The Symbolic Meaning of Leprosy
When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Matthew 8:1-3 (KJV)
Leprosy was a disease that ate away at a person’s flesh. Spiritually speaking, leprosy represents sin and how it eats away at our lives. The leper was separated from people and was forced to live alone- he was an outcast. Sin always separates us from God and what He has for us. But, there was hope. For the leper in Old Testament times, the blood of an animal could be shed and applied to the leper to heal and cleanse him (see Leviticus 14).
In Matthew 8, a leper came to Jesus saying that if He wanted to, Jesus could make him whole. Jesus answered him and said “Of course I will.” Jesus touched him and made him whole. The leper had likely not been touched in a long time. Jesus’ touch was more powerful than the leprosy and the man was made well of the disease.
Only Jesus and His blood can cleanse and make us whole again- not the blood of animal sacrifices. In the Old Testament, the priest would put the animal’s blood on the leper and anoint him with oil. It was applied to his right earlobe, his right thumb, and his right big toe. The blood of Jesus and the anointingt is now applied to us where we can hear God, and work and walk with Him. The blood of Jesus cleanses, restores us, and the anointing sets us apart to God for His use. The blood of Jesus sets us free from the sin that had us bound, just as the blood of animals was used to heal the leper. And just like the leper is restored to his relationships, we are restored to relationship with God as well as family, society, etc. And the anointing sets us in our place and helps us function in it.
Jesus loves us so much that one touch from Him restores us back to life. His touch is more powerful than any sin or the effects caused by sin. It is all cleansed and wiped away when we accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Jesus is willing and able to make us whole again from the results of sin and to restore us back to God.
