Reflection
In today’s Gospel, Jesus begins to establish the Kingdom of God through the first of many miracles he will perform.
Jesus, the New Moses, comes down from the mountain after his sermon to perform the first of ten great works and signs that reveal the nature of the kingdom he has announced. Jesus first cures a leper, who exhibits great faith in Jesus and his divine power. Jesus was not made ritually unclean by touching the leper; rather, Jesus’ holiness transformed the uncleanliness of the leper and made the Leper clean. We are made clean in the waters of Baptism because it is our share in the action by which our human nature was transformed, namely, the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
The new Kingdom Jesus establishes yields a new form of liturgical worship in which we all participate. Jesus announced his kingdom with a call to repentance. Through the gift of God’s grace, we turn from a life of sin and are in communion with him. Christ, the high priest taken from among men, has made us a new people, a kingdom of priests. Jesus tells the leper to show himself to the priest so that he can be reintroduced into the community of worship. Rather than animal sacrifices we now offer ourselves in a spiritual sacrifice at the Mass.
The leper approaches Jesus with remarkable humility and confidence. He does not presume to tell Jesus what he must do, nor does he doubt Jesus’ power to act. His faith unites complete trust in Christ’s ability with complete surrender to Christ’s will. In this way, the leper teaches us how to pray. We bring our needs, wounds, and sins before the Lord with confidence, knowing that he possesses the power to heal and save. Yet we also submit ourselves to his wisdom and providence, trusting that whatever he wills is ordered to our true good. The response of Jesus reveals the heart of God toward those who seek him in faith. Christ does not turn away from those who come to him in humility. He stretches out his hand, touches us in our weakness, and restores us to communion with God and his people.
Today’s Question for Prayer and Reflection
What do I need Jesus to make clean in my life?
Source for today’s reflection: https://epriest.com/reflections/view/3473