I AM WILLING, BE CLEAN!
Mark 1:40-45 MK01_40_45_MSK_2026
Key Verse: 1:41 “Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’”
We are living in a new era called the age of AI (Artificial Intelligence). AI robots and apps are growing very fast. Now, we see them in our homes, schools, and workplaces. Some AI apps are designed to support people emotionally. These are called AI companions. They can talk with people anytime, day and night. They ask how you feel and try to comfort you when you are stressed, anxious, or sad. Because of this, many young people today prefer to talk to AI apps when they feel lonely or worried, instead of talking to their family or friends. Why does this happen? It is because AI feels nonjudgmental and does not criticize or reject them. Instead, AI offers comfort and encouragement with a gentle voice. However, as we know, AI is only a computer system and not a human being. Even though it can offer temporary comfort or relief, it never solves the deep problems inside our hearts. So then, who can we truly open our hearts to? Who can really understand us and heal our broken hearts? Here is the good news for everyone: the Son of God, our Creator, came to us with great compassion. May God bless each one of us to meet Jesus personally and know Him as our Savior and the Lord through today’s passage.
First, a man with leprosy came to Jesus (40).
Look at verse 40. “A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” As Jesus traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in the synagogues and driving out demons, one day a man with leprosy came to Him. The gospel writer Luke, who was a medical doctor, describes this man in more detail, saying, “a man who was covered with leprosy” (Luke 5:12).
Leprosy is rare in America today. In the U.S., up to about 225 cases of leprosy are reported each year. However, in Israel during Jesus’ time, leprosy was not uncommon. Leprosy usually affected the skin and the peripheral nerves. It was an infectious, chronic disease. In its early stages, it caused severe pain as it slowly destroyed the skin and muscles. As the disease progressed, it damaged the nervous system, making the person numb. Ironically, as the disease became more destructive, the person felt less and less pain. Eventually, people with leprosy often lost fingers and toes, became blind, and finally died.
This man was described as being “covered” with leprosy. That means his condition was severe. He must have been one of the worst cases. Leprosy made his appearance look almost like a monster or a zombie. But the suffering of leprosy was not only physical. There were also deep emotional, mental, and spiritual wounds. Lepers were isolated from society. They were abandoned and pushed to the margins. This man had to leave his beloved family and live only among other lepers. Though it sounds cruel, this was what the law required. Leviticus 13:45–46 says: “Anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes, let their hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of their face and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ They must live alone; they must live outside the camp.” To make matters worse, leprosy was often regarded as a punishment from God. In Israel’s history, God had struck Miriam, Gehazi, and King Uzziah with leprosy as judgment for sin (Numbers 12:10; 2 Kings 5:27; 2 Chronicles 26:16–21). Imagine how heavy this burden was. This man likely believed that he was cursed not only by people, but also by God. He must have been one of the most miserable people on earth.
There is a poem titled “Leper” by Brian Yapko that captures this tragedy:
I tried to reach my home but it was burned.
My friends threw stones at me and yelled to leave.
My sister gave no solace, nor the Law:
The priests said through a wall of quarantine
That I must warn men off and shout “Unclean!”
I found the cave of lepers. What I saw
Was full of horrors I could scarce believe;
And even in that hell was mocked and spurned!
This poem shows that leprosy destroyed not only the body, but also his heart. The leper was rejected, cursed, and driven away by everyone. He was trapped in the pit of his leprosy, unable to pull himself out by his own strength. Many people today do not have leprosy, but they live like this leper. They have fallen into the pit of sin and cannot escape by their own strength.
In many ways, leprosy and sin have much in common.
First, when leprosy destroys the nose, eyes, ears, or limbs, a person loses both form and function. In the same way, sin disfigures the image of God within us. God created us to reflect love, compassion, wisdom, righteousness, justice, grace, and truth. But sin makes people immoral, violent, selfish, and corrupt. Sin turns what God created to be beautiful into something broken and ugly.
Second, sin numbs the conscience, just as leprosy numbs the nervous system. Pain has a purpose—it warns us of danger. Philip Yancey once said, “Pain is God’s gift,” and C.S. Lewis said, “God shouts to us in our pain.”
At first, when we sin, our conscience hurts. That pain is meant to lead us to repentance. But if we ignore it and continue sinning, the pain becomes weaker. Over time, we feel nothing. Even while we are being destroyed by lust, pride, hatred, bitterness, jealousy, or selfishness, we say, “I’m fine.” But we are not fine. We are dying. Our campus students may look bright and strong on the outside, but many are suffering deeply, trapped in the pit of sin.
In the early morning of May 28, 1995, 20-year-old Sinedu Tadesse, a junior at Harvard University, killed her roommate, Trang Phuong Ho, in their shared dormitory suite at Dunster House in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She also seriously injured another student who was visiting. After the attack, Tadesse took her own life in the bathroom.
Sinedu Tadesse was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She was academically successful from an early age and earned admission to Harvard on a full scholarship. However, during her time at Harvard, she struggled socially. She became increasingly isolated, had difficulty forming friendships, and felt intense academic pressure.
Her personal writings later revealed deep loneliness and emotional distress, especially after her close relationship with her roommate Trang Ho broke down. As their communication declined, Tadesse’s feelings of rejection and abandonment grew, eventually leading to this tragic outcome.
According to statistics cited by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), about 12% of young adults ages 18-25 in the U.S. report that they’ve had serious thoughts about suicide in the past year, and about 2% report a suicide attempt in the past year. Many young people, like Sinedu Tadesse, have lost hope and meaning in their lives and are living in desperate situations. They are overwhelmed by broken relationships, academic pressure, and an uncertain future.
In the passage, this leper struggled every day just to survive. He battled physical decay, despair, loneliness, and sorrow. He may have thought about giving up on his life many times. He was hopeless, helpless, and powerless.
But one day, he heard about Jesus—a Nazarene who welcomed sinners and healed the broken. This good news filled him with new hope and gave him the courage to leave his cave and step into the world again. Still, coming to Jesus was not easy. There were many obstacles. Jesus was always surrounded by crowds. It was illegal for this man to be near others. If discovered, he could have been stoned to death. He had to overcome shame, fear, and doubt that Jesus would accept him, and doubt that Jesus could heal incurable disease. In fact, the Bible says only God could heal leprosy (2 Kings 5:7).
Yet he overcame every barrier and came to Jesus. He knelt before Him and begged, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” What drew him to Jesus? This man teaches us what true faith looks like. Faith is coming to Jesus just as we are, in desperation. Faith is fixing our eyes on Jesus alone, no matter what. Faith is believing that Jesus welcomes us and has the power to cleanse us. Surprisingly, the leper did not demand healing; instead, he humbly asked for Jesus’ willingness. He depended entirely on Jesus’ mercy.
Today, his faith challenges us to draw near to Jesus. Are you living in despair like the leper was?
Do you feel rejected, as if no one wants you anymore? Are you deeply troubled because of your sin? Here is the good news for us: the kingdom of God has come near (Matthew 3:2). Jesus Christ is right here. The apostle Paul declares in 2 Corinthians 6:2: “Now is the time of God’s favor; now is the day of salvation.” Let us come to Jesus with our hope and our faith, because now is the day of salvation. Let’s read verse 40 with our hope and faith. “A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Second, Jesus touched the man and cleansed him (41).
When the man with leprosy came to Jesus, how did Jesus respond? Let us read verse 41 together: “Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’” In the KJV, this verse is translated a bit differently: “And Jesus, moved with compassion…” So what do the words “indignant” and “compassion” mean in the Bible? To understand this, we must first understand who God is. God revealed His own character to Moses in Exodus 34:6: “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.’”
One of the first characteristics God reveals about Himself is compassion. The Hebrew word used here is “Rakhum.” Another form of this word is “Rakhamim,” which means compassion or mercy. What is interesting is that both words come from the Hebrew word “Rekhem,” which means “womb.” The womb is a place of life, warm place inside a mother. It imagines a mother’s tender love for her vulnerable infant. Therefore, “Rakhum” expresses intense, heartfelt emotion. Sometimes it is translated as “deeply moved.” We see this clearly in the story of King Solomon. Two women claimed the same baby. When Solomon suggested cutting the baby in half, the true mother was deeply moved. She would rather give up her child than see him die. Her compassion revealed her true identity as the mother.
But Rakhum is not just an emotion. In the Bible, it always leads to action. Most often, this word is used to describe God Himself, whose actions flow from His deep compassion for His children and His people. God expresses this beautifully in Isaiah 49:15: “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” This verse shows us that God’s compassion is even stronger and more faithful than a mother’s love. His compassion does not remain passive—it moves Him to act, to save, and to remain faithful to His children. With this understanding, let us read verse 41 again: “Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’”
According to the Law of Moses, anyone who touched a leper became unclean and defiled. Because of this, everyone rejected the leper. No one dared to come near him. But Jesus did something completely different from the world. Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man—not because the man was clean, but because Jesus was compassionate. His compassion was like a mother’s love for her child. In our NJ UBF ministry, many mothers understand this kind of love. When their child becomes seriously sick late at night, they rush to the emergency room. They stay awake all night, caring tirelessly—not because it is their duty, but because they love their child.
In the same way, Jesus loved the leper because he was sick—both outwardly and inwardly. Jesus knew how many tears this man had cried in loneliness. He knew how much pain he had endured in isolation. Jesus understood his sorrow, rejection, and suffering, because He Himself walked the path of suffering.
The prophet Isaiah describes Jesus this way in Isaiah 53:2–3.
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
Jesus is not a Savior who stands far away from human pain. He is a Savior who knows suffering from the inside. That is why, when He saw the leper, His heart was deeply moved. In Jesus’ eyes, he was not an ugly monster, but a beloved child who was seriously sick. And His compassion did not stop at emotion—it moved Him to action. Jesus stepped forward when everyone else stepped back. He even touched the leper to cleanse him. This is the compassion of Jesus—the heart of God, Rakhum.
Missionary Rebekah Lee often came and gently touched me to cheer me up. Now I understand that she did this because she has a compassionate heart toward me. Thank you, Missionary Rebekah, for your Rakhum! There are many people around us who are like lepers. It is not easy to welcome them because of their uncleanness and wounds. But Jesus did not love people because they were easy to love; He loved them because they were broken. He saw their pain before their behavior, and He showed compassion before correction.
May God touch our hearts with the compassion of Jesus, so that we may restore broken relationships and embrace even the difficult people around us. Now let us look again at Jesus’ words in verse 41:“I am willing.”
These words are so powerful. Jesus was not only willing to touch the leper—He was willing to pay the full price to make him clean. He was willing to become unclean so that the leper could be made clean. He was willing to suffer so that the man could be healed.
Isaiah continues in Isaiah 53:4–5
4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
Jesus’ compassion did not end with a touch—it led Him to the cross. On the cross, Jesus took our sickness, our loneliness, our sin, and our uncleanness upon Himself. By His wounds, we are healed. By His sacrifice, we are saved. His willingness makes us new creations. Thank You, Jesus, for Your sacrificial love toward us, who did not deserve it.
Now Jesus calls us to have the same heart toward the lost souls in this world. When we are willing, just as Jesus was, we can sacrifice our lives for the lost, no matter the cost. May God fill us with the compassion of Christ—Rakhum—and make us willing servants for campus students. Amen.
Third, after receiving grace, what should we do? (42-45).
When Jesus said, “I am willing. Be clean!”, immediately the leprosy left the man, and he was cleansed (42). His skin became clean and fresh, like that of a newborn baby. He was no longer the same person—he became a new man. He had received an incredible blessing from God, and now it was time for him to respond to that grace. At this point, the most important thing for him was to listen to Jesus. Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.”
Jesus knew that the man was extremely excited and that he might want to tell everyone about what had happened. But if he spread the news carelessly, Jesus’ mission—to visit villages and preach the good news—would be hindered.
As Isaiah 42:2 says: “He will not shout or cry out or raise his voice in the streets.”
Jesus wanted to serve people quietly and faithfully according to God’s will. That is why Jesus has come, so he gave the man clear direction not tell this to anyone.
However, the man did not obey Jesus’ words. Instead, he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news throughout the town. When the people heard what had happened, they became extremely excited, as if a famous pop star had come to their small town. Because of this, Jesus could no longer enter towns openly and had to stay outside in lonely places. In order to heal the leper, Jesus Himself became isolated. Yet even then, people continued to come to Him from everywhere (45).
From this, we learn an important lesson about how to respond after receiving Jesus’ grace. The key is simple but serious: we must listen to Jesus’ word and be ready to obey it, whatever He tells us. This is the attitude God desires from His people. God clearly says in Mark 9:7: “This is my Son, whom I love. Listen to him!” If we stop listening to Jesus after receiving His grace, we stop growing. Even though we may have received saving grace, we do not make progress in sanctification. Our hearts can again become filled with impure things. We remain spiritually childish and fail to mature. Jesus wants us to grow in faith to have God’s heart; Rakhum to one another. Jesus says to us in New Year conference this year. He commands us “love one another as I loved you” When we truly listen to Him and obey what He wants us to do, our relationship will be restored in family, workplace, and even in the church. I believe when we obey Jesus’ command, many lost souls come to Him through our love and compassion.
When I look at the campus students in our ministry, I see that they are handsome, beautiful, and talented. Outwardly, they are much better than I am. Yet they still need Jesus. Many of them are fearful about their uncertain future after graduation. They struggle with the agony of their own sins and personal problems, and they do not know how to restore broken relationships. AI cannot give them the right answers for life, and even family or friends often cannot help them find the true direction to live. They need Jesus, who has the power to heal broken hearts, set us free from the pit of sin, and give us new hope and a new mission in life.
May God fill my heart with His compassion—Rakhum—toward our campus students, so that I may help them know who Jesus is through one-to-one Bible study and faithful service in this new semester. Today we have learned that Jesus is willing to rescue us from the pit of sin and restore God’s holy image within us. So let us come to Jesus just as we are. Let us listen to Him and obey Him, so that we may continue to grow in His grace and live a life filled with joy and holiness.