May 04 2025

Sunday May 04

Luke 17:11-19 – Forgiven, Faithful, and Thankful

11 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. 13 And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" 14 So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. 15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, 16 and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. 17 So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?" 19 And He said to him, "Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well."

In Luke chapter 17, Jesus, on His way to Jerusalem, is teaching His disciples some powerful lessons they’ll need to learn and practice if they are going to be followers of Jesus, making a difference in the world and turning it upside down for the kingdom of God. He teaches about forgiveness—you’re going to be offended, sometimes by those closest to you, and you have to forgive. Then, you’ll need faith to do that, which means being obedient.

You’re also going to practice faithfulness in such a way that, no matter how hard you work, how much you serve, or how tired you are, you simply do the task at hand because God has commanded you to do it—not out of duty, but out of love and compassion for Him. You depend on His Holy Spirit to fill you to accomplish that purpose as a servant of the living God. We are called to the privilege of serving the Lord; it’s not a right, but a privilege, a calling from God for every believer. From there, we learn thankfulness, and that’s what this lesson is about.

Now in Luke 17:11-19, “It happened as Jesus went to Jerusalem, passing through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. As He entered a certain village, He met ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. They lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” When He saw them, He said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed. One of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned and, with a loud voice, glorified God. He fell down on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving Him thanks—and he was a Samaritan. Jesus answered and said, “Were not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” Then Jesus said to the Samaritan, “Arise, go your way; your faith has made you well.”

Jesus is talking about how, when God does wonderful things for us, we experience His goodness, grace, and mercy. As we are being obedient and faithful, we should be thankful. Gratefulness is an attitude of the heart that reflects our humility and the grace of God in our lives, recognizing that every good gift, every perfect gift, and every opportunity we have to serve—every divine appointment we’re part of—comes from the Lord Himself. We have that wonderful privilege, and we should return to give Him thanks.

What we had here were ten men who were lepers, a picture of sin. These men were lost, helpless, and hopeless. They hear the Master coming—one of them a Samaritan—in the midst of Galilee and Samaria, as Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem. They call out, “Master, Teacher,” the same word Peter used, recognizing that He has command over everything. He can command demons to leave; He can command sickness to leave.

So they called out in faith, believing He can do something, and Jesus says, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” They weren’t healed when He spoke the word, but as they turned to go, they were immediately healed. Can you imagine that? They turned to go, and all of a sudden, that leprosy was gone. The nine of them ran to fulfill the law, but the one who was a Samaritan ran to the One who was the fulfillment of the law—Jesus Christ. He fell down and worshiped Him. The nine went to worship in a temple; this man made an altar at the feet of Jesus. He fell at His feet and worshiped Him.

Jesus said to him, “Arise, go your way; your faith has saved you.” Those nine men got healed physically; this man got healed spiritually as well when he found the grace of God through a thankful, humble heart. “For by grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast.” 

My friend, be grateful, be thankful, and live a life of gratitude to a holy God, because when we’re not thankful, we become vain in our imaginations, and our foolish hearts are darkened (Romans 1).

Be forgiving, be faithful, and be thankful.

God bless.