The glory of the LORD is a frightful glory. Few have seen it, and even they caught only a glimpse of it. Moses saw it, or at least the wake of it, and he had to be hidden in a cave to endure it. Elijah caught a glimpse of it, but he had to be hidden in the same cave as Moses. Isaiah saw it in a vision, but was convinced he was a dead man and confessed his sinfulness. The shepherds saw it over Bethlehem’s fields the night of Jesus’ birth, and they were filled with fear. John saw it on the island of Patmos, and was struck down as though he were dead. It is truly a frightful glory.

No one may look on God and live, except when God in His mercy permits it. Three of the Twelve saw Jesus in His divine glory - Peter, James, and John. Three witnesses to the remarkable truth that Jesus is God in the flesh. True God and true man. God of God, light of light, true God of true God, and at the same time, true Man, humanity of our humanity.

Leprosy was, and still is, a horrible disease. Medically speaking, it is a systemic bacterial infection that affects the nervous system and the upper respiratory tract. It causes permanent damage to the skin, nerves, limbs, and eyes. Until 1940, there was no cure. It is still considered a significant public health problem today.

Socially, leprosy isolated the person from the community. Lepers were considered the “untouchables.” They were ceremonially unclean and not allowed in the congregation, which is why Jesus sent the man in today’s Gospel reading to his priest, to show that he had been cleansed. In Jesus’ day, lepers lived apart from everyone else and were required by law to warn approaching people on the road by crying out “Unclean, unclean.”

Straight from the Capernaum synagogue, Jesus goes off to Simon Peter’s house along with brother Andrew and James and John. Simon’s mother-in-law isn’t feeling terribly well. She’s been running a bit of a fever. Probably one of those 24-hour bug things. A little rest, a little chicken soup, a couple of aspirin and she’ll be fine. It’s not a big deal, really, not with all those demon-possessed and diseased people crowding the doorway pushing after Jesus.

Yet there is Jesus, in the little house, completely there for this woman with the flu. He comes to her bedside, bends down, takes her by the hand and lifts her up. At that very moment,it’s as though there was no one else in the world but this woman. And there is no doubt as to why Jesus is there. He is there for her.

It’s a Sabbath day in Capernaum, so where would you expect to find Jesus? Of course - in the synagogue. Where else? The synagogue was the “congregating place.” That’s what the word “synagogue” means, a place to gather. We say, “congregation.” Every sabbath Jesus went to the congregation. Even “Super Bowl Saturday” (if there had been such a thing), you would have found Jesus in the synagogue.

The sabbath was a holy day. “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. You shall sanctify the holy day.” That meant no work - a nice meal, some rest, lots of Word of God, but no work. “Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God.” Sabbath, shabbat, means “rest.” Slaves work seven days a week without rest; God’s free people worked six and rested on the seventh.