‘‘Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’
Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’’ Matthew 8:2-3
Brothers and sisters, there are times in everyone’s life when we need to be reminded to get back to basics. COVID and the lockdowns were an opportunity for many to do just that. Having time away from work, the constant kids parties, and the long list of people you see every week, gave time to remind ourselves what is of first importance, to get back to basics. Epiphany the season we’re in now, is a time of returning to the basics; of reminding ourselves who Jesus is, and what He came to do. Over the past few weeks we have been reminded of various stories from Jesus’ life. Each of these stories was an ‘epiphany,’an ‘aha’ moment, when something small helps us to see something —or in this case someone—in their true light. And today’s true story is no exception.
In Matthew 8:1-13 we’re first shown who we are, and second we’re shown who Jesus is. We are given two stories which make the same point in different ways. Matthew, the writer of our Gospel, focuses, first, on a sick Jewish man, verse 2: ‘A man with leprosy came and knelt before [Jesus] and said, ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’ Leprosy is a terrible illness. Back then there was no cure, and if you got it you were pushed out to the margins of society. I suppose in some ways lepers were forced into a sort of permanent lockdown. In addition, lepers were cut off from the temple, from the priests, and it was thought from God, because it was assumed, wrongly, that only those who had committed terrible sins caught this illness; it was thought to be a punishment from God. And now this leper, comes and begs Jesus with the words: ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’ Something similar happens in our second story: a man comes to Jesus, this time a non-Jew, a Gentile Roman centurion. This time the one who came was not the sick person, no the Centurion had come on behalf of his servant, verse 6: ‘Lord,’ he said, ‘my servant lies at home paralysed, suffering terribly.’ There is a difference in the problem, but both men come with the same attitude, an attitude which the Centurion puts into words. Jesus says to the centurion, verse 7: ‘Shall I come and heal [your servant]?’ The centurion replied, ‘Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.’ What has provoked such humility in two such different men? It is a realisation of who Jesus is, yes, but just as importantly, these men realise who they are! This passage takes us back to basics, for first this passage reminds us who we are. Before we can understand the Good News of who Jesus is, we first have to hear the bad news of who we are. We are all infected with a virus worse than COVID, worse even than leprosy, for the virus we have causes us to turn away from God again and again. This is true of the Jewish leper in the first story; and true of the Gentile servant in the second; and true of each person who has ever lived. Now we have heard the bad news, of who we are, let us hear afresh the Good News of who Jesus is. Come back with me to the story of the leper to see Jesus’ response most clearly. What does Jesus say to this man who is truly sick? Let the words Jesus utters sink deeply in to your heart. Jesus says: ‘I am willing […] be clean’. No wonder we sing hymns to Jesus. No wonder we praise Him and call Him our Lord and Saviour. For we are, each of us, meant to see ourselves in this leper. If we turn to God, if we turn to Jesus with our little faith, with our hearts full of guilt, and ask if He is willing to forgive us Jesus says: ‘I am willing […] be clean’. How clearly Jesus is shown to be an amazing healer, a wonderful saviour, and mighty God. For He is the God who when faced with the greatest of sinners, does not rebuke them and turn them away, but softly answers each who asks: ‘I am willing […] be clean’. If we would only come to Jesus, as the leper did, then Jesus will do for us, what He did for that man, verse 3: ‘Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy’. Here in this short story, we go back to basics and are reminded we all have the same problem, and we are all offered the same solution.
Over the past few months most of us here will have had the call. We will have booked our vaccination date, filled in the necessary forms and gone to get our jabs. Before we received them we were often as not stuck at home, but having got our jabs freedom returned. In fact, for many of us, that is why we got the vaccine, not just to deal with a potentially horrible virus, but also so we could go out. In a similar way receiving mercy does not free us from doing good, no it frees us to do good. Immediately the leper was forgiven he was by Jesus told to ‘go’ and ‘do’. The same is true for each of us who have knelt before Jesus. Jesus heals, Jesus forgives and then Jesus sends us out. The exact details for each of us will be different but the overall theme is the same. However, I do not want us to dwell there, but rather—with Confirmation coming up—I want us to focus instead on one detail we missed. Verse 3 says: ‘Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.’ This man, this leper who no one would have touched since his diagnosis, a man who had therefore probably not been touched for years and years is touched by Our Lord. Jesus doesn’t need to do this. Jesus can heal with just a word, without even being in the same city as the sick person, as the story of the centurion shows. Jesus does not need to touch the leper, but He does. Why? Because Jesus loves this man, as He loves each one of us, and wants to bring His physical touch to bear on those He loves. How does Jesus touch us today? For all those who are truly sorry, who feel their unworthiness (as the centurion did) and have faith (as the leper did), Jesus touches us in at least two ways. First in baptism, when we are washed clean, and given a new start. Second, and in an ongoing fashion Jesus’ body touches us in Holy Communion. When we receive that small piece of bread and take it inside us, Jesus is touching us right at our very core. Jesus, in the bread of the Eucharist gives us Himself, and in so doing, He brings spiritual healing again and again. That healing, that touch is made available at each of our services, and is offered freely. So why would you not take it? If you have not yet been baptised, and now know the truth, then let’s get the sorted; but don’t stop there. You need, as it were, ongoing booster shots and that is what Jesus provides in His body, made available in the Eucharist. You need this touch, as I do. You need His ongoing healing, as I do. So do not turn Him away. Confirmation—and with it Holy Communion—is available for all who have thought clearly about Jesus’ offer, and who have decided for themselves to take Him up on it. If you haven’t yet taken this step, if you haven’t yet chosen Jesus for yourself, then now is the time and here is the opportunity. As we close, a quick word to those of us who are baptised and confirmed, and have been for a while; don’t hold back. Don’t think that yearly communion, or even monthly communion is enough; like me, you need more of Jesus’ touch, not less. So make it a habit to come at least weekly, to receive His help and His love, so that you might live the life He commands, and find in that habit, the healing and touch which you and I so desperately need. Jesus is waiting to touch each of us, to give us help and healing, so do not hold back, kneel before Him in your hearts and find the God who says ‘I am willing […] be clean’. Amen. (Fr Mike).
All Saints Church Chorley 