Jesus: Creator, Savior, Lord, King #55 Jesus, Ten lepers And The Glory of Thankfulness Luke17:11

 

Jesus: Creator, Savior, Lord, King #55
Jesus, Ten lepers And The Glory of Thankfulness  
Text: Luke17:11

 

Introduction:

We could title this sermon as Jesus The Hunted Man, that would be a pretty exciting title, you know might get a couple hundred people in church to hear a title like that. I’m not giving my sermon that title, but it did get me looking for some interesting sermon titles. Can I share some examples with you? Of course I’m just asking to be polite, rhetorical purpose, after all I’m preaching and I have a great big screen right here.

Interesting Sermon Titles:

My first Semon was titled “God’s Bee Hive” yeah is was pretty bad, unless you really liked bees and then it was pretty interested. Or as one of the poor members said as she left that day, “You sure know a lot about bees!” That was the nicest thing she could think to say.

Give me Agape. – 1 Corinthias 13

The Ministry of Cracked Pots – From Jeremiah

No Such Thing as a Rubber Clock – I have no idea

Are We Having Any Fun Yet? – Yeah, no idea either. Probably preaching on Hell. But …

Dr. R. Glenn Miles: Have You Ever Been to Hell? Then under that on the church sign “Visit Us.”

Another church sign sermon: Rev. Bill Bonn Will on How to Make a Fish Vomit. The Lord's Supper will be Observed.

Getting Neighborly with Your Personal Demons. Somewhere in the Gospels, I guess

Another Church sign; The Destiny of the Dead followed by a Deacon Ordination.

A bulletin blooper Sermon: What Hell is Like. Special Music by our Organist.

Newspaper announcement: Old Fashioned Hellfire Preaching with Evangelist Glenn Ice.

Why it's Risky to be Frisky. – hmmmm.

Why You Need to Purge the Urge to Merge. – Rhyming Simon must have preached that day.

When Lefty Let Fatty Have it. – Yeah from Judges the story of Ehud

Finally, one last bulletin blooper AM: The Preacher Preached. PM: What the Fool Said.

Seven Ducks in a Muddy River. – Naaman cleansed of leprosy at the Jordan, I’m pretty sure.

But that is a pretty good segue to our sermon today. Last week we were in John 11 and I left off my 4th point or maybe it was my 5th, I forget, but it would have been The Plotting and Plan of the Pharisees, keeping with the letter P alliteration. So let’s begin with that point but retitle it, yes. Hunted by the Pharisee in John 11:47

Sought By The Pharisees - John 11:47-54

Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles. 48 If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation. 49 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, 50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. 51 And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; 52 And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. 53 Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death. 54 Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went thence unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples.

Seeking To Stop Jesus

The resurrection in the ministry of Jesus life was probably the most effective in proving that He was the Messiah and the Son of God. It was also the most effective in forcing the Pharisees’ hand to give the command to hunt, arrest and find a way to kill Jesus.

John 11:49-50 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, 50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.

Because of this Jesus can no longer walk openly among the Jews and do he goes to a town called Ephraim. We don’t know where this is but it is probably in Perea, north and east of Galilee, where Jesus would regroup and begin his final months of ministry. In just over 2 months Jesus will be crucified. In Luke 17:11 we actually are traveling with Jesus and the disciples as they slowly make their way towards Jerusalem for the Passover, which every Jewish male was required to attend.

Lets join this pilgrimage in Luke 17:11.

Sought By The Ten Lepers - Luke 17:11-12

And it came to pass, as he went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: 13 And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. 14 And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.

Seeking Healing

Jesus is traveling to Jerusalem along roads that are not the most heavily travels. The Bible says, Luke 17:11 he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. We take that to mean through the middle but here it means he passed along the borders of these two regions, probably to be as inconspicuous as possible. While traveling he is preaching and healing in every village, every town square, every water well. Everywhere Jesus went, He healed everyone that came to him, everyone, no exceptions. No one died as we saw with the widow of Nain and Lazarus. If Jesus was coming to your families funeral, don’t spend a lot a money on the flowers or the casket, cause Jesus was going to bust up that funeral. When it came to the sick, he healed them all, no one left with even a cold. One preacher commentated, “Jesus must have reduced the death rate to near zero in Israel during those 3 years.” Not like today’s fake, I mean faith healers. 100% for Jesus, 0% for the charlatans and of today.

The most dreaded disease in this time was of course leprosy. And that is what these ten were afflicted with. Lepers were outcasts, with nothing except filthy rags, warning bells and a longing for death. Instead of a quick death they were condemned to a living death, dying a little bit every day, and then finally with their bodies festering, infected and falling apart, they would final die, alone except for the other lepers who were dying bit by bit just as they were.

Lepers in the Bible were desperate, hopeless people. If the priest pronounced you unclean, then it was a slow, horrific, lonely death sentence. Jesus healed many lepers, one early in Luke chapter 5. Jesus was the only hope for someone dying from leprosy. Here in Luke 17, these walking dead out to Jesus for not for healing as such but for mercy. Luke 17:13 Master, have mercy on us. Wouldn’t healing truly be a mercy for such people as these.

 The word used for master here is not the word that we think of in terms of Lord, teacher or Rabbi. This word, ἐπιστάτης, epistatēs, means commander, one appointed over a task, or people or in this case they are showing their faith in Jesus as the master, even of leprosy.

Jesus hears their cry for mercy and as the master of all things in heaven and in earth, He shows them mercy, but this healing is not like any other seen before. Seems, Jesus is also the master of the unexpected. This time, He doesn’t touch their necrotizing bodies. He doesn’t anoint them with clay and spittle. He doesn’t tell them to wash in a pool, He doesn’t even ask them if they believe. No, instead just tells them, Luke 17:14 “Go shew yourselves unto the priests.”

This was the procedure from the Law, if a leper believed they were no longer leprous, before they were allowed to return to their families and society, a priest must pronounce them clean. This happened when the leprosy was not leprosy but simple a rash or inflammation in the skin.

When they heard Jesus’ command, they knew, He was also commanding healing and even before they saw any proof they turned and headed for the Temple. And Luke tells us what happened, Luke 17:14 it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.

They went in faith as Jesus commanded and as they obeyed Him, trusting in His power, they were healed. Reprieved of a death sentence that was written in scars and wounds and sores, on their mutilated bodies.

Seeking The Master of Mercy

Though our body may not outwardly show a death sentence, our soul is just as mutilated as the lepers bodies. The lepers had to stand far off, because of their diseased bodies and we, because of our sinful souls, also stand far off from the Holiness of God.

Isaiah 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

Romans 3:10-12 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: 11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. 12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Like the lepers, we must lift up our voices and call our for God’s mercy. The Bible says, He will hear and He will heal our soul’s diseases. Isaiah 53:5-6 But he was wounded for our transgressions,
he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Sin has marred us, scarred us and marked us as the walking soul dead. We need God’s mercy just as badly as these lepers. And we must cry out just as loudly as they did, “Master, have mercy on me!”

Usually, the stories of healings stop right about here. What greater climax of a story could there be? As they walked as Jesus had commanded them, they were healed. Amazing, as all the miracles of Jesus were and are. Yet, this story doesn’t end with us watching the joyous lepers leaping and running toward the Temple to show the priest their healed bodies, but this isn’t really a story about healing, its about thanksgiving and glorifying God. Look at vs. 15

 Sought By The Samaritan - Luke 17:15-16

15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, 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.

Seeking To Glorify God

Now we come to the real reason Luke tells us this story. Many lepers, blind, deaf, mute, lame have been healed by this, now near the third year of Jesus earthly ministry. If they came to Jesus and sometimes even if they didn’t come to Him, He had healed them.

Jesus’ healing of all diseases was the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and showed Jesus as the anointed One of God, the Messiah for “no other man ever did miracles like these.”

Matthew 12:22-24 Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw. 23 And all the people were amazed, and said, Is not this the son of David.

Luke’s purpose in telling us of this healing isn’t about another miracle his purpose begins with this one who come back, this one Samaritan, a stranger, a foreigner, who falls at the feet of Jesus and gives glory to God in a loud praising him in thanksgiving. Only one came back, only one fell at Jesus feet and said thank you for cleansing me.

Isn’t it interesting or perhaps, revealing that these 10 lepers had faith enough to be healed but 9 of them lacked the gratitude needed to come back and give thanks to the One who had returned their lives.

One commentator I read said, “Gratitude is even rarer than faith.” – Wycliffe Bible Commentary. That is truly insightful, and it should be truly convicting.

Seeking Thanks

It wasn’t just the pharisees, or the lepers that were seeking something, here we see that Jesus was also seeking. Luke 17:17-19 And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? 18 There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.

He looked for the other nine, He looked for thanksgiving, He looked for those where were healed to come back and give glory to God who had healed them. What made the difference between those who just took from God and kept going and this stranger, this foreigner, this another good Samaritan, another believing Samaritan. I think the difference is in Jesus final words in vs. 19 19 And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.

The Samaritan wasn’t just healed in his body of leprosy, he was healed in his soul of the effects of sin because he not only believed Jesus could heal, but that Jesus could save. “Thy faith hath made thee whole.” We can’t say for sure if the others were lost in their sin, but we can say for sure this man was saved from his sin.

And that is why he turned back, fell at Jesus feet and with a loud voice glorified God. He had found more than the cure for eroding leprosy, he had found Christ for eternal life.

Seeking Those Who Would Give Glory

If you like the Samaritan leper have been blessed body and soul by Jesus Christ, then you like him should be giving glory and thanks to God. Many are blessed, many are saved but few give praise and thanks. But if you are a Christian, a child of God, a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven, a born again, cleansed from sin saint, then means you have called out to Jesus, repented of your sin and received salvation. You called out for mercy and like these lepers you received that mercy, that undeserved, unearned, unmerited grace from the Lord.  And you should say, Amen, Hallelujah, Praise the Lord, Glory to God in the highest.

This morning ask yourself, would I have been in the 9 that just went to church and then got back to my old life, or world I have been that a tithe of thanksgiving that had to came back and glorify God at Jesus feet?  

Let’s look for just a moment at what God’s word says about glorifying, praising and thanking our Lord.

Psalms 69:30  30 I will praise the name of God with a song and will magnify him with thanksgiving. (Praising, singing is giving thanks)

Psalms 107:22 22 And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving and declare his works with rejoicing. (Sacrificial giving is thankgiving.)

Colossians 3:15–17  15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body: and be ye thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, (because that is) giving thanks to God and the Father by him. (Action, words, work, and deeds done in His name thanks God.)

Thanksgiving is praising Him, it is serving Him, it is sacrificing myself, my time, my possessions and my future for Him. What else could be considered giving glory when you consider all that He has done?

Paul sums this thankful, glorifying life as the Christian ideal in Colossians 2:6-7 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: 7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.

Paul is saying that thanksgiving is the capstone of the Christian life, we should abound, run over, teem with thanksgiving, Be that tithe of thanksgiving, be like this Samaritan. He didn’t care what the rest were doing, where they were going or what they were thinking, He returned to the One who had given him new life and fell on his face in worship and glorified and thanked Jesus. Lord, help me to be that guy.  

Conclusion –

O worship the King all-glorious above,
O gratefully sing His power and His love:
our shield and defender, the Ancient of Days,
pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise.

 2 O tell of His might and sing of His grace,
whose robe is the light, whose canopy space.
His chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form,
and dark is his path on the wings of the storm.

 4 Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail,
in you do we trust, nor find you to fail.
Your mercies, how tender, how firm to the end,
our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend!

 5 O measureless Might, unchangeable Love,
whom angels delight to worship above!
Your ransomed creation, with glory ablaze,
in true adoration shall sing to your praise!