The Kingdom of God Marches On

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Shackled by a heavy burden,

’Neath a load of guilt and shame;

Then the hand of Jesus touched me,

And now I am no longer the same.

Since I met this blessed Savior,

Since He cleansed and made me whole;

I will never cease to praise Him—

I’ll shout it while eternity rolls.

He touched me, oh, He touched me,

And oh, the joy that floods my soul!

Something happened, and now I know,

He touched me and made me whole. (Gaither, “He Touched Me”)

Those words, penned by Bill Gaither in 1963, could have been inspired by the text before us, the healing of a leper, a sure sign that God’s kingdom had come and was indeed marching on.

Jesus has just had an extraordinary day of teaching the Scriptures, casting out demons, and healing the sick—all on the Sabbath. He has served the hurting late into the evening, well past sundown (1:32). And even though the day is drawing to a close, there is more to be done to enable the kingdom to advance against the powers of darkness and evil. In this text Jesus exhibits the strategy by which God continues to advance His purposes. Three clear aspects emerge in our text. Bracketed by the miracles of healing and exorcism, we find the essential elements of prayer and preaching. Without both, the advance of the kingdom would have stopped dead in its tracks. The same is true today!

The Kingdom Advances Through Prayer

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Mark 1:35-37

Though He had been up late, Jesus still rises “very early” the next morning, “while it was still dark.” He leaves Peter’s home alone, going “to a deserted place” for solitude and privacy. A place for restoration and fellowship with His Father.

There are three prayers of Jesus in Mark: The first is found here at the beginning, when His ministry is being defined. The second comes in the middle of the Gospel, when the people wanted to “take Him by force to make Him King” (John 6:15). The final prayer is near the conclusion, in Gethsemane, asking the Father to “take this cup away” (Mark 14:32-42). These are critical moments. The setting in each instance is darkness and solitude, recalling the wilderness and the cosmic conflict between our Lord and Satan. Here, Jesus finds strength in the solitude of prayer and intimate fellowship with His Father. What a valuable lesson that too many of us ignore!

Peter and those with him sent out a search party. Apparently the crowds had returned for more miracles. Peter’s words are almost a rebuke: “Everyone’s looking for You!” In other words, “What are You doing here? This is not where You should be! You need to be with the crowds! We are building a following. Things are beginning to happen. You do not have time to be alone and pray!” Oh, how we are so much like Peter, not understanding the ways of God and how His kingdom will come! Yes, there will be healings and exorcisms. But there must also be prayer.

The Kingdom Advances Through Preaching

Mark 1:38-39

Jesus, as He so often does, responds to Peter in a surprising manner. He will not return to those who are looking for Him. Rather, He says, “Let’s move on. Let’s go to the next town. I will preach there also. This is why I came.”

The crowds at Peter’s house came for the miracles. Now, apparently, they want more. The call to repent and believe the gospel (1:15) was not on their spiritual radar. Like so many today, they wanted a Jesus of their liking, a Jesus who would perform miracles and fit into their agenda.

Neither the crowds nor the disciples understood why He had come into the world. But He knew! Jesus came to preach, to herald, to proclaim the gospel of salvation, a message that is both by Him and about Him. Indeed, He is the gospel! But sadly, the crowds missed Him.

36God had only one Son, and He made Him a preacher. No pastor is worthy of the office who does not preach the Word. No church will prosper spiritually without the preaching of the Word. John Stott said, “Christianity is, in its very essence, a religion of the Word of God” (Between Two Worlds, 15). Luther would add, “Let us consider it certain and conclusively established that the soul can do without all things except the Word of God, and that where this is not there is no help for the soul in anything else whatever” (Three Treatises, 23).

Jesus went throughout all Galilee, preaching the gospel and casting out demons. He did this out of a life of prayer. Prayer and preaching is a onetwo punch that cannot be defeated. This is how the kingdom marches on anywhere and anytime.

The Kingdom Advances Through Cleansing

Mark 1:40-45

As He was traveling and ministering, Jesus is met by a leper. This encounter is startling, provocative, and even offensive. A leper was a man whom the culture considered an outcast, the law judged unclean, and the people deemed cursed by God. Even one with AIDS today fares far better than the leper of the first century. A leper was to stay at least 50 paces from others. That he came near to Jesus, so close that Jesus could touch him, was unthinkable.

The word for leprosy covered a number of skin diseases (including what we today call “Hansen’s Disease”), each of which was difficult to diagnose and heal. The person with the disease was mocked and shunned. The leper had to wear torn clothes, leave his hair unkempt, cover his face, and cry out “Unclean!” He was forced to live in isolation. Josephus said a leper was “in no way differing from a corpse” (Antiquities, 3.264).

Leviticus 13-14 discusses the disease. It was usually regarded as an evidence of divine punishment. As such, the cure could only come from the Lord. Other illnesses could be healed, but leprosy had to be both healed and cleansed. Needless to say, no one in the Bible healed a leper by touch other than Jesus.

Warren Wiersbe notes, “When you read the ‘tests’ for leprosy in Leviticus 13, you can see how the disease is a picture of sin. Like sin, leprosy is deeper than the skin (v. 3); it spreads (vv. 5-8); it defiles and isolates (vv. 44-46); and it renders things fit only for the fire (vv. 47-59). Anyone who has never trusted the Savior is spiritually in worse shape than this man was physically” (Be Diligent, 19).

37All of this makes it remarkable that the leper came to Jesus. He violated every convention and custom of society in that day. He was desperate, and he believed only Jesus could heal him and make him clean. He came, knelt, and begged, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” Wow! His faith is astounding! The issue is not whether Jesus could heal him, but would He? This man comes to Jesus with great courage, great humility, and great faith—the same way we, as sin-sick sinners, must come to Him. He came believing in the only One who could change his life and make him whole.

Surprisingly and scandalously, Jesus makes the unclean clean! Rather than turning away from the man, He turns to him with compassion and touches him, thereby removing his curse, taking away his shame, and removing his defilement. As the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53:4, He takes on Himself the infirmities of this man, cleanses him, and makes him whole! Jesus’ touch speaks louder than words ever could, yet His words must have thrilled this man’s soul: “I am willing.” Unlike any ordinary man, the Lord Jesus is not polluted by the leper’s disease when He touches him. Instead, the leper is cleansed by the gracious touch and contagious holiness of the Son of God.

It is not surprising that Jesus sends the man to a local priest, according to the ritual for cleansing in Leviticus 14. What is surprising is the stern charge and quick exit Jesus demands. He sends him packing with a command to keep his mouth shut. Jesus does not want persons who merely seek miracles. He wants followers who seek Him! People are always tempted by the sensational. Jesus desires followers who long for truth and want to know Him. He does not want people to come to Him to get what they want. He wants people to come to Him to get Him!

The leper went and talked freely about what Jesus had done. We can understand his enthusiasm. We cannot, however, justify his disregard of our Lord’s clear command. He talked of it everywhere. This caused a restriction on Jesus’ preaching ministry, as He “could no longer enter a town openly.” He again frequented “deserted places” (cf. 1:35). Still, the people “would come to Him from everywhere.” What Mark will say in 7:24 is already true now: “He could not escape notice.”

Ironically, Jesus and the leper have traded places. The leper is now on the inside with family and friends. Jesus is on the outside in a lonely and desolate place. This picture of substitution is the heart of the gospel. It is why Jesus came. He will take on Himself our sin, our sorrow, and our shame. In return He gives us His forgiveness, His holiness, and His righteousness—praise the Lord! What an exchange!

Conclusion

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The rabbis said that it was as difficult to heal the leper as it was to raise the dead. Both are impossible for man; neither is a problem for God’s Son. He cleanses the defiled and raises the dead by a simple touch or a simple word. He truly touches lives and makes them whole. He did that for me. Has He done that for you?

Reflect and Discuss

1. How is individual prayer different from corporate prayer? How is individual prayer intensified by isolation?
2. What is the best time for you to spend time in intense prayer: early in the morning, during the day, or in the evening?
3. If you are under pressure, and there is not sufficient time to (1) get enough sleep, (2) spend enough time in prayer, and (3) take enough time to do a job well, which of these are you likely to compromise?
4. Do people still come to church wanting blessings without repentance? What blessings are they hoping to receive?
5. What constitutes “preaching” besides what a pastor does on Sunday mornings? Is there a kind of “preaching” that any Christian man or woman can and should do?
6. What kinds of people are shunned today in a way that approaches how lepers were avoided in Jesus’ day? How might we reach out and touch such people?
7. How is asking Jesus, “If You are willing ...” (1:40) different from asking Him, “If You can do anything ...” (9:22)?
8. Why was it surprising that Jesus touched the leper? Why was it theologically significant?
9. The leper’s publicity of his healing changed what the people expected from Jesus’ ministry. What should we publicize about what goes on in our churches in order to give people a true picture of what they should expect?
10. Besides physical health, what did the leper gain from his encounter with Jesus? How does that compare with what we gain?