Loving God, you invite us to come to you in repentance and faith in order to be healed. Help us to continue to grow in our faith, trusting you for all that we need through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Did any of you catch the comical nature of the first reading that we heard today? Naaman, commander of the Syrian army, hears that there is a prophet in Israel who can cure him of his leprosy. And so, the king of Syria sends Naaman, not to the prophet in question, but to the king of Israel, telling him to cure Naaman of his leprosy. Strangely enough, the king of Israel seems to be quite unaware of the prophet Elisha, and apparently has no idea that Elisha might have this power to heal. However, eventually Naaman makes it to Elisha’s house.

Elisha, rather than coming out to meet Naaman, and accepting his many gifts, and waving his hand over the spot to cure it, instead sends a messenger to Naaman. The messenger tells Naaman to go and wash in the Jordan river seven times, and his leprosy will be healed. At first, Naaman goes off in a huff and refuses. He is not going to wash seven times in the Jordan! He doesn’t want to actually have to do something to be healed! Eventually, it is Naaman’s servants who convince him to do exactly as he has been told. Naaman washes seven times in the Jordan, and his flesh is restored, and his leprosy is cured.

He is not healed by magic water, or by a magic wave of the hand, or even by all of the expensive gifts that he brought with him. All Naaman really needed for healing was faith in the God of Israel, who spoke to him and commanded him through Elisha the prophet. If Naaman had come without all of his chariots and servants and gifts, and had simply gone to the prophet Elisha and done what he said, it would have been enough. The power of God would have still been at work to heal him.

It is interesting to note that, in contrast to Naaman, the leper in today’s gospel is not asked to do anything in order to be healed. He simply comes to Jesus in faith, even though he breaks the Jewish Law by doing so (Lev. 13:45-46). Lepers were not supposed to approach anybody and were to cry out, “Unclean! Unclean!” However, Jesus also breaks the laws surrounding ritual purity when he reaches out and touches the man. Jesus being who he is, though, the leper becomes clean and whole, rather than Jesus becoming unclean. And then, as soon as he is healed, the leper disobeys Jesus’ only command to him.

As it turns out, it’s not the leprosy that’s contagious, but the good news about Jesus. The man simply can’t help himself. He has to tell everybody. And so, pretty soon Jesus can’t travel from town to town any more. People clamour about him wherever he goes, and some even try to take him and make him king by force (Jn. 6:15). This is exactly what Jesus knew would happen. Yet, in spite of the spreading word, Jesus’ ministry continues out in the deserted places in the country.

In this country, we are generally not faced with people who suffer from leprosy. Because of that, sometimes it can seem like these stories don’t relate to us. However, when we start to think about people who are in need of healing, or people who live as outcasts, it is not difficult to find people today with similar needs. In fact, isn’t it true that every person is in need of healing in some way, shape or form?

For some, the healing that they need is from a physical illness. For others, they are in need of mental or emotional healing. And then there is the brokenness that results from sin. Sin affects our relationship with God, our relationships with others, and even our relationship with ourselves. Ultimately, it is these relationships that break down when sin is present, and this brokenness also requires healing.

And so, the obvious question that comes out of today’s readings is, “What is necessary for healing to take place?” The simplest answer is this: faith and the power of God. Riches and gifts were not required. Ultimately, it was the person coming in faith and the power of God at work to heal them. Yet, once again, how does this relate to us?

For some people, even today, they have experienced miracles of healing. Some of you are among those people, and you have told me your stories. You have had experiences where you know in your innermost being that healing occurred through the power of prayer and faith in Jesus Christ.

Yet, many of you also know that miracles do not happen in every situation. Sometimes God uses medical professionals and surgery in order to answer prayers for healing. Sometimes, as with Naaman, there is something that we need to do or to learn in order to be able to be healed. Sometimes healing takes place so slowly that we don’t even notice that it is happening. However it occurs, God remains the Great Healer, and the name of Jesus Christ uttered in prayer with faith is a powerful force for healing.

The same is true when we think about healing broken relationships. It seems to me that many of us struggle with how to do this, and ultimately it is the power of sin that gets in the way. The course materials that I have been using for confirmation include an illustration showing all of the broken relationships in Genesis 2-11. As soon as sin comes into the picture, the relationships start to break down – first between human beings and God, then between man and woman, then between brother and brother, then between heavenly and earthly beings, and then between nations and peoples. Sin breaks in and relationships break apart.

Ultimately, Jesus is God’s answer to these broken relationships, and especially to the gap between human beings and God. It is through Jesus that we are brought back into relationship with God. It is through Jesus that the gap is bridged. It is through Jesus that our sins are forgiven and we are set free to enter into the presence of God.

Through Jesus, God acts first in order to welcome us and accept us as his own children. For some people, this happens in baptism before they are ever old enough to be aware of sin or to repent. For others, an awareness of sin and repentance and faith in Jesus Christ happen before they are baptized. Either way, the salvation and the healing are God’s doing.

When we are in a right relationship with God, there is the acknowledgement there on our part that we are sinful human beings. At the same time, there is the knowledge of God’s love for us through Jesus Christ, and the forgiveness that is ours in repentance and faith. Yet, how many of us suddenly forget this in our relationships with other people, or even with ourselves?

What difference would it make in our relationships if we were to approach them with the humility that acknowledges that we are sinners, and we do make mistakes, and we really might not be right all the time? What difference would it make if we approached our relationships knowing that we are loved and precious and forgiven, even as that other person is loved and precious and forgiven? What difference would it make if we invited Jesus to be present in our relationships, and acted as if Jesus is present?

In truth, many of us are in need of healing – in body, mind and spirit, and in our relationships. Will we come to Jesus in faith seeking that healing? Will we come, and open ourselves to the power of God, and allow Jesus to touch us? Will we come in repentance and faith, knowing our spiritual poverty, as well as the riches of God’s love? Will we come to Jesus, knowing his power to heal and his sacrificial love for us? Will we come, and believe, and be healed? Amen.

Epiphany 6(B)     Mark 1:40-45
February 15, 2009     2 Kings 5:1-14
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2009 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved