Imagine you had a medical condition that affected not only your health, but your physical appearance. I’m talking obvious enough people can see from a distance you’ve got this condition. It affects multiple aspects of your life, even to the point people don’t want to get too close to you for fear of contracting the condition themselves. It doesn’t take long for people to associate you with the condition, seeing the two as synonymous.
Now imagine the condition vanishes. It’s just gone, no trace. People see you and begin to steer clear, but do double-takes as the two of you pass by one another. “Wait a minute, what happened?” They’ll motion toward you and lean in and whisper something to their companions. At some point someone’s going to approach you and ask what’s on everybody’s mind: what happened to you? How did something so wrong go away so fast?
In Mark chapter 1, we read a story about someone who took it a step further. Jesus healed a leper…someone whose condition was so bad he had to live in isolation from the healthy. Jesus told him afterwards “don’t tell anyone what happened here.” Was Jesus serious? The healed man couldn’t contain himself and went out and broadcast what had happened to anyone who would listen.
These events don’t seem quite right. Jesus had to know the guy wouldn’t be able to stay quiet on the matter, so why would He tell the guy not to tell anyone?
He told him not to spread the news because Christ knew it would sabotage His ministry to a degree. Rather than coming to hear what He was saying, crowds would instead gather to see miracles…people wanted to be entertained by a performer, not told to change their lifestyle and religious practices.
This brings up a question. If Jesus didn’t want His ministry to be undercut, why didn’t He simply avoid the leper or turn him away? It’s an interesting point to ponder, and I’d argue it’s because Christ was moved with compassion by a man who had strong faith in Him. How could the embodied Creator of the world turn away one of His creations, especially one who possessed full faith in Him when faith was so lacking in others?
Don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of times God says “no,” even to His faithful followers. On this occasion, though, He was “moved with compassion” and chose to grant the man His petition. Unfortunately, after this event Jesus couldn’t even get close to the city without being mobbed, and His ministry in this spot had to adapt into something different. (Fortunately, the Lord was able to make due. Yes, he avoided the city, but people flocked to him from all over even when he wandered through desolate areas after this.)
Our God is the God of compassion. Approach Him in prayer with a humble heart and clean conscience, and make your petition known. You may just prompt the Lord of the universe to move with compassion.
40 Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”
41 Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” 42 As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. 43 And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, 44 and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
45 However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.
Mark 1:40-45