November 25, 2010

• Giving Him thanks | "But where are the nine?" (Luke 17:11-19)

  Luke 17:11 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. 13 And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
  

  
  14 So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.
  
  15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, 16 and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.
  
  17 So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”

  

  We see the ten lepers crying out for mercy. They're standing at a distance. Because they were unclean, they couldn't come near to anyone (except for other lepers). They know they have hope whatsoever unless Jesus chooses to be merciful to them. So all ten lifted up their voices and asked Jesus to have mercy on them.

  Then we see that Jesus chooses to show mercy to all ten. He tells all ten to go to the priests (to certify they were now clean), and, as all ten went their way, all ten were cleansed.

  But now consider: how many of those ten lepers treasured Christ and His mercies enough to return to Jesus and give Him thanks?

  15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, 16 and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.
  

  What did Jesus think of that? Did it bother Him that not all ten returned?

  17 ..."Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner? 19 And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”

  
  First off, we see that Jesus' response was all about His concern that God was not being glorified. Jesus relates faith with giving glory to God. We see that He commends the one cleansed leper who returned for his faith. Also notice that Jesus relates giving glory to God with giving thanks to God and worshiping God for His mercies. If we're not giving thanks and worship to God, then we're not giving due glory to God. And, if we're not giving thanks to God, that's an indication our faith is lacking in some sense.

  You can't help but see some parallels to our salvation in this event.

  The lepers' state apart from Jesus' mercies is much like our state apart from God showing mercy on us through Jesus Christ. We're dead in our sins and transgressions, therefore we're condemned and eternally separated from God because of our sin. We're unclean, in need of the cleansing and forgiveness and new life that comes only through faith in the atoning blood of Jesus Christ. Apart from God's grace to us, just like the lepers, we would have no hope at all.

  Does it bother Jesus that we don't return like those nine cleansed lepers?

  Do you count Jesus Christ and God's love, mercy and grace in saving you precious so like the one leper, you also gladly return to Jesus to thank and worship Him (again and again)? Is your salvation still marvelous and wonderful to you as it was when you first believed? Is Jesus still marvelous and wonderful to you, or has He and His gift of salvation become ordinary and passé to you? Has your salvation (has He) ever really been marvelous and wonderful to you? Have you cheapened God's gift of salvation by not continuing to give Him the thanks and glory He deserves? Considering that God's mercies to us are new every morning, should we not be returning constantly to Jesus to thank Him and give God glory? How deep and genuine is your faith in Him? Does your faith cause you to return to Him to give Him thanks and give God glory again and again?

  Have you ever considered that when you don't give thanks for His mercies you are robbing God of His glory?

  Do you understand that when we don't give thanks for His mercies we are not fulfilling the purpose for which God saved us?

  But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy (I Peter 2:9-10).

  Remember that God saved us so we can make much of Him. We read in that wonderful first chapter of Ephesians that our salvation is all to the praise of the glory of His grace. Yes, we do greatly benefit and we do enjoy Him and His benefits, but our salvation is all about God having us make much of Him. And remember that one Day all the redeemed, all those who have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and washed in the blood of the Lamb will be gathered around His throne to give Him praise, honor, glory and thanksgiving for ever and ever and ever. So our time here in rendering thanks, glory and praise to God is but a preparation and precursor and firstfruits of that everlasting praise that will echo through all eternity. Our time around the throne in heaven will be a huge thanksgiving celebration, won't it, with all of us cleansed lepers falling on our faces at Jesus' feet and giving Him thanks!

  Now, let's look at who will be gathered around His throne in that Day:

  Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying:

        “You are worthy to take the scroll,
        And to open its seals;
        For You were slain,
        And have redeemed us to God by Your blood
        Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,
       10 And have made us kings and priests to our God;
        And we shall reign on the earth.”

  Notice there people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation will be there. How do they get there? The only way all the tribes, tongues, people and nations of the earth will hear the praises of the Lord Jesus Christ is if we, the people of God's holy nation are out in the world there proclaiming His praises. How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? (Romans 10:14-15a) After all, who else is going to be praising God if we don't?

  Have you ever praised God with a loud voice for His mercies to you? Do you hesitate to praise Him with a loud voice? Does the idea of praising Him with a loud voice frighten or intimidate or embarrass you?

  Isaiah 40:9 O Zion,
  You who bring good tidings,
  Get up into the high mountain;
  O Jerusalem,
  You who bring good tidings,
  Lift up your voice with strength,
  Lift it up, be not afraid;
  Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!”
  10 Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with a strong hand,
  And His arm shall rule for Him;
  Behold, His reward is with Him,
  And His work before Him.

  Consider our God was strong for us when we were weak. He did what we could not do. Remember that it is God's strength which has saved us. Remember that each and every one of us were no different than those ten lepers, except that we were spiritual lepers, with no strength to save ourselves (Romans 5:6). Ought we to be using all our strength (the strength God provides us through His Spirit) to thank and praise and glorify Him? Many people get all bent out of shape in never-ending discussions (er, arguments) about the person and the work of the Holy Spirit, but first and foremost the Holy Spirit is all about leading us into the truth about Jesus and then giving glory to Jesus. As the Spirit leads us into the truth about Jesus, shouldn't our right response be to render praise and thanksgiving to Jesus and give glory to Him?

  Have you ever praised God with a loud voice – not only in a worship service but also out in the unbelieving world? Remember Jesus' words to us from Matthew 10: “Whatever I tell you in the dark, speak in the light; and what you hear in the ear, preach on the housetops."

  And then later in that same chapter we read: "Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven."

  Are you embarrassed or ashamed to give thanks for Jesus' mercies? Let us keep in mind that our Lord is not ashamed of us!

  Hebrews 2:11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, 12 saying:

        “I will declare Your name to My brethren;
        In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You..."

  Like the thankful healed leper, have you ever fallen down on your face at Jesus' feet and given Him thanks?

  Do you praise and thank God regularly for His mercies – or only on Sunday mornings? Perhaps you have praised and thanked Him on Thanksgiving, but then tomorrow will come around and you won't take even a moment to give Him thanks and praise. But like David, shouldn't God's praise continually be in our mouths?
  
  

  Psalm 34:1 I will bless the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

  Do you bless the LORD at all times? All.

  And to make it clear, though we should be giving thanks to God for all His gifts to us and in everything, I'm not really talking here about our giving God thanks for the things He gives us, or even the people He gives us. I'm talking about our giving God thanks and praise for who He is and for the gift of His salvation to us. Look and see how the Psalmist blessed the Lord in Psalm 103. His words there are primarily about the spiritual benefits God purchased for us on the cross; it is about God's love, mercy, kindness and grace that took us from being spiritual lepers, redeemed us with the blood of Christ, cleansed us from our sin and guilt, adopted us, brought us back to Him and welcomed us into His family and sealed us with His Spirit and has laid up an eternal inheritance for us.

  As you look at your attitude toward Jesus Christ and your salvation, are you one of the nine?

  Would Jesus say of you, "But where is she?"

  Isaiah 43:21 This people I have formed for Myself;  They shall declare My praise.

  Psalm 71
  14 But I will hope continually,
           And will praise You yet more and more.
    15 My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
           And Your salvation all the day,
           For I do not know their limits.
    16 I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD;
           I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only.
  

  Isaiah 42
  10 Sing to the LORD a new song,
  And His praise from the ends of the earth,
  You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,
  You coastlands and you inhabitants of them!
  11 Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voice,
  The villages that Kedar inhabits.
  Let the inhabitants of Sela sing,
  Let them shout from the top of the mountains.
  12 Let them give glory to the LORD,
  And declare His praise in the coastlands.
  13 The LORD shall go forth like a mighty man;
  He shall stir up His zeal like a man of war.
  He shall cry out, yes, shout aloud;
  He shall prevail against His enemies.

  ---

  Related:

  Psalms 34, 71, 103. Isaiah 12.

  The story of the sinful woman forgiven in Luke 7:36-50 and my related post from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet...
  Links to my Thanksgiving posts
  Holy One (Bless the LORD, all our souls, and forget not all his benefits!)
  Blessed Be God for His Kindness Which Leads Us to Repentance
  the triumphal entry we can't miss
  a call to ALL believers: relaunching the praise assault
  Who's the real thriller?
  Letter 21 on assurance and fighting for joy (knowing our inheritance in the saints)
  Letter 25 on assurance and fighting for joy (a strong craving ≠ His joy)
  adopting God's purpose for the nations is for your joy & His glory (Letter 76 on joy)
  Things To Look for in a Church, 1: A God-glorifying and God-exalting People
  Christian, don't waste your life whining

  Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

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