========================
Mark Chapter 1 verses 40-42 Jesus
Heals a Man With Leprosy
========================
40A man with leprosy came to
him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
41Jesus was indignant. He
reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!”
42Immediately the leprosy
left him and he was cleansed.
----------------------------------------
· The facilitator provides participants with the
following information on leprosy in Jesus’ days:
----------------------------------------
1)
During Jesus’
time the following socio-religious rules governed people who had leprosy?
o
A leper
§
Was considered
unclean.
§
Had to cry out,
‘Unclean, unclean’ when coming into the presence of people.
§
Was not allowed
to come within feet of other people.
o
Anyone who
touched a leper became unclean.
o
Lepers were
social outcasts.
----------------------------------------
Concerning the action the
leper took in approaching Jesus for healing,
----------------------------------------
2)
Did the leper
break the socio-religious rules the way he approached Jesus and why?
o
Yes, because he
came within close proximity of Jesus.
3)
What did begging
on his knees before Jesus indicate?
o
It indicated
humility and earnestness.
4)
What made the leper
consider himself to be unclean?
o
He considered
himself to be unclean because of his leprosy, since in verse 40 he equated the
healing of his leprosy to making him clean in his request for healing.
5)
Was the leper’s
need for healing more psychological than physical and why?
o
Yes, because the
leper did not ask Jesus to heal him of his leprosy but rather to make him clean.
o
Feeling unclean
is not a physical but a psychological condition.
6)
Did the leper
think that Jesus was able to heal him of his leprosy and why?
o
Yes, because to
the leper it was a matter of whether Jesus was willing to heal him or not.
7)
Did the leper’s
faith in Jesus’ ability to heal him of his leprosy translate into his
confidence of Jesus’ willingness to heal and why?
o
No, because he
was expressing uncertainty about Jesus’ willingness to heal him of his leprosy
in saying to Jesus, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
8)
Why was the leper
uncertain about Jesus’ willingness to heal him of his leprosy?
o
It was because
there was a lot of stigma associated with and prejudice against people with
leprosy.
9)
Why did the leper
come within close proximity of Jesus so that it would be possible for Jesus to
touch him and why?
o
It was because
the leper was longing for social acceptance and emotional healing.
----------------------------------------
Concerning the action Jesus
took in responding to the man with leprosy,
----------------------------------------
10)
How did Jesus
heal the leper?
o
Jesus said, “Be
clean!”
11)
What happened to
the leper upon Jesus uttering those words?
o
Immediately the
leprosy left him and he was cured.
12)
Did Jesus break
the socio-religious rules in the way he acted toward the leper and why?
o
Yes, because he
touched the leper.
13)
Did Jesus really
need to touch the leper in order to heal the leper of his leprosy and why?
o
No, Jesus could
have just said the words and the leper would still have been healed because the
leprosy immediately left the man upon Jesus uttering those words.
14)
Why then did
Jesus touch the leper?
o
Jesus touched the
leper to show his social acceptance of the leper.
15)
Had Jesus healed
the leper without touching him, would Jesus have accepted the leper socially?
o
No.
16)
Had Jesus not
accepted the leper socially, would Jesus have healed the leper emotionally?
o
No.
17)
What triggered
Jesus’ compassion for the leper?
o
Jesus was filled
with compassion for the leper for the disfigurement from his physical disease and
emotional wound.
18)
Did Jesus accept
the leper socially first and then heal the leper of leprosy or did Jesus heal
the leper of leprosy first and then accept the leper socially?
o
Jesus touched the
leper to accept him socially first and then verbally healed the leper of his
leprosy.
19)
Why was it
important for Jesus to touch the leper first and then heal the leper of his
leprosy?
o
The only way for
Jesus to accept the leper socially was to touch him first before healing him of
his leprosy.
20)
Would the leper
have been healed emotionally if he had stayed at a distance and why?
o
No, because then
Jesus could not have touched the leper and accepted him socially.
21)
Was it the
leper’s personal responsibility to take his request for emotional healing
before Jesus?
o
Yes.
22)
What can we
conclude about Jesus’ attitude toward social outcasts?
o
Jesus accepted
social outcasts in defiance of socio-religious rules.
23)
Did the leper get
to know Jesus better and in what way?
o
Yes, the leper
realized that Jesus was not only willing to heal him physically but also accept
him socially.
24)
Was the leper a
socio-religious rebel?
o
You decide.
25)
Is Jesus a socio-religious
rebel?
o
You decide.
========================
Mark Chapter 1 verses 40-42 Jesus
Heals a Man With Leprosy
========================