Leper Conscience
One word we read often in the scriptures is the word leprosy. This referred to a range of skin diseases where the individual was seen as unclean. A person who had leprosy was isolated from everyone. Not only were they separated from others, but they had to yell out to anyone coming they were unclean. Think about that for a moment. If you had this disease you have to constantly declare every day, “I am unclean.” This would be so damaging to how you see yourself. Some of us reading this are probably thinking, “Thank God leprosy isn’t a thing anymore.”
Actually, leprosy is very much still a thing just not on the outside. (there are still cases in the natural mostly in Africa and Asia) Leprosy is a disease that attaches to our thoughts. Let’s look at Psalm 51.
“Purify my conscience! Make this leper clean again! Wash me in your love until I am pure in heart. Satisfy me in your sweetness, and my song of joy will return. The places you have crushed within me will rejoice in your healing touch. Hide my sins from your face; erase all my guilt by your saving grace. Keep creating in me a clean heart. Fill me with pure thoughts and holy desires, ready to please you. May you never reject me! May you never take from me your sacred Spirit!”
David says purify my conscience. Make this leper clean again. We can have a leper conscience that causes us to hide and isolate ourselves. Do you realize thousands of people show up to church each week across this nation wearing a mask pretending they are one way but struggling deep in their thoughts about themselves. They are actually isolated within themselves. They refuse to let others in to their thoughts or brokenness because they are ashamed or afraid of what others may think. Oftentimes the things we are ashamed of really aren’t that big a deal, but we’ve developed this leper conscience which tells us to hide. How do we deal with this thought pattern? David says wash me in your love until I am pure in heart.
Letting Yeshua love you causes your heart to be satisfied and tender. David asked the Lord to hide his sins. Once Yeshua came our sins are not only forgiven but cast into the sea and never to be remembered again. This is why it is important for our conscience to be purified by Him. We must stop bringing up our past to disqualify ourselves from the things of the Kingdom. We have to see ourselves as He sees us.
Abba never desires to take His Spirit from you. Even when you keep messing up in moments. Our mess ups are always an invitation from Him to draw us closer to His heart. Every day choose to let Yeshua love you.
You yelled at your children? Run underneath His love. You fought with your spouse or became sideways in your heart towards them? Run to Him. You cursed the person driving slow in front of you? Run to Him. You don’t like the person you sit next to in school or work? Run to Him.
These moments of choosing to run to Him isn’t just about us. Every time we run to Him, we become more and more like Him which changes the world around us. It changes how our children will see themselves. Want to stop bullying in schools? Let Him love you. Show your children how well He loves so they can be loved. Love will change the world, but it starts with letting Him love us.
