Jesus is Essential
Luke 17:14–19: So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?
Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”
But evidently the other nine lepers were so caught up in their new wholeness that it did not occur to them to return to Jesus. This is understandable at one level. After all, Jesus had told them to show themselves to the priests. They were eager to get back into everyday life. There is a deadly problem here—God was not the center of their gratitude.
Note Jesus’ final question: “Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” Only the foreigner, the Samaritan, gave praise to God! Vague gratitude to divinity was not an adequate response to what had happened. Christ wanted their hearts! By failing to glorify God and returning to thank Jesus, they missed the greatest possible moment of their existence. 1
Walking with Jesus
How has an ungrateful heart caused you to miss the hand of God in your life? What caused the one person to return? Can you be that one person today? Can you return to Jesus now and give Him thanks, even for your most difficult, unresolved situations?
And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. Colossians 3:17
The Lord deserves our thankful gratitude everyday and in every-way.
Praying
Lord, thank You for touching me with Your grace, and healing me of being a slave to sin.
1. Hughes, R. K. (1998). Luke: that you may know the truth. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
