By some miracle, I’ve managed to never test positive for COVID-19 over the past two years. I say it’s a miracle because I’ve continued working throughout the entire pandemic, and I come into contact with a lot of different people at my job. I’m convinced that I have had it at some point and was just asymptomatic or had really mild symptoms and didn’t realize it was COVID.

I’m very grateful that I’ve never had COVID (or at least had no COVID symptoms) for many reasons. But one of the main reasons I’m thankful for never having COVID is that I never had to quarantine. At the beginning of the pandemic, it was hard enough to only go from home to work back to home again and never go anywhere else or see anyone else other than my immediate family and co-workers. I can’t imagine what it would have been like to be isolated for days or even weeks on end and never see anyone or even go outside. I can’t imagine what it would’ve felt like for everyone to avoid me at all costs.

Sadly, many people, whether they’ve tested positive for COVID-19 or they’ve been diagnosed with something else, have been avoided, shunned, made to be outcasts because of their illness or disease, both in present times and in ancient times. And we can see this clearly in the story of Jesus cleansing a leper.

“While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, ‘Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.’” Luke 5:12, ESV

Leprosy refers to a variety of skin diseases that often cause sores and nerve damage all over one’s body. In ancient Israel, people with leprosy were considered ceremonially unclean and were shunned from the community, forced to live in leper colonies outside the city and suffer tremendously for the rest of their lives. Leprosy was a hopeless diagnosis.

But this leper was different. He had hope because Jesus was there. He had probably heard the stories of this God-man who spoke with real authority and healed all kinds of diseases. There were rumors that He was the Messiah, the Savior they had been expecting for hundreds of years. The leper knew that Jesus could heal and cleanse him, if it was His will to do so. He fell before Jesus in an act of reverence, begging to be rid of his disease.

“And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, ‘I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him.” Luke 5:13

We don’t know how long this man had been a leper, and we don’t know how long it had been since he felt human touch. But Jesus did what no other man would do. He had compassion on the leper and touched him and healed him. The phrase “be clean” in the original Greek was actually only one word – katharizo. With one word, Jesus immediately and completely healed this man of a lifelong disease, showcasing His omnipotence and authority. This Greek word is also used to refer to moral or spiritual healing,^[1] so it is possible that the leper was not only physically healed of all his leprosy, but also spiritually healed of all his sins.

“And he charged him to tell no one, but ‘go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.’ But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities.” Luke 5:14-15

Jesus then directs the man to go to the priest, in accordance with the laws for cleansing lepers in Leviticus 14:2-32, so that he may finally be allowed to rejoin society and return to his home. It may seem strange that Jesus commanded the man to not tell anyone about how he was healed, but He did this so that He may be able to continue with His ministry without hindrance. Often during Jesus’ ministry, word would spread about the signs and miracles He did, and He would be bombarded with people who just wanted to see another sign or miracle and had no interest in His main mission: preaching the gospel.

Did the ex-leper heed His command? We don’t know. But we do know that word about Jesus was spread, and many crowds came to Him to hear His message and be healed of their own diseases. Jesus was a healer, and people were desperate for healing, both physical and spiritual.

And Jesus is still a healer. He is still a miracle-worker. He is still sovereign and omnipotent, and He still compassionately draws near to hurting people.

Are you hurting? Are you hopeless? Are you desperate for some kind of healing, whether it be physical, emotional, or spiritual? Cry out to Jesus, and pray, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” You may or may not receive healing in this life, but you can be comforted by the fact that Jesus is always nearby, and you can have hope that you will be completely and ultimately healed in the life to come.

^[1] Blue Letter Bible Lexicon, s.v. “Strong’s G2511 – katharizo,” accessed November 23, 2021, https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2511/kjv/tr/0-1/.