Give Praise to God

A Gospel reading this morning is a familiar story. There's nothing particularly under the surface here. No, secret meaning revealed by the Greek New Testament, or by diving into the Jewish backgrounds. We have rather is a simple story of Jesus healing ten lepers while he's on his way to Jerusalem. And instead of all of them returning back to him, to give praise to God. Only one does a Samaritan from Jesus calls a foreigner. Luke tells the story like this. Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem when he met ten lepers, who stood at a distance of 10. Yes. Who stood at a distance and called to him? They call him by name and then they call him Master, but know this isn't the word. Curious, the typical word for master or Lord in the New Testament is epistatic your translated as Master typically administrative title. The lepers lift up their voice and cry. Jesus master. Have mercy on us. Have mercy on us.

Luke writes. And when he saw them, he said that I can go and show yourselves to the priests. And as they went. They were cleansed.

All 10 are healed but only one left for returns. Then one of them when he saw that, he was healed. Turn back. Praising God with a loud voice. And he fell on his face at Jesus's feet, giving him thanks. And then Luke ads. Now he was a Samaritan.

Then Jesus answered, we're not ten cleansed. Where are the nine?

Was no one found. Return and give praise to God, except this Foreigner. Luke's emphasis here is clearly on the attitude of the outsider. Those outside the people of God are responding appropriately to Jesus. While those on the inside are not. And there's a whole host of directions that we could go from this point. But what I want us to reflect on this morning Is this question?

Why do you think the nine didn't return? And give praise to God. Why didn't they come back to Jesus? And give him, thanks. Keep in mind as you reflect on this question that these are the people of God not Outsiders. Not pagans. These nine who failed to return are the people of God, just like you and me. and when God intervened in their life,

they didn't. Come back to Jesus and give him. Thanks. They went on their way. They did their own thing. We can make some guesses about why they didn't come back. Maybe Maybe they were just doing what they were told. Jesus didn't command them. To make sure they came back to him and give him. Thanks. He said Go and show yourself to the priest, maybe that's what they're doing. Maybe they were so focused on being obedient. On doing the right thing on doing their Duty.

That they forgot to come back to Jesus. And give him, thanks. Or maybe they were so excited. About what had happened to them. The thinking Jesus just simply slipped their mind. These are people who were outcasts in their own Society, separated, and cut off from their family and friends and suddenly they're healed. They're made right there made whole and maybe their first thought is to run back to their family and friends and share the news of their healing with them. I can come home relationship. That was fractured can be restored and made new. Maybe in their excitement in their Joy. They forgot to go back to Jesus, to turn back to Jesus and give him. Thanks.

Or maybe Jesus was such a controversial figure at this point. They didn't want to be associated with him, at least not publicly. Maybe they wanted to be involved with Jesus for just enough, just enough to get from him what they needed. And then they were ready to move on. Ready to go back to their life as it once was.

I came to him. They got what they needed. They got what they wanted and now they're perfectly. Happy to keep him at an arm's distance. All of these are just guesses. Luke doesn't tell us why the nine don't return. And I suspect Luke has left this open-ended because it invites us.

To place ourselves in their shoes. And reflect on all the times in our own lives, where we have failed. Come back to Jesus and give him. Thanks.

it's easy for us, I suspect To give thanks to God for the big things, which is what makes the lepers failure to turn back to Jesus, so startling. if we got a clean bill of health, from the doctor Dr. Yeah like when the doctor called me and said, hey we examine will be proud of your back and we got all the cancer, it's all gone for many of us that that moment Is it our natural reaction to just thank you. God, thank you. Jesus. The big things would have. It's a natural Eazy reaction.

Put in Christian theology. We don't say that only the big things in our lives. Come from God. we say, we claimed that everything we have, every breath we take,

Every meal we eat. I'm trying not to slide into a sting song here. Every breath, we take every meal. We eat every dollar in our bank account, everything everything, Comes from God. In fact, I hope you all are paying attention because we are firm this practically every Sunday. The Sullivan praised, the celebrant praised yours. Oh, Lord. Is the greatness in the power and the glory, and the victory in the Majesty for everything in heaven and on Earth is Yours. Yours is the kingdom. Oh Lord, and you are exalted as head above all. All things come from You Overlord. And of your own. Have we given you?

This prayer immediately follows after the Bread and Wine are placed on the table because the Bread and Wine are part of the people's offering back to God. But this is also typically the time in which the offering plate is passed around. Something we don't do here, but these words, this prayer are meant to signify. That your gifts to the church in whatever form. R1 a means of thanking God for all that he's done. For all the goodness in your life. And to That they are an act of giving back to God. It was already his all along. Because all things. Everything we have. Comes from him. This is why Paul can say in Ephesians that Christian should be giving. Thanks. Always and forever, ething. To God the father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Those words sound familiar?

It is right and good. Always and everywhere to give you thanks father almighty through our Lord. Jesus Christ. Again, we say this every Sunday,

Of course, we know this. If I sat in a view down and said, hey does everything you have come from God? You'd save course. Course, father, we are There's something about faith in the culture of churches that we are trained to give the right answer. Whether or not we actually believe it went. We do that to our own detriment to me, that's really hard to know what's actually going on in someone's heart, because we're just trying to give the right answer. Not trying to answer. Honestly were trained to give the answer that keeps us in the community that keeps us. The member of that group.

We know this.

But believing it is something different.

genuine thankfulness the kind that results in praise to God for everything that we have in our lives, begins with believing understanding truly But everything we have is from God, there is no good in your life, that does not come from God, the father and is not Redeemed by God the Sun.

So our attitude as Christians, once we wrap our heads around this phone. Ought to be one of constantly. Always. Coming back to God and giving him thanks in the name of Jesus Christ. For everything good that we have in our lives. Almond. There are many reasons we might not do this, always and forever ething. Maybe. Maybe we're too busy dutifully going about our lives. To come back to Jesus and give thanks.

We're too busy doing the right thing. Fighting for our family serving the church too busy doing all the right things. To come back to Jesus and give thanks, or maybe, maybe there's so many exciting things going on. In our lives. One thing happening right after the. Another, that it's hard. Remember to pause, take a breath and give him. Thanks. Maybe we are ashamed.

To say his name and public.

Or maybe. Maybe we don't truly believe that everything we have comes from him.

Maybe we think we've earned it. Maybe we think it's ours by, right? So no need to give. Thanks. No need to come back to him. Whatever the reason we don't want to be like the nine lepers who went on with their life healed, but never came back to Jesus to give him. Thanks for lots of people. Get healed in this world. Lots of people have breath in food and enough money to live off of to survive. This is common Grace. Extends to everyone. But notice what Jesus says to the one who returned. Rye. And go your way. Your face. Has made you well. I said there was nothing hidden here in the Greek word. That wasn't entirely true, the word, the word for rise. The word for Resurrection.

And the word for made you. Well, the words for made you. Well, Are literally saved you.

I think this is a bad translation. All 10 for Madewell. All ten were healed.

But only one was saved that day.

And only one heard. Jesus. Tell him to rise.

And that was the one.

Who didn't just go back to his life. We didn't just Turn back to his life is normal. The one who heard, Jesus say rise, the one who heard him say you are saved. That was the one who came back and gave him. Thanks, I'll men.

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