Sermon – “Only One Came Back”

11 On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. 12 And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers,[f] who stood at a distance 13 and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” 14 When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. 15 Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; 16 and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

2 And behold, a leper[a] came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” 3 And Jesus[b] stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 And Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof to them.”

103 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

4 But[c] God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

This morning my message out titled only one came back so I’m going to be speaking about the ten lepers that Jesus healed one day only one came back. Here the word of the Lord plutocracy seventeen verses eleven through nineteen. Now it happened as he went to Jerusalem that he passed through the midst of some area and Galilee then as he entered a certain village there met him ten men who were lepers who stood a far off and they lifted up their voices and said Jesus Master have mercy on us so they knew who it was they heard about it they heard of the miracles he’s been performing. Jesus’ master they knew him by name have mercy on us so when he saw them he said to them Go show yourselves to the priest and so was that as they went they were cleansed and one of them when he saw that he was healed returned with a loud voice glorifying God and fell down on his face at his feet giving him thanks and he was a Samaritan. Little bit emphasis there in it he was a Samaritan So Jesus answered and said we’re not ten cleansed but where are the nine. Were they not were there not any found to return to give glory to God except this foreigner and he said to him Arise go your way your faith has made you well may God had His blessings that here in the reading of his lesson work let us pray Father we do thank you and praise you for your word Father we thank you for that your word reveals how you have became one of us but how you lived amongst us how you healed how you ministered how you taught us about yourself about your son. Father we thank you we thank you that your Holy Spirit reveals how you want to have a relationship with us and how you will interact with man and and more we just invite your spirit to speak to our hearts today give us the word that you would have us to hear and help us to better understand you and understand how to have a relationship with you father I just pray that you would just be present today that you would be glorified that everything done here would be for your glory and for your honor in Jesus’ precious name amen if you’ve read the Bible much you will know that leprosy was an awfully dreaded disease in the Old Testament and the Old Testament people that were found to have leprosy were required to be isolated from the rest of the people. They put them out they if they were if they had leprosy and if they had to go somewhere where there were other people maybe in the town they had to shout out as it was going unclean unclean unclean so that if this kind of what the people would could you imagine going into the city today and if you did that same thing and people would just make make a way to go through you know if you didn’t like to be around people just start hollering unclean unclean and we’ll get away from you right but I think today if you start to march into the city and holler unclean they’d think he was gonna Gloucester mana little bit but they would go through the town if they had to when they’d be shouting unclean and people were just they didn’t want to touch of they didn’t want to be around them they were considered the outcast of society. When Israelites even when they had the camp they had to be outside the camp if they had had leprosy. And you know whenever they was outside the camp of course or story ludes to it it didn’t matter if you were due. A Samaritan GENTE it didn’t matter if you’re black white red whatever they had leprosy they were all together isolated in that one camp. So it didn’t matter. If you were a Jew or what so. Whenever they’re suffering all that other stuff that might have seemed important one so important was it they all had a common. Thing they were experiencing a living death because that’s what leprosy was a living death you know many people are probably unaware that leprosy is still a problem in some parts of the world today. Since the one nine hundred eighty S. when the World Health Organization initiated its leprosy elimination project more than fourteen million cases have been cured however the number of new cases being detected annually is rising so there’s the unanswered question about the source of the infection the transmission of the infection incubation period of leprosy So in other words you know there are so many new cases that they’d still don’t have a firm grasp on. Were comes from and how to completely wipe it out and plus they’re also uncertain about well how there are so many new cases continue to pop up when we’ve cured so many so there’s still some money about this disease. Or some of the rise in the numbers because the extensive effort to find those that have leprosy. Today leprosy is found mainly in and go you Brazil Central African Republic Democratic Republic of Congo India Madagascar Mozambique Nepal and United Republic of Tanzania. These countries that just mention account for about seventy five percent. Of those that have leprosy in the world today and those few countries. And are taking continuing to take steps to control the disease. And are trying to reach out to the poor and undeserving and that’s probably where a lot of this is in countries that don’t have the medical. Technology and stuff that we have today they don’t have an a body and stuff that we have today. And you know many people probably thought leprosy is this as a disease that only affects the skin but it actually affects the nervous system. Because leprosy bacterium attacks the nerves in the body. Its symptoms start in the skin and peripheral nervous system outside the brain and spinal cord then it spreads to other parts of the body such as the hands the feet the face the ear lobes patients with leprosy experience disfigurement of the skin and bones the actual twisting of the limbs. Curling of the fingers to form like the claw when the end of the hand that’s that’s how serious leprosy can be can make your hands go into a quote won’t be able to use them also facial changes including the thickening of the ears in the collapsing of the nose probably a little more you know information that you thought you were going to get today but then they that they will have like tumor like gross called The Promise can form on the skin and in the respiratory tract. You know there’s a semi thing the largest number of deformities developed from the loss of pain since ation do the extensive nerve damage so a person with leprosy might grab a cup a boiling hot water and spill it on them and not even feel it because the nerves are dead they don’t feel it. It kills that sense of pain they say that some patients with leprosy have actually you think about in the poorer countries they’ve actually had their fingers eaten off by rats while they were sleeping. Because they had no idea that there was a rat there tune while they were sleeping because no sense of pain. Nothing to warn them of the danger. There is an example found in Scripture of that reveals how the tear rates the body in Mark chapter three verses one through six speaking to Jesus and as he entered the synagogue again a man was there who had a withered hand so they watched him closely whether he would heal on the Sabbath so that they might accuse him and he said to the man with the withered hand step forward then he said to them to the fair seas is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil to save a life or to kill. But they kept silent they wouldn’t answer a word. And he and when he had looked around with them at them with anger being grieved by the hardness of their heart he said to the man Stretch out your hand and he stretched it out and his hand was completely restored as whole as the Other than the fair seas went out and immediately plotted with the Herodian against him how they might destroy him so a couple things think of that that man’s hand is whether you think of a you know if you go out there and there is a live tree in your yard and you cut that Limbaugh a limb off of that tree what’s going to happen to the leaves on that tree they’re going to wither up right they’re just going to wither up and die. In Vision that man’s hand is whether a way think of a great weather and into a rate. So it’s going to wither away and die so it’s really you think about that watch and your body just wither away and die from it that’s what that man was experiencing and Jesus said stretch it out. That’s the power the power of the Holy Spirit the power Jesus Christ that’s the power of the blood that we sing about to heal and restore he can heal withered hand. This die is unlawful to do good on the Sabbath while those same fair season leaders that he’s talking about will have you know there’s another story if they had a donkey that or go to. If fell into the ditch they’d go out on the Sabbath and drag it out of there. Because they would lose money if they didn’t. But yet they were so hard hearted they wouldn’t heal the man on the Sabbath. God forgive them friends it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. If we’re going down a road and we see a friend in trouble but we’re going to drive on by just because it’s the Sabbath no we’re going to help them because that’s what Jesus would do that’s what Jesus did so it’s lawful to do good every day. To be Jesus’ hands and feet Amen. Leprosy was used by the prophet Isaiah as a picture of sin and Isaiah Chapter one verses four through six a loss sinful Nations a people laden with iniquity a brode of evil doers children who were corrupters they have for sake in the Lord they have provoked to anger the holy want to Biz rail they have turned away backward Why should you be stricken again you will revolt more and more of the whole head is sick and the whole heart faints from the soul of the foot even to the head there is no sound the Senate but the wounds and bruises and the petrifying sores so that’s referring to leprosy they have not been closed up or bound up or sued with only men so he’s referring to the simple nation he’s using the illustration of leprosy the dreaded disease well sin is a dreaded thing in this nation we have we may not have an epidemic of leprosy there may be some cases of some skin diseases but we have our own dread of diseases don’t we Anyone know off the top of the head what the number one. Disease is it kills in this nation number one is. Heart disease heart disease is number one twenty three point four percent of the deaths in this nation or attributed to heart disease. Number two. Cancer. Twenty two point five percent of the deaths in this nation so those two diseases alone attribute to forty five point nine percent of the deaths in this nation just two diseases. Think about it. Praise God. Through his knowledge that he’s given to man we’ve came a long way in modern medicine haven’t we we have indeed as carers already alluded to we as a family and my daughter is really celebrating the fact today that through prayer and modern medicine Our daughter has been healed. How do you how they praise God Praise God Her doctors also praise him for the work that he has done we give him the glory but you know what even with modern medicine today there’s a key factor in the success of receiving a cure or healing it is early detection right specially with cancer. If it is left go and not found till it’s. Well progressed your chances of a cure or healing is not that I’m talking to the doctors is much less then with an early detection. Heart disease probably the same way. If they dislike nor that them symptoms and just keep on going well their chances of being may well has lessened a lot. Sin like cancer and sin like heart disease if it is left undealt with will destroy. Same thing it cannot be left undealt with. I’m not talking about the physical body but the spiritual. The verse that we all know so well Roman six twenty three for the wages of sin is death that is very clear the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord how it will ya. Here is how sin is different than cancer or heart disease or any of those things if it is dealt with properly there is a one hundred percent cure rate however. They’re not going to say Well said sixty seven percent chance that you’re going to be cured or set free from this sin no if it’s dealt with properly and as through Jesus Christ there’s a one hundred percent chance that you’re going to be set free from that sin would bound you. First John one nine says if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness because of that power that’s in the blood of Jesus Christ. A man that power to set us free up no matter how bad our sins. He can forgive us back to the lepers all ten men had faith every last one of them had faith because Jesus said TO THEM GO show yourselves to the priests. This was required by the Jewish law if a person had leprosy Now it didn’t always lead to death there were times when ever that leprosy would go into remission they might have just some sores and it didn’t change in it and you know there’s a lot involved the net is that have hair in it is it open is it so they would go show themselves to the priest and there were times where the priest would declare them plain so they could come back in from that isolation and back into monster families so this is according to Jewish law go show yourselves to the priest I find it very interesting that Jesus said so few words to these men. They cried out that in the letter of devoiced is said Have mercy on may have mercy on us Jesus didn’t go over and lay hands on him did it he didn’t go in on the one time with oil he didn’t say well go and on your way you’re going to be healed all he said was Go show yourself to the priest that’s it. That’s all he said so they had faith they didn’t question they didn’t say Well Master we watched you the other day and you laid hands on a person you came and prayed over him they didn’t say that they just at his word all ten obeyed so I truly believe that all ten men had faith they believed the word of Jesus spoke do you believe the words that Jesus spoke. I hope so. But as they went. They all were healed all were healed. You know it’s not that Jesus was afraid to touch them. There’s another scripture in Matthew eight suddenly a man with leprosy approached him and knelt before him Lord the man said If you are willing you can heal and make me clean Jesus reached out and touched him. How little you know what we don’t have to be afraid to touch the Up first person we don’t have to be afraid to touch a sinner either he reached out and touched him says I am willing to be healed and instantly the leprosy disappeared and Jesus said to him don’t tell anyone about this instead again go to the priest and that him examine you. Take along the offering required by the Law of Moses for those who have been healed of leprosy this will be a public testimony that you have been cleansed. Public testimony that Jesus Christ said healed him you know I don’t know how severe the leprosy was that these ten men had most likely with ten men there were probably very low levels of the disease some may have had a more severe case than others you know some may have had a withered hand it might have a limb that was twisted they may have had a deformity of the face I don’t know. But imagine these men went away to see that priest and all the sudden you’re healed the deformities gone that arm that you couldn’t use because it was it’s healed it’s made whole now wouldn’t that gets you excited. I don’t know but it sure would get me excited. Me jumping up and down shouting how Lou you. You would think that all ten would be so excited and grateful that they would have all ran back I don’t understand why the non didn’t go back. I mean I would have thought that they would of all was such a good God let’s get together let’s have a praise course and sing bless it be the Lord Oh my soul and all that is within me I’m bless His Holy Name bless the Lord Oh my soul one forget not all his benefits who forgives all when there were days and who he was are diseases I mean they should have had a course written and ran back to Jesus Christ say I think you Lord that was Psalms one hundred three this in case you want to know where I came from they should have all RAM back. But before we judge these nine men for their lack of gratitude let us ask ourselves How often do we take our blessings for granted I see heads nod probably a lot how often do we fail to thank God thank God for all that he’s done for us thank him for the life he’s given us thanking for his son thanking him for our family thanking him for the food that we thank him for the clothes that we wear thank him for his presence in our lives Psalms one hundred three or one of seven verse three says that men would give thanks to the Lord Oh that we would give thanks to the Lord for his for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men. By coming to Jesus this Samaritan received something far greater than his physical healing didn’t and. Yes he did. He was saved from his sins because when you read verse nineteen in the King James Version it reads Go thy way by faith has made the whole the meaning of the word hold as if using this passage means to say by faith has saved you. So while the priest declared to nine to be cleansed from the leprosy the one who came back was declared by the Son of God to be saved from me since. He received the greater blessing because he was grateful for what he had just received. He did not only experience the physical healing. But the promise of eternal salvation eternal life Mother Teresa shared this at the National Prayer Breakfast breakfast one time about gratitude she said one evening we picked up four people from the street one of them was in the most terrible condition I told the others with me you take care of the other three I will take care of the one who looks the worst I did all that my love could possibly do for this woman I put her in bed care for her she had such a beautiful smile on her face. Then she took my hand in her voice and said these two words thank you and then she died. She said I ask myself what would I say if I were in her place. I would have tried to draw little attention to myself I would have said I’m hungry or I’m dying from in pain but she gave much more she gave me her grateful love and she died with a smile on her face gratitude brings a smile and becomes a gift a gift that we give others gratitude has been said to be to mold and shape the entire Christian life Martin Luther Luther refers to gratitude as the basic Christian attitude and today it is still referred to as the heart of the gospel. As each Christian believes they were created by personal God Christians are strongly encouraged to praise and give gratitude to their Creator and Chris. In Christian gratitude God is seen as a selfless giver of all good things and because of this there is a great great sense of indebtedness that enables Christians to share a common bond shaping all aspects of the followers life gratitude and Christianity is a knowledge. Cement of God’s generosity that inspires Christians to shape their own thoughts and actions around set’s obvious instead of simply sentimental feelings Christian gratitude is regarded as a virtue that shapes us. Psalms one thirty six says oh give thanks to the Lord for He is good for his mercy indoors forever. Give thanks to the God of gods for His mercy in the worst forever oh give thanks to the Lord of Lords for his mercy indoors forever to him who alone does great wonders for his mercy in doors forever to him who by wisdom made the heavens for His mercy in doors forever. Friends I hope that we are grateful grateful. Grateful to God for what he has done grateful to one another grateful for families and toward our families you know if we have a grateful attitude it can just make. Our entire lives completely different. You know if you work a job that you serve some reason or another you hate it you despise it you’re on thankful for you’re going to be miserable but if you are grateful for that which you have for that job that God has provided for you for you if you’re grateful for. And you share that gratefulness or that gratefulness is demonstrated through your actions. You can make a difference in all those around and you have a blessed life you enjoy your life are you grateful and thankful for your family. Well let them know. Let them know. That you are thankful I wouldn’t trade my family for any family in the world I wouldn’t trade my family to be part of a royal family a king or a prince no way. I am grateful for my family all of my family for my wife and my children my grandchildren my parents and siblings all of them are you grateful share your gratefulness tell them. Just like that one that ran back to Jesus. Let’s make sure we’re most grateful for what he has done. That he was willing to come. That we can be forgiven of our sense that’s the most important thing that we have to be grateful for because through what he has done we have eternal hope hope of eternal life with him set free from all these things of this world we know that someday we’re going to go be with him a man grateful hearts.