By grace I'm safe, grace free
and boundless. Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor. We
are located at 4137 Todd's Road, two miles outside of Manowar
Boulevard. Sunday morning Bible class, 9.45
a.m. Sunday services are at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Wednesday services
at 7 p.m. I'm going to be speaking
this morning from the 13th and 14th chapter of the book of Leviticus
and if you can get your Bibles and look at these scriptures
with me, I believe it would be helpful. If you're anything like me you've
been at least mildly concerned about catching the swine flu. It certainly had a large place
in the media and it's even been feared that it was going to hurt
the recovery of the economy because of all the problems that it can
produce and I've tried to find out what the symptoms are so
if I had any of them I would go to the doctor immediately. Now there was a disease in Israel
that was more dreaded than the swine flu. It was leprosy. I'd like to read the first three
verses of Leviticus chapter 13. I've entitled this message, The
Cleansing of the Leper. And in The Cleansing of the Leper,
we're given an illustration of how God cleanses the sinner. Leprosy is a type of sin. Now let's read these verses together
in Leviticus chapter 13, verses 1 through 3. And the Lord spake
unto Moses and Aaron, saying, When a man shall have in the
skin of his flesh a rising, or a swelling, or a scab, or a bright
spot, a spot of inflammation, and it be in the skin of his
flesh, like the plague of leprosy, then he shall be brought unto
Aaron the priest, or unto one of his sons the priest, and the
priest shall look on the plague in the skin of the flesh. And
when the hair in the plague is turned white, and the plague
in the sight be deeper than the skin of his flesh, it is a plague
of leprosy, and the priest shall look on him and pronounce him
unclean. Now try to imagine waking up
one morning and you see a swelling in your flesh, let's just say
on your arm, and perhaps a scab and inflamed skin. You would
be concerned. You would be afraid. Have I become
Leprosy? Do I have the disease of leprosy?
So you would go to the priest, and the priest would look you
over. And then he would have you quarantined for seven days.
You had to stay away from everybody, unless anybody would be infected
with this horrible disease. And then you could come back
to the priest after seven days, or actually he would come to
you and look at you. You couldn't go out. And if it
hadn't spread, you would be pronounced clean. But if there was a spreading,
if the disease went deeper than the flesh, you would be pronounced
unclean, you would be pronounced a leper, and you would be made
to live outside of the camp of Israel in a leper colony. you would be all alone in Leviticus
chapter 13 here's what would take place with a leprous person
in verse 44 it said he's a leprous man talking about the leper and
remember this typifies sin he's a leprous man he's unclean the
priest shall pronounce him utterly unclean his plague is in his
hand And the leper, in whom the plague is, his clothes shall
be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon
his upper lip, and shall cry, unclean, unclean." Now, can you
imagine an existence like this? If anyone came around you, you
were to put a rag over your lip, and you would cry out, unclean,
unclean. You wouldn't want them to get
close to you, lest they would get this horrible disease. Verse
46, "'And the days wherein the plague shall be in him he shall
be defiled he is unclean he shall dwell alone without the camp
shall his habitation be how isolated how alone this leper was now
think about this leper and remember this is a type of sin the leper
was loathsome in his person How hideous he looked. Perhaps his
nose had rotted off or his ears or his fingers and toes had rotted
off and fallen off. He had white hair coming out
of the boils and sores and ulcers that were rotting his flesh.
And yet this disease was relatively painless. You see, sin desensitizes
us to where we can't feel as we ought to feel. It made all
of his actions unclean. You see, the leper, anything
he touched became unclean and couldn't be used in the service
of God. If he touched it, it was no good. It was unclean.
If he touched a bed, it was unclean. If he touched a wall, it was
unclean. All he touched was unclean. And this picture is what sin
does. It makes everything that I do unclean. I don't care if
it's praying, I don't care if it's witnessing, I don't care
if it's Reading the Bible, if I do it because I did it, because
of the uncleanness of my person, being a sinner, it makes me unclean.
Everything I do. You know, the scripture says,
our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. Have you ever made to see
that regarding your righteousnesses? The leper was shut out from the
privileges of being an Israelite. There was no communion for him.
The scripture says, he shall dwell alone outside the camp,
shall his habitation be. Now this is how every sinner
sees himself to be loathsome in his person. Everything he
does becomes sin. If he touches it, it's unclean. He feels himself to be shut out
from the privileges of being a child of God, isolated, alone,
and without help. Now, I'm not asking you if you
see that this is true about yourself, but I am asking you if you believe
that this is true about yourself, because we're to believe God's
testimony in His Word concerning us, whether we see it right off
the bat or not. This is what God declares every
man and woman to be, a sinner. Now this leper was shut out outside
the camp and there was absolutely nothing that he could do for
himself. There's nothing he could do to cleanse his leprosy. He was not even allowed to come
to the priest. The priest had to come to him. Now this thing
of being cleansed from your sin, there's not a thing we can do. Christ, the great high priest,
must do something for us. We are in his hands. So the priest,
would come into the leper colony and begin to examine the lepers,
these men who had been shut out. And we read in Leviticus chapter
13, verse 9, the priest would come into the leper colony and
look over the lepers. When the plague of leprosy is
in a man, then he shall be brought unto the priest and the priest
shall see him, and behold, if the rising be white in the skin,
and if it turn their hair white, and there be quick, raw flesh
in the rising." Now that word, quick, raw flesh, has reference
to living, healthy flesh. That's what that's a reference
to. It's not diseased flesh, it's living, healthy flesh. Now if there's any living, healthy
flesh in the rising, it's an old leprosy in the skin of his
flesh, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean, and shall Not shut
him up, for he is unclean. He is totally unclean, if there's
anything good about him. Now here's one of the great mysteries
of the gospel. Let me go on reading. Verse 12. And if a leprosy break
out abroad in the skin, and the leprosy cover all the skin of
him that hath the plague, from his head even to his foot, wheresoever
the priest looketh, then the priest shall consider and behold,
if the leprosy hath covered all his flesh, He shall pronounce
him clean that hath the plague. It is all turned white. He's
clean. But when raw flesh or healthy
flesh appears in him, he shall be unclean. Now, get the picture.
The priest looks at a man and let's say he only has one little
spot of leprosy and the rest is healthy living flesh. The
priest pronounces him unclean. Another man comes up who is almost
completely covered with leprosy, but let's say he has one square
inch of healthy flesh. He is looked on by the priest
and the priest pronounces him unclean. But if a man comes completely
covered with leprosy, so there's no healthy flesh at all, the
priest pronounces him clean. Now this is So true in how a
sinner comes to Christ. If I come with just a little
bit of sin, I'm not perfect, I do wrong things, I'm set aside,
I'm unclean, He won't have anything to do with me. If I come completely,
almost completely sinful, but I've got some ability, I've got
some goodness, I've got the power of my free will, where if I want
to, I can turn this thing around. I may not be good, but I've got
the potential to be good. If I come into Christ's presence
like that, I'm set aside as unclean. He won't have anything to do
with me. But it's only as I come into His presence completely
covered with the disease of sin, with leprosy. Only then will
I be pronounced clean. Now this is one of the great
mysteries of the gospel. You see, it is only sinners that
the Lord Jesus Christ saves. He won't have anything to do
with righteous people. You see, people who think themselves to
be righteous, they're hypocrites. They're not telling the truth. They're just hiding things. Someone
who's honest before God comes into God's presence as nothing
but a sinner. That's the only way he comes.
He doesn't come any other way. Listen to me. It's not your sin
that will keep you from Christ. It's your righteousness. If you
really believe yourself to be a sinner, you'll come into His
presence needing His mercy. And He never turns away sinners,
but as long as you have any goodness, any righteousness, anything about
you that can recommend you to God, Christ won't have anything
to do with you. It's only as we come as a sinner. You remember that publican in
the temple? He beat on his breast, crying, God, be merciful to me,
thee, sinner. He didn't have anything to recommend
him. And then you had the Pharisees who said, God, I thank thee that
I'm not as other men are. I'm certainly not like this publican.
I fast twice in the week. I get tithes of all that I possess.
I'm not an extortioner. I'm not an unjust. I'm not an
adulterer. Everything he said was a lie,
but he said it about himself. Which one did God accept? Christ said regarding that publican,
I tell you that man went down to his house justified, cleared
of all guilt rather than the other. Now if you're, I hope
this is a description to me, covered all over with sin. You
see the only ones who get mercy are the ones who are covered
all over with sin. I want to be covered all over with sin,
because this is going to bring me to the priest, and this is
where I'm going to hear him pronounce me clean. Now, in Leviticus chapter
14, we're given the laws concerning the cleansing of this leper.
Now, when he's covered all over with leprosy, the priest would
pronounce him clean. Now, in Leviticus chapter 14,
verse 11, we read, and the priest that maketh him clean. The only
way this leper can be cleansed before God is for the priest
to make him clean. And when the Lord saves somebody,
they find out it's the priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, who does
it. The priest was active in this thing. The leper was passive. Salvation is wholly what God
does for you. Now, in the sacrifice for this
leper, after he's been pronounced clean by the priest, we're given
a picture of how God cleanses sin. I want to begin reading
in verse 3 of Leviticus chapter 14. And the priest shall go forth
out of the camp, and the priest shall look, and behold, if the
plague of leprosy be healed in the leper, And it's only healed
when he's all together covered with it. Then shall the priest
command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds,
alive and clean, and cedarwood and scarlet and hyssop. And the
priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in the
earthen vessel over running water. As for the living bird, he shall
take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop,
and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird
that was killed over the running water, and he shall sprinkle
upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times,
and shall pronounce him clean, and then shall he let the living
bird loose into the open field." Now, a bird was killed. Blood had to be shed for me to
be cleansed blood has to be shed now. Somebody says why why does
blood have to be shed? Why can't God just forgive? Why
can't he just cleanse because God is just because God is holy
He cannot let sin go unpunished if he did he would cease to be
God. He would no longer be just he would no longer be holy this
bird that is killed its bloodshed represents The bloodshedding
of the Lord Jesus Christ as the substitutionary sacrifice for
His people. Their sins were placed upon Him.
He became guilty. He was killed. This bird's blood
was shed. It was shed and running water
was placed over it. That lets us know that the blood
of Christ actually washes away all sin. There was cedar wood
which represented its durability that was put in this sacrifice. The eternality of Christ's blood,
the power of Christ's blood. The scarlet was where a grub
worm was crushed. This lets us know that Christ
is crushed under the wrath of God. The water, the hyssop is
the application of the blood to the conscience. This one bird
was killed and the living bird was dipped into that blood. And
then that living bird was set free into an open field. This
tells us what the blood of Christ does. It sets us free. I'm no
longer guilty. That blood was sprinkled seven
times on that leper, seven being the number of perfection, representing
the perfect cleansing the blood of Christ accomplishes. Now listen
to me real carefully. If Jesus Christ died for you,
You're clean before God. You have no sin. This is the
power of the blood of Christ. It washes away all sin. We have a beautiful type of what
the Lord did on the cross by this sacrifice. Now, after he's
been pronounced cleansed, there's another sacrifice that takes
place. And after this sacrifice takes place of a goat and a bull,
The blood is applied to the ear to the right hand and to the
big toe on the right foot Let me read that to you in verse
10 of Leviticus chapter 14 and on the eighth day He shall take
two lambs without blemish one new lamb of the first year without
blemish and three tenths deal of fine flour for a meat offering
mingled with oil one log of oil and the priest that maketh him
clean and shall present the man that is to be made clean, and
those things before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle
of the congregation, and the priest shall take one helam,
and offer him for a trespass offering in the log of the oil,
and wave them for a wave offering before the Lord. And he shall
slay the lamb in the place where he shall kill the sin offering
and the burnt offering in the holy place. For as the sin offering
is the priest, so is the trespass offering, its most holy. And
the priest shall take some of the blood of the trespass offering,
and the priest shall put it upon the tip of the right ear of him,
that is to be cleansed, and upon the thumb of his right hand,
and upon the great toe of his right foot." Now there's great
significance to that. When you're cleansed, when the
Lord does something for you, there's something you hear. Faith
cometh by hearing. God's grace comes through the
ear, and here's what you hear about. You hear about the blood.
It's not just a religious ceremony to you anymore. It's not just
doctrine. It's the very life of salvation. The blood of the
Lord Jesus Christ. This is what you hear. This is
where you find your complete salvation in what He did. When
it's applied to the right hand, that's the power. That represents
the strength to do. I'm given the strength to do
because of the blood of Christ. It's not because of anything
in me, but because of the blood of Christ, I'm given faith. I'm
given strength to believe. I'm given strength to love. I'm
given strength to Live by faith. And this is the mighty power
of God. The strength that the believer is given in the new
birth is given because of the blood. And that blood is applied
to the big toe of the right foot. It has to do with our walk. The
blood of Christ is enough to make us walk with God. We don't
need rules. We don't need regulations. We
don't walk out of the fear of man. We walk because of the blood
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And then as you go on reading
in this passage of scripture, oil is placed in the same place,
and that represents the Spirit of God. He's many times represented
by oil. Oil on the ear, it's God the
Holy Spirit that enables us to hear. Oil on the hand, God the
Holy Spirit strengthens us. Oil on the feet, God the Holy
Spirit enables us to walk by faith. Now, what I'd like to
do in closing is look at a passage in the New Testament about the
cleansing of a leper. Now, we read in Matthew chapter
8, beginning in verse 1, when he was come down from the mountain,
great multitudes followed him. And behold, there came a leper. Now this man was acting contrary
to the law. He should have stayed in a leper
colony. But he was so desperate, he comes to the Lord Jesus Christ. And Luke's account tells us that
this man was full of leprosy. He was completely covered with
leprosy from his head to his foot. What a hideous sight he
must have been. But he comes to the Lord Jesus
Christ. Behold, there came a leper and worshipped him. Now, this is to be settled before
anything else is settled. This leper worshipped the Lord
Jesus Christ. He didn't know whether Christ
was going to heal him or not. He didn't know if Christ was
going to cleanse him or not. He didn't know. But he knew who
Jesus Christ was and he worshipped him. Now, Christ is to be worshipped,
whether He does anything for me or you, or not. Because of
who He is, He is to be worshipped. He's God. You see, you'll only
worship a sovereign. You'll only worship one that
you have no control over. If you have any control over
Him, you won't worship. But if you know you have no control,
you're in His sovereign hands, you'll worship. That leper knew
he was in the hands of the sovereign Lord Jesus Christ. And look what
he said, and behold there came a leper, and worshipped him,
saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. He first of all acknowledged
the lordship of Jesus Christ. Lord. That means you're the dictator. You're the sovereign controller.
It's not an empty title. He is the Lord. He said, you
call me master and Lord. You say, well, for so I am. He's the Lord of creation. That
means he spake this world into existence. He spake the universe
into existence simply by the word of his mouth. He said, like
me and like was he is the mighty creator. The scripture says all
things were made by him. And without Him was not anything
made that was made. Now remember who Jesus Christ
is. He's God. He is the creator, the second
person of the Blessed Trinity. He's the Lord of Providence.
That means He controls everything. You know what happens? His will,
all the time, everything that happens, He's in control of.
Nothing happens that he's not in sovereign control of. He said,
I form the light, I create darkness, I make peace, I create evil,
I the Lord do all these things. Isaiah 45, 7. Hath he spoken
it, shall he not bring it to pass? He is Lord of creation. Scripture says in Hebrews 1,
2 and 3 that he upholds all things by the word of his power. And
most especially, he's Lord of salvation. That means salvation
is in His hands. It's not up to you as to whether
or not you're going to be saved. It's up to Him. You and I are in His
hands. And this leper understood this.
He comes crying, Lord, Lord. He knew who He was. Now look
what he says next. Don't miss this. He said, If you will, if
you will, you can make me clean. He acknowledged the sovereign
will. of Jesus Christ. If you will,
you can make me clean. Now, people argue over man's
will, free will, God's will, but I know whose will will be
done. Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. Now, most
people believe in what they call free will. And here's what people
mean by free will. Your will determines your destiny. It's up to you as to whether
or not you're going to accept or reject God's forgiveness.
God offers you forgiveness. He wants to save you. But your
destiny is going to be determined as to whether or not you will
for Him to save you. Now, let me tell you three things
about free will. Let me tell you four things.
First, there's no such thing as free will. Your will is controlled by your
nature. Even God doesn't have a free will. He can't sin. I mean, he lacks the ability
to sin. His nature won't let him do it.
He can't lie, the scripture says. There's no such thing as free
will. In that sense, your will is controlled by your nature.
But if you do believe in free will, you deny God's sovereignty. You say he's not sovereign over
your will, and that's denying God's sovereignty. If you believe
in free will, you don't really believe that you're a sinner
in the scriptural sense of the word. You see, in the scriptural
sense of the word, a sinner is dead in sins and unable to save
himself. If you believe in free will,
you don't believe you're dead in sins. And thirdly, if you
believe in free will, you don't believe in salvation by grace.
You believe in salvation by works. But this leper knew better than
any of this. He didn't come saying, Lord,
I'm going to let you cleanse me. He didn't come saying, Lord,
as an act of my free will, I've decided to allow you to heal
me. Oh, well, you say that's foolishness. Exactly. Exactly. That's foolishness. Of course,
he didn't come that way. He said, Lord, if you will. My
salvation is totally up to you. It's in your sovereign hands.
If you will, look what he says next. If you will, thou canst
make me clean. He believed in the absolute ability
of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you will, you can make me
clean. Now, here's what saving faith
is. It's believing His ability. He has the ability To make me
clean. To make me without sin. To make
me without spot before God. Do you believe that? Paul said
in 2 Timothy 1.12, I know whom I have believed. And I am persuaded
that He is able to keep that which I've committed to Him against
that day. What have you committed, Paul?
The salvation of my soul. All my eggs are in this one basket.
His ability to save me. I believe that His blood actually
makes me clean before God. Now, catch what he said. Lord,
first He came and worshipped Him. That's got to come first.
He's to be worshipped whatever He does. He worshiped him saying,
Lord, if you will, you can make me clean. He came for the right
thing. He came to be clean. Now, I don't
need to be healthy. Lord's taken my health. I've
had cancer twice. I don't need to be wealthy. I'm just glad
for having any food to eat or whatever the Lord provides me,
I'm thankful. But I don't need to be healthy. I don't need to
be wealthy. But I need to be clean. I need to be clean before
God. You know, most folks, their religion
is trying to get their, they turn to God to get their more
money or to have better finances or better marriage or better
family life. Now, I'm all for those things. Don't get me wrong.
But you come to the Lord Jesus Christ to be made clean. If you
will, you can make me clean. In verse 3, And Jesus put forth
his hand and touched him. Mark's account tells us he was
moved with compassion. Jesus put forth his hand and
touched him. This poor leper saying, I will. Be thou clean. And the scripture says, and immediately
his leprosy was cleansed. Now that is how a spiritual leper
is cleansed. He comes to the Lord Jesus Christ
worshiping. He's God. Whatever he does is
right. And he acknowledges his lordship. And he says, Lord, If you will,
it's totally in your sovereign hands. If you will, you can make
me clean. And everyone without exception
who comes to the Lord Jesus Christ like that, hears the same thing
this leper said, I will be thou clean. Now we have this message
on cassette tape, CD, right to church. Call or email
and we'll send you a copy of this message. This is Todd Nyberg
praying God will be pleased to make himself known to you. That's
our prayer. Amen. I'm saved, grace-free and boundless.