Luke 5:12-13

Luke 5:12-13

And it became in that place, in one of the cities, behold: a man full of leprosy.  And after seeing Jesus, after falling upon his face, he begged of Him while saying, “Lord, if you should desire it, you are powerful enough to heal me.”  And after stretching out the hand, He touched him while saying, “I desire it.  Be cleansed.”  And immediately the leprosy went out from him.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

The leper is a man in need.  He sees Jesus and immediately falls on his face.  He begs.  He shows complete and utter humility.  He has no issue being humble before the Lord.  Isn’t it interesting that the place where we find consistently find humbleness before the Lord is in our weakness?  When life is going well for us, we are not always humble.  In fact, we might even seldom be humble when life is going well.  It is a true test of character to be humble when we are strong.  But in our weakness, it is easy to be humble.  It is also easier to believe in the power of the Lord when we are in a position of weakness as well.

When are you the most humble?  When are you the least humble?

Second Thought:

Jesus does desire to heal the man.  This is ultimately a claim of power in addition to being a claim of compassion.  Certainly it is compassion because He is healing the man.  But it is a claim of power because Jesus is dealing with leprosy.  Leprosy was contagious.  People feared leprosy.  If Jesus would come in contact with leprosy, the people around Him might wonder about His cleanliness.  But Jesus quite frankly doesn’t care.  He has power over the leprosy.  The leprosy cannot touch Him; He affects the leprosy.

What power does Jesus have in your life?  When have you felt His power in your life?

Third Thought:

Jesus’ power is immediate.  He commands and the disease listens.  In an encounter with God, we are made different.  Yes, God can make us different over time.  But we are made different immediately.  Think of it in terms of throwing a ball.  The first time a child catches a ball, he is different.  He’s done something completely new and is a different person.  But that doesn’t make him a great ball player.  The child needs to practice and develop greater skill.  This is the same way with God.  God comes to us and changes us.  He makes us new.  But we still need to work and practice this newness in order to develop skill at being the person that He remakes us to be.

How has God made you different?  How are you developing?  Do you genuinely believe that God can make an immediate difference in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: Luke 5:14-16