The Undiscouraged Leper
Dear Pastor, Preacher, or Bible Teacher –
God be with you on this Monday! I don’t know if you preached or taught the Bible this last weekend, but I wanted to bring you this encouraging word from Matthew 8:12:
When He had come down from the mountain,
great multitudes followed Him.
And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying,
“Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
As pastors, preachers, and Bible teachers, we all know that Jesus did many amazing miracles. Today, think for a moment about this leper. We read here that he came to Jesus, he worshipped Jesus, and he asked Jesus to heal him.
Here is a simple thought: this leper came to Jesus despite many discouragements. Think about the reasons he had to be discouraged:
- He knew how terrible his problem was.
- He knew that other people gave up on him as having a hopeless condition.
- He came alone, having no one who would or could take him to Jesus.
- He had no previous example of Jesus healing a leper to give him hope.
- He had no promise that Jesus would heal him.
- He had no invitation from Jesus or the disciples.
- He must have felt ashamed and alone in the crowd.
This leper fought off all these discouragements and came to Jesus, worshipped Him, and asked Jesus for a miracle to meet his need.
As we serve God, there are many discouragements along the way. Sometimes I think that “discouragement” is the sharpest tool the devil uses against God’s servants.
But the next time you feel so discouraged, remember this leper who battled through every discouragement to come to Jesus, worship Him, and receive from Jesus. Then remember that you have many, many more reasons for encouragement than that leper ever had!
- You know how bad your problems are; you have also seen the power of Jesus win the victory many times.
- You know other people have given up on you; but you also know Jesus has never given up on you.
- You may feel alone in your problem, but you know Jesus is with you.
- You have many examples of Jesus powerfully working for His servants.
- You have many precious promises from Jesus to encourage you.
- You have an invitation to the throne of grace in your time of need.
- You have many others who know your difficulty and stand beside you.
Sure, you have reasons to be discouraged – but you have many more reasons to be encouraged. Lord Jesus, help us to walk in the strength of your encouraging promises!
Blessings to You in Jesus’ Name – David Guzik
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Huldah the Prophetess
So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Achbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess…. And they spoke with her. Then she said to them, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘Tell the man who sent you to Me, “Thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, I will bring calamity on this place and on its inhabitants— all the words of the book which the king of Judah has read.’” (2 Kings 22:14-16)
In the days of King Josiah, they found the long-neglected book of the law – the Scriptures, the books of Moses and maybe a few more – in the temple. When they read the book they were deeply convicted of sin, and made confession and repented. But what to do next? The spiritual leaders of Judah needed spiritual guidance.
It is fascinating to see that they went to Huldah the prophetess. We know little of this woman other than this mention here (and the similar account recorded in 2 Chronicles 34:22). With the apparent approval of King Josiah, Hilkiah the priest consulted this woman for spiritual guidance.
However, he didn’t go to Huldah for her own wisdom and spirituality, but that she was recognized as a prophetess, and she could reveal the heart and mind of God. She knew the word of God and could declare it.
At that time, there were certainly other prophets in Judah. From Jeremiah 22:15-16 we know that Jeremiah was alive at this time (Jeremiah 22:15-16) – but they didn’t go to him. The prophet Zephaniah was also present (Zephaniah 1:1), but they didn’t knock at his door. For some reason – perhaps spiritual, perhaps practical – they chose to consult Huldah the prophetess.
Her message, at least at the beginning, wasn’t positive. She assured the spiritual leaders of Judah that judgment would surely come. Speaking as a prophetess of God, she gave them this message from God: I will bring calamity on this place and on its inhabitants.
King Josiah and the priests knew that Judah deserved judgment, and that judgment would indeed come. Judah and its leaders had walked against the LORD for too long and would not genuinely repent so as to avoid eventual judgment.
The way God used Huldah to deliver this message reminds us that from time to time, God will use an unusual messenger. There were other faithful, more established prophets God could have spoken through at this point (such as Jeremiah and Zephaniah). Yet God used a simple, otherwise unknown woman, who was filled with His Holy Spirit.
We may never know all the reasons God used Huldah, but I know one big reason. Huldah is a great example to us because she was familiar with all the words of the book. If you want to be God’s messenger, the first thing to do is to put your focus on all the words of the book. It is in the book that God most perfectly reveals Himself to us and we come into real relationship with Him.
Der Sünde überführt
Und es geschah, als der König die Worte des Buches des Gesetzes hörte, da zerriß er seine Kleider. (2. Könige 22,11)
Der junge König Josia stieg auf den Thron, als die Führer und das Volk von Juda geistlich gesehen Kompromisse eingingen und verdorben waren. Als er sich für den Tempel Gottes interessierte, fand er das Buch des Gesetzes – also viele Bücher des Alten Testaments – im Tempel.
Als sie Gottes Wort dem König vorlasen, tat dies ein geistliches Werk in König Josia. Es war nicht nur die Weitergabe von Information; das Hören von Gottes Wort hatte einen großen Einfluss auf Josia.
Als Josia es hörte, zerriß er seine Kleider. Das war damals ein Ausdruck für Entsetzen und Erstaunen. Josia zeigte damit seine Trauer über sich selber und seine Nation auf die deutlichste Art. Es war eine Art zu zeigen, dass er von Sünde überführt war, und das ist etwas Gutes.
Geistliche Erweckungen werden davon begleitet. Dr. J. Edwin Orr zählt in The Second Evangelical Awakening in Britain (Die zweite evangelikale Erweckung in Großbritannien, Anm. der Übersetzerin) einige Beispiele aus dieser großen Bewegung auf, die Großbritannien und die Welt 1859 bis 1861 beeinflusste.
In der Stadt Coleraine, Nordirland, fühlte sich ein Schuljunge so sehr von seiner Sünde überführt, dass er dem Unterricht nicht mehr folgen konnte. Von einem anderen Jungen ermutigt, fand er wieder Frieden, kam zurück in die Klasse und erzählte dem Lehrer: „Ich bin so glücklich: Ich habe den Herrn Jesus in meinem Herzen!“ Sein Zeugnis hatte einen enormen Effekt auf die Klasse. Als der Lehrer aus dem Fenster sah, sah er auf dem ganzen Schulhof Jungs auf den Knien im Gebet. Der Lehrer war so berührt, dass er den Jungen, der sich zuerst bekehrt hatte, bat, ihm das zu erklären. Schließlich war die ganze Schule so weit, dass ein Pastor kam und sie lehrte, Schüler, Lehrer und Eltern. Alle hörten das Evangelium bis 22 Uhr.
Ein hochrangiger Offizier der Armee beschrieb die Überführung von Sünde in seiner Schottischen Stadt: „ Jene, die sich behaglich fühlen, haben keine Ahnung davon, wie erschreckend es ist, wenn der Heilige Geist dem Menschen die Augen öffnet und er den wahren Zustand seines Herzens erkennt…Menschen, die sich selbst für gute und religiöse Leute hielten… werden dazu geführt, ihr Fundament, auf dem sie ruhen, zu hinterfragen und finden heraus, dass es verottet ist, dass sie selbstzufrieden sind, weil sie sich selbst für gut halten und nicht in Christus ruhen. Viele kehrten von ihren Sünden zu einem heiligen Leben um, viele weinten vor Freude, weil ihre Sünden vergeben wurden.“
Diese Überführung von Sünde ist ein besonderes Werk des Heiligen Geistes, so wie Jesus es in Johannes 16,8 sagte: „ Und wenn jener kommt, wird er die Welt überführen von Sünde und von Gerechtigkeit und vom Gericht.“
Die Überführung von Sünde fühlt sich nie gut an, doch sie führt zu etwas Gutem: Vergebung der Sünden und ein Leben mit Jesus Christus. Unterschätze es nicht, von Sünde überführt zu werden.