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Finding a Cure
Joe Killian • Feb 09, 2018
Flu shots begin months before the season hits in hopes of keeping things under control. In spite of this, we find ourselves in the midst of one of the worst flu seasons on record. We take all kinds of additional precautions to stay healthy. I found this to be an interesting parallel to this week's Gospel.
A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said, "If you wish, you can make me clean." Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, "I do will it. Be made clean." The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean. Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once. He said to him, "See that you tell no one anything, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them." The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter. He spread the report abroad so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly. He remained outside in deserted places, and people kept coming to him from everywhere. Mark 1:40-45
Lepers were complete outcasts in Jesus' time. In the Book of Leviticus we hear, "He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp." Much of Leviticus is oriented towards living in ways that allowed for people to stay healthy. In biblical times separation was the only truly effective way to control an infectious disease. People would go out of their way to avoid the lepers who were required to announce themselves as unclean. That is why Jesus touching the leper was so astonishing. It appeared that Jesus was throwing caution to the wind.
The leper sought out Jesus. The leper's enthusiasm for his healing created a frenzy that forced Jesus to remain separated from the towns in which He wanted to minister. Think about the irony of that. People needed to come to Jesus instead of Him coming to them. The same is true today. People need the spiritual healing that Jesus brings but if we don't present Him as the "cure" how are they going to find Him?
In knowing Jesus, we have what the world needs! The question is, are we enthusiastically pronouncing it to others?
The story continues...I'm still working on the pondless waterfall in our front yard. I shared this project with you two weeks ago in Playin' In the Dirt. Since then I've had to rework sections of the stream three different times because we were losing too much water. I am now an expert on evaporation rates and excessive splash, two causes of water loss. This morning I tore the whole thing apart and I'm starting over.
Have you ever watched DreamWorks Animation's Kung Fu Panda? I stumbled across it recently and thoroughly enjoyed Jack Black's performance as a bumbling, noodle selling, kung fu enthusiast, giant panda named P o. Set in ancient China, it is more than a humorous slapstick comedy. The core message of the story jumped out at me as I have been focusing recently on the concept of being. Po is shockingly identified as the Dragon Warrior and he reluctantly enters training. The goal of the training is to receive the Dragon Scroll, which is believed to hold the secret to limitless power. Now I don't want to spoil the big reveal but I will say that what Po realizes is the same as what I speak to in the concept of being and authentic identity. So, where do we find the secret to our "power?" I praise You, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works! My very self You know. Psalm 139:14 God knows it; and we must seek Him with all of our hearts in order to find it. As it was in the movie, the answer is stunningly simple. Our authentic identity is already within us. The challenge for Po in the movie was in seeing himself accurately and not the way others saw him. Even his teacher scoffed at the idea that Po was anything more than an underachieving dreamer who overate when he was anxious. Po's problems are rooted in the fact that he believes the lie of his false identity much more than he does his authentic one. Is it possible that you do the same? Who could have imagined that beneath all of Po's girth lived the Dragon Warrior? What's hidden from view in you? Seek God for understanding as to who He created you to be. Spoiler Alert: the secret of your limitless power is already in you. God placed it there and He wants you to be who He authentically created you to be.
Maria and I have been playing in the dirt a lot recently. First we replaced our French drain and then we embarked on a creative project intended to change the entire look of our front yard. My brother Jeffrey and I installed a new front step.
