DEVOTION – DAY 243

Luke 17:17-19 “One Out Of Ten”

 

Luke 17:17-19 “Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said to him, “Rise and go, your faith has made you well.”

 

In Luke 17, Jesus was passing by a village between Samaria and Galilee. He saw ten men with leprosy standing at a distance. Lepers were forbidden to come near people as they were considered outcasts and unclean. The ten men had to call out loudly “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” Jesus replied, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” As they went as instructed, they were miraculously cleansed of leprosy. As required, the cured lepers had to be inspected by the priests in order to be declared safe and clean to rejoin society.

 

But one of the lepers who was a Samaritan, realizing that he had been cured did not go directly to the priests. Instead, he went and threw himself at Jesus’ feet thanking Him and praising God. He was the only one who returned to personally thank Jesus and praised God. Jesus noted his gratitude and gave him something greater than physical healing. Jesus gave him salvation in addition to healing him of leprosy. By healing him, Jesus broke down barriers –He allowed an outcast to approach Him, He was with a Samaritan when Jewish culture avoided any mixing with Samaritans.

 

What happened to the other nine lepers? In their haste to be declared cleansed from leprosy, they missed a greater blessing. They did not even stop to thank Jesus nor praise God. They were examples of people who were content with what the material world had to offer. They were content with the present and not the eternal state. They focused on the physical and not the spiritual state. Only one out of the ten lepers were different. Today, not much have changed. People continue to live for the moment and are self-centered rather than God-centered. People continue to be selfish and some even look to God to see what they can get from Him, rather than consider what they can do to serve their Almighty Creator.

 

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, you are gracious and merciful. Help us never to take you for granted. We are forever thankful for your gift of salvation to all who call upon the name of the Lord Jesus as their Lord and Savior. In Jesus Christ Holy Name we pray. Amen.

 

Questions

  1. Why do some people choose to live for the present and are self-centered? Discuss.
  2. Why do people sometimes choose physical healing over spiritual healing? Were the nine lepers wrong in their reactions to their healing? Discuss.
  3. Have there been times when you have been guilty of taking God for granted when He had answered your prayers and you had been slow in thanking Him? Share.