By Ramesh C.Reddy
Pittsburgh Standard

Saturday, September 20, 2008

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SCRIPTURE:
"Jesus then told him sternly, "Go and be examined immediately by the Jewish priest. Don't stop to speak to anyone along the way. Take along the offering prescribed by Moses for a leper who is healed, so that everyone will have proof that you are well again" (Mark 1:43-44, NIV)

Observations:
I asked myself what are the commands Jesus gave the man and how did He do it?

Jesus gave the man couple of commandments sternly:

1. Go and be examined immediately by the Jewish priest.
2. Don't stop to speak to anyone along the way.
3. Take the offering prescribed by Moses for a leper who is healed.

Observations/Interpretations:

I asked myself the significance of each point?

Point 1: Go and be examined immediately by the Jewish priest.

I see Jesus being obedient to Scripture and telling the man who was healed from leprosy to 'Go and be examined immediately by the Jewish priest'. This is very relevant in that Jesus wants the man to follow what we consider to be part of the Old Testament (Leviticus 14).

When we become Christians, we cannot ignore reading the Old Testament because we feel we are under the New Covenant. The Old Testament is Scripture and God uses His entire Word to speak to us.

It is important to realize that if Jesus said something in the New Testament that should take precedent though. Because of what Jesus did for us by dying on the cross, shedding His precious blood, and coming back to life to save us we can do away with sacrificial animal offerings and we are not bound under the law but bound by grace! This however does not mean we can go along sinning because we are not bound by the law. (Romans 6)

Point 2: Don’t stop to speak to anyone along the way.

It is implied by the offering that God should be thanked by the man before he does anything else including telling other people what happened to him. When the Lord answers our prayers it is so important to go to the Lord and thank Him first for what He has done for us before going to anyone else.

Point 3: Take the offering prescribed by Moses for a leper who is healed.

There can be a tendency to pray and accept God's answer and not take the time to offer our praises to Him. God inhabits the praises of His people. Even though we have done away with sacrificial offerings we can still praise the Lord with our lips and bring the sacrifice of praise unto the house of the Lord. We can still offer out gratitude and thankfulness to the Lord our God!

Observations:

I asked myself what the man healed from leprosy did?

"But as the man went on his way he began to shout the good news that he was healed; as a result, such throngs soon surrounded Jesus that he couldn't publicly enter a city anywhere, but had to stay out in the barren wastelands. And people from everywhere came to him there" (Mark 1:45, NIV)

As the man went on his way presumably to the Jewish priest, he disobeyed Jesus and began to shout the good news that he was healed.

I asked myself what were the results of the man's disobedience?

1. Because of the man's disobedience such throngs surrounded Jesus.
2. Jesus couldn't publicly enter a city anywhere.
3. Jesus had to stay in the barren wastelands.
4. People from everywhere had to come to Jesus.

Implications:
We also see the consequences of the man's disobedience in the lives of others. I realized long time ago that my actions and reactions have an effect on other people's lives too. When I am disobedient and do wrong, I not only hurt myself but those around me can be affected too. This is what the man caused.

We do not think about it this way very much but the man's actions caused problems to Jesus that he could not publicly enter a city anywhere but had to stay in the barren wastelands and people had to come to him.

If the man just obeyed and did what Jesus told him to, Jesus could have still been there and it would have been much easier on the people there too without having to go search for Jesus. It is important to realize what we do in our private lives when no one is looking can affect our public ministry or the lives of others! (Achan is an example from the Old Testament)

I ask you now dear friend, what do your actions cause in life?
Dear friend, our actions can either glorify the Lord or bring dishonor to the Lord. Our actions can make people want to know more about Jesus or they can turn people away from Jesus thinking if this is what Christianity is all about, I don’t want to have any part in it. Sometimes the right actions done at the wrong times can cause problems too. There was nothing wrong with the man letting others know that he was healed but the problem was the timing and the disobedience of the man. Jesus specifically told him not to speak to anyone else. The man decides to go his own way anyway.

This too brings to mind how ungrateful we can be many times. Jesus heals the man and then the man goes right ahead and disobeys Jesus. We are guilty of that too. Jesus does so many things for us and yet we find ways to disobey him just because it pleases us to do what we want. This only causes heart ache for the Lord.

We have the opportunity to let the Lord be glorified and not cause grief to the Lord by our actions, so let us hold on to the faith and love, the Lord Jesus has given us and hope in Him as we travel the journey of life.

"Christ Asks Us, Serve Eagerly!" (C.A.U.S.E)/"What do your actions cause in life?"

Prayer:
Dear Lord Jesus I thank you so much because of how much you love us. You love us so much that you give us commandments for our own good. Lord there are times your commandments are hard to follow because they seem like they deprive us of the fun we want but Lord deep inside I know you know what is best for us at all times. I know you will never ask us to do anything that will not be for our good in the long run. Forgive us Lord and help us Oh God of our Salvation for the glory of your Name and deliver us and provide us with your help always for the glory of your Name. Thank you so much Lord Jesus that you have provided atonement for our sins for your Name's sake and have given us your Word. We bring our sacrifice of praise unto the House of the Lord. We are sorry when we cause pain in other people's lives because of our actions. We are also sorry when we do not thank you first. I thank you Jesus for forgiving us and answering our prayers. Thanks we can come to you. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!

"May my spoken words and unspoken thoughts be pleasing even to you, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer." (Psalm 19:14)

If you would like to invite Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him a daily part of your life, you can this very moment. You will never be alone. You can claim God's promises for you in the Bible and see them come true, before your eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to wait for a special time to come to the Lord. You can come right now as you pray the prayer below, meaning it in your heart.

Prayer:
God I am a sinner. I am invaded by this deadliest virus. Many times I feel so guilty and yucky inside. I need forgiveness. I am so sorry for my sins. I have not obeyed you with my whole heart! I have gone my own way and done my own things. I still struggle with sin. I need you Jesus in my life so I can receive forgiveness and a new beginning. In the process, I can forgive others as you help me to. Thank you so much Jesus. I accept the antidote you have sent me. I believe Jesus you died for me and your cleansing blood will cleanse me from all my sins. You came back to life to save me. Thank you God I am set free, free from the bondage of sin. Hear my cry Oh Lord. I accept you Jesus into my heart. I make you my Lord and Personal Savior of my life. Thank you Father God for giving me Salvation. Thank you Jesus for coming into my heart and making my heart your home. Thank you for living in me Jesus and I will live for you and serve you the rest of the days of my life. Thank you for being my Lord and personal Savior! I can live a life of peace with you on my side. Thank you that you have heard my prayer and answered me! In your Name I Pray Jesus! AMEN!