Christ seeks us lost in sin and distant from God

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Our Lord Jesus Christ
Our Lord Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In Mark 1:40–45 we see the third of four miracles that Mark groups together to show the power of the Son of God. These miracles demonstrated His power over the demon world, over the world of disease and weakness, over the defilement of leprosy and over paralysis. In these four we have a full demonstration of our condition as sinners. We are controlled by the god of this world, we are powerless to serve God, we are separated from God, and we cannot walk in communion with God because of sin.

In these miracles we see the power, the compassion, the willingness, and the deity of Christ reaching out to those who have been rendered useless for God. By coming into contact with the Saviour all are healed and become useful to God.

We were in our sins living at a great distance from God. Like the leper in the Old Testament we were banned from the presence of God, walking in an outside place, and were unclean in our very natures. Isaiah chapter 59 verse 2 tells us that our iniquities had separated us from God. We had no right to come near.

In the Old Testament anything or anyone who came into contact with a leper became unclean. But now the Lord Jesus reaches out and touches the leper. Not only does the Lord Jesus remain clean, but His touch cleanses the leper. Equally remarkable is the fact that we have been cleansed. John wrote, ‘the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin’, 1 John 1:7.

Being cleansed brings responsibilities. The very first is to go to those who know our condition best and testify to the cleansing power of God. In the case of the leper in Israel it would have been the priest who had painstakingly examined him and declared him unclean. In our case it might be our families, friends or work associates who knew us best in our ‘old’ lives. Now that we are a new creation in Christ Jesus, 2 Cor. 5:17, we have a responsibility to demonstrate before all the change that has taken place in us. Being clean is not only what the power of God makes us, but something that is to be demonstrated in our lives.


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