Responding Rightly to God's Mercy

Let’s PRAY and Read the text together this morning to begin...

“Heavenly Father, because of what Jesus Christ accomplished by his death and resurrection, we ask you by the work of your Holy Spirit to open the eyes of our hearts to see more of who you are and to respond rightly to what you reveal in your word. May we learn to love you more, and leave here with a renewed conviction that you are worthy of our worship, worthy of our serving you with our whole lives. Amen.”

Luke 17:11–19 ESV

On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”

Two weeks ago we studied a passage where Jesus taught his disciples that faith isn’t something measured by degrees or by quantity, but that the important thing was faith’s presence. Considering the magnitude of the high calling Jesus has set before his disciples, they asked him to increase their faith. But instead of granting their request, the tells them that with faith like that of a mustard seed God can use them to accomplish seemingly impossible things.

The point Jesus was making is that even a little faith is sufficient, when that faith is placed in a God is who is perfect in his goodness and unlimited in his power and authority.

Now this episode Luke has recorded from the life and teaching of Jesus that we’re looking at today builds even further on this teaching about faith. It underscores that saving faith is more than simple obedience in order to reap benefit from God, and that saving faith is inextricably tethered to a certain kind of response to Jesus.

Ten lepers cry to Jesus to help, and when they obey his command, all ten are healed. But only one returns to give praise and thanks, publicly acknowledging Jesus as the source of God’s grace to him, and only this one is commended for faith that saves.

The question this passage answers is: What kind of response is the truly right response to God’s mercy?

Ten Are Healed (vv. 11-14)

As Luke so frequently does, he gives us a setting to provide context for the episode in the life and ministry of Jesus. - v. 11

Now, if you’re following along with Luke’s current phase in Christ’s ministry, this setting marker can be both confirming and confusing at the same time. We’re in a broader section that is often called the Jerusalem Journey, beginning at ch. 9 and v. 51 and continuing on at least into chapter 18 or 19, depending on where you mark the beginning of the final section.

The point is, here in v. 11 we find another marker of Jesus heading toward Jerusalem, a reminder that the Lord’s ministry focus shifted toward preparing for that final chapter of what he must accomplish at Jerusalem. So even as he faces rising hostility and rejection, Jesus attends to the training of his true disciples.

That might seems clear enough. But if describing a straightforward geographical journey were Luke’s aim, how does Jesus get back to the border between Galilee/Samaria (which is further north again) after already being south nearer to Jerusalem at Martha’s house in Bethany (10:38-42; cf. Jn 11:18), and having previously been through Samaria already (9:51-56)? Some other events we also suspected might have been in the region of Perea, on the other side (easter side) of the Jordan.

My best explanation is that Luke isn’t describing a straight-line journey, but, as Darrell Bock explains, “The journey motif becomes more rhetorical-theological [“more temporal or literary”] as Jesus moves closer to his appointment with destiny in the holy city.” (pp. 1400-1401)

Now from this particular setting we have 10 lepers crying out to Jesus for mercy.

Ten Cry for Mercy (12-13)

It becomes critical to the whole episode that these ten all have some form of skin disease (generically termed leprosy).

While the physical repercussions of skin diseases were sometimes horrible, the social consequences only compounded this misery. Even the Mosaic Law prescribed, undoubtedly due to the contagious nature of leprous diseases, that such people should be cut off from family and all of society. The infected person had to wear torn clothing, keep his head uncovered, and cover his mouth to shout “unclean! unclean!” on any occasion that he might be anywhere near other people, warning them to keep their distance. (Lev. 13:45)

This group of ten kept their distance, but cried out more than simply that they were unclean. They would have heard about the power and authority of this Jesus, and they cry out to him, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” (Master here is the Gk word epistates, which reflects their respect for his authority in calling him one who is of superior rank or status.)

We find it repeatedly in the Gospels that Jesus does show compassionate mercy to those who seek it from him. He’s not too busy, he’s not too important. Rather, he sees active mercy as inextricably connected to the message that he is the merciful means to be washed of sin and restored to God.

Tracking with this thought about ourselves and responding to God… We all must view ourselves (because of sin) as unclean before God, and therefore detrimental to others.

When we do that, come pleading to God for mercy, Jesus shows himself to be the Merciful One. … But we can’t stop with seeing out need and asking for mercy. If we believe he has the power and authority to accomplish what we ask, then we must obey what he commands.

Ten Obey, & Jesus Heals Them (14)

Jesus tells them to go and present themselves to the priests, because it would have been the responsibility of the priests to declare them clean and allow them to rejoin society.

When attempting to join the military, each candidate must undergo thorough physical testing to be declared fit enough to train for the kind of service that is required of them.

Interestingly, where you might expect Jesus to heal them first and then tell them to do this, he instead heals them as they are on their way to obey him. It seems to matter to the effect of the story that the ten obey and are healed.

But that is far from where the lesson ends.

What Jesus commands is never disconnected from the relational response that is due him, not only for what he has done, but also for who he is. We do not follow God’s commands to simply reap the benefits of his mercy. The vital end of receiving God’s mercy is God himself.

One Is Saved (vv. 15-19)

So we could argue that there is some kind of faith being exercised here for these ten lepers who are healed. They believe enough in Jesus authority from God to hope that their obedience to his command will have the intended effect.

But then in what takes place afterward with only one returning and only this one being commended, we are meant to ask what is unique about his response and why does it seem to result in salvation (deliberately contrasted with the rest)?.

One Turns Back to Give Praise & Thanks (15-16)

One of the ten, seeing that he has been cleansed along the way, returns praising God (in a loud voice). He alone turns back in order thank Jesus for his mercy, to acknowledge Jesus, to go back to the source of such grace.

Praising God in a loud voice is evidence of a response that erupts from human emotion recognizing a truth that has dramatic personal impact.

Thanking Jesus… the source.

Notice too that he no longer must stay at a distance, but because he is healed of all disease, comes right up to Jesus.

Clean… a living picture of what Christ accomplishes on our behalf to allow us to access God.

This one who turned back to revere and thank Jesus, Luke adds, was a Samaritan.

This one man’s unique response is enhanced by this ethnic and spiritual distinction: he is a Samaritan. (It appears Luke may be implying that the other 9 were of Jewish heritage in the way that Jesus comments on this factor.)

One Is Contrasted & Commended (17-19)

Three rhetorical questions pointedly pull out the contrast in vv. 17&18. - Weren’t 10 healed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner? - This is a pointed way of rebuking the others for their lack of grateful response… and more than that, for their lack of acknowledgment of Jesus, for their lack of faith.

Jesus evidently desires that we recognize praise as an appropriate response to God’s mercy. And thanks. And reverence. And public acknowledgment of Jesus.

One Is Saved By Faith (19)

Faith unto salvation… faith that leads to salvation… saving faith. The response of faith to God’s grace leads to salvation.

Faith that saves is faith that recognizes and responds to God as God. Faith is a relational trust and dependence on God from the confident conviction that God is who he says he is and does what he says he will do. … Faith works itself out in reverent submission and in grateful praise.

The reason that repentance goes hand in hand with faith is that in our sin nature we are rebellious and self-reliant. (Illust ***)

Obedience to God’s commands, we seem to be able to conclude, is not in itself sufficient faith. [or after the other statement of what faith is?] I conclude, from the Biblical evidence overall, that this is the case because, even as many the Jews themselves were doing, one can have the outward form of conformity to God’s command without the inward repentance and submission to God and reliance on his grace alone to rescue.

Faith’s obedience therefore trusts God, and love’s God, and depends upon God to provide the inward change and power to obey.

Your cries for mercy didn’t heal you. Your obedience didn’t heal you. Jesus did. ***

This lesson from Jesus’ ministry teaches that simple exposure to God’s grace isn’t enough. One must respond to it with faith.

As we conclude, I’ve intentionally waited until this point to change these passive voice statements in my outline to active voice.

Jesus heals ten. Jesus saves one.

One for ten? If those were the odds going in, and it felt like it were left up to chance (even the 10% isn’t certain), would you be keen to invest in those odds?

But Jesus didn’t die just kinda hoping that perhaps somebody might be saved. No, there is an absolute certainty of Jesus atoning sacrifice having its complete and intended effect who God has mercifully chosen.

Romans 8:29–30 ESV

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

The certainty of salvation is based on the sovereignty of God. But the point of our passage isn’t that God is in fact one for one with every heart he draws to himself (God’s Sovereignty). The point of our passage is the other paradoxical side of God’s revealed truth: human responsibility.

God, in his sovereignty, has not removed human responsibility. He desires and requires that we respond to his grace with a faith recognizes, submits, worships, and publicly acknowledges that Jesus is the Christ and the only means of restoration to God.

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