Thankfulness

Opps, Upsetting the Equilibrium

Ten men all in the same boat. All suffering from the same illness. All desiring to be healed from that which afflicts them. All of them had been cut off for society. Maybe they could all be considered as dead. As lepers they had to live separate. This was a law to keep the leprosy from spreading and affecting others. It must have been a very lonely, miserable life. One of just waiting to die. Can you image the amount of depression and sadness these individuals must have gone through on a daily basis?

Wanting to be part of society again they see their only option. Jesus, He had performed many miracles so maybe He could do something for them. They all call out to Him from a distance the He would have mercy on them. On seeing them Jesus tells them to go to the priest. On their way there they are cleansed. We do not hear from nine of them because only one returns to Jesus once he sees he is healed and goes and thanks Jesus. We would presume by the wording of the text that this man that thanks Jesus did not even get to the priests but went immediately to Jesus.

How rude don’t you think? Or maybe not? Maybe they were doing what was the custom of the day. In a society built on social relationships belonging was of utmost important. In the New Testament times when you thanked a person it would mean the end of a relationship. For us, when we thank someone, we are establishing relationships, strengthening them. If you do something for someone, especially if it is a big thing, like paying off all their debt, or resolving a conflict they are in, and if this person you helped never thanked you, I am sure you would feel a little upset and question yourself if you would help them again. So, for us to see the nine never say thanks is really, really wrong.

Wanting to be part of society again they see their only option. Jesus, He had performed many miracles so maybe He could do something for them. They all call out to Him from a distance the He would have mercy on them. On seeing them Jesus tells them to go to the priest. On their way there they are cleansed. We do not hear from nine of them because only one returns to Jesus once he sees he is healed and goes and thanks Jesus. We would presume by the wording of the text that this man that thanks Jesus did not even get to the priests but went immediately to Jesus.

How rude don’t you think? Or maybe not? Maybe they were doing what was the custom of the day. In a society built on social relationships belonging was of utmost important. In the New Testament times when you thanked a person it would mean the end of a relationship. For us, when we thank someone we are establishing relationships, strengthening them. If you do something for someone, especially if it is a big thing, like paying off all their debt, or resolving a conflict they are in, and if this person you helped never thanked you, I am sure you would feel a little upset and question yourself if you would help them again. So, for us to see the nine never say thanks is really, really wrong.

But to them their survival was determined by being part of relationships and if they thanked Jesus for what He did they would be cutting themselves off from the one that had just healed them. It would mean that they were no longer in need of Jesus. But clearly, they were.

But to them their survival was determined by being part of relationships and if they thanked Jesus for what He did they would be cutting them selves off from the one that had just healed them. It would mean that they were no longer in need of Jesus. But clearly they were.

Uhg, The Plot Thickens

We know that there were ten lepers. Only one of the ten is identified. tells us that this one was a Samaritan. We would then presume that the remaining nine were Jews. This one that returns sees something has happened. This one person seeing something happen stands in contrast to all ten who call out together for healing. All ten desire to be healed all ten met Jesus. They do not see Him yet. Do you see the distinction of the words? They all meet Jesus, although from a distance but later only one sees Him. The fact that Jesus sees them would have no real significance on its own but when we link it to and the story of the good Samaritan we notice the Samaritan saw the man and had compassion on him. The Samaritan sees has reference then also to Jesus telling the disciples in “for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.” Luke is setting something up, because Jesus sees and then only the one sees.

(NKJV)

24for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”

Aha, Disclosing the Clue to Resolution

Why would the leper thank Jesus? How are we to understand this? To thank someone would mean to end a relationship. So, it would make no sense to end his relationship. In New Testament times everything functioned on statues, higher and lower. Higher would not do business or associate with the lower because the higher status person would lose status but the lower status would gain. Also, in business you would first take care of those closest to you when things were scarce because you would want to maintain and strengthen the relationship. But God is not held to this high low status because He willingly associates with all people. Also, He does not run out of His love and mercy. Therefore, God was not subject to their rule of being thanked because humans cannot make an impact on God’s honor. God does not lose His status when He associates with us who are lower-ranked people. It is for this that God could be thanked without it being seen as rude.

This man realised that Jesus was not just a normal person he realised that there was something special about Jesus.

This man realised that Jesus was not just a normal person he realised that there was something special about Jesus.

Whee, Experiencing the Gospel

Whee, Experiencing the Gospel

When Jesus see, He see the opportunity to be merciful towards His creation. He does not desire to see those He loves to suffer under the weight of sin and suffering. He wants us to see that there is something that He is freely offering us. Are we seeing that which Jesus is offering us. Do we see what the leper saw. This leper saw that Jesus was God. He gave glory to God not to a man. How do we know this. Well the man fell down and Jesus feet which is an act of worship an act of confirming the divinity of Jesus. This would man that the other nine did not see Jesus for who He truly is. Are we seeing Jesus for who He truly is?

Jesus see your struggles and He longs for us to act in faith that we may be healed like the leper. You see the healing only happened when they were on their way to the priest not when Jesus spoke. for us to be freed from of those things which ensnare us which trap us we have to act in faith that Jesus has freed us. We can not just wait for something to happen we have to act. When this man acted and saw that which God had done he returned to Jesus and thanked Him.

Yeah, Anticipating the Future

Thanking Jesus, God for what they have done for us is a Biblical principle. It is a principle that puts us in a position to realize all that God has done for us. Passages like

As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say to me, “Where is your God?” When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast. Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him For the help of His countenance .

says, Oh, give things to the Lord! Call upon His name, make known His deeds among the peoples. God want us to praise His name so that people can see that God acts and that He desire to touch the lives of all. says, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. This means that even if things are not going well and you encounter obstacles at every turn in life there are still things, we can give praise to God.

There are more than 100 verses in the Bible that speak about giving thanks to God. Having an attitude of thankfulness is crucial to us and our state of mind. As we are thankful we are able to have better physical health, better psychological health as there is less focus on the negative like negative thoughts, resentment, frustration and regret. Being thankful allows us to empathize with others and reduces our aggression. We are able to sleep better by being thankful.

thanksgivng 49

As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say to me, “Where is your God?” When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast. Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him For the help of His countenance .

So pants my soul for You, O God.

2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.

There are more than 100 verses in the Bible that speak about giving thanks to God. Having an attitude of thankfulness is crucial to us and our state of mind. As we are thankful, we are able to have better physical health, better psychological health as there is less focus on the negative like negative thoughts, resentment, frustration and regret. Being thankful allows us to empathize with others and reduces our aggression. We are able to sleep better by being thankful. When God tells us to be thankful and praise Him, He is not asking us to do this for His benefit but rather it is to our benefit. It allows us to be happier, content, friendlier people even though the world in our lives may be falling apart.

When God tells us to be thankful and praise Him, He is not asking us to do this for His benefit but rather it is to our benefit. It allows us to be happier, content, friendlier people even though the world in our lives may be falling apart.

As life gets out of control for you and all things seem to be falling apart turn to your eyes to God wright somethings are you are grateful for and when your heart is down cast turn your eyes heaven ward see Jesus fall down and worship in Him in thanks.

When shall I come and appear before God?

As life gets out of control for you and all things seem to be falling apart turn to your eyes to God wright somethings are you are grateful for and when your heart is down cast turn your eyes heaven ward see Jesus fall down and worship in Him in thanks.Amen

3 My tears have been my food day and night,

Amen

While they continually say to me,

“Where is your God?”

4 When I remember these things,

I pour out my soul within me.

For I used to go with the multitude;

I went with them to the house of God,

With the voice of joy and praise,

With a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast.

5 Why are you cast down, O my soul?

And why are you disquieted within me?

Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him

For the help of His countenance

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), .