Matthew 8: 2-3 ” A man with leprosy came and knelt before Him and said, ‘Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.’ Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ He said. ‘Be clean!’ Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.”

Leviticus Chapters 13 and 14 lay out the Law, regulations, and guidelines for all infectious skin diseases that were considered either clean or unclean by the Priest. If unclean, the person was banished to outside the camp, wore torn clothes like that of a mourner, covered the lower part of their face, and cried out, “Unclean! Unclean!” (Leviticus 13:45) So to start, this man broke the rules by coming close to Jesus and speaking to Him. But his words revealed his understanding of just who Jesus was…for he said, “If You are willing…” the Greek word, Thelo, meaning that he knew that Jesus was not only willing, but fully capable of healing him. His next faith-filled statement, “You can make me clean.” used the Greek word, Katharizo, which was often used in the Old Testament for the legal cleansing by the Priest of leprosy. But touching a leper also made the other person ceremoniously unclean…but rather than Jesus becoming unclean – in an instant the leper was healed and made whole.