Lesson in thankfulness
Notes
Transcript
A lesson in thankfulness Lk 17:11-19
Introduction
· Teaching in real/realistic life (parable)
· Not just a historical account of what happened, but a lesson to us in how we are to live.
The encounter
· 10 men who had leprosy
o Lev 13:45-46 As for the leper who has the infection, his clothes shall be torn, and the hair of his head shall be uncovered, and he shall cover his mustache and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ 46“He shall remain unclean all the days during which he has the infection; he is unclean. He shall live alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp.
o Isolation from family, community & practice of faith
o Back in chap 5, one leper breaks the 50 yard rule to come to Jesus feet & Jesus touches him and he is healed. But this group stay at a distance
· Cleansed
o An act of faith
§ They call to Jesus as Master, and for him to show them mercy
§ Jesus sends them to the priests to be declared clean (only do that when you have already been healed) and it is only as they turn and head on their own journey that they receive healing.
· The foreigner returns
o All have been healed
o The double outcast (leper & Samaritan)
o It is the Samaritan who is the true Israelite, gives praises to God and acknowledging Jesus, God’s anointed.
The context
· Jesus on his way to Jerusalem Lk 9:51 ‘As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem’.
· The 2 responses to Jesus' teaching
o Pharisees who accuse him of driving out demons by the power of Beelzebub (and Jesus pronounces woes over them and the teachers of the law)
o The disciples (like Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet, and the crowds of potential disciples) who gladly here the good news
The lesson
· Praise & thanksgiving
o All good things come from God – God deserves our praise
o But God works through people and communities, and they deserve our thanks (e.g. they children who receive the shoeboxes).
· Recognising Jesus as God's agent
· Not just cleansing but salvation
o ‘Your faith has made you well/whole/delivered/saved’
o The other 9 are healed, cleansed & can go back to their families & lives
o But the Samaritan has received something far greater – he has found salvation in Jesus. His cry for mercy has been answered in full.