early in the morning. He cherished that time with His Father and we will find strength for our journeys if we make time to be with our Heavenly Father.

We all have to eat and we all need rest. Perhaps He knew that the more the miracles were proclaimed the more people would gather and there would be even less time to eat, sleep and to teach His disciples what they needed to know to carry on His ministry after He departed.

Furthermore, Jesus wasn’t interested in being a sideshow for thrill seekers. There were many then as there are now who run from one “healer,” “miracle worker,” to another. They aren’t looking to follow Jesus. They’re just looking for entertainment and a spiritual handout.

Jesus came to fulfill the law. It was right for this healed man to go show himself to the priest and let the priest give him a clean bill of health (Leviticus 14). It would be a testimony to the grace of God and it would show the priest there was a healer among them. If the man told the priest who healed him before getting the proclamation of his healing, the priest might well react out of jealousy and refuse to give the man his freedom.

I’m discovering, as I move forward with this blog that what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount can somehow be found in His words and deeds throughout the Gospels. In this encounter with the leper we see humility and righteousness.

Father in heaven, thank you for the example of Jesus Christ. Help us to look at each situation in which we find ourselves involved in light of the words of Jesus, and help us to respond accordingly. In Jesus Name, AMEN!!!