Are You the One or the Nine?

Now on His way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As He was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met Him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!"



When He saw them, He said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed.



One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked Him--and he was a Samaritan.



Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?"



Then He said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." ~Luke 17:11-19 (NIV)



We're all diseased. Unclean. All we can do is plead for God's mercy and cry out, "Have pity on us!"



And Almighty God, the Creator of the universe, hears our plea even before we moan the words. 



Across the centuries, the cry of sinful humanity came to God's ears. Upon hearing the cry, He provided a way for our healing and cleansing. A way that required the sacrifice of His sinless Son.





What should be the response of a people redeemed, whose lives are transformed and made new? Like the Samaritan leper, we're all foreign, unclean outcasts, made whole by the grace of God. The proper response to grace is gratitude.



"But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed." ~Isaiah 53:5 (NIV)