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A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said,
“If you wish, you can make me clean.”
The leper must have already had a fairly good sense that Jesus would in fact wish it, since he already did the unthinkable and approached him. He must have somehow known or sensed that his own ritual impurity was less powerful than the healing touch of Jesus. Jesus had already demonstrated ample power over demons and disease, and the even the leper must have heard of this and gained hope. Though perhaps it was also true that he was simply so desperate for help that he could not help but go to Jesus in whom he saw his only hope.
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched the leper, and said to him,
“I do will it. Be made clean.”
In every healing and exorcism we see Jesus refashioning man into the image of God he was always meant to be. Man, who was poetically said to be molded from the dust of the ground, was now being remolded in a way that the original design anticipated but which the gift surpassed. Dust might eventually return to dust. But the supernatural life of which faith was the beginning would never end.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
When the leper came to Jesus it was he who was not free to enter any town openly. But now, because of the compassion of Jesus, he had freely taken this burden on himself instead. He was not contaminated by impurity as the leper had been. Instead he took upon himself the consequences of this suffering, just as he would do for all the sin and suffering of the world during his passion. The leper was reintegrated into the worshipping community of Israel but he may never have known at what cost this gift was given. Though, if he completed Jesus' command to offer what was prescribed he would have had at least a hint:
"The prescribed rite was to take two clean birds, one to be sacrificed and the other, dipped in the blood of the first, to fly away free (Lev 14:3-7)." ¹
We who have been freed of the spiritual leprosy of sin ought to encourage one another "daily while it is still "today,"" lest we forget what has been done for us and allow our hearts to "grow hardened by the deceit of sin". Our own healing too has come at a great cost. It is is simply a choice we make once and then forget. It is a reality which we must hold firm until the end.
1) Healy, Mary. Gospel of Mark, The (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture) (p. 54). Baker Book Group - A. Kindle Edition.
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