Matthew 8:1-4
The Man with Leprosy
1When he came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. 2A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean."
3Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cured of his leprosy. 4Then Jesus said to him, "See that you don't tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."
Many people were learning about Jesus and large crowds followed Him...No doubt they were curious about His teachings, how He healed people, and His authoritative nature...People wanted to know more about Him...
A leper came and said (note, the leper did not ask) "LORD, if you are willing, you can make me clean...A humble statement...Also a humble prayer...Many times we prayers and we are in trouble and we ask, LORD do this, or LORD help me with this and I will do better...Sometimes we forget what we pray...Sometimes He answers our prayers and we still forget them...
The leper did not ask to be healed, he did not demand anything... instead, in his wisdom, he knew if Jesus was willing to heal him, he would be healed...
Jesus reached out and touched the leper...Many people when someone is ill will not even touch the one that is ill...Jesus reaches for the leper to heal him...Jesus says, "I AM willing"... "Be clean"...Immediately the leper was cured...People who were healed or got well after leprosy, had to be examined by a priest to get back in the Jewish community, to get back to their past normal life...Jesus tells him to show himself to a priest for this examination...Also, for the healing, Jesus tells the healed man to take the proper sacrifices that Moses had commanded and offer them for being cured...
Jesus had healed the leper...I doubt if the leper would ever forget that simple humble request he made to Jesus...Jesus gave him the mercy and grace he was seeking...This type of healing one would not forget...He would never forget Jesus...