Connect! Change People: Jesus’ 4 Tips

When we think about improving our part of this vast, divisive world we live in we often don’t consider Connecting and networking. But, Jesus has four tips for improving your world. Let’s see what they are.

INTRO

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Connecting with strangers was one thing Jesus was an expert at doing. We’re going to read a story that came out of his life from Luke 5:  beginning in verse 12 to find his four tips for improving your life.

Luke 5:12  While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. ….”

Leprosy in his day might as well have been a death sentence. We have a pretty good understand quarantine from our COVID experiences in the last few years. After a week or so, we can start returning to our former glories.

But to have Leprosy was a lifetime quarantine. You were put out of town. You could have no dealings with your own family. No dealings with any friends.

In such isolation You couldn’t hold down a job. Why? Because your fingers and your toes were literally rotting off.

It was a horrible, disgusting disease. The man who met Jesus should not be touched. The text continues by saying, and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.

And that was exactly what Jesus did. He did what safe people would never do. Verse 13 says, And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him.

Touching? We reserve the right to be touched. The only people to touch us are those who care about us. Touching validates us. And we have our worth confirmed.

And Jesus touched this man.

We’re going to come back to that in just a minute.

Jesus continued, “I will. Be clean. And immediately the leprosy left him.

Jesus could see what the leper needed. It was extremely obvious. And Jesus had the power to do something very helpful for him.

Jesus helped this man. He gave him a new lease on life.

Now, being clean, being whole again, this man could associate with his family. He could go get a job. He could do the things we take for granted.

And then it says, 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. Jesus told this man to go do what the Old Testament law said he was to do. When a man was cured of leprosy or his health conditions improved, he was allowed to go to the priest.

The priest would examine him. The priest would determine he was legally cured, that he could now go back into society. If he followed Jesus’ command, he would do what he should do. We will come back to this, too.

Now, about those 4 tips I promised you.

Tip #1, meet your set of “untouchables”. connect with them. Every one of us have their own set of people that we just can’t stand to be around. Maybe they are suffering from economic distress. Maybe they are of a different race. Maybe they’re from a different part of the world.

Maybe in the past, you couldn’t trust those kinds of people. Maybe their family has been involved in illegal activities. And those ARE the people that you need to be in contact with.

Tip #2: Your second tip is to touch those people who are “untouchable”. Convey to them not what you think, But what God thinks about them. Work through your own attitude and prejudices. Realize that God’s Son, you know the one that died for you, also died for them and loved them.

Touch them, communicate to them God’s compassion and love.

Tip #3. What you need to do with these people is to help them. Help them the way Jesus did.

Now, what they need may not be as obvious as leprosy. But you know what their needs are. If they’re economically depressed, maybe you need to give them some little jobs around, like maybe mow the lawn or paint the shed or tear down the shed. But give them something that they can be paid for and that gives them DIGNITY and continues this idea that God cares about them.

And Tip #4. Again, just do what Jesus did. Command them. Not like a military drill sergeant. But to do what they should do. To do what God expects them to do. Can you SHOW them the kind of life that they should be having. You know, the one described in Colossians 3:5-16. Or the one found in Philippians and Ephesians.

You could show them your life that is great and wonderful and healthy. But instead, kindly command them to do what they should.

Or maybe, Is this something I need to be commanding you??

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Thank you for watching

We hope you will join us again, tomorrow. Until then, goodbye for now.