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The Ten Lepers -or- How We Are Ungrateful Wretches
A simple story with a lot of power today. Ten lepers see Jesus and ask for his mercy. Jesus heals all of them. Of course they were full of joy - they had just been healed! Not only healed, but healed by the very Son of God! I picture a great celebration with giddy dancing and emotional reunions with family members. But.....only one of them in the midst of joy goes to thank Jesus.
"The miracle contains a double level of cultural tension, since the main figure is both a leper and a Samaritan. Lepers were culturally isolated (see 5:12–16), and Samaritans were disliked by Jews for their religious defection and for being racial half-breeds (see 9:51–56). The idea of a Samaritan leper receiving God’s help was undoubtedly shocking to many, since they had written off people in either category as being beyond help...
...Jesus then issues a final encouraging commendation. He tells the man that his “faith has made [him] well.” Jesus is probably saying that although ten have experienced the blessing of healing, only one has faith and has turned to establish ties with Jesus that indicate the presence of salvation (cf. 7:50; 8:48; 18:42). The deliverance Jesus affirms here is greater than the healing the man has experienced. He had learned everything the miracle can teach him." [1]
I think a lot of us are in danger of be the "other" lepers. As a whole we take God's mercy and gracious actions for granted. It can become assumed for us, and we forget to bask in the goodness of what Jesus has done in our own lives. Life becomes about comfort, not the radical grace of Jesus that leads us into worship. We know the works of God and familiar with things, but somehow we have forgotten to actually know and thank God Himself.
One more quick thought on the fact that the thankful leper was a Samaritan, a fact that Luke goes out of his way to point out in his writing of the account:
"The fact that the Samaritan is the example warns us against unduly limiting our ministry and whom God might bless through it. Some methods of evangelism today assert that a homogeneous ministry makes for a better community. I am not sure. It makes community easier, but there is something to be said for forging a community out of disparate elements to show just how far and wide God’s reconciliation can go (Eph. 3:2–13). We must be careful to model ministry in such a way that the suggestion never exists that God blesses some but not others. Sometimes faith shows up in surprising cross-cultural places; sometimes God crosses social or racial lines to remind us his grace is for all. Our ministries may have a natural audience, but in the midst of such ministries, we must communicate values and attitudes that make it clear that the gospel is for all who trust in Jesus." [2] (bolding mine)
Martin Luther King Jr. is credited with saying "the most segregated hour in America is 11 o'clock Sunday morning." I'd have to agree. Our churches are not a bastion of diversity. In fact, usually church are much LESS diverse than the communities that they are located in. Why? There are a lot of issues at play, but I think that a lot of it comes down to what I mentioned above: comfort. For many people, church exists for them. A place to go to. To recharge. To "be fed". Unfortunately (for them), the purpose of the church is NOT that, but to bring glory to God and "to make disciples of every nation". I'm not trying to minimize challenges - there are definitely a lot of them. As a large, very white man in an Asian church, I'm very aware of those challenges. The question here is willingness: are we even seeking to make disciples of every nation? It is, after all, not traditionally called "The Great Suggestion", but "The Great Commission". I would love to see (as Bock said in the quote above) a church community that is so diverse that the grace of God is the only plausible explanation for why it could exist. Yet what usually happens is a homogenous church that can barely hold together because of all the fighting. Is my dream impossible? I don't think so. But in order for it to happen, church can no longer be about us. It MUST be about glorifying God and thanking Him for His great grace. It can only happen when we stop seeing only our own fortune and blessing and see and worship the Source: Jesus.
Thoughts?
The Ten Lepers -or- How We Are Ungrateful Wretches
A simple story with a lot of power today. Ten lepers see Jesus and ask for his mercy. Jesus heals all of them. Of course they were full of joy - they had just been healed! Not only healed, but healed by the very Son of God! I picture a great celebration with giddy dancing and emotional reunions with family members. But.....only one of them in the midst of joy goes to thank Jesus.
"The miracle contains a double level of cultural tension, since the main figure is both a leper and a Samaritan. Lepers were culturally isolated (see 5:12–16), and Samaritans were disliked by Jews for their religious defection and for being racial half-breeds (see 9:51–56). The idea of a Samaritan leper receiving God’s help was undoubtedly shocking to many, since they had written off people in either category as being beyond help...
...Jesus then issues a final encouraging commendation. He tells the man that his “faith has made [him] well.” Jesus is probably saying that although ten have experienced the blessing of healing, only one has faith and has turned to establish ties with Jesus that indicate the presence of salvation (cf. 7:50; 8:48; 18:42). The deliverance Jesus affirms here is greater than the healing the man has experienced. He had learned everything the miracle can teach him." [1]
I think a lot of us are in danger of be the "other" lepers. As a whole we take God's mercy and gracious actions for granted. It can become assumed for us, and we forget to bask in the goodness of what Jesus has done in our own lives. Life becomes about comfort, not the radical grace of Jesus that leads us into worship. We know the works of God and familiar with things, but somehow we have forgotten to actually know and thank God Himself.
One more quick thought on the fact that the thankful leper was a Samaritan, a fact that Luke goes out of his way to point out in his writing of the account:
"The fact that the Samaritan is the example warns us against unduly limiting our ministry and whom God might bless through it. Some methods of evangelism today assert that a homogeneous ministry makes for a better community. I am not sure. It makes community easier, but there is something to be said for forging a community out of disparate elements to show just how far and wide God’s reconciliation can go (Eph. 3:2–13). We must be careful to model ministry in such a way that the suggestion never exists that God blesses some but not others. Sometimes faith shows up in surprising cross-cultural places; sometimes God crosses social or racial lines to remind us his grace is for all. Our ministries may have a natural audience, but in the midst of such ministries, we must communicate values and attitudes that make it clear that the gospel is for all who trust in Jesus." [2] (bolding mine)
Martin Luther King Jr. is credited with saying "the most segregated hour in America is 11 o'clock Sunday morning." I'd have to agree. Our churches are not a bastion of diversity. In fact, usually church are much LESS diverse than the communities that they are located in. Why? There are a lot of issues at play, but I think that a lot of it comes down to what I mentioned above: comfort. For many people, church exists for them. A place to go to. To recharge. To "be fed". Unfortunately (for them), the purpose of the church is NOT that, but to bring glory to God and "to make disciples of every nation". I'm not trying to minimize challenges - there are definitely a lot of them. As a large, very white man in an Asian church, I'm very aware of those challenges. The question here is willingness: are we even seeking to make disciples of every nation? It is, after all, not traditionally called "The Great Suggestion", but "The Great Commission". I would love to see (as Bock said in the quote above) a church community that is so diverse that the grace of God is the only plausible explanation for why it could exist. Yet what usually happens is a homogenous church that can barely hold together because of all the fighting. Is my dream impossible? I don't think so. But in order for it to happen, church can no longer be about us. It MUST be about glorifying God and thanking Him for His great grace. It can only happen when we stop seeing only our own fortune and blessing and see and worship the Source: Jesus.
Thoughts?
[1] Darrell L. Bock, The NIV Application Commentary: Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996), 445, 446.
[2] Darrell L. Bock, The NIV Application Commentary: Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996), 447-48.
[2] Darrell L. Bock, The NIV Application Commentary: Luke (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1996), 447-48.
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