Being Surprised at Being Blessed – Luke 7:11-19

A text – Luke 17:11-19

17:11 On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee.
17:12 As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance,
17:13 they called out, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
17:14 When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were made clean.
17:15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice.
17:16 He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan.
17:17 Then Jesus asked, “Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they?
17:18 Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”
17:19 Then he said to him, “Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.

A reflection:

Lepers were kept a distance away from the healthier folks in a town in Jesus’s time, but they were as curious as everyone else about the news of the day. And Jesus and his followers were the news of the day. These ten people must have guessed the road Jesus would be taking, and they must have decided to ask him for healing as he and his disciples passed.

Sometimes when Jesus heals someone he is very close by. Sometimes the person being healed merely touches Jesus’s clothing.  But lepers had to keep their distance, and even at a distance, Jesus heard them. He told them to go and show themselves to the priests to be checked out and then readmitted to society. They did as Jesus commanded them, and their faithful obedience was rewarded, and they were suddenly cured.

Why did just one of them turn back to praise God and to thank Jesus?

The fact that the one who went back to thank him was a Samaritan and not a Jew isn’t too surprising to me. I think about all the times I’ve been in a group doing something, feeling as though I am the least apt to succeed, the least deserving of special attention. Those are the times when, if things go well, I am the most grateful, the most dumbstruck when I receive the blessing of success. When you don’t really expect to get anything and then you get it, you are very grateful indeed.

We may be living our lives with lowered expectations at this moment in time. These are uncertain times in a dangerous world. When things turn out right from time to time, let’s celebrate and be grateful. It’s a wonderful surprise and thanks ought to be given.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you for the story of the Samaritan leper who was grateful. Let that story teach us always to be grateful and to praise God. It’s the very best thing we can do.  Amen.