Love, Faith, & Gratitude

The Love of Jesus

Jesus was traveling to Jerusalem knowing that he would be crucified this trip. On his journey he encountered 10 lepers that wanted to be healed. They asked Him and he granted their request.

Jesus was going to His death but decided to save 10 lepers from their death.

Leprosy was a terminal disease that there was no cure for. When a person got leprosy they were headed for a sure and painful death. Not only was leprosy terminal but it was very contagious. This meant that anyone that had leprosy had to be quarantined with other people that had the disease.

I find it interesting that there appears to be 9 Jews and 1 Samaritan. Knowing that Jews have nothing to do with Samaritans, why was this Samaritan with the Jews. It is because of the sickness. All lepers were categorized the same. They were the dross of society. The disease removed the racial barrier and caused them to love and care for one one another. They did not see each other as better than one another. They all saw themselves in the same boat. They were all terminally ill and recognized that they needed each other in order to help get through the disease. This is why they all went to Jesus. They knew that He was the only cure for their disease.

I believe there is a spiritual lesson here. We all have a kind of leprosy of the soul. The actual disease is called sin. Much like leprosy sin also has a death that goes beyond dying. The death that sin brings is eternal death. People and especially the church should see one another as these lepers saw one another. None of us are any better than anyone else. We all have sin. We must love one another enough to take our sick brother to the cure. The only cure is Jesus.

I also find it interesting, that Jesus was not so preoccupied with His own situation that He neglected the needs of others. Jesus was headed to Jerusalem to be crucified. This was a heavy burden on Him. We see this in the Garden of Gethsemane. 41 And He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and began to pray, 42 saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.” 43 Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him, strengthening Him. 44 And being in agony, He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground]. Luke 22:41-44

Just imagine that you knew that you were going to be crucified in a few short days. I imagine that we would be consumed with a way to get out of it or just having to deal with the thought of it. The probability of being cognizant of another person’s problems would be very low. I would think that we would rationalize it by saying, “my situation is worse than yours”.

Jesus did not do this because of His great love for the lepers. He perfectly understood their situation and provided a solution to their problem. He gave them an opportunity to be made well through faith and obedience.

This is the way Jesus loves us. Contrary to popular belief, Jesus loves you just the way you are but loves you too much to keep you there. Many people believe that they have to get their lives straightened out before they commit to Christ. They believe that Jesus will not accept them in the condition they are in. There could be nothing further than the truth. 15 It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost. 1 Timothy 1:15

Paul was a murderer and a persecutor of people that followed Jesus. Jesus came to him because of His love for Paul. He didn’t tell Paul that he had to get right before He would love him. He loved him just the way he was, but radically changed him for His purposes. That is the way Jesus loves us. Right where we are in our sin, but changes us for His purposes!

The Faith of the Lepers

The lepers approached Jesus because they had faith that He could make them well. They yelled at Him to have mercy on them. They knew that the disease that they had would end in terrible suffering and death. They came to Jesus to fix their problem.

Jesus did not immediately make them well but instead told them to present themselves to the priests. One may find this as an odd request, but it is one that is scriptural. In Leviticus 13 the Bible tells that a Leper can only be declared clean by the priest. The priest would go through a ceremony and after the ceremony if the leper showed no signs of leprosy then he was declared clean. This gave them their freedom back. They could assimilate back into society and return to their family when they were declared clean by the priest.

They did not get well until they put their faith into action. They had to leave the presence of Jesus and do what He told them to do before they were made well. The Bible says that they were cleansed as they were going. They were healed by doing what Jesus told them to do.

This same principle holds true for us. Often it takes implementing the principles of the Word of God in our life before we experience the miracles of Christ. A simple example is prayer. You have not because you ask not. There are other times where it will take moving out of our comfort zone to engage in ministry before we experience the manifest had of Christ in our lives. You may find yourself in a situation that is difficult. It will take taking action that requires faith before you experience the miracle of Christ.

Faith unlocks the Miracles of Jesus.

The Gratitude of One

When the lepers were healed, only one came back to Jesus to thank Him and give glory to God for what had happened. Jesus even asked the question 17 But Jesus responded and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? 18 [m]Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” Luke 17:17-18 Jesus expected the 10 to come back and praise the Lord. Only the Samaritan came back. Could it be that the others got what they wanted from Jesus and moved on. There is no gratitude in what they did. The only one who showed gratitude was the non- religious Samaritan.

The principle we should learn here is to give the Lord praise with a heart of gratitude. Christ has blessed us immensely. I want to share 3 things that should give us a heart of gratitude.

We should have a heart of gratitude for friends.

God has placed people in our lives that are friends. We have those that are very close and lifelong, some that are short lived and only for a season, and then we have acquaintances. All three of these friends have contributed making you the person you are today. They shared life with you through experience, knowledge, and wisdom. In some way they have made you the successful person you are today. Christ was the one that brought them into your life. We should be grateful for all of our friends.

We should have a heart of gratitude for our family.

I know sometimes our families drive us a little crazy, but they are there for us in the good times and in the bad times. Family sticks together and often times forms your character.

Mom and Dad invest a lot into their kids. They teach them right from wrong, they provide for them, they protect them, and they often lead them to Christ. Parents leave an indelible mark on their kids.

Even your siblings influence the person you are. Growing up you may have fought like cats and dogs, but the older you get the closer you typically get.

Even your extended family leave lasting memories that shape you. We all remember the Christmas and Thanksgiving gatherings were people laugh and cut up.

God has blessed us with family and we should be grateful.

We should have a heart of gratitude for Christ.

Jesus Christ loves us when we are unlovable. He laid down His life to give you eternal life. He has healed our disease of sin and given us a live that will last forever. We should never take this for granted, but always have a gratitude for what he has done.

Christ is involved in our every day living. He preserves our lives and our health. He provides for our needs. He transforms our hearts and sanctifies us. We should have a heart of gratitude for what He is doing in our life right now.

Jesus has promised His children eternal life in heaven. This is a place where there is no more sin, sorrow, mourning, sickness, or death. This is ith future we have to look forward to in faith!