Ten Lepers Have Faith In Jesus

In this post, Shane describes ten lepers who, despite their condition, have faith in Jesus. The story from Luke 17 once again highlights Jesus’ travels through Samaria.

Jesus Goes Through Samaria

We read in Luke 17 verse 11, Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee.  We know why He was headed towards Jerusalem.  It was there He would give His life to save us from our sins.  Nothing could deter Him from going there for that purpose.  In the quiet village of Bethlehem He was born but on that riotous Mountain called Calvary He would die.

But as He travelled there, He was determined to bless others on the way.  We read that “He passed through the midst of Samaria.”  This was deliberate.  Jewish culture at the time dictated that Jews walk around Samaria so as not to defile themselves with the people there. 

But people take precedence over culture in Jesus’ books and so He passed through.  And this was not the first time.  In John chapter 4, sometime before this occasion, we read He sat down at a well, weary and thirsty from His long journey, and give a woman such a deep and refreshing drink that she never thirsted again.  This time, the object of His blessing was not a broken hearted woman from Samaria but a group of outcasts stricken with leprosy.

Jesus Meets Ten Lepers

As He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off.  Can you picture them standing there?  Some are looking so desperately into the eyes of the Lord that there is no need for words.  Others are looking down at their feet, so destroyed by hopelessness that they can hardly lift their faces. 

One is holding up another man with an arm around his shoulder.  Another plunges a shrivelled limb deep into his pocket, ashamed of the deformed stump once called a hand.  None are smiling, but all want to.  Their hearts are hopeful.  They have travelled so far to see this Saviour, a Saviour whom they have heard has the power to cleanse and heal.

“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” they say in unison, all their hope, all their despair wrapped up in that one plea.  It was all they could muster.  They didn’t have great theology.  They didn’t have a deep understanding of who Jesus was.  This may have been the first time they had ever laid eyes on Him.  But they had faith.  And faith the size of a mustard seed is all it takes, our Lord said.  They came to Jesus and asked for help in their time of need.  Jesus will meet our need if we reach out to Him in faith.

Jesus’ Instructions

Then we read this: “and when He saw them, He said to them, Go, show yourselves to the priests.”  Let us not read over that part too quickly, which says, “and when He saw them.”  That is one of the most beautiful things said of God and of the Lord Jesus, namely, that He sees us. 

In fact, one of the great names of God that we find written way back in the book of Genesis is the name You-Are-The-God-Who-Sees (Genesis 16:13).  This name was spoken of God when He went out to the wilderness to help a despised outcast by the name of Hagar.  The reason why this is so precious is because so few people really do “see” us in this life, let alone take pity.

Very few people know us, the true us, and very few people care.  Aside from relatives, spouses and friends, very few people see us as objects of great value, as pearls of great price. 

In fact, most people just see us as objects – but not God.  He sees us as glorious beings created in His own image, image bearers of His own making who, because of sin, have fallen from their great dignity and purpose.  But He has come to redeem us.  He sees us as valuable to Himself, and for this reason was willing to mount the cross and pay for the sins we’ve committed, in order to cancel out the indictment written against us.

The Lepers Respond In Faith

As the ten lepers responded in faith, leaving the Lord Jesus as yet uncleansed to go “show themselves to the priests,” (for faith without works is dead) they were indeed healed.  When they discovered they were healed, only one returned to give thanks to the Lord, and strangely enough, he was not a Jew.  He was a Samaritan.  This amazed the Lord Jesus.  He said, Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 

In this we see the omniscience of the Saviour flash forth.  The all seeing eye of God saw that all the men were cleansed.  He also saw that only one returned to give glory to God.  Apparently, a lack of gratitude is baffling to the Lord Jesus, and rightly so, for it is to Him we owe everything from our eternal salvation to our daily strength and provision.

Gratitude

Gratitude is one of the ABC’s of worship.  Through gratitude we recognize our weakness and magnify God’s strength.  When we give thanks we throw away the crutches of our own independence and rise up stronger by depending on the Lord.  To depend on Him is truly enabling, whereas independence is actually disabling.  Through gratitude we sober up from our intoxication with independence.

What’s more, by becoming thankful God takes notice of us.  Like the leprous Samaritan who returned after He was cleansed, we will no longer be a stranger or foreigner to Him.

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