Daily Devotional For Wednesday, September 30, 2026
Good morning Southside! I am following the One Year Chronological Bible reading suggestion and any Bible verses you see highlighted in bold (ex. John 3:16), means it is a link to that verse. All you have to do is click on the reference and it will take you to the verse online. Our daily devotional reading for today comes from two stories in the Gospel of Luke. Today, we are going to look specifically at Mark 1:40-45. Luke tells the same story in Luke 5:12-16. Mark’s Gospel can be summarized in one verse in Mark 10:45. This verse highlights both Christ’s service and His sacrifice for others. Leprosy – in Jesus’ day it was considered the worst disease to get because it was thought to be highly contagious, though it isn’t, and people believed if you had it, God was punishing you for some unconfessed sin. When AIDS first was known, it was our modern day leprosy. Leprosy is a disease that kills nerves and as a result, people would disfigure themselves accidentally because they could not feel that they had cut off a finger for example.
Hansen’s Disease (leprosy) is treatable today but back then it was a death sentence. If you had it, you had to shout, “Unclean” for everyone to know. People parted like the Red Sea when you shouted that. Luke’s Gospel says this man plowed through the crowd like a car out of control. He had His GPS set on Jesus and Luke says his whole body was covered in this disease. There is one “positive” with Hansen’s Disease. It is a disease that acted like anesthesia. The person felt no pain when they cut off a finger, or broke a bone.
Those with it then and today in 3rd world countries without access to medical care, the person becomes a “walking hell.” This man was mutilated from head to foot, rotting and stinking tissue, and a repulse to everyone. He could only associate with other lepers. He lost all connections to family, friends, the synagogue and etc. He would have been very aware of the Old Testament’s commands about it in Leviticus 13:45-46.
A leper lived with isolation and humiliation. By Jesus’ time, rabbinical teaching, with its absurd strictures, had made matters even worse. If a leper even stuck his head inside a house, it was pronounced unclean. It was illegal to even greet a leper. Lepers had to remain at least 100 cubits away if they were upwind, and four cubits if downwind. Josephus, the famous Jewish historian, summarized by saying that lepers were treated “as if they were, in effect, dead men” (Source: Josephus, quoted by William Barclay, The Gospel of Matthew, Volume 2, p. 301).
There were no illusions in this leper’s life as to who he was and what his condition was. Today, everyone is infected with sin. Sadly, most never admit it, not even in the church. We judge “other sinners,” thinking we are better. We can have a prideful attitude that prohibits God from working in our lives.
Sometimes we are like the story found in Arnold Dallimore’s book. It is a true story that involved two Christian ladies by the name of Patroness Lady Huntington and the Duchess of Buckingham. After hearing George Whitfield preached, the duchess said this, ‘It is monstrous to be told, that you have a heart as sinful as the common wretches that crawl the earth. This is highly offensive and insulting; and I cannot but wonder that your Ladyship should relish any sentiments so much at variance with high rank and good breeding” (Source: Arnold Dallimore, George Whitfield, Vol. 1, p. 132).
The less we know that there is anything wrong with us, the more full-blown our spiritual leprosy is! It is common to say, “Hey, I’m OK!” while we have the death of spiritual leprosy in our very hearts and souls. Unless we continually wrestle with our sin nature, there is nothing God can do for us or through us. Do you see your own spiritual leprosy in your life? This leper knew how fatal his leprosy was but he also knew who could heal him. Yet, he wasn’t sure Jesus would heal him. This is why he said to Jesus, “If You are willing.”
Reflection Assignment: Nothing is more in accord with God’s will than to heal us from our sin. He is willing to do that. Are you willing to admit your sin, cry out to Jesus about your sin to heal you? It is almost impossible for us to see our own spiritual leprosy (sin) when we are so focused on the sins of others. How aware of your sin would the Lord say you are and why?
Scripture To Meditate On: 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord isn’t really being slow about His promise, as some people think. No, He is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent” (NLT).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, help me to see my spiritual leprosy. Help me to come to You with an attitude of humility through repentance. Lord, I know I am a sinner and apart from You, I am a “walking hell.” Please help me with my sin, not so that I can look down on others, but so that I could look up to You with an attitude of gratitude. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly