Right away a man with leprosy came up and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”
Matthew 8:2 (CSB)
In Bible times, leprosy was a serious skin disease that made a person “unclean” under God’s law. That meant a leper could not live at home or worship with God’s people, and had to warn others away by calling out, “Unclean, unclean!” (Leviticus 13:45).
This man knelt before Jesus and said two things. He was completely sure that Jesus could heal him, because he said, “you can make me clean.” The only question in his mind was whether Jesus wanted to.
The Bible teaches that God is sovereign, which means He rules over everything and always does what is right and good. So when we pray for someone who is sick, or about something we really want, we should pray with real confidence that God is able. We should also leave the answer in His hands, because He knows what is best far better than we do.
There is one prayer where we never have to wonder what God wants. When we come to Him about our sin, He has already promised: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Jesus died for our sins, and everyone who trusts Him is made clean.