September 4

Morning

Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” He said. “Be clean!” — Mark 1:41 BSB

When God commanded, “Let there be light,” light instantly came into existence. The same power is found in the words of Jesus. Redemption, like Creation, happens by His mighty word. When Jesus speaks, it happens. Leprosy, which no human treatment could cure, disappeared immediately when Jesus said, “I am willing.” The disease didn’t show any signs of recovery on its own, but the mere word of Jesus accomplished the healing completely and forever.

The sinner’s condition is even worse than that of the leper. But just like the leper, the sinner can go to Jesus, begging to be healed. Even if the sinner’s faith is small and only goes as far as saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean,” the result is guaranteed. Jesus heals all who come to Him and never turns anyone away.

In the story where this morning’s verse is found, notice how Jesus touched the leper. This man had broken the ceremonial law by entering the house, but Jesus didn’t rebuke him. Instead, He broke the law Himself by touching the leper. In doing so, He took on the man’s ceremonial uncleanness, while healing him of his disease. In the same way, Jesus became sin for us, though He was sinless, so that we could be made righteous in Him. If only sinners would go to Jesus, trusting in the power of His substitutionary work, they would soon experience the power of His healing touch. The same hand that multiplied the loaves, saved sinking Peter, supports suffering saints, and crowns believers—that same hand will touch every sinner who seeks Him and make them clean in an instant! The love of Jesus is the source of salvation. He loves, He looks, He touches—and we live!

Evening

You shall maintain honest scales and weights, an honest ephah, and an honest hin. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt. — Lev 19:36 BSB

Weights, scales, and measures were all to be according to the standard of justice.

Surely no Christian needs to be reminded of this when conducting business, for if justice were banished from every other place, it should still be found in the hearts of true believers!

However, there are other kinds of scales and measures that apply to moral and spiritual matters, and these often need to be examined. Let’s invite the Judge to examine them now.

What about the scales we use to weigh our own character and the character of others? Are they accurate? Do we tend to overestimate our own goodness while underestimating the goodness of others? We need to ensure justice in how we measure these things.

What about the scales we use to measure our trials and troubles? Are they fair? Paul, who suffered far more than we ever will, called his afflictions “light.” Yet we often see our own afflictions as heavy. Perhaps something is wrong with our perspective, and we need to adjust our scales before God calls us out for being unfair.

What about the scales we use to measure our beliefs? Are they balanced? We should give equal weight to God’s commands and promises—no more, no less. Yet some people favor one over the other. It’s crucial to handle God’s truth with fairness.

And what about the scales we use to measure our obligations and responsibilities? Are they too small? If a rich person gives no more to God's work than a poor person, is that a fair weight or measure?

Reader, we could extend this list, but we leave it to you to examine your own life today and eliminate any unjust scales, weights, or measures!