Last week we talked about leprosy and how it was a very destructive and scary disease. There wasn’t a cure and the measures which had to be followed to protect the community were isolating and lonely. This was essentially a death sentence. It’s comparable to the diagnosis of cancer these days. Being diagnosed with cancer is scary, especially considering treatments, if there’s even an option for treatment. It spreads, takes over and without a cure or healing, the body will waste away until death claims the victim. It’s truly a sad horrible picture. And just as have that in mind when we think of disease, but even more than that, this is how we must view the nature of sin. Sin may be pleasurable for a season, but the wages of sin is death. It never turns out alright, it never satisfies. Most of us would concur. But have you thought of beyond the nature of sin to the nature of the sinner? Let me give you a phrase to think about: “God loves the sinner but hates the sin.” Anyone want to amen that? Is that a biblical view? Actually some say that quote is more attributed to Ghandi in his autobiography. So what does the Bible actually say? “The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. (Psalm 5:5) “The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.” (Psalm 11:5) That doesn’t sound like “love the sinner” language. It’s important for us to grow in our understanding of God’s Holiness, His Holy character, and how offensive sin is to Him. Then these biblical statements will not seem out of place. This is why we read and study Leviticus. Just as we can look at the disease of cancer with moral outrage and righteous indignation, so think about how God views our sins. Small sins, small things we think are petty or don’t amount to much, God holds righteous indignation against. God does show his love and mercy and kindness to us in that, “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) But this saving love is not given for everyone. God’s love is gracious, not demanded, not owed, not merited. So when a leper was healed, it was by the grace of God, a demonstration of his kindness. And so when one was healed, there was a law for how the leper would be declared clean and allowed to re-enter into community. And this is what we are going to look at this morning.