Luke 5:12

Luke 5:12

The Bible says in Luke 5:12-13, "And it came to pass when he was in a certain city, behold a man full of leprosy: who seeing Jesus fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. And he put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will: be thou clean. And immediately the leprosy departed from him." There are several significant things that we can learn from this incident where a man who had leprosy was healed by Jesus. Leprosy was a horrible disease in the first century. It often left a person terribly disfigured, and because there was no cure, lepers were ostracized from the rest of society. There was a double burden for lepers to bear. Not only did they suffer the horrifying effects of a very painful and crippling disease, but also they were outcasts from their fellow man.

But no one is an outcast to God. Everyone can approach unto Him, and this man called out to Jesus. "Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved." Why did he call out to Jesus for help? Because he was at the end of his rope. There was no where else for him to turn. As a result of having leprosy, he found Christ. This is one of the ways that a disaster turns into a blessing. At least a person who suffers some sorrow is given a very good reason to turn to God, and in the long run will prove to be much better off than the person who saw no reason to seek God. "All things work together for good to those that love God, and to those that are the called according to His purpose."

When this man turned to God, He said to Jesus, "If you will, you can make me clean." Everyone needs cleansing: cleansing from sin. "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Some will turn to Christ, just like this man did: those who understand how great their sins really are, and those who realize that sin is a leprosy that will horribly disfigure their lives and cause them to be outcasts from the Kingdom of God. No matter how great are your sins, you can always come to Jesus and say to Him, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean."

Of course, Jesus did not turn him away. Jesus turns no one away. Jesus said to him just like Jesus says to everyone that comes to Him, "I will, be thou clean." Heaven will be full of people who at some time in their life came to Jesus and said to Him the same thing that this man said, or words to the same effect, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean." The Bible says in Luke 5:14-16, "And he charged him to tell no man: but go and show thyself to the priest: and offer for your cleansing according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. But so much the more went there a fame abroad of him: and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities. And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed." When the multitudes came to Jesus, we are told in Luke 5:15 that they came for two reasons. They came "to hear, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities." At least this group of people had their priorities right. They came first of all to hear. The most important thing that anyone can get from Jesus are the words of truth: the truth concerning salvation and then all the other things He taught about serving God. If you haven’t heard from Jesus and His teachings, then you haven’t heard truth. If you are wise, you will do as these people did and you will go to Jesus in order to hear.

Of course, there are other reasons and other benefits to make a habit of coming to Jesus. These people came to hear, and they also came to be healed of their infirmities. We know that they came to be healed of their diseases, but it’s interesting to note that the Bible does not use the word "disease." Instead it uses the word "infirmity," which means weakness: probably to emphasize the fact that human beings have other weaknesses for which they need help from God in addition to physical diseases. There are many things that man cannot do, because man is too weak and unable to do them, but with God all things are possible.

This is the second time that we are told that Jesus withdrew from the multitude in order to be alone with God in prayer. When the Bible tells us something there is a reason. When it tells us the same thing more than once, then there must be a very important reason for doing so. Of course, we are being shown that if Jesus needed to be alone with God in order to be prepared to meet the world, how much more we need the same thing. "Pray without ceasing." "Let your requests be made known unto God." If I stay as close to God as I ought to be while I live in this world, then I will have no problem meeting the responsibilities that come my way. But if I let the world crowd in on me and take away from the times when I should otherwise be with God, then I will not be equipped for the spiritual challenges that come my way.

Even Jesus "withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed." Perhaps that’s one of the reasons that Jesus was so well prepared for the next incident that is recorded for us in Luke 5:17-26. The Bible says in Luke 5:17-19, "And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town out of Galilee, and Judea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them. And, behold, men brought in a bed a man who was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him. And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus. And when He saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee." Once again when we see Jesus, we are told in Luke 5:17 that He was teaching. Jesus was the great teacher, so when he began His public ministry what He did above all else was to teach.

What we are taught in this passage of scripture are some very important details about the forgiveness of sins. The man who was paralyzed and his friends had faith in Jesus. They had faith in the power of Jesus to heal them of their diseases. But this man had another problem that was much more serious than even paralysis. He had the problem that every human has: the sin problem. When Jesus saw the man, Jesus went directly to the core of the matter. Evidently the man was troubled by his sins, because Jesus said to him, "Thy sins be forgiven thee." Jesus would eventually heal this man, but what good would physical health do if the man eventually died in his sins and was therefore forbidden to enter the Kingdom of God?

You can find forgiveness the same way that this man found it: by coming to Jesus. To be forgiven is a wonderful thing, and the word "forgive" is a wonderful word. One of the best ways to understand the meaning of forgiveness is to realize that the word that is translated "forgive" has at its root meaning to leave, to let go, or to separate from. The exact same word that is translated "forgive" here in Luke 5:20 is translated "forsook" in Luke 5:11 when the Bible says that the disciples "forsook all and followed Him." They forsook their nets, that is, they left their nets. They no longer were identified with their nets because they left them, and they were no longer fishermen.

When God forgives us, He separates us from our sins. Once we are forgiven when He looks at us, He no longer considers our sins. "As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us." It’s a wonderful thing to be forgiven. Have you had someone who you knew years ago bring up an old failure of yours? They identify you with your failure or your sin that they know about. In other words, they do not forgive you. Human beings know very little about how to show forgiveness, but God knows. He invented forgiveness. To err is human, to forgive divine. This man received two things: physical healing and the forgiveness of sins from Jesus Christ. Guess which one was more important! Physical healing will last for a few years. The forgiveness of sins will last for eternity.

The Bible says in Luke 5:21-26, "And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone? But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee, or to say, Rise up and walk? But that you may know that the Son of man has power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto you, Arise, and take up your bed, and go into your house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things today."

It’s easy to see why the fame of Jesus spread so far and wide. People were astonished, amazed, and surprised by the words that He said and the things that He did. How easily He handled the educated, self-righteous Pharisees who came to accuse Him and to trap Him. Jesus always had exactly the right thing to say. Often He did not answer them directly, but they always ended up looking bad and showing their true colors. The lies and deception of the world cannot stand before the light of the gospel of Christ. The truth is everywhere, but it’s hid from those who do not really want it. So it was when Christ walked the earth, and so it is today.

The Pharisees did not like it when Christ said, "Thy sins be forgiven thee." They knew that only God could forgive sins, but they could not and they would not accept the idea that Christ was divine. Those who refuse God’s truth are still like that today. When the people of the world study about Jesus of Nazareth, they cannot accept Him as being the divine Son of God. One of the reasons that Jesus healed this paralyzed man here in Luke Chapter 5 was to show that He did indeed have the power to forgive sins, just like He had the power to tell the man to take up his bed and walk.

It’s interesting to note that one of the most common names that Jesus used for Himself is found here in Luke 5:24 when Jesus referred to Himself as "the Son of man." The reason that Jesus has the power to forgive sins is because He came into the world to offer Himself as a sacrifice for sin. Jesus came into the world to die for the sins of the world, and He only did that because of His great love for mankind. He came into the world and lived as a man; He identified Himself with man; He empathized with man; and He took upon Himself the sins of man. It’s no wonder that He called Himself "the Son of man."

Luke 5:27-29 records the incident when Jesus called Matthew to be a disciple. The Bible says, "And after these things he went forth, and saw a publican, named Levi, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he said unto him, Follow me. And he left all, rose up, and followed him. And Levi made a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of publicans and of others that sat down with them." In the call of Matthew there are certain characteristics displayed for us that must be present whenever anyone is called to be a follower of the Lord. "Many are called, but few are chosen." If you came to Christ, it was because God called you. Everyone is called at some time in their life. Therefore, ultimately those who do not come to Him have rejected His invitation.

Matthew gladly took the invitation that Jesus gave to him, and it’s no wonder. After all, he was a publican. Publicans were tax collectors who worked for the Roman government, and they were very much looked down upon in the Jewish society. Not many people aside from other publicans would have invited Matthew anywhere. But those who are cast out by the world are often sought out and accepted by God. First Corinthians 1:26-28 says, "For you see your calling, brothers, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called; But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, has God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are."

Matthew was looked down upon in the society in which he lived, but Jesus sought him out and chose him. You might be cast out by the world around you, but that’s not such a bad state to be in, if you follow Jesus. Jesus is saying to you just like He said to Matthew, "Follow me."

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