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Gospel: Mark 1: 40-45
A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said,
“If you wish, you can make me clean.”
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched the leper, and said to him,
“I do will it. Be made clean.”
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once.
Then he said to him, “See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them.”
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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This man healed from leprosy was quite the salesman!
In fact, the Gospel tells us that he was so effective in telling others about Jesus that Jesus couldn’t even reach the edge of town without being bombarded by the sick, the paralyzed, and the possessed.
Everyone wanted the healing and the joy Jesus offered this man.
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I’m sure we’ve all acted like that leper before.
Think about how you reacted the day you got engaged; the day you had your first child or grandchild; the day you landed your dream job; or the day you got a puppy.
How many people did you tell? How many pictures did you take or post on social media?
Whenever something good happens to us, we naturally share the news with others. Being healed by Jesus was no different.
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Have we had that same type of experience with faith? Has Jesus changed us so radically that we can’t help but tell others?
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This is how the Good News of the Gospel spreads: one person at a time, sharing the uncontainable, life-altering joy that Jesus Christ brings.
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Image credits: (1) Bible Reasons, Joy in the Lord (2) Osprey Observer (3) Subiaco Church