May 8 – Reading Luke 17:1-19

Read and believe in Jesus.

“Lord, increase our faith!” “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed…”  Luke 17:5-6a

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The Gospel according to Luke 

Review: Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus, who both died and had very different fates.  The rich man wanted to warn his brothers about that horrid place, but Father Abraham told him, EVEN IF someone would return from the grave, they would not listen.”  We have such hard hearts!

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Vss. 17:1-5.

“Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come.”

Jesus states a fact: we will all face many temptations every day. Some will come from within ourselves, from our sinful desires, and should be resisted. But many subtle or even gross temptations to sin will come via the ungodly people around us. It’s a given.

However, what Jesus adamantly forbids here is for a believer to tempt someone to sin.  He’d be better off dead!

We say, “I’d never do that!” But think about it. What about those “innocent” fun activities that escalate into sinful indulgence or gross misconduct?

Jesus then turns the picture around from temptations to your reactions.  “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.  If he sins against you seven times a day, and turns to you in repentance, YOU MUST forgive him.”

And what was the disciples’ reaction?  “Lord, increase our faith!” They weren’t sure they could do what Jesus said.

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Vss. 17:6-7.

Jesus reacted by telling them they didn’t need MORE faith. They need to USE their faith, not desire MORE.  What they had already possessed would move trees and mountains elsewhere. No, the faith they had at that moment was sufficient.

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Vss. 17:8-10.

Next comes a curious example that falls crookedly on our modern-day sensibilities. We have people who work for us, but most of us do not own servants and/or slaves.  We pay our workers for their jobs, and don’t really expect them to go over and beyond what they’ve been hired to do (without negotiating).

So, put your imagination back to Jesus’ day, and see what you can learn about “unworthy servants.”  (Meaning US????  Whoa!!!)

“Will any of you (speaking to a broader audience now)  say to your servant who has been plowing or keeping sheep and has come into the house, ‘Come at once and recline at the table?’”

Can’t you almost hear them laughing at such a notion?

“No, you will rather say, ‘Prepare supper for me. Dress properly and serve me while I eat and drink.  After THAT, YOU will eat and drink.’ Does he then thank the servant for doing what was commanded?”

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Wow.  Doesn’t this go against our natural inclinations, especially in the U.S.?  Your hardworking man slaves all day in the heat, and THEN he’s supposed to come in, cook your meal, and serve you BEFORE he can take a bite???  Yes.  And he doesn’t even expect a ‘thank you.’

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So, what was Jesus saying?

The point is that a slave/servant should not expect special reward for doing what his duty in the first place was.

Now recall the standards Jesus set for believers in verses 1-4.

1. Believers had better not tempt others to sin.
2. Believers must forgive a repentant brother AS MANY TIMES as he sincerely repents.
3. Believers should USE the faith they already have rather than ask for more.

The above “duties” are the minimal things that believers are expected to do. No special merit for obedience should be expected.

Whoa.

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Vss. 17:11-19.

(This incident happened sometime later, maybe after He’d raised Mary and Martha’s brother Lazarus from the dead, and He had retreated into the country to avoid the Jerusalem authorities who wanted to kill Him right then.  Luke 19 tells of Jesus’s triumphal entry at Jerusalem and His subsequent death, at His OWN timing.)

Anyway, when Jesus and His disciples entered a village, they were met by TEN LEPERS who stood at a distance calling.

“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

These men believed Jesus could heal them if only He would.  Jesus saw their faith.

“Go and show yourselves to the priests.” He called to them.

Huh?

A strict law was established for dealing with “healed” lepers.  They had to go to the priest, show them their now clear skin, and do some tests. In a certain time, they’d return, and if they were still healed, the priest would take them through the ceremonial cleansing ritual and then give them a clean bill of health.

These men knew the routine and left, believing Jesus had healed them.

Then, one of the men looked down at his hands and feet and SAW the miracle. Gratitude and worship filled his soul. He turned back, praising God with a loud voice, and fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving Him thanks.

He, among the ten, was a Samaritan.

Jesus was amazed that the Samaritan, among the Jews, had returned to thank and praise God.  A foreigner, and one hated by Jews at that.  HE had been “converted,” I am sure.  Not only a “clean body,” he now had a “clean soul” as well.

Jesus looked at him and said, “Rise and go your way, your FAITH has made you well (“saved you” like the woman with the issue of blood. See Mark 5:34).

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(What a glorious story! “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no one may boast.? Ephesians 2:8-9.  Others look down on this man with disdain.  A Samaritan, pooh!  But this man received Jesus AND healing: a double miracle.  And he praised and worshiped God.

Wow.  When is the last time I fell to my knees and proclaimed my worship and praise for my Savior and God loudly?)