Taken to the Cleaner

Scripture: Mark 1:40-45

Proposition: Jesus has the power to cleanse you of sin and give you a new start.

Title: Taken to the Cleaner by Pastor Myron Heckman

(Click to Listen to the Sermon Audio http://www.webexpressimage.com/ccbac-audio/ccbac-20120205.mp3

If you said that you were “taken to the cleaners,” that wouldn’t be a good thing. You meant that someone took all your money. If you went to Disneyland with a boxful of cash half way through the week you might say: “I got taken to the cleaners.” Your money got cleaned out. Or you bought a vehicle, thinking you got a good price, and then added the undercoating, the upholstery stain resistance treatment, and the document fee, and that night you think: “I got taken to the cleaners.”

But let’s change the meaning by dropping one letter – the letter “s”. Suppose you got taken to the cleaner. Suddenly it becomes a positive event.

We benefit from a good cleansing.

We are burdened with guilt, and failure, and estrangement and alienation. And we can be dominated by emotions of anger and anxiety and despair.

And it would be the best thing for us if we were taken to the Cleaner.

We’ll look at a story about that this morning.

Mark 1:40-45
Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”
Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.

Jesus has healed multitudes of people, and now one story is highlighted. A leper comes to him, kneels down and asks for healing by saying: “If you are willing, You can make me clean.” (v 40)

Mark 1:40 refers to Christ six times: “Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, ‘If You are willing, You can make me clean.’” The leper wisely chose the right Person to go to for help, for Christ was the only One who could cleanse him.
Leprosy referred to a variety of serious and contagious skin diseases, ranging from ringworm and fungus to what we today call Hansen’s Disease. So by law, because of the contagious nature of the disease, they were segregated from the larger community.

That was a good thing for public health, but made lepers outcasts. And non-lepers didn’t go near them, and didn’t touch them.

But Jesus breaks the convention:
V 41 He touched the leper.
It’s signal – it’s a new day, a new kingdom. This leper won’t defile Jesus, Jesus will clean the leper.
The result of his touch was immediate

V 42 Here’s what we are seeing: Jesus can do what only God can do.

Vs 43 He strictly warned him and sent him away…
1) See that you say nothing to anyone:
2) Show yourself to the priest…as a testimony to them
So they could see the power of Jesus Christ.

The man failed miserably at the first command.
V 45 However he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city

Why did Jesus give this command to the wan? Why hold back on making himself known?
There is a structure to the Gospel of Mark.

The Gospel begins by showing how Jesus brought the Kingdom with his teaching, exorcisms, and healing.
It shows the authority of Jesus.

Then the Gospel storyline turns to the Passion narrative. It is Jesus headed to the cross. The Gospels devote about one-quarter of their material to the Passion narrative. That tells you how important that is. Mark’s Gospel follows that pattern, in fact, it’s more than one-third of his story is about the cross, the events leading up to it, and the resurrection.

So here in the first part of the story, when it’s about the power of Jesus doing things we so much desire, it’s possible to follow him for those things only, and make it about outward benefits. But Jesus is after a change of the heart, a life-change. And that needs the cross.

And that is that the second part of the command is about …
Go and show yourself to the priest, as a testimony to them. This apparently means as a testimony to the priests, that if they declare the man clean, they should then look to the One who cleansed the man. The man is told to follow the ritual we find in the Book of Leviticus.

Leviticus is a difficult book to read, with many different kinds of sacrifices described, prescribed to do a certain way. People start reading the Bible through, beginning with Genesis, and Exodus, and they are doing well, and then comes Leviticus. “What is this I’m reading?” we ask. The key to grasping Leviticus is to know the theme of the book is Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice.

All the ritual sacrifices in Leviticus are pointing forward to the cross, and telling us what wonderful things the atonement does for us.
In essence, Old Testament believers were saved on credit – looking forward to the full payment of our salvation on the cross of Calvary.

Let’s look at the Law Jesus wanted to be followed.
Leviticus 14:2ff “This shall be the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought to the priest. And the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall examine him; and indeed, if the leprosy is healed in the leper, then the priest shall command to take for him who is to be cleansed two living and clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop. And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water. As for the living bird, he shall take it, the cedar wood and the scarlet and the hyssop, and dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water.
And he shall sprinkle it seven times on him who is to be cleansed from the leprosy, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose in the open field. He who is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and wash himself in water, that he may be clean.

The rituals here are symbols of the salvation Christ has accomplished for us on the cross. Romans 10:4 Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

1) The first bird that was slain represents Christ dying as our Substitute – in our place – shedding His blood for our sins. Earthen vessel: Notice that this bird was sacrificed in an earthen vessel. Christ took on our human nature; God was manifest in the flesh (in an earthen vessel – see II Corinthians 4:7) to shed His blood and die for our sins. This represents the atonement, the blood covering our sins in the sight of God.

2) The second bird that was set free represents Christ bearing our sins away (the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, John 1:29). Forgiveness means sending our sins away. That fleeing bird is a picture of what Christ’s forgiveness does for you – your sins are sent flying away.
The ceremony of the two birds pictures the change in a healed leper’s life: death and life.
It was the death of his leprosy, and the new life of acceptance and reconciliation.
That is what Christ does for you as well.

3) There are cleansing rituals – the running water, the washed clothes, the shaved hair. It’s picture of a new start. You need that, don’t you? It’s the oxygen that keeps drawing you to Christ, it calls you not to abuse God’s forgiveness, but to live for God.

We, too, must be cleansed of the leprosy of our sin by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Leprosy is a symbol of our sin, which defiles us and makes us unclean. Like leprosy, sin is contagious, and it makes us outcasts from God. So what are we to do?

“Offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded.” Those offerings are completely fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
It’s not by your blood; it’s not by you beating yourself up. It’s not by you punishing yourself. Those things are taking onto yourself what Christ alone can do. Humble yourself and surrender and rely upon Him alone.
The filthiness of sin can be removed only by the cleansing blood of Christ. David, recognizing that his adultery and murder had polluted him, prays, “Create in me a clean heart, O God” (Psalm 51:10). We all must be cleansed of sin.

A man named Jon Walker wrote: “Jasmine is my beautiful and tenderhearted cockapoo dog. She knows it is wrong to go near an old barn that’s on the edge of my property, but she saw a black cat run behind it and took off for a playful chase. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a cat. It was a skunk, and Jasmine was quite surprised to get a face full of stink. She smelled so bad I didn’t even want to bring her into the house, but I sequestered her in the bathroom while I figured out how to get her clean.
“On the Internet, I found several home remedies for removing skunk stink. The recipes called for ingredients such as tomato juice or a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and baking soda, and I think one listed dark chocolate (OK, I made that up. The dark chocolate was for me). These mixtures removed the bite of the skunk stink (an eye-watering perfume), but the overall smell was still there. By then it was almost midnight, so I took an old blanket, put it on the floor of the bathroom, and that’s where poor Jasmine had to spend the night.

“The next morning, I went to the pet store and found a remarkable de-skunker that removed every bit of the stink and left Jasmine smelling wonderfully clean.

This story helps illustrate what Jesus has done for you.
“Jasmine knew she was forbidden from going near the barn, but temptation appeared in the form of (what she thought) was a black cat. Sin is always deceptive, and it always costs more than we think it will. Jasmine thought she’d have some fun; instead, she ended up with the stink of sin all over her. I still loved Jasmine and wanted her to come into the house with me, but I couldn’t let her have the run of the house while she carried the stink of sin. She needed to be cleansed; otherwise, the stink would permeate my home.

“That’s how God views our sin. He can’t let us back into heaven until we’re cleansed from our sin; otherwise, our sin would stink up the whole place. Jesus came to cleanse us from our sin, and His bloody sacrifice washes us whiter than snow (Ps. 51:7). When we confess our sin and obediently trust Jesus, we can walk confidently into God’s home, knowing He will welcome us as his daughters and sons.”

In a dream, Martin Luther found himself being attacked by Satan. The devil unrolled a long scroll containing a list of Luther’s sins, and held it before him. On reaching the end of the scroll Luther asked the devil, “Is that all?”

“No,” came the reply, and a second scroll was thrust in front of him. Then, after a second came a third.

But now the devil had no more. “You’ve forgotten something,” Luther exclaimed triumphantly. “Quickly write on each of them, ‘The blood of Jesus Christ God’s son cleanses us from all sins.’”

A poem entitled “Sarah” puts it in very human terms.

I’m Sarah, I’m sixteen;
Last night I failed.
I prayed for more strength,
So why did I yield?

He said he loved me,
Brought me flowers and all;
Then he took me upstairs
And caused me to fall.

I feel so ashamed,
So dirty inside.
He’s taken my heart;
Now I want to go hide.

I let down my parents,
And they trusted me so.
Can God forgive me?
I need to know.

If I had it to do
All over again,
I think I would run
To a close, loving friend.

The pain hurts so bad;
I want you to know,
So you won’t give in.
You’ll know when to go!

Yes, God can forgive!
It says it right here;
Jesus died for my sins,
So I never need fear.

My past is all cleansed;
I’m whiter than snow.
Yet my sin is still sin;
Consequences don’t go.

Today I start over,
My purity new!
I’m God’s little girl,
Straight through and through!

Abstain – yes, I must!
By God’s grace and power,
I’ll stay close to Him,
Hour by hour.

Hiding His Word
Deep in my heart;
When faced with temptation,
Next time I’ll be smart.

I know from now on
I’m determined to wait;
God has a man
Designed as my mate.

When that time comes,
And I know he’s the one;
The day I’ll be married -
Now that’ll be fun!

But until then,
To the Lord will I cling;
At just the right time,
My husband, He’ll bring.

I’m trusting Him now
With all of my soul.
The Lord holds my future;
That’s all I must know!

- Sarah

http://www.gospel.com/Sarah-The-Poem.htm.)

Be Thou Clean
My sins were as scarlet; they were a burden to me.
My eyes were so blinded that I could not see.
Then I heard of Christ dying on Calvary,
And my soul stirred to life deep inside of me.

Chorus:
I wondered if Jesus would have compassion on me.
I asked Him if He was willing, and He said, “Be thou clean.”
“Oh sinner, come unto Me. I am willing; be thou clean.”
I asked Him if He was willing, and He said, “Be thou clean.”

My sins, oh how many, pierced my soul like a dart!
Foul leprosy within seemed to stain every part.
I wondered if it was possible to make a new start,
And then God’s gracious love came and filled my heart.

I was like a lost sheep that had wandered astray.
I had rebelled against God and gone my own way.
Then I, in repentance, fell on my knees to pray,
And Christ’s precious blood washed my sins all away.

If you are weighed down by your sin’s constant blame,
Overwhelmed and grieved by the burden of shame,
Take a look at the Savior; there’s a reason He came,
He died for your sins – hear Him calling your name.

What we need is what this story uses to express the healing – it is called a cleansing. For us to see our need, and come before Him and say: If you are willing.” And he answers “I am willing, be cleansed.”

Take Him at His Word for you.