As Jesus enters a village on his way to Jerusalem, ten lepers loudly call out from a distance, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” They are desperate for healing, but as unclean people they don’t dare run up to Jesus or come close to him (Luke 17:11-19).
Jesus sees them and hears their plea, and responds with a rather unusual command: “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so, with believing faith in Jesus, they obey his command and make their way to the priests.
While on their way, all ten of them are miraculously healed of their leprosy. We can only imagine the joy that they must have felt in being healed of their terrible skin disease and now able to again live, work, and play in their home community. It was a new day in their life.
But only one of them, a Samaritan, Jesus calls him a foreigner, turns around and runs back to thank Jesus. Praising God with a loud voice, he throws himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him.
Ten lepers are healed, but only one of them takes the time to count his blessings. In doing so, he realizes that he had received much more than the miraculous gift of healing in his body, his skin cured of leprosy, enabling him to be accepted back into his family and community. He also realizes that he received the gracious gift of healing in his soul. This realization simply overwhelmed him with overflowing gratefulness.
After asking about the other nine, Jesus tells him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” Ten lepers were healed, but Jesus says only this man was “made well” in both body and soul. His gratefulness, expressed to Jesus, made him “well.” Certainly, this reality is of much greater importance than simply being healed in body.
The truth being spoken in these words from Jesus, and affirm in all of scripture, is that unless gratitude is a part of our nature, we can’t be whole “made well” people. The other nine men were merely physically healed, and if ingratitude is more deadly than leprosy, then they are in worse shape than before their healing.
Ingratitude does not deny us God’s mercies, but it most certainly denies us of a relationship with him. Jesus did not punish the nine lepers for their ingratitude, but instead, he left them with only his miracle gift and themselves. Being wrapped up in themselves, they did not seek the larger gift of a relationship with Jesus.
You may ask why did only one of the ten lepers come back to Jesus and express his deep gratitude in praise to God. We can only speculate a reason.
Could it be that the nine Jewish lepers thought that being God’s special people gave them a privileged right to be healed and thus no gratitude? Likewise, is it possible that we, who claim to be Christian, feel we have a right in expecting God to bless our life with good things, and thus we express very little, if any, gratitude to God? Check your praying. Which is the greater content of your prayer, praise or petition?
Could it be that the nine self-centered lepers were so eager to reunite and reestablish themselves in family and community that taking the time to return to Jesus and express their gratitude was of little importance? Likewise, is it possible that we, who are so busy doing good things, assume that God already knows we are grateful and doesn’t need to hear our thanks?
If so, are we not like the pagan world as described by Apostle Paul in Romans 1:21 – “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.”
Furthermore, let’s remember that this “made well” leper came back praising God even though he still had some enormous problems facing him. He had been living as an outcast with no family and no job, and it would not be easy going back into community. Even so, he saw God’s merciful goodness in his healing, and he is overwhelmed with gratefulness.
Most likely you have a problem facing you right now. Nobody is problem-free. Listen to the apostle Paul as he exhorts us to praise God in the midst of problems:
“Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Eph.5: 19-20).
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thess. 5:16-18).
Helen Keller, who was blind, wrote, “I thank God for my handicaps. Through them I have found myself, my work, and my God.” Helen Keller was not physically healed of her blindness, but she was “made well” as evidenced by the many praise songs she wrote, and that we enjoy singing today.
“Healing Rays of Righteousness” – November 13, 2019
Ray M. Geigley
Healing Rays of Righteousness 
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