“YOUR FAITH HAS MADE YOU WELL” 

Luke 17:11-19 

Key Verse: 17:19 

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

            Happy Thanksgiving is coming! We have studied this passage several times, especially during the season of Thanksgiving. Carefully investigating everything about the gospel, Luke had heard thousand stories about Christ. Among all the stories, why did he choose to tell this one? What makes this story so special? This passage is about just one foreigner who was healed by Jesus and then expressed his thankfulness? But this passage leads us to a question.  The question is “what’s so important about thankfulness?” Giving praise and thanks to God is crucial. That is why Paul said “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1Th5”18) In today’s passage, Jesus blesses those who are thankful and bless more those who give praise and thanks to Him, saying “your faith has made you well.” Jesus recognizes the act of praise and thanks as faith and blessed his faith to be well, to be whole in every way. Thanksgiving faith makes us well truly. Learning the value of a thankful heart, we may give praise and thanks to God. May God bless our thanksgiving faith! So, we all may be made well.   

First, They cried out in a loud voice. (11-14)

Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. Jesus’ purpose was to suffer and die, shedding his blood on the cross for the sins of the world. Then he would rise again from the dead, defeating  the power of death. In this way Jesus became the Savior of the world. For this purpose, Jesus traveled to Jerusalem. On the way Jesus stopped at towns and villages, preached the good news of the kingdom of God, taught the word of God, healed the sick and drove out demons.

At this point, Jesus was traveling along the border between Samaria and Galilee (11b). As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. We can find some interesting points about these ten men. Firstly all ten were lepers. Lepers are those who suffer from leprosy, known as Hansen’s disease in modern term. Though leprosy is known as a skin disease, it destroys people’s nerve and limbo systems, until they die without any pain. Since leprosy is known as contagious and infectious disease, lepers must be quarantined in a certain place. According to Moses’ law, lepers had to wear torn clothes, cover their face and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ (Lev 13:45,46) whenever anyone approaches. They were completely isolated from their family, community, and society. That was why these lived the border between the two provinces which was desolate and abandoned places.

The ten was a mixed group with Jews and Samaritan, with possibly only one Samaritan. At Jesus’ time, Jews and Samaritans did not associate each other since the Assyrians had invaded Samaria long years ago (Jn 4:9). Jews despised Samaritans thinking that the Samaritans lost their purity and identity as the people of God by mixing their blood with the gentiles. Even though the both were children of Abraham, there was the diving wall and hostility between the two people. Considering what is happening in Gaza, we may understand about the conflicts between Jews and Samarians. However, there was no a racial barrier among the lepers in this passage. They came to Jesus together. Whether they were Jews or Samaritans, they were all the same lepers. Ironically their common suffering as lepers led them to disregard this social prejudice and live together in a leper’s colony. This tells us that most of the human barriers or conflicts we may have are groundless and meaningless to Jesus. Jesus did not mind who they were because, to him, all of them were God’s lost sheep. Jesus, who is the Lord of all, came to save not only Jews, but also Samaritans. Ephesians 2:14 says about this, “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the diving wall of hostility,…”

Then, why did they come to Jesus? When they met Jesus, they stood at a distance and called out in loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” They cried out until their throats were wet with blood. They knew who Jesus was. Jesus was the Messiah, and the God of compassion. They knew that it might be their only opportunity to encounter Jesus and receive healing. In the middle of their desperate situation, they carried out for mercy. It was their prayer for the Messiah’s mercy. How did they come to know Jesus? No doubt, they had heard of Jesus. Jesus was the one who had reached out his hand, touched a man covered with leprosy, and said to him, “I am willing. Be clean!” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed and he became a healthy man, and spread the news about Jesus (Lk 5:13). In Luke 7, Jesus testified of the work of the Messiah, saying, “Go back and report to John what you have seen and heard: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is proclaimed to the poor” (Lk 7:20-22).

Indeed, the gospel of Jesus is the best news to every one – to the blind, the lame, the lepers, and even to the dead. It is because Jesus, the Messiah will save all from their sins through his death and resurrection. Just as these ten men with leprosy come to Jesus as a matter of life and death, we may come to Jesus and cry out with loud voice, “Jesus, Master, Have pity on us!” “Master, Have pity on us!” This is unworthy sinner’s humble cry. They acknowledged that they did not have any things that deserve God’s grace. They acknowledge their unworthiness, hopelessness and powerlessness. All they can depend on is God’s mercy only. They were not demanding. They simply appealed to the Messiah to have mercy on them. Thank God that our God is merciful and forgiving God; Our God is a merciful God who hears our humble cry. (Dt4:31) Depending on any things on earth – authority, power, wealth, No one is worthy to come to God. Even King David, putting down everything, he cried out to God whenever he was in need by depending on God’s mercy only.  Psalm 130 “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.  O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ear be attentive to my cry for mercy.” When we have any problems, cry out to the Lord in a loud voice for mercy. When we have any one to lead into Christ, Cry out to the Lord in a loud voice for Salvation. When we have sickness of sin, Cry out to the Lord in a loud voice for healing. Our Lord who hear our cry. When we ask for mercy, Jesus never ignores our cry, no matter how undeserving we are (Heb 4:16). Depending on Jesus’ mercy, we may come to Jesus, calling him out in a loud voice. “Master, Have pity on me!”

What did Jesus do out of his mercy? Look at verse 14.  “When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests” Jesus saw the lepers with eyes of mercy. Jesus, filled with compassion, ordered them to go and to show themselves to the priests. According to the law, those who are cured from diseases must be examined by the priests so that they could obtain a certificate of recovery in order to enter the society. Jesus did not say “you are cleansed!” He did not make big motion nor touched them. At a distance, Jesus commanded them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests!” This command implied that Jesus was going to heal and restore them.

It was good news!  At the same time, it required an act of faith. They needed to overcome doubt and believe that Jesus would heal them. They needed full trust in Jesus to go to the priests. How did they respond to Jesus’ word? They could have asked Jesus with questions. But look at verse 14. “And as they went, they were healed.” Turning around from Jesus, they began to walk toward the village. As they went on the way to the priest, they were healed. When they trusted Jesus and obeyed him; when they took actions by faith in obedience to Jesus’ command, the miracle happened.

            Jesus is merciful and also has power to cleanse leprosy completely and to make people new. Tough we look health outwardly; we are all like lepers in one way or other.  We have spiritual diseases and sicknesses that destroy our souls and make us ugly. This disease of sin separates us from God and others and makes us lonely, miserable and fatalistic. Under the influence of power of sin, we are hopeless and helpless. However, God has mercy on us. When we cry out for his help, he hears our prayer and cleanses us of all our sins with the precious blood of Christ. He restores the image of God in us and gives us new life and new hope. However, these amazing Miracles have happened to those take the word of God by faith– those who respond to His words by faith.

 John3:16 says “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Anyone who takes the word of God by faith and believes in Jesus has received the grace of salvation. Out of mercy, God gave us His son Jesus, as the lamb, to forgive all our sins. Many people may question, doubt, reason, argue, even reject the word of Jesus.  However, those who respond God’s word by faith and obedience have experienced this amazing grace for forgiveness of sins. I myself  had suffered under the social anxiety, self-condemnation, and fear of death.   But through Bible Study, simply I took Mark 2:5 “Son, your sins are forgiven” by faith.  To others, it might be just written word in the book, or nothing but a old story. But When I took it by faith as the word of Jesus spoken to me, I have received the amazing grace of forgiveness of sins. Jesus wants each of us to experience this power of faith in our daily lives. Jesus wants us to trust in him and to live victorious life when we obey his words by faith. We may come to Jesus, calling out “Please, Master have pity on us!”

Second, “Thanks you!”

In this part, Jesus was pleased by one thankful Samaritan (15-18). Many the story of Jesus’ mercy end here. But however, Luke recorded the second part of the story, adding more significance to the story by emphasizing the value of a thankful heart. Look at verses 15-16. “One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in  a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him – and he was a Samaritan.”

            When the ten found that they had been healed, they all jumped and danced with great joy. Jesus did not command them to come back and give praise and thanks. At this point, whatever they choose to do is a personal decision from their hearts. We are not sure where the nine of them go. They might go to the priest or go their home right away to see their families and friends. They received marvelous grace of healing from Jesus. But, that’s all. They did not say even a word “thank you” to Jesus.

            But one of them came back. Look at how he expressed his thanks and worship the Lord, Jesus. He remembered Jesus who gave him new life, so he came back to Jesus, praising God in a loud voice. “Praise the Lord!” Then, he threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. This was an act of surrender to the one who had healed him. This is act of worship Jesus. He saw God in Jesus. He showed his best gratitude to Jesus in a loud voice, “Thank you Jesus!” He was a Samaritan foreigner – not God’s people, but a despised and rejected one.  

            At his moment of joy, he made his decision to turn back.  Just like nine others, he too was eager to get the certificates and go see his loved one. But he chose to worship and pour of his thankful heart at Jesus’ feet as the first priority over any other things. In fact, a thankful heart compelled him to do this.

How did Jesus respond? Look at verses 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?’” Jesus expected them all to come back and praise God and give thanks to him. Though Jesus did not command them to come back, that was their obligation as human beings. Jesus wanted them to do so, not out of obligation, but out of Thankful heart. So, we should be thankful when we receive a blessing, otherwise we are lacking in basic humanity. 

Why did the other nine respond like this? We don’t know exactly. But we can find several possible reasons. One is that they did not value thanksgiving much. They did not think “Giving praise and thanks to God” is crucial, nor has priority over other things. As soon as they were healed, their hidden dreams and ambitions in their hearts suddenly came alive and captured their minds. Now they could pursue careers as athletes, politicians, and entrepreneurs, and enjoy romantic relationships with beautiful women. Their dreams and ambition occupied their hearts, so that they completely forgot about Jesus, who had healed them. They knew they should return and give thanks, but it did not seem to be most important to them. They felt they could do it later;

However, forgetting God’s grace and failing to give thanks to God are so critical that it is akin to taking a shortcut to fall into sin. In Genesis 3, sin came into the world when Adam and Eve doubted God’s love, forgetting His grace and his providence and becoming unthankful. Eventually, in the garden they lost their relationship with God. Unthankfulness is a serious matter. 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.”  

One more reason might be that they were overcome by their sinful nature. There is a saying, “Bitterness is engraved on stone, while grace is written in water.” It means that we quickly forget grace and never forget bitterness. Though we received 99 acts of grace, the one time something unfavorable happens we remember that, while forgetting the 99 acts of grace. This is fallen man’s mentality under the power of sin. In order to praise and thank God, we must overcome this sinful tendency. We need to make an intentional effort to hold on to grace and reject bitterness. Here again, that is why Paul said,  “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1Th5”18) Not glorifying God nor giving thanks to him is at the root of sin (Ro 1:21). This is why Jesus lamented with a broken shepherd’s heart. 

Look at verse 19. Jesus was so pleased by this one foreigner, Samaritan. Jesus blesses His faith that gives thanks (19). In other words, Giving praising and thanks to God is the way to be well; it is way to have right relationship with God; it actually way to invites all kinds of God’s blessings. Jesus said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well” (19). Here Jesus recognized his act of praise and thanks as faith. Jesus did not regard it as an ethical response, but as an expression of his faith.             Thanksgiving comes from faith. This kind of faith makes us well in every way. This kind of faith enables us to have a right relationship with God. Faith is relational—it is to have a personal relationship with Christ. Faith is not static; it grows. All ten lepers had the faith that cried for Jesus’ mercy and received healing. But when they did not praise and thank God, they failed to have their relationship with Jesus. Gradually they would wither and die. But, when the Samaritan praised God and thanked Jesus, he could have a right relationship with Jesus. Then he could take deep root in Jesus; he could continue to grow and bear good fruit. 

Giving praise and thanks to God is crucial. Gratitude heart and Giving thanks to God change our attitude toward God and toward each others. Because we are thankful, we serve God wholeheartedly; we serve this campus mission, and serve one sheep with much prayer and sacrifices with joy. It was because of the grace of Jesus given to us. Because I am thankful for his grace of salvation for this sinner, I decided to give my life as a living sacrifice for his salvation work. Otherwise, there is no reason to do such things. Even if we do the work of God, we would do it with grumbling, complaints, or a sense of obligation or being pushed.

 There are so many examples who sacrificed their lives out of joy because of the gratitude he had in their hearts. Luke was one of the most thankful people who ever lived. The gratitude that welled up from his heart became the flame that burned in his heart so that he invested everything from the beginning, and wrote the gospel of Luke that has brought life to countless people over the ages.  Paul, his heart welled up with thanksgiving and he served the work of God in such dedication and sacrifices. Let us learn how to give thanks to God through the Samaritan.

Thanksgiving faith makes us well. If you want to be health, Give thanks by faith. If you want to be strong and success, give praise and thanks to God by faith. If you want to make happy family, give thanks by faith. Thanksgiving Day is coming. There are numerous reasons for all of us to be thankful.  This week, we all may take time to acknowledge what the Lord has done for us and give praise and thanks to him.