Luke 17:11-19
11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers,who stood at a distance 13 and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” 14 When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. 15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16 and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was pa Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”
This section of scripture from the gospel of Luke points to an unfortunate reality within many of our hearts: whenever God heals us or helps us or provides for us or saves us, we often fail to give God the praise and glory for such things. In fact, it is far easier (it seems) to find many more reasons to complain than it is to thank God.
Look at God’s chosen people in the Old Testament, the 12 tribes of Israel. They were literally brought out of Egypt by God’s powerful hand and yet the praise always seemed short-lived, especially in comparison to all the many instances of the Israelites complaining in the wilderness. How quickly they forgot, we exclaim, while we must also admit that we too quickly forget to give God praise.
This passage in Luke also illustrates that Jesus wants to draw near to us and have us draw near him. We don’t praise the Lord to check a box or feel warm fuzzies on Sunday mornings. We praise the Lord to become closer to Him. To know Him. And then to make Him known to others. Clearly, not everyone healed, not everyone who experiences the power and goodness of Christ himself, has the same reaction. For only ONE came back to thank Jesus for healing him.
Which side do we fall on? Are we in the 10% of people who consistently recognize the power and goodness of Christ and praises Him for this? Or are we in the 90% of people who get from Jesus while never giving anything to Him in return? All ten lepers cried out for mercy. All ten received that mercy from God. But only one seemed to want to draw near to the Lord himself in relationship. May that be true of us in our day to day lives.
The War Within 