Don't Tell Anyone

"While He (Jesus) was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy.  And when he saw Jesus he fell on his face and begged Him, 'Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.'  And Jesus stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, 'I will; be clean.'  And immediately the leprosy left him.  And He charged him to tell no one, but 'go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.'  But now even more the report about Him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of the their infirmities.  But He would withdraw to desolate places and pray."  Luke 5:12-16

One observation from this passaged hit me this morning.

"He charged him to tell no one... but now even more the report about Him went abroad."

Jesus, for some reason that I will not go into in this post, asked the man cured of leprosy to tell no one.  The man obviously told a lot of people because the word spread.  In fact, there are many times in the Gospels when Jesus asked those healed not to tell anyone and they went and told everyone.

Did Jesus do this as a sort of a reverse psychology?  I don't think so.  But look at the irony of the situation.  I'm commissioned to tell everyone about what Jesus has done for me and I tell very few.  This man was asked to tell no one and he told many.

Some of you might say, "Well, if you were healed of leprosy you'd tell everyone, too."  But I have been healed of ALL diseases.  The Gospel guarantees me healing from ALL diseases in eternity.  The Gospel gives me peace with God.  The Gospel is remaking me completely not just my skin, yet I'm slow to tell anyone.

I'm not trying to guilt you into sharing your story, but to think, like I did, "why aren't I?"

Perhaps the key is to be amazed, like the man in the story, by what Jesus has done for you today.