Mark 1:40-45
I Want To

A leper came to him, begging him, kneeling down to him, and saying to him, "If you want to, you can make me clean."

Being moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand, and touched him, and said to him, "I want to. Be made clean." When he had said this, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was made clean. He strictly warned him, and immediately sent him out, and said to him, "See you say nothing to anybody, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing the things which Moses commanded, for a testimony to them."

But he went out, and began to proclaim it much, and to spread about the matter, so that Jesus could no more openly enter into a city, but was outside in desert places: and they came to him from everywhere.

World English Bible

Let me open with the obvious—we don't understand much about how God works. Certainly, that is the part of what this leper expressed in his beautiful, humble statement of faith to Jesus. He didn't know why Jesus healed some people and not others, or why Jesus would talk with outcasts like himself, or why Jesus had not claimed his proper place as an insightful rabbi in one of the synagogues.

But the leper knew several facts that were literally life-changing. He knew that Jesus was extraordinarily approachable, so much so that he could kneel within inches of this Holy Man while everyone else made him stand far away. He knew that Jesus commanded miraculous power, and he had figured this out before almost anyone else was aware that there was something different about Jesus. He also knew that Jesus was his best hope for restoration and life.

What he didn't know was if Jesus wanted to help him.

This doubt is understandable in the context of the religion he had been taught. The elders were certain that devastating illnesses like his were due to sins he or his parents had committed. In other words, he deserved this illness, and if he didn't understand why, that was even more evidence that he was a sinner. Given this interpretation of illnesses as God's punishment, it is a wonder this man had enough hope left to consider that Jesus might have mercy on him. Inside him was a faith that would not quit, and it was this faith that brought him healing.

Consider how Jesus must have felt when He heard this man's statement, "If you want to…" Don't you imagine His heart broke? Of course He wanted what was best for this man!

This sounds somewhat like the normal frustrations between just about every child and every parent. Children "really, really, really need" a particular toy / snack / article of clothing, but the parents deny the request because it isn't best for the child. The child is frustrated, and the parent dislikes the anger and hurt the child expresses toward him or her. Still, it is important for the parent to stand firm in denying the request for the ultimate good of the child. I am convinced the same circumstance happens frequently between us and God, except based on eternal perspectives and the wonders of God's miraculous Plan for every person. That also means that we can explain to our children why that toy / snack / article of clothing is not a good decision (or at least we can try), but as children of God, we can't possibly fathom what wondrous Good God is bringing about when God tells us "no".

But in this case, Jesus could and did say, "Yes!"

These are two marvelously uplifting thoughts from this story that we can carry with us. The first is that we never have to wonder if God wants to help us. We have the promise that God is always working out the very best for us, even when we are facing difficulties and pain, and even if we have brought that pain on ourselves. The second is that God wants us to ask, just like this leper did, and we don't have to know the "right words" to pray to get God to respond. It was not this man's knowledge or righteousness that led to his healing, but his faith that urged him to talk with Jesus. All we need to do is to ask!