The Desire of Ages
by Ellen G. White
Chapter 27: "Thou Canst Make Me Clean"
This chapter is based on Matt. 8:2-4; 9:1-8;
Mark 1:40-45; 2:1-12; Luke 5:12-26.
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Of all diseases known in the East the leprosy was most
dreaded. Its incurable and contagious character, and its horrible effect upon
its victims, filled the bravest with fear. Among the Jews it was regarded as a
judgment on account of sin, and hence was called "the stroke,"
"the finger of God." Deep-rooted, ineradicable, deadly, it was looked
upon as a symbol of sin. By the ritual law, the leper was pronounced unclean.
Like one already dead, he was shut out from the habitations of men. Whatever he
touched was unclean. The air was polluted by his breath. One who was suspected
of having the disease must present himself to the priests, who were to examine
and decide his case. If pronounced a leper, he was isolated from his family,
cut off from the congregation of Israel, and was doomed to associate with those
only who were similarly afflicted. The law was inflexible in its requirement.
Even kings and rulers were not exempt. A monarch who was attacked by this
terrible disease must yield up the scepter, and flee from society. {DA 262.1}
Away from his friends and his kindred, the leper must bear
the curse of his malady. He was obliged to publish his own calamity, to rend
his garments, and sound the alarm, warning all to flee from his contaminating
presence. The cry, "Unclean! unclean!" coming in mournful tones from
the lonely exile, was a signal heard with fear and abhorrence. {DA 262.2}
In the region of Christ's ministry, there were many of these
sufferers, and the news of His work reached them, kindling a gleam of hope. But
since the days of Elisha the prophet, such a thing had never been known [263]
as the cleansing of one upon whom this disease had fastened. They dared not
expect Jesus to do for them what He had never done for any man. There was one,
however, in whose heart faith began to spring up. Yet the man knew not how to
reach Jesus. Debarred as he was from contact with his fellow men, how could he
present himself to the Healer? And he questioned if Christ would heal him.
Would He stoop to notice one believed to be suffering under the judgment of
God? Would He not, like the Pharisees, and even the physicians, pronounce a
curse upon him, and warn him to flee from the haunts of men? He thought of all
that had been told him of Jesus. Not one who had sought His help had been
turned away. The wretched man determined to find the Saviour. Though shut out
from the cities, it might be that he could cross His path in some byway along
the mountain roads, or find Him as He was teaching outside the towns. The
difficulties were great, but this was his only hope. {DA 262.3}
The leper is guided to the Saviour. Jesus is teaching beside
the lake, and the people are gathered about Him. Standing afar off, the leper
catches a few words from the Saviour's lips. He sees Him laying His hands upon
the sick. He sees the lame, the blind, the paralytic, and those dying of
various maladies rise up in health, praising God for their deliverance. Faith
strengthens in his heart. He draws nearer and yet nearer to the gathered
throng. The restrictions laid upon him, the safety of the people, and the fear
with which all men regard him are forgotten. He thinks only of the blessed hope
of healing. {DA 263.1}
He is a loathsome spectacle. The disease has made frightful
inroads, and his decaying body is horrible to look upon. At sight of him the
people fall back in terror. They crowd upon one another in their eagerness to
escape from contact with him. Some try to prevent him from approaching Jesus,
but in vain. He neither sees nor hears them. Their expressions of loathing are
lost upon him. He sees only the Son of God. He hears only the voice that speaks
life to the dying. Pressing to Jesus, he casts himself at His feet with the
cry, "Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean." {DA 263.2}
Jesus replied, "I will; be thou made clean," and
laid His hand upon him. Matthew 8:3, R. V. {DA 263.3}
Immediately a change passed over the leper. His flesh became
healthy, the nerves sensitive, the muscles firm. The rough, scaly surface
peculiar to leprosy disappeared, and a soft glow, like that upon the skin of a
healthy child, took its place. [264] {DA 263.4}
Jesus charged the man not to make known the work that had
been wrought, but straightway to present himself with an offering at the
temple. Such an offering could not be accepted until the priests had made
examination and pronounced the man wholly free from the disease. However
unwilling they might be to perform this service, they could not evade an
examination and decision of the case. {DA 264.1}
The words of Scripture show with what urgency Christ
enjoined upon the man the necessity of silence and prompt action. "He
straitly charged him, and forthwith sent him away; and saith unto him, See thou
say nothing to any man: but go thy way, show thyself to the priest, and offer
for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto
them." Had the priests known the facts concerning the healing of the
leper, their hatred of Christ might have led them to render a dishonest
sentence. Jesus desired the man to present himself at the temple before any
rumors concerning the miracle had reached them. Thus an impartial decision
could be secured, and the restored leper would be permitted to unite once more
with his family and friends. {DA
264.2}
There were other objects which Christ had in view in
enjoining silence on the man. The Saviour knew that His enemies were ever
seeking to limit His work, and to turn the people from Him. He knew that if the
healing of the leper were noised abroad, other sufferers from this terrible
disease would crowd about Him, and the cry would be raised that the people
would be contaminated by contact with them. Many of the lepers would not so use
the gift of health as to make it a blessing to themselves or to others. And by
drawing the lepers about Him, He would give occasion for the charge that He was
breaking down the restrictions of the ritual law. Thus His work in preaching
the gospel would be hindered. {DA 264.3}
The event justified Christ's warning. A multitude of people
had witnessed the healing of the leper, and they were eager to learn of the
priests' decision. When the man returned to his friends, there was great [265]
excitement. Notwithstanding the caution of Jesus, the man made no further
effort to conceal the fact of his cure. It would indeed have been impossible to
conceal it, but the leper published the matter abroad. Conceiving that it was
only the modesty of Jesus which laid this restriction upon him, he went about
proclaiming the power of this Great Healer. He did not understand that every
such manifestation made the priests and elders more determined to destroy
Jesus. The restored man felt that the boon of health was very precious. He
rejoiced in the vigor of manhood, and in his restoration to his family and
society, and felt it impossible to refrain from giving glory to the Physician
who had made him whole. But his act in blazing abroad the matter resulted in
hindering the Saviour's work. It caused the people to flock to Him in such
multitudes that He was forced for a time to cease His labors. {DA 264.4}
Every act of Christ's ministry was far-reaching in its
purpose. It comprehended more than appeared in the act itself. So in the case
of the leper. While Jesus ministered to all who came unto Him, He yearned to
bless those who came not. While He drew the publicans, the heathen, and the
Samaritans, He longed to reach the priests and teachers who were shut in by
prejudice and tradition. He left untried no means by which they might be
reached. In sending the healed leper to the priests, He gave them a testimony
calculated to disarm their prejudices. {DA 265.1}
The Pharisees had asserted that Christ's teaching was
opposed to the law which God had given through Moses; but His direction to the
cleansed leper to present an offering according to the law disproved this
charge. It was sufficient testimony for all who were willing to be convinced. {DA 265.2}
The leaders at Jerusalem had sent out spies to find some
pretext for putting Christ to death. He responded by giving them an evidence of
His love for humanity, His respect for the law, and His power to deliver from
sin and death. Thus He bore witness of them: "They have rewarded Me evil
for good, and hatred for My love." Psalm 109:5. He who on the mount gave
the precept, "Love your enemies," Himself exemplified the principle,
not rendering "evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing."
Matthew 5:44; 1 Peter 3:9. {DA
265.3}
The same priests who condemned the leper to banishment
certified his cure. This sentence, publicly pronounced and registered, was a
standing testimony for Christ. And as the healed man was reinstated in the
congregation of Israel, upon the priests' own assurance that there [266]
was not a taint of the disease upon him, he himself was a living witness for
his Benefactor. Joyfully he presented his offering, and magnified the name of
Jesus. The priests were convinced of the divine power of the Saviour.
Opportunity was granted them to know the truth and to be profited by the light.
Rejected, it would pass away, never to return. By many the light was rejected;
yet it was not given in vain. Many hearts were moved that for a time made no sign.
During the Saviour's life, His mission seemed to call forth little response of
love from the priests and teachers; but after His ascension "a great
company of the priests were obedient to the faith." Acts 6:7. {DA 265.4}
The work of Christ in cleansing the leper from his terrible
disease is an illustration of His work in cleansing the soul from sin. The man
who came to Jesus was "full of leprosy." Its deadly poison permeated
his whole body. The disciples sought to prevent their Master from touching him;
for he who touched a leper became himself unclean. But in laying His hand upon
the leper, Jesus received no defilement. His touch imparted life-giving power.
The leprosy was cleansed. Thus it is with the leprosy of sin,—deep-rooted,
deadly, and impossible to be cleansed by human power. "The whole head is
sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head
there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying
sores." Isaiah 1:5, 6. But Jesus, coming to dwell in humanity, receives no
pollution. His presence has healing virtue for the sinner. Whoever will fall at
His feet, saying in faith, "Lord, if Thou wilt, Thou canst make me
clean," shall hear the answer, "I will; be thou made clean." Matthew
8:2, 3, R. V. {DA 266.1}
In some instances of healing, Jesus did not at once grant
the blessing sought. But in the case of leprosy, no sooner was the appeal made
than it was granted. When we pray for earthly blessings, the answer to our
prayer may be delayed, or God may give us something other than we ask, but not
so when we ask for deliverance from sin. It is His will to cleanse us from sin,
to make us His children, and to enable us to live a holy life. Christ
"gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present
evil world, according to the will of God and our Father." Galatians 1:4.
And "this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything
according to His will, He heareth us: and if we know that He hear us,
whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of
Him." 1 John 5:14, 15. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and
just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
1 John 1:9. [267] {DA 266.2}
In the healing of the paralytic at Capernaum, Christ again
taught the same truth. It was to manifest His power to forgive sins that the
miracle was performed. And the healing of the paralytic also illustrates other
precious truths. It is full of hope and encouragement, and from its connection
with the caviling Pharisees it has a lesson of warning as well. {DA 267.1}
Like the leper, this paralytic had lost all hope of
recovery. His disease was the result of a life of sin, and his sufferings were
embittered by remorse. He had long before appealed to the Pharisees and
doctors, hoping for relief from mental suffering and physical pain. But they
coldly pronounced him incurable, and abandoned him to the wrath of God. The
Pharisees regarded affliction as an evidence of divine displeasure, and they
held themselves aloof from the sick and the needy. Yet often these very ones
who exalted themselves as holy were more guilty than the sufferers they
condemned. {DA 267.2}
The palsied man was entirely helpless, and, seeing no
prospect of aid from any quarter, he had sunk into despair. Then he heard of
the wonderful works of Jesus. He was told that others as sinful and helpless as
he had been healed; even lepers had been cleansed. And the friends who reported
these things encouraged him to believe that he too might be cured if he could
be carried to Jesus. But his hope fell when he remembered how the disease had
been brought upon him. He feared that the pure Physician would not tolerate him
in His presence. {DA
267.3}
Yet it was not physical restoration he desired so much as
relief from the burden of sin. If he could see Jesus, and receive the assurance
of forgiveness and peace with Heaven, he would be content to live or die,
according to God's will. The cry of the dying man was, Oh that I might come
into His presence! There was no time to lose; already his wasted flesh was
showing signs of decay. He besought his friends to carry him on his bed to
Jesus, and this they gladly undertook to do. But so dense was the crowd that
had assembled in and about the house where the Saviour was, that it was
impossible for the sick man and his friends to reach Him, or even to come
within hearing of His voice. {DA
267.4}
Jesus was teaching in the house of Peter. According to their
custom, His disciples sat close about Him, and "there were Pharisees and
doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee,
and Judea, and Jerusalem." These had come as spies, seeking an accusation
against Jesus. Outside of these officials thronged the promiscuous multitude,
the eager, the reverent, the curious, and the unbelieving. Different [268]
nationalities and all grades of society were represented. "And the power
of the Lord was present to heal." The Spirit of life brooded over the
assembly, but Pharisees and doctors did not discern its presence. They felt no
sense of need, and the healing was not for them. "He hath filled the
hungry with good things; and the rich He hath sent empty away." Luke 1:53.
{DA 267.5}
Again and again the bearers of the paralytic tried to push
their way through the crowd, but in vain. The sick man looked about him in
unutterable anguish. When the longed-for help was so near, how could he
relinquish hope? At his suggestion his friends bore him to the top of the house
and, breaking up the roof, let him down at the feet of Jesus. The discourse was
interrupted. The Saviour looked upon the mournful countenance, and saw the
pleading eyes fixed upon Him. He understood the case; He had drawn to Himself
that perplexed and doubting spirit. While the paralytic was yet at home, the
Saviour had brought conviction to his conscience. When he repented of his sins,
and believed in the power of Jesus to make him whole, the life-giving mercies
of the Saviour had first blessed his longing heart. Jesus had watched the first
glimmer of faith grow into a belief that He was the sinner's only helper, and
had seen it grow stronger with every effort to come into His presence. {DA 268.1}
Now, in words that fell like music on the sufferer's ear,
the Saviour said, "Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee."
{DA 268.2}
The burden of despair rolls from the sick man's soul; the
peace of forgiveness rests upon his spirit, and shines out upon his
countenance. His physical pain is gone, and his whole being is transformed. The
helpless paralytic is healed! the guilty sinner is pardoned! {DA 268.3}
In simple faith he accepted the words of Jesus as the boon
of new life. He urged no further request, but lay in blissful silence, too
happy for words. The light of heaven irradiated his countenance, and the people
looked with awe upon the scene. {DA 268.4}
The rabbis had waited anxiously to see what disposition
Christ would make of this case. They recollected how the man had appealed to
them for help, and they had refused him hope or sympathy. Not satisfied with
this, they had declared that he was suffering the curse of God for his sins.
These things came fresh to their minds when they saw the sick man before them.
They marked the interest with which all were watching the scene, and they felt
a terrible fear of losing their own influence over the people. [269]
{DA 268.5}
These dignitaries did not exchange words together, but
looking into one another's faces they read the same thought in each, that
something must be done to arrest the tide of feeling. Jesus had declared that
the sins of the paralytic were forgiven. The Pharisees caught at these words as
blasphemy, and conceived that they could present this as a sin worthy of death.
They said in their hearts, "He blasphemeth: who can forgive sins but One,
even God?" Mark 2:7, R. V. {DA 269.1}
Fixing His glance upon them, beneath which they cowered, and
drew back, Jesus said, "Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? For
whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and
walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive
sins," He said, turning to the paralytic, "Arise, take up thy bed,
and go unto thine house." {DA 269.2}
Then he who had been borne on a litter to Jesus rises to his
feet with the elasticity and strength of youth. The life-giving blood bounds
through his veins. Every organ of his body springs into sudden activity. The
glow of health succeeds the pallor of approaching death. "And immediately
he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they
were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this
fashion." {DA 269.3}
Oh, wondrous love of Christ, stooping to heal the guilty and
the afflicted! Divinity sorrowing over and soothing the ills of suffering
humanity! Oh, marvelous power thus displayed to the children of men! Who can
doubt the message of salvation? Who can slight the mercies of a compassionate
Redeemer? {DA 269.4}
It required nothing less than creative power to restore
health to that decaying body. The same voice that spoke life to man created
from [270]
the dust of the earth had spoken life to the dying paralytic. And the same
power that gave life to the body had renewed the heart. He who at the creation
"spake, and it was," who "commanded, and it stood fast,"
(Psalm 33:9), had spoken life to the soul dead in trespasses and sins. The
healing of the body was an evidence of the power that had renewed the heart.
Christ bade the paralytic arise and walk, "that ye may know," He
said, "that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins." {DA 269.5}
The paralytic found in Christ healing for both the soul and
the body. The spiritual healing was followed by physical restoration. This
lesson should not be overlooked. There are today thousands suffering from
physical disease, who, like the paralytic, are longing for the message,
"Thy sins are forgiven." The burden of sin, with its unrest and
unsatisfied desires, is the foundation of their maladies. They can find no
relief until they come to the Healer of the soul. The peace which He alone can
give, would impart vigor to the mind, and health to the body. {DA 270.1}
Jesus came to "destroy the works of the devil."
"In Him was life," and He says, "I am come that they might have
life, and that they might have it more abundantly." He is "a
quickening spirit." 1 John 3:8; John 1:4; 10:10; 1 Corinthians 15:45. And
He still has the same life-giving power as when on earth He healed the sick,
and spoke forgiveness to the sinner. He "forgiveth all thine iniquities,"
He "healeth all thy diseases." Psalm 103:3. {DA 270.2}
The effect produced upon the people by the healing of the
paralytic was as if heaven had opened, and revealed the glories of the better
world. As the man who had been cured passed through the multitude, blessing God
at every step, and bearing his burden as if it were a feather's weight, the
people fell back to give him room, and with awe-stricken faces gazed upon him,
whispering softly among themselves, "We have seen strange things today."
{DA 270.3}
The Pharisees were dumb with amazement and overwhelmed with
defeat. They saw that here was no opportunity for their jealousy to inflame the
multitude. The wonderful work wrought upon the man whom they had given over to
the wrath of God had so impressed the people that the rabbis were for the time
forgotten. They saw that Christ possessed a power which they had ascribed to
God alone; yet the gentle dignity of His manner was in marked contrast to their
own haughty bearing. They were disconcerted and abashed, recognizing, but not
confessing, the presence of a superior being. The stronger the evidence that
Jesus had power on earth to forgive sins, the more firmly [271] they
entrenched themselves in unbelief. From the home of Peter, where they had seen
the paralytic restored by His word, they went away to invent new schemes for
silencing the Son of God. {DA
270.4}
Physical disease, however malignant and deep-seated, was
healed by the power of Christ; but the disease of the soul took a firmer hold
upon those who closed their eyes against the light. Leprosy and palsy were not
so terrible as bigotry and unbelief. {DA 271.1}
In the home of the healed paralytic there was great
rejoicing when he returned to his family, carrying with ease the couch upon
which he had been slowly borne from their presence but a short time before.
They gathered round with tears of joy, scarcely daring to believe their eyes.
He stood before them in the full vigor of manhood. Those arms that they had
seen lifeless were quick to obey his will. The flesh that had been shrunken and
leaden-hued was now fresh and ruddy. He walked with a firm, free step. Joy and
hope were written in every lineament of his countenance; and an expression of
purity and peace had taken the place of the marks of sin and suffering. Glad
thanksgiving went up from that home, and God was glorified through His Son, who
had restored hope to the hopeless, and strength to the stricken one. This man
and his family were ready to lay down their lives for Jesus. No doubt dimmed their
faith, no unbelief marred their fealty to Him who had brought light into their
darkened home. {DA 271.2}
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