Praise the Lord, everyone.
Welcome to Imperative Life
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Lessons. I'm
Pastor Ryan Johnson.
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Imagine with me if
you will, you're walking,
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you're staggering
really, down the road of life
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along the broken
path you've chosen.
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It's dark and not quite raining
sort of a dreary bone chilling
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drizzle. The Down blue
jacket that you started off with
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went to tatters long ago and
so your bare, bruised, and dirty
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arms are freezing in the
wind prickling with goose flesh,
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scratched from brambles, and
other less mentionable things.
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You haven't showered in
weeks, you reek, you smell as if
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you were born
smelling. But who cares?
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Not now, you are utterly
filthy, unlovable, untouchable,
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just walking, walking,
walking to the red glow of ruin
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just over the horizon.
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To your left are the tall
twisted hopes of broken and
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abandoned carnival rides,
pie wedges of Ferris wheels,
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looping shoestrings of
condemned roller coasters,
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the screaming statues of
carousel horses long forgotten
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candy stands with cobwebs
for cotton candy, spider webs
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for waffle cones.
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These disheveled relics of your
past used to bring you happiness
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or at least entertainment,
fun, a good trip, distraction,
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way back when you had friends.
Back when you had shoes.
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Back when you had self-esteem,
can you remember back that far?
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to when you first
started down this ugly path
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before the clouds had
permanently gathered overhead
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when the road was not
just for walking but for kicks.
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It seems like a
lifetime ago doesn't it?
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The preacher warned
you, your dad warned you,
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your mama, but you had to
experience it for yourself, huh?
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It was your life after
all, so you and your friends,
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y'all started down the
wrong path together, didn't you?
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You just struck out in
rebellion, what did those old
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Bible thumpers know, anyway?
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You had to do it
your way. My way.
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Rather than God's way and
one by one, the friends left
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some turned back, good for them.
And some friends didn't make it
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did they? And no matter
how far you walk in life,
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you can't put it
behind you, it hurts you,
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it breaks your heart because
you can't take any of it back.
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Friends and family fade, you
can't do anything about that now
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so you just move forward,
one foot in front of the other
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left foot up, left foot down,
right foot up, right foot down.
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Ahh, directly onto a
piece of broken glass, Umm!
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And by the feel of it,
you have really cut yourself.
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Carefully looking under
your right foot, you appreciate
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the deep laceration
from the toes to the arch
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and it looks serious.
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Great! That's just
great! On top of everything else
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you've ruined your
foot, now you can't even walk.
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Tears mixed with the
drizzle leaving clean tracks
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on your dirty cheeks,
you're hungry, you're tired,
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you're lonely, and now
you're hurting and bleeding.
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You're standing one
legged like a sleeping flamingo,
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you try to find a way to lower
yourself to the crusty pavement,
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where you're just going
to sit and cry until the end.
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You're probably not the first
person to give up on the road.
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You most likely won't be
the last untouchable sinner
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to fade away even before
making it all the way to ruin.
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And then, the goose flesh,
the little bumps on your arms
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are back, your hair is standing
on end, a split second before
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you hear the sputter
of an approaching engine
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an automobile is coming, and
definitely not the usual Ferrari
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or Mercedes Benz
by the sound of it.
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Half stooped on one
foot, you stick your thumb out
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into the drizzle and eventually
a little beat-up baby-blue
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Volkswagen Beetle
squeals to a stop beside you.
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Water is pattering on
the roof, lightning flashes
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in the distance, and the driver
hidden in shadow leans over
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opens the passenger door,
you want to go where I'm going?
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says a man's voice.
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Do I have a choice?
He harrumphs. (laughter)
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May not have much in this world
but you always got a choice.
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Oh, great, a philosopher.
Yeah, whatever you say.
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You hobble over, and you
get in, and the cars smells like
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cinnamon chewing gum. Pleasant.
And you're filthy, stinky,
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and bleeding all
over the worn upholstery.
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The man peers at you
carefully from under the shadow
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of his old tan baseball
cap. Been There, Done That,
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it says in faded blue letters.
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You can't see his eyes,
but you know he's taking
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your appearance in, you just
hope you haven't made a huge
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mistake, if you
know what I mean.
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You got a problem, you say, hey,
no judgement here, he replies
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wiggling the gear
shift, hands in the air.
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And then he asks you a dumb
question, where are you heading?
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Gesturing toward the windshield
and to the red glow beyond,
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and you say, isn't it
obvious where we're heading?
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Just get to it,
the sooner the better.
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The man hangs his head a bit
his silhouette is the perfect
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image of a thinking human being.
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The rain tick off the
roof, your foot is killing you,
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he says, what if I told
you that there's another way?
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What, like a short
cut to the carnival?
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Cause I've
already done that man.
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He goes, nah, you can
go to ruin if you want...
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but he taps the gear shift
and I'm not going that way,
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I'm going this way. He
jerks a thumb behind himself
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and I'm kind of
hoping you will come with me.
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You take a good look at
the post-apocalyptic wasteland,
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the twisted carnival, the
low clouds and then the car
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your dirty skin, your
busted foot, and you realize
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this man is patronizing
you, he's belittling you,
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no, no, he's
running some kind of game,
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trying to con you. But you've
been on the road for years
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you've seen every scam
there is and this guy isn't even
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that good at it, just
not, not flashy enough,
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a little too earnest. Foot
or no foot, you silently reach
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for the door handle...Hey,
hey before you get out, he says,
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I can see you're hurt there,
ahhh, I'm sort of a healer
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why don't you let
me take a look at that?
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No! you recoil, fumbling
frantically with the door handle
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don't touch me! Nobody can
touch me! Get away from me.
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The man lifts his hands higher
in the air in submission, hey,
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hey, it's okay. I won't touch
you if you don't want me to.
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But you should let me
have a look. But instead,
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you take a look.
There's a scar in his hand,
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there are scars in both hands,
and the goose bumps are back.
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You know who this is,
you've heard rumor of him
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and with a light
sense of dejavu you realize
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you might even have
met him somewhere before.
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A great man, a
good man, the best man,
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and now he's looking at
you asking to touch you,
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how filthy you must look
to him, how ugly, how grimy,
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and hopeless, and pitiful,
and worthless, and untouchable.
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Well, he says, what do you say?
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And you can hear
his smile in the dark.
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He points ahead, get
out, and wait on ruin,
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he jerks the thumb behind or
shall I put this little chariot
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in reverse? You look at the
red glow ahead, it calls to you,
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it owns you, it's unfortunate
but you're going to have to
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turn him down, you've
been walking the road too long,
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you've done so much on
the road you've lost too much
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to the road and healer or
not, you're pretty sure nobody
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really wants to touch you.
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And that's when
something ironic occurs to you,
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you lick your lips, um, hey.
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Yes, his hands are still
in the air, what is a nice guy
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like you doing
in a dump like this?
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And the man lifts
the lid from his brow
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and this time your
eyes meet his, oh, he says,
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almost
embarrassed, but not quite.
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I came all the
way down here for you!
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Father in Heaven, bless us
as we study in Thy name. Amen!
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Let's look at Leviticus
chapter 13 and verse 43.
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This is what the Word says.
00:10:09.87\00:10:11.21
The laws of Moses
concerning leprosy are outlined
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in this chapter, beginning
with the qualifying statement
00:10:50.15\00:10:53.82
in verse one, that
God spoke to Moses.
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Now, of interest to me
and maybe you is that as you
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read this chapter, it appears
that there are several different
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diseases being described
here from melanomas to boils or
00:11:04.63\00:11:09.20
furuncles or carbuncles to
leprosy and some commentators
00:11:09.23\00:11:13.30
have seen up to seven
disorders described here.
00:11:13.34\00:11:17.01
So, the priest had to
serve as both a spiritual guide
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and a diagnostician, A
doctor/pastor who would
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examine a patient to protect
the community and the family
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while trying to avoid
being infected himself.
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And what is clear in the
scripture is that the priest
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is screening from one dreaded
disorder, and that's leprosy.
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Is it leprosy? Leprosy is an
ugly but slow moving infection
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of the skin and nerves,
the upper respiratory tract
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and the eyes. You've no
doubt heard the horror stories
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of people with leprosy
rotting away, a disfiguration,
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the stench, and
this can happen yes.
00:12:00.82\00:12:03.55
But I want to explore
some deeper things here.
00:12:03.59\00:12:06.52
Firstly, lets identify with
the ancient Hebrew community
00:12:06.55\00:12:11.29
shall we? Let's find
ourselves in the Bible.
00:12:11.33\00:12:15.20
Because leprosy could be spread
through droplets in the air
00:12:15.23\00:12:19.13
so, to prevent the spread
of leprosy a mask or covering
00:12:19.17\00:12:24.44
had to be worn. If
you were around a leper,
00:12:24.47\00:12:28.04
you would wear a mask.
00:12:28.08\00:12:29.84
If you were suspected of having
leprosy, you were quarantined
00:12:29.88\00:12:34.22
and a mask for weeks, and if
you were diagnosed, and you were
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quarantined forever.
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Forever untouchable,
am I striking home yet?
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Can you imagine what would
happen in the ancient Hebrew
00:12:44.36\00:12:48.43
market checkout line, if some-
body came through wearing a
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leper's mask, and they
coughed. Oh, no, they didn't.
00:12:51.37\00:12:55.64
Pandemonium in the
store. Regarding leprosy,
00:12:55.67\00:13:00.31
there was a range of people,
there were the overly concerned
00:13:00.34\00:13:04.91
who would call you cursed
by God, just because you had
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a mosquito bite,
leprosy! It's mosquito leprosy
00:13:07.98\00:13:11.19
and then there were the
deniers who would have a symptom
00:13:11.22\00:13:15.69
of leprosy, but they wouldn't
tell anybody or they wouldn't
00:13:15.72\00:13:19.39
take the precautions. They'd
infect the whole community.
00:13:19.43\00:13:22.43
You don't believe me, you
can look at Leviticus chapter 14
00:13:22.46\00:13:26.77
and verse 11. There are
some that had old leprosy sores
00:13:26.80\00:13:30.11
that they had not
reported. So, it's no surprise
00:13:30.14\00:13:33.94
that the disease was thought
to be a curse upon whomever
00:13:33.98\00:13:38.38
fell victim to it. An
indication of God's wrath.
00:13:38.41\00:13:41.92
And since we are discussing it,
why else was leprosy considered
00:13:41.95\00:13:46.29
to not just being an
affliction, but also a curse?
00:13:46.32\00:13:50.39
Well, we have Miriam in
Numbers chapter 12, and Gehazi
00:13:50.43\00:13:54.73
II Kings, chapter five,
they were cursed with it.
00:13:54.76\00:13:57.90
So maybe that is how Israel
came to associate the disease
00:13:57.93\00:14:01.74
with Divine Retribution.
00:14:01.77\00:14:03.47
But there is another
possible reason buried in the
00:14:03.51\00:14:06.91
history of the disease.
00:14:06.98\00:14:08.31
Did you know that leprosy was
a very common affliction of the
00:14:08.51\00:14:12.68
Egyptians? That's right, in
fact scholars believed that the
00:14:12.71\00:14:17.02
earliest record of leprosy
can be found on an ancient
00:14:17.05\00:14:21.46
Egyptian papyrus
from about 1550 BC.
00:14:21.49\00:14:25.56
Leprosy was an Egyptian disease
which means Israel was probably
00:14:25.59\00:14:31.90
exposed to leprosy while
there was slaves in Egypt.
00:14:31.93\00:14:35.37
Now hang onto that.
Now listen to this text
00:14:35.40\00:14:38.84
Exodus, chapter 15,
and verse 26, listen.
00:14:38.87\00:14:44.58
Do you see that,
there's our answer right there.
00:15:09.24\00:15:12.84
Well, address it. But firstly
let's gain a little context.
00:15:13.54\00:15:16.61
In the previous chapter
which is Exodus chapter 14,
00:15:16.64\00:15:20.72
the children of Israel
passed through an unlikely
00:15:20.75\00:15:24.42
path in the Red Sea and freshen
their memory are the 10 plagues
00:15:24.45\00:15:28.56
which have completely destroyed
the confidence and theology
00:15:28.59\00:15:32.49
of the Egyptians. The bloody
Nile, the frogs, lice, flies,
00:15:32.53\00:15:35.70
his livestock, the pestilence,
the boils, the hail, the
00:15:35.73\00:15:39.57
locusts, darkness, death,
Israel's taskmasters have been
00:15:39.60\00:15:44.77
broken. The gods of the
desert have proven powerless
00:15:44.81\00:15:48.51
and our God has delivered
His people from ruin, just as He
00:15:48.54\00:15:53.65
delivers us from ruin,
delivered them from the world,
00:15:53.68\00:15:57.09
referencing Revelation chapter
11 folks just as he delivered
00:15:57.12\00:16:01.72
us from the world, spiritual
Egypt and in a pillar of cloud
00:16:01.76\00:16:06.80
by day and fire by
night, God is before His people
00:16:06.83\00:16:12.47
and then chapter 15
breaks upon the sandy shore
00:16:12.50\00:16:18.81
with Moses, Miriam, and the
Israelites singing and dancing,
00:16:18.84\00:16:23.65
and praising God. God the
almighty, God the deliverer,
00:16:23.68\00:16:27.08
and then God speaks to
His people right in the midst
00:16:27.12\00:16:31.02
of their triumph
through His servant Moses,
00:16:31.05\00:16:34.16
He addresses the Hebrews in
the context of the enemy from
00:16:34.19\00:16:38.69
whom they have
escaped. God draws an extinction
00:16:38.73\00:16:42.80
between His will
and that of the Godless.
00:16:42.83\00:16:45.90
If you will hearken,
and do and give ear and keep
00:16:45.93\00:16:52.74
then none of the Egyptians
diseases will plague you
00:16:52.77\00:16:57.55
and remember, leprosy was
first documented in Egypt.
00:16:57.61\00:17:02.35
So maybe the Israelites equated
a leper with one who failed
00:17:02.38\00:17:08.29
to hearken, to do, to
give ear, and to keep.
00:17:08.32\00:17:12.16
So then it was an indicator of
disobedience that reminded them
00:17:12.19\00:17:18.00
of their idolatrous practices.
00:17:18.03\00:17:20.44
So, in the book of Leviticus
God is cleansing His people
00:17:20.47\00:17:25.24
of half a millennium of
Egyptian lore and hygiene
00:17:25.27\00:17:28.71
and He gives clear instructions
on how to deal with this
00:17:28.74\00:17:33.58
disease. He says to remove
it from the community, to cover
00:17:33.62\00:17:37.75
yourself, Do Not Touch, don't
touch it, no way. Then what is
00:17:37.79\00:17:47.33
going on in Matthew chapter
eight, yes, in the gospel of
00:17:47.36\00:17:53.87
Matthew something strange
happens, somebody need to call
00:17:53.90\00:17:57.74
the p... Hey, call the police,
because Jesus is breaking the
00:17:57.77\00:18:02.28
law of Moses. (Laughter)
Well, that's how it seems,
00:18:02.31\00:18:05.85
you know what, let's read
about it. Matthew chapter 8,
00:18:05.88\00:18:08.95
we're going to
look a verse one...
00:18:08.98\00:18:11.89
When He, Jesus was
come down from the mountain,
00:18:11.95\00:18:14.09
great multitudes follow Him
and behold, there came a leper
00:18:14.12\00:18:18.53
a leper, a filthy, nasty, leper,
and worshipped Jesus, saying,
00:18:18.56\00:18:23.47
Lord, if thou wilt,
thou canst make me clean.
00:18:23.50\00:18:27.44
First, the leper should have
known better, he knew the rules,
00:18:27.47\00:18:31.84
he knew the law, how dare
he come to Jesus, what's more
00:18:31.87\00:18:36.51
it says Jesus came down the
mountain, Jesus came all the way
00:18:36.54\00:18:41.25
down to meet him.
Can you believe this?
00:18:41.28\00:18:44.69
Let's keep looking. Verse three.
00:18:44.72\00:18:47.96
No! Look at him! Look
at his festering wounds.
00:18:54.86\00:19:00.37
The glistening raw skin, when
he moves, it sounds all moist
00:19:00.40\00:19:05.07
and squishy, he walks like
the hunchback of Notre Dame.
00:19:05.11\00:19:08.78
He smells like a sewage
plant, he's infected, Jesus,
00:19:08.81\00:19:12.58
you can't touch this,
you can't touch, this!
00:19:12.61\00:19:18.79
Not this, oh now listen friends,
it is so typical of you and me
00:19:18.82\00:19:27.13
to get caught up in the physical
nature of things carried away
00:19:27.16\00:19:30.57
by what we can see, the
rot, the ugly, we cast blame
00:19:30.60\00:19:34.97
that is so short-sighted
because in this dying world
00:19:35.00\00:19:38.41
not every physically hurting
person deserves to be hurting.
00:19:38.44\00:19:42.44
Physical suffering does not
necessarily reflect moral decay
00:19:42.48\00:19:47.35
okay, then let's look at
the spiritual meanings here.
00:19:47.38\00:19:51.42
For here is where we find
ourselves, or I find myself
00:19:51.45\00:19:55.72
in the gospel, the condition
of a spiritual late-stage leper,
00:19:55.76\00:20:02.03
hopeless,
bleeding, malformed, dying,
00:20:02.06\00:20:05.97
it's a perfect description
of our righteousness isn't it?
00:20:06.00\00:20:10.21
Of our spiritual lives
right now and spiritual disease.
00:20:10.24\00:20:16.21
Well, that is our fault,
we are infected with sin,
00:20:16.24\00:20:21.18
we are untouchable, unclean,
but Jesus Christ will touch us
00:20:21.22\00:20:26.89
heal us, and Christ
does not break the law,
00:20:26.92\00:20:30.29
He fulfills the law in
verse three when it says
00:20:30.33\00:20:34.76
Jesus put forth His
hand and touched him saying
00:20:34.80\00:20:38.73
I will be thou clean
and immediately his leprosy
00:20:38.77\00:20:42.67
was cleansed. No
Jesus, you can't touch this
00:20:42.70\00:20:47.84
but He could, He
would, He does...
00:20:47.88\00:20:53.08
But let's examine
something else together,
00:20:53.11\00:20:56.89
a story from the very same
chapter, in fact, it immediately
00:20:56.95\00:21:03.22
follows the
account of the leper.
00:21:03.26\00:21:04.59
Look right there,
Matthew eight, verse five...
00:21:04.63\00:21:06.96
Come over, per se...
00:21:24.35\00:21:26.01
So Jesus is approached by
a Roman, who being a soldier
00:21:47.87\00:21:52.14
recognizes the word of
authority, he recognizes the
00:21:52.17\00:21:55.64
authority of the word and
who's beloved servant is sick.
00:21:55.68\00:21:59.75
Jesus offers to go and
heal him, go to the centurion's
00:21:59.78\00:22:05.32
home and save the man
with palsy, but the centurion
00:22:05.35\00:22:09.42
halts, Jesus,
speak the word only.
00:22:09.46\00:22:11.96
The word is the
law, the word is enough.
00:22:11.99\00:22:15.03
And though he may
not have realized it,
00:22:15.06\00:22:17.57
the word according to
John chapter one is God,
00:22:17.60\00:22:20.70
speak Jesus, and Jesus speaks.
00:22:20.74\00:22:23.57
And the word of the Lord
accepted via the centurion's
00:22:23.61\00:22:28.84
fate that heals the
servant that very hour.
00:22:28.88\00:22:32.68
Alright, let's put
these two stories together,
00:22:32.71\00:22:36.08
in verse eight, Jesus
only needs to speak the word
00:22:36.12\00:22:41.02
and the word is enough. but
if Jesus could speak the word
00:22:41.06\00:22:45.03
why did He touch the leper?
00:22:45.06\00:22:47.70
This is important because I
believe that these two stories
00:22:47.73\00:22:51.93
that of the leper, and then that
of the centurion is put together
00:22:52.00\00:22:55.94
just to make this point, the
point that Jesus, whose words
00:22:56.00\00:23:01.34
knitted together the
very fabric of space and time
00:23:01.38\00:23:04.35
that doesn't have to touch
us yet He does, He wants to.
00:23:04.38\00:23:09.88
Oh, to be touched by the
Master, to have Him contact us
00:23:09.92\00:23:15.42
in our sin, even though He
doesn't have to, that is Love.
00:23:15.46\00:23:20.43
It's power, but it's love.
00:23:20.46\00:23:23.57
Now, there you are on the road
to ruin, filthy, naked, damaged,
00:23:23.60\00:23:31.87
stinking, and Jesus has come
all the way down to save you...
00:23:31.91\00:23:38.01
You think you are unsavable,
worthless, who would touch you
00:23:38.05\00:23:43.02
after all you have done, after
the very hell you have endured.
00:23:43.05\00:23:48.32
Oh my Jesus, after all I
have done you can't touch this,
00:23:48.36\00:23:57.00
you can't, nobody can, but Jesus
says hey, I came all the way
00:23:57.03\00:24:07.28
down here for you now I'm
going this way, you want to go?
00:24:07.31\00:24:18.05
Be a desire of healing and
hey son, daughter, let me have
00:24:18.09\00:24:26.29
a look, let me see and
you think He can't touch you,
00:24:26.33\00:24:32.80
bet He can't touch this,
and then He does, you are made
00:24:32.83\00:24:44.58
whole. The pandemic was
just rearing its ugly head and
00:24:44.61\00:24:52.49
everybody in the church was
completely afraid, we had on our
00:24:52.52\00:24:56.29
spacesuits our parka's, we
had on our masks, the Conference
00:24:56.32\00:24:59.09
had told us that we had
to close the church down
00:24:59.13\00:25:01.16
from regular service and
we were trying to be creative
00:25:01.20\00:25:04.77
in ways to feed the
people in the community to do
00:25:04.80\00:25:08.04
God's work, yet not make
a mistake so foolish as to
00:25:08.07\00:25:11.94
cause injury. And to be honest
with you, we lost some people
00:25:11.97\00:25:15.21
in our church and in
the midst of that fear,
00:25:15.24\00:25:18.08
it was a Wednesday afternoon
and we were going to gather
00:25:18.11\00:25:20.95
just a few of us in the church
to try to film and broadcast
00:25:20.98\00:25:24.82
some form of prayer meeting.
00:25:24.85\00:25:28.19
But everybody came in
walking like this in spacesuits,
00:25:28.22\00:25:31.96
I'm teasing, we were afraid
and they went into the church
00:25:31.99\00:25:36.70
and I was the last
one to go into the church
00:25:36.73\00:25:38.97
and as I was walking
towards the doors, a woman came
00:25:39.00\00:25:43.20
right off the street, no
mask, nothing, and she said,
00:25:43.24\00:25:47.84
Sir, help me. I
turned and I looked at her,
00:25:47.88\00:25:53.78
I wonder if she knew I was a
Preacher, I wonder if she knew?
00:25:53.82\00:25:59.55
She said, I think I am
having a heart attack. Help me.
00:25:59.59\00:26:07.66
I looked up at the building
and there plastered to the glass
00:26:07.70\00:26:14.70
Inside the church, was
everybody afraid to come out.
00:26:14.74\00:26:17.64
And this lady said I
need you to touch me.
00:26:17.67\00:26:21.28
There's a young lady
in our church, her name is
00:26:21.31\00:26:26.25
Dr. Lillian YanYow she is
a nurse she saw the exchange
00:26:26.28\00:26:32.55
and she hastily opened the door
and bolted out of the church,
00:26:32.59\00:26:37.16
came down beside me and
the two of us are standing
00:26:37.19\00:26:40.56
together and before I
could even think of the
00:26:40.60\00:26:43.10
proper response, she had knelt
down and touched the woman,
00:26:43.13\00:26:47.80
are you okay? Oh, have mercy,
can't let the sister do that
00:26:47.84\00:26:53.74
I had to kneel down to
have mercy and to see the
00:26:53.78\00:26:57.88
look on her face, that
right then at a time when nobody
00:26:57.91\00:27:02.35
wanted to touch anybody,
a member of the church came
00:27:02.38\00:27:05.92
out and touched her.
00:27:05.95\00:27:07.29
And did we pray? You
know a preacher got to pray
00:27:07.32\00:27:12.19
and we called an ambulance and
we never saw that lady again.
00:27:12.23\00:27:17.13
When I will never forget
the power of the untouchable
00:27:17.17\00:27:22.50
being touched and that
is what God does for us.
00:27:22.54\00:27:28.14
I learned a lesson that
day, that is how God is.
00:27:28.18\00:27:32.41
Father in heaven,
Despite us, because of us,
00:27:32.45\00:27:37.85
touch us Lord, heal
us. In Thy name we pray.
00:27:37.89\00:27:44.53
Amen!
00:27:44.56\00:27:46.29
You know God has plans for
you, you walk with your hand
00:27:46.33\00:27:48.76
in His hand and He will
lead you into His destination.
00:27:48.80\00:27:51.43
May He bless you.
And as always friends,
00:27:51.47\00:27:55.30
Be Encouraged.
00:27:55.34\00:27:56.91