A Thankful Samaritan

Luke 17:11-19

Key Verse: 16

“He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him--and he was a Samaritan.”

1. Read verses 11-13. Where was Jesus going and where was he now? (11) Who came to meet Jesus? (12) How did they ask for a help from Jesus? (13) What can we learn from them?

2. Read verses 14. What did Jesus do for the ten leprous men? Why were they told to show themselves to the priests? (Lev 13:2,17, 45-46; Mt 8:4) How might Jesus’ command to them have been difficult to obey? What happened when the men obeyed Jesus’ word?

3. Read verses 15-16. What did one man do after he saw he was healed? (15) How did he thank Jesus? (16) What can we learn from him?

4. Read verses 17-19. How did Jesus express his disappointment by comparing the other nine men with one thankful foreigner? (17, 18) What blessing did this thankful Samaritan receive? (19) What does this event teach about the importance of being thankful?

A Thankful Samaritan

Luke 17:11-19

Key Verse 16

“He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him--and he was a Samaritan.”

Introduction

On Jan. 29, 2014, when fisherman Jose Salvador Alvarenga washed ashore on a remote island deep in the Pacific Ocean, he was 6,700 miles from home, having survived 14 months lost at sea. It was a record of endurance never equaled by another castaway. Finally, after many adventures and often giving up hope after his one and only crewmate died, he was found and rescued miraculously. The first thing he did was to make radio contact with his family, for he valued his family more than anything else. From today’s passage, ten lepers shouted in a loud voice to get healed from Jesus. But one person came back in order to give thanks to Jesus. Nine lepers did not show up. Maybe they wanted to see their family first or had no reason to come back to Jesus after seeing the priests, for their goal was only to be set free from their chronic debilitating disease. It was natural for them to forget the grace of God when their deep need was met. Now they might have wanted to focus on what is practical or beneficial rather than bothering to come back and express thanks to Jesus or to live for the glory of God. May the Lord help us to remember what God has done for us and give thanks to Him so that we may maintain our eternal relationship with Him.

1. Read verses 11-13. Where was Jesus going and where was he now? (11) Who came to meet Jesus? (12) How did they ask for help from Jesus? (13) What can we learn from them?

1-1, Read verses 11-13.

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy[b] met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

1-2, Where was Jesus going and where was he now? (11)

Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee.

• Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem where crucifixion awaited him. Jesus knew this and repeatedly foretold to his disciples of his future suffering, death, and resurrection.

• But no one understood what he was talking about. Jesus walked a lonely road, in obedience to God’s will.

• Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. At that time, Jews despised Samaritans because of the historical background of this place.

• This offended the Samaritans, and made them resentful towards the Jews. So these two different groups of people did not associate with one another.

• Jesus had broken through this prejudice when he witnessed to a Samaritan woman in John 4.

Luke 9:51-53 reads,

“As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.”

• Jesus, who was fully human and fully a Jew, could have taken offense as James and John asked Jesus to call down fire from heaven to destroy the Samaritan village.

• Unlike James and John, Jesus had a plan to spread the gospel throughout Samaria.

• Jesus had no prejudice. For instance, one day Jesus had to go through the land of Samaria to serve a Samaritan woman.

• Regardless of social status or prejudice, Jesus pointed out that the name of the game is to show one’s gratitude properly.

• The gospel also obliterates human barriers, for it is universal good news: all have sinned, and are justified freely by God's grace.

• That was why Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem to liberate men from sinful prejudices so that we might love one another, regardless of nationality or ethnicity.

1-3, Who came to meet Jesus? (12)

12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance

• As Jesus entered a village, ten men with leprosy met him. Both Jews and Samaritans were among them according to verse 16.

• They traveled together and sought help together. To them, the barriers between Jew and Samaritan were irrelevant.

• They were despised by both, for they carried a contagious, disfiguring and fatal disease.

• Lepers were not allowed among healthy people, but stayed in strict quarantine.

• Lepers could associate only with other lepers. They were isolated and lonely. They remained anonymous even among themselves.

• These lepers seemed condemned to a hopeless existence. However, one day, these men heard that Jesus had compassion on men with leprosy and had the power to heal them.

• Jesus was coming through their territory. It might have been impossible for them to leave the territory.

• But Jesus took initiative to come to the place where they lived in the borderline between Samaria and Galilee.

1-4, How did they ask for a help from Jesus? (13)

and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

• With new hope rising in them, they banded together and went to Jesus. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

• They came to Jesus just as they were and pleaded for mercy. Their cry revealed their desperate need and faith in Jesus.

• This cry must have come from their hope, only in Jesus.

1-5, What can we learn from them?

• Again they came to Jesus together and they prayed together, even though they were a mixed group of Jews and Samaritans.

• Bonded by their misery, their national and other prejudices vanished and they came together in prayer.

• A common misfortune had broken down their racial and national barriers.

• In the common tragedy of their leprosy they had forgotten they were Jews and Samaritans and remembered only they were men in desperate need.

• In UBF, we have something in common in that we are forgiven sinners and we came together and we prayed together without any human barriers.

• We give thanks to Jesus who called us to become His family members.

2. Read verses 14. What did Jesus do for the ten leprous men? Why were they told to show themselves to the priests? (Lev 13:2,17, 45-46; Mt 8:4) How might Jesus’ command to them have been difficult to obey? What happened when the men obeyed Jesus’ word?

2-1, Read verses 14.

When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

2-2, What did Jesus do for the ten leprous men?

When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.”

• People’s hearts might have been cold towards these men. But Jesus did not ignore their cry. Jesus saw them with a compassionate heart. Jesus did not pass them by.

• Jesus was willing to help. In the midst of his own painful and lonely struggle, Jesus’ compassion never dries up or runs out.

• Jesus is always ready to show compassion to helpless sinners in our time of need.

Exodus 34:6-7b reads,

“And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, ‘The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.’”

2-3, Why were they told to show themselves to the priests? (Lev 13:2, 17, 45-46; Mt 8:4)

• It was because Jesus came to fulfill the law.

• Jesus could have commanded them to be healed and let them go to their own families.

• But Jesus commanded them to go and show themselves to the priests in accordance with what the Scripture indicated.

• According to the law, people with skin diseases had to be examined by the priest, and if found clean, could be pronounced healthy/fit for community life among God’s people.

Leviticus 13:2, 17, 45-46 reads,

2 “When anyone has a swelling or a rash or a shiny spot on their skin that may be a defiling skin disease, they must be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons who is a priest.

17 The priest is to examine them, and if the sores have turned white, the priest shall pronounce the affected person clean; then they will be clean.

45 “Anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes, let their hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of their face and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ 46 As long as they have the disease they remain unclean. They must live alone; they must live outside the camp.

Matthew 8:4 reads,

Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

2-4, How might Jesus’ command to them have been difficult to obey?

• It must have been hard for them to obey Jesus’ command, for the priests might not welcome them.

• Jesus could have simply said, “I am willing, Be clean!” Rather He told them to go and show themselves to the priests.

• Jesus’ words challenged the men to believe that they were healed before it happened and to act in obedience to Jesus’ words.

• Jesus was teaching them to live by faith and to obey the word of God by faith.

2-5, What happened when the men obeyed Jesus’ word?

And as they went, they were cleansed.

• Jesus’ word has power in it. It is the very Word of God who created the heavens and the earth.

• Sensing his spiritual authority, the men obeyed him at once by turning to leave. Miraculously, their leprosy was healed. Their flesh was restored.

• In the Bible, leprosy is symbolic of the power of sin. As leprosy ruins one’s body, sin utterly ruins one's life by making him sick unto death spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually.

• There is no human cure for sin. Only Jesus can save us from sin and heal us from its consequences.

1 John 1:9 says,

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

• Jesus can cleanse any sinner completely and give him a new life.

• Let’s come to Jesus, our compassionate Healer. Why does Jesus heal us? Jesus heals us so that we may obey the word of God and become useful to God.

Luke 1:74,75 says,

“...to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.”

• In Jesus, we can live the most joyful, fruitful, and happy life. We can serve God all our days and then enter into everlasting glory.

• What a wonderful Savior Jesus is! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlxPyWF7Xaw)

3. Read verses 15-16. What did one man do after he saw he was healed? (15) How did he thank Jesus? (16) What can we learn from him?

3-1, Read verses 15-16.

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

3-2, What did one man do after he saw he was healed? (15)

One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.

• It is significant that this man praised God as his first response. The man saw God through Jesus. He knew that his healing had come from God.

• Before meeting the priests, he couldn’t but come back in order to praise God.

• He sensed that the great God of the universe knew his sufferings as a leper, and was concerned for him. He felt that God loved him very personally.

• When he realized God’s love for him, waves of praise and thanks began to burst forth from his heart. He had no regard for what people thought.

• He was overwhelmed by God’s presence and praised God with all his strength in a loud voice: “Praise God!”

• This foreigner did a fabulous job in terms of praising God. In fact the meaning of “Judah” is “praise God.” So nine Jewish lepers were supposed to praise God.

• But the Samaritan leper did instead. What is the name of the game? It is to praise God.

• We should acknowledge God’s presence as one of God’s created beings.

• We received the grace of forgiveness, healing, new vision and clear spiritual direction.

• It was God, who is unseen--who is Spirit--who worked within us. God’s Spirit filled those who spoke the Word of God to us. God’s Spirit touched our hearts through their message.

• God’s Spirit ministered to us and gave his spiritual blessings to us. So we must first praise God for his work.

3-3, How did he thank Jesus? (16)

He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

• The healed man did not stop with praising God. He also thanked Jesus.

• He first threw himself at Jesus’ feet. He was offering himself to Jesus. At that moment, he wanted to give everything to Jesus.

• He recognized that his new life was not just his; his life belonged to Jesus.

• He was ready to obey Jesus no matter what Jesus said. If Jesus told him to go as a missionary, he would go, trusting Jesus’ power and love.

• In a spirit of surrender, he said again and again, “Thank you! Thank you, Jesus!”

• His words of thanks expressed an offering of his life to Jesus. He teaches us how to praise God and thank Jesus.

3-4, What can we learn from him?

• We easily see the total depravity of human beings.

• For instance, in the book of Judges, the phrase, “The Israelites once again did evil in the eyes of the Lord,” is repeated many times.

• No sooner had they lived in peace by God’s grace than they rejected God again.

• Likewise nobody can thank God naturally. Each person must learn how to thank God.

• It requires a lot of struggling through prayer and sincere Bible study.

• Those who are truly humble are able to give thanks in all circumstances.

James 4:6 reads,

“God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble”

• The Chinese have a proverb: “When eating bamboo sprouts, remember the man who planted them.”

• Likewise when we eat a steak, we remember the American farmer—and the God who gave the farmer rain for the grain and the livestock.

• Everything we have is a gift from God. “Every good and perfect gift is from above” (James 1:17)

4. Read verses 17-19. How did Jesus express his disappointment by comparing the other nine men with one thankful foreigner? (17, 18) What blessing did this thankful Samaritan receive? (19) What does this event teach about the importance of being thankful?

4-1, Read verses 17-19.

Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

4-2, How did Jesus express his disappointment by comparing the other nine men with one thankful foreigner? (17, 18)

Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?”

• As much as the man’s thanks pleased Jesus, it also exposed the fault of the other nine.

• They, too, were cleansed by Jesus.

• But they did not return to praise God and thank Jesus. This was a tragic mistake.

4-3, What blessing did this thankful Samaritan receive? (19)

Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

• He received the true certificate or a clean bill of health from the High Priest, Jesus Christ.

• Jesus is the best Physician.

• Maybe the other nine went straight to the priests.

• But this Samaritan had to give thanks to Jesus, for he must have known where his true healing came from.

• Thanksgiving is the first and foremost step in having personal faith in God.

• Jesus accepted his reverent submission and became his Lord. Then, the Lord Jesus told him to rise and go.

• Jesus credited his faith for his healing. It meant he was right with God. Now he could go forth as a man with dignity, recognized by the king, healthy and fit to serve in God’s world.

• His future was promising; he could be a truly great man and blessing to the world.

• Here we learn the secret to bearing God’s blessings. It is to praise and thank God.

4-4, What does this event teach about the importance of being thankful?

• Those who fail to praise and thank God become dark and foolish. Eventually they fall into idolatry and becomes slaves of sin.

• This is why Jesus told another man whom he had healed after 38 years of paralysis, “Stop sinning, or something worse may happen to you” (Jn 5:14).

• We must learn to praise and thank God for his blessings. In fact, we should praise and thank God always.

• So St. Paul wrote, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Th 5:16-18).

• Even in difficult circumstances, we have many reasons to thank God. God is our Creator who gave us our very lives.

• God is our Provider who sustains us with all necessary things each day, including food, water, and air.

• God is our Redeemer who gave his one and only Son Jesus Christ as a ransom sacrifice for our sins.

• He saved us from eternal condemnation. God pours out his blessings on us everyday in many ways that we are not even aware of.

• God is worthy of all our praise and thanks. Let’s praise and thank God with all our hearts and lives.

Romans 1:21 says,

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”

• However, when we want to praise and thank God, we find that it is not always easy. Our sneaky sinful nature binds us in self-centeredness and ingratitude.

• This is manifest in several ways. Sinful people usually see what they do not have--and feel sorry about that--instead of seeing what they have, and giving thanks.

• Sinful people usually remember one wrong done by others, while ignoring the many good things done for them by God and others.

• Moreover, life in this world can be hard. Sometimes we feel too tired or worn out to be thankful. Sometimes it just seems inconvenient to give thanks to God.

• There are many exciting and interesting things to do first. But in the course of pursuing them, we can miss the chance to thank God.

• To express our thanksgiving to God we must struggle against our sinful nature, fighting a spiritual battle in prayer.

Ephesians 5:20 reads,

“Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Conclusion

Only one(10%) came back to give thanks; and he was the unlikely one - a Samaritan or a foreigner. And, though he was the only one, at least he was very loud about his thanks. It is easy to be loud in asking for help like the other nine lepers. John F. Kennedy said, “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them.” I believe the Grateful Samaritan learned that the highest appreciation he could show to Jesus was to live daily for him. Jesus changed the life of a Samaritan woman who told many what He had done for him. As a result, the lives of many people in Sychar of Samaria changed because of her testimony. Also Jesus healed a man of demon possession in the region of the Gerasenes and said, "Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you."

So the man went away and began to tell to the people in the Decapolis(Scythopolis, Pella, Dion, Gerasa, Philadelphia, Gadara, Raphana, Kanatha, Hippos and Damascus) how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. Perhaps the same could happen in the Samaria in and through the Grateful Samaritan. The same thing could happen in us! May the Lord help us to be a thankful person like the grateful Samaritan no matter where we go and witness about Jesus.

One word: Give thanks!

Where are the other nine?

Luke 17:11-19

Key Verse 17-18

“Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 

One father told me that his experience as a father of many children helps him to understand the importance of thanksgiving in today’s passage. Being a father, he is ready to do anything for his children, regardless of the amount of sacrifice of his time or money or energy or anything. He does all he can do for his children. As a father, who is busy, he made his time out of his busy schedule and thought about their needs and concern and spent time and did something for them. His children are wonderful kids. But somehow they do not show any sign of being thankful although all he wants is just mere recognition. They took it for granted. The response of his children reminded him of how his heavenly Father would feel if he is not thankful.

So today we want to learn why thanksgiving is so important in our relationship with God. My message has two parts. Part I. Jesus, master, have pity on us! (v.11-14) Part II. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him (v.15-19)

Part I. Jesus, master, have pity on us! (v.11-14)

Look at verses 11-14.

^“11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. ¹² As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance ¹³ and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” ¹⁴ When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.”

This is the story between Jesus and ten lepers. I never met any leper. But this is what I heard when I grew up. When I was an elementary student, rumors said that lepers wanted to eat liver of little children in order to be healed. So little children should be very careful. So whenever I had to walk alone along mountain alleys to visit my grandfather from time to time I had to suffer from severe fear that lepers would come out of woods and kill me and eat my liver. I did not know that lepers were separated and lived in a separate place. I had no idea who spread such rumors. But it was all well known rumor among young children in my town. So I thought lepers were like monsters who want to eat human livers. I thought lepers were such wicked people who wanted to kill little children and eat their livers. But bible reveals unbearable suffering of lepers.

Lepers in those times suffered from many things. First of all, they suffered from hopelessness. Leprosy in those times was incurable disease. So to become lepers mean to die slowly in such a cursed situation. There was no hope to be cued of leprosy. So they were condemned to die slowly. Who wants to die? But lepers were doomed to die without any hope once you become lepers.

Secondly, the lepers suffered from sense of condemnation from God. Since the bible shows that God used leprosy to punish people they could think that God punished them through leprosy, and they were condemned and punished by God. Miriam became a leper when she challenged the authority of Moses. King Uzziah got leprosy when he tried to burn incense which was the duty of priest.

Thirdly, the lepers suffered from loneliness. They were cast out from their family members and villages and had to live in an isolated place by themselves. They were separated from normal society and fellowship with other people. They had to live by themselves leaving all family members and their friends and all people they knew. The separation was for the purpose of protecting other healthy people because leprosy was highly contagious. But still it was a great pain to be separated from their close people. Ten lepers in today’s passage lived along the border between Samaria and Galilee probably because they were driven to the borders from their towns of Samaria and Galilee.

Fourthly, the lepers suffered from ugly image of themselves because their faces and their bodies would be disfigured as times went by. As the disease advanced they would lose noses and fingers and hands and toes and feet etc. I planned to show one picture but it was too much disturbing. So I can not show it.

Fifthly, the lepers suffered from shame. They had to shout out, ‘unclean’ and ‘unclean’ if they have to move among people, identifying themselves as unclean people. Every man has desire to appear clean and righteous. But these lepers could not have such desire.

Sixthly, the lepers must have suffered from the doubt of God’s love. The lepers did not want to become lepers. They did not know how they got leprosy. One day the leprosy broke out and they found that they became lepers. They could suffer from doubt of God’s love, crying out, ‘why me?’ They could see others who were more wicked did not get leprosy but they became lepers.

I am sure they did everything they could do in order to be healed. But nothing worked out. They were in despair. But somehow they must heard a news or rumors that Jesus healed people miraculously. When they found out that Jesus was coming in their way they gathered all their strength and went out to meet him.

They could not come near to Jesus. So they stood at a distance, and they called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, master, have pity on us.” They even did not bother to say, “Please heal us.” Just to say ‘Have pity on us” was enough.

They called Jesus as ‘master’. They somehow believed that Jesus was their master and they believed their master Jesus might have power to heal their leprosy.

Sometimes all we can do is just call to God, saying, “God, have mercy on me, a sinner!” when we are completely powerless over our problems.

Look at verse 14. “When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.”

Jesus knew the meaning of their cries. He went to the point without beating around the bush. He simply commanded, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” In those days priests worked as medical doctors. So they would issue health certificate to lepers after the lepers were healed. Then lepers could return to their home towns.

So to say to lepers, “Go, show yourselves to the priests’ means ‘I tell you. You are already healed. Therefore go, show yourselves to the priests and get health certificate.”

And they were cleansed as they went. So when they started to go, they were not healed of their leprosy. But they believed Jesus’ word and obeyed it. They believed that they were already cleansed although they could see their leprosy with their own eyes. And as they went they were healed.

When Jesus said to them, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests” it was the moment of testing. It was the time of the testing of their faith. But they simply obeyed without raising any questions or doubts. How could they do that? How could they not say, “Jesus, master, how can you ask us to believe we are already healed? Don’t you see that we still have leprosy? Are you trying to drive us out in this way?”

I believe they could obey Jesus immediately without any doubt or questions because they were completely humble. How could they become humble, humble enough to obey whatever Jesus said? It was because their unbearable pain and suffering as lepers made them absolutely humble. They knew they were powerless over their disease. They were absolutely vulnerable to the point that they were ready to do whatever Jesus said. In their complete vulnerability they were able to meet their God.

Palms 51:16-17

¹⁶ You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. ¹⁷ My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

God does not despise when we are completely broken or vulnerable or powerless. But rather he meets us when we are broken and powerless. People meet God when they are broken.

One day one alcoholic said to his doctor in excitement, “Faith in God works. It helps me to be sober.” Then the doctor said, “I don’t understand what you are talking about, the faith in God. But anything is better than your destruction through drinking. So go head. Anything is better than losing your job, your health, your family and eventually committing suicide after destroying everything you have.” At the time of unbearable pain and suffering and brokenness the alcoholic met his God.

In life, we have many troubles which we cannot understand. There are much pain and suffering which is out of our control. But we can see our pain and suffering and trials in life as the opportunity for us to humble and obey God. Indeed our troubles can be the Lord’s blessing in disguise because we can meet God in our brokenness.

Although the lepers might have suffered from the doubt of God’s love for them, their disease blessed them so much. They became so humble to the point of obeying whatever Jesus said without any doubts and questions. Then their powerlessness opened the way for them to meet their God.

And they were cleansed as they went. The Lord blessed their faith and obedience. Many times Jesus heals people when they obey him. And their obedience is the proof of their faith in him. For example, Jesus commanded a born blind beggar, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam.” And the blind man obeyed and he opened his eyes.

Jesus said to servants in wedding in Cana in Galilee, “Now draw some water and take it to the master of the banquet” although it was water instead of wine. (John 2:8) But when they obeyed the water turned into wine.

Peter said to one crippled man, “In the name of Jesus Christ, walk!” The crippled man obeyed and he was healed and he could stand up.

The word of God has power to heal us when we obey it.

Part II. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him (v.15-19)

Now look at verses 15-19.

¹⁵ One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. ¹⁶ He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. ¹⁷ Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?  ¹⁸ Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹ Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

When all ten were cleansed, only one leper came back, praising God in a loud voice. He was so thankful that he threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan. Probably the other nine lepers could be Jewish lepers. Jews despised Samaritans. But his despised condition as Samaritan made him even more humble than Jewish lepers. He could not control his thankful heart. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him.

Then Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 

Nine lepers called Jesus as ‘master’. But their actions show that they were masters of Jesus, and Jesus was their servant. They simply took advantage of Jesus. From that time on, they might call out Jesus “Jesus, master, have pity on us” whenever they faced other desperate situations. But obviously Jesus was not their master. Jesus was their servant and he was only used by them when they needed his help.

Why didn’t the nine leper return? Were they not thankful? They could be thankful. But they were not thankful enough to return and give praise God. They might be thankful, but their action did not follow.

What is the difference in their hearts of nine lepers before they were healed and after they were healed? Before they were healed, their heart condition was broken and humble. They were ready to obey anything from Jesus, standing as servants of Jesus. They knew they were powerless over their problem. They only relied on Jesus’ mercy.

Their heart condition after they were healed was full of confidence. They thought that now they could do so many things because they were healed. They were confident that they could manage their lives well. They were not ready to obey anything from Jesus as Jesus’ servants. They stood as confident men who could do many things on their own strength. Suddenly they became busy when they thought about catching up many things which they could not do such as raising up families, or establishing careers and business, having parties, and enjoying delicious foods etc.

So the main difference of the heart condition of the nine lepers before they were cleansed and after they were cleansed is ‘powerlessness’ and ‘confidence’. But Apostle Paul said in 1Co 10:12 “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!”

Many believers including ourselves cry out to Jesus when we have desperate problems, ‘Jesus, master, have pity on us’. We even make vows. “If you help me this, I will do this for you. I promise!” After Jesus solve our problems, we do not show up. We do not keep our vows. We say, “Oh, I made a hasty bow which I cannot keep. I believe God will understand and forgive me. Anyhow already he has forgiven all my sins through Jesus.” And we call out Jesus again and again whenever we have urgent problems. “Jesus, master, have pity on me. I promise this time that I will keep my vow and even old ones. Please help!” And the same process is repeated again and again. Are we different than the nine lepers?

Finally, Jesus said to the thankful leper. “Rise and go. Your faith has made you well.” Jesus has made him well. But Jesus gave all the credit to the thankful leper. He said, “Your faith has made you well.”

What kind of faith does the thankful leper have? He had faith to believe Jesus’ healing, and he had faith to give thanks to Jesus. His faith made him well. He was healed not only physically but also spiritually establishing personal relationship with Jesus.

Probably this will happen in the future. When the thankful leper will go to heaven, Jesus will say to him, “Welcome, my dear friend, heavenly feast is waiting for you. Join in your master’s happiness.” But when the nine lepers will show up Jesus will say to them, “I don’t know you. Away from me, you evildoers.” Then they will say, “Jesus, master, don’t you remember that you healed all of us on the border between Samaria and Galilee?” Jesus will say to them, “I don’t know you. Away from me, you evildoers.”

Now, how can we apply today’s passage for us more?

Firstly, we all should see ourselves as these lepers were: unclean before God and men.

If we are honest, we can see how much we are unclean before God and men. We can see our leprosy only when we are ready to be honest. Before we are honest, we are not able to see our inner leprosy and we cannot be cured of it. It is because our pride blinds our eyes to see how unclean we are before God and men.

How can we know that we are unclean? We can know it when we judge others.

Jesus said in Matthew 7:1-5 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. ² For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. ³ “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? ⁴ How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

Here, Jesus showed our uncleanness. When we judge others we think we are better than others. But Jesus says that we become hypocrites when we judge others. It is because we do worse things than those whom we judge. Think about ourselves. How many times do we judge others? Our judgment shows that how much we are unclean before God and men. To accept the fact that we are unclean is one of the most difficult things for us. It is because we are all so proud. We become sinners because we are proud in our hearts. Our pride, selfishness, self-centeredness is the core reason of our sinfulness.

Bible teachers are so accustomed to teach others that they can fall into this trap. Sometimes they are obsessed to teach others. But the truth is they need to repent and be changed first.

Secondly, we all should do as these lepers did: call out to Jesus for mercy.

The only way for us to be cured of our inner leprosy, which is our pride is to call out to Jesus for mercy. It is because we cannot heal us. Our pride and selfishness blinds our eyes that we cannot see our uncleanness before God and men. It blinds our eyes that we cannot see our powerlessness. So we keep trying to fix ourselves in vain.

But we should call out to God, ‘Jesus, master, have pity on us’. To know our sin and our powerlessness is the most difficult job. To believe Jesus has power instead of us is the challenging task for us to accept because we are proud.

Thirdly, we all should respond as these lepers: with obedient faith.

What does Jesus command us to do? “Do not judge others”; “Forgive one another and love one another”; “repent for the kingdom of heaven is near.”

Jesus asked us to confess our sins and pray for each other. But we cannot do so when we only see other people’s repentant topics so clearly, but we are blind to our repentant topics.

We know in knowledge that we are not perfect. But in our actual life it is one of the hardest things for us to accept that we are not perfect. Sounds strange? Sounds untrue? See how many excuses we come up when others point out our shortcomings. We will probably say, “Oh, I acted because of this and because of that. Can’t you see where I am coming from? I am sure that you will do the same thing if you were in my place.” We usually do not accept our shortcomings. In knowledge we know we are not perfect. In practice we all want to play the role of the Lord.

Fourthly, We all should respond as the one leper did: glorify God at the feet of Jesus with hearts of thankfulness and gratitude. Glorifying God and to be thankful for others exalt God and others instead of us. So we don’t want to do so in our sinful nature.

Our inner leprosy is to glorify ourselves. In knowledge we want to glorify God. But in action we want to glorify ourslves.

We can glorify God with thanksgiving. Psalm 69:30 reads, “I will praise God’s name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving.”

Even the nine lepers could be thankful in their knowledge. But if they do not show their thanks in their lives, their knowledge could make them proud. They became proud because they will think, “Well, at least we know in knowledge we are thankful. We are not so bad. We know there are so many people who do not know they should be thankful even in knowledge”

Fifthly, many are blind to God’s abundant blessings. Many of us are blind to many blessings from God, and this can be one cause of our ingratitude. For example, there is a story of a man who was lost in the woods. He was afraid for his life. So he prayed to God. Later, a friend asked him, “So did God answer your prayer?“ The man replied, “Oh, no!  Before God has a chance, a guide came along and showed me the way out”. Like this man many are blind to God’s daily blessings in their lives.

Many complain about God’s blessings. Many complain that their wives make the same food all the time, not realizing that many would gladly exchange places with them in order to eat anything that day.

Others complain about their jobs, while others pray and would be grateful to have any job. Still others complain about not having enough money, forgetting they use their money in their entertainment and the amount they used could be more than yearly income of people in some parts of the world.

God blesses us far more than we realize and far more than we deserve. How should we respond then? We should give thanks.

Today we learned the reason why we should be thankful. We should be thankful because everything comes from God. We should be thankful because we believe God’s goodness. We should be thankful because it is our response toward God’s blessings.

One word: Where are the other nine?