What would ultimately be the most well-known sermon in the history of the planet had just been completed.
The mountainside crowd was captivated and buzzed with testimony. “Never a man spoke like this man,” bounced from person-to-person while Jesus made His way down the mount.
The crowd followed Him further, desiring to hear more, recounting the blessings of beatitudes and the authority He spoke with. His “Verily, verily I say unto you…” rang deep inside their spirits. Yes, the law had been given by Moses, but grace and truth had spoken this day.
Then, amongst all the wonder, it happened. The helplessness of the law stood before grace and asked a question as “a leper came to Him and bowed down before Him, and said, ‘Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean’” (Matthew 8:2 NASB).
The crowd stood still and wondered what grace would do. The law had already spoken; it could do nothing more that identify the disease. Rabbinism would rationalize as to the sin that caused it and would most certainly never salute it.
“If you are willing,” the outcast asked grace, “You can make me clean.”
Then, with great respect to the law—for it had brought this outcast to grace, the Lord spoke in omnipotence: “I am willing.”
And the leper was cleansed immediately.
Here is the humble truth: Wherever there is the will of God—“I am willing,” Jesus said—there is always His power to fulfill it.
Sin makes outcasts of us all, but there is the law of God that makes us privy to that sin, and then leads us to its end:
“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
(Romans 10:4 NASB)
And it is an end that has a ‘willing’ power:
“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”
(John 1:12 KJV)
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