Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

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? Has no one returned to 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

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.
But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

• Romans 3:19-24

“The gospel about the Ten Lepers is about how the nine were healed of their leprosy – and then caught, so to speak, an even worse leprosy: their ingratitude and unthankfulness.  Herein lies the difference between sickness of the body and sickness of the spirit.”

• Søren Kierkegaard, Provocations (from Thoughts that Radically Cure)

I have always had sympathy for the nine lepers.  Levitical Law says to show yourself to the priest.  Jesus, the Son of God, told them to do it.  They were not healed until they started on the journey.  If they turned back, they would break Levitical Law and the command Jesus gave them.

What would happen if disobeying Jesus led to getting the leprosy right back?

Yes, the healing by Jesus has a moral story.

The Pharisees would be so proud of Jesus.  Jesus followed the Law.

But what lesson was being given and to whom?

The Samaritan was healed like the other nine.  Jesus did not show favoritism.  But, the Samaritan was not bound to the letter of the Law.  He was a Samaritan.  When he heard Jesus say that he had to see a priest, the Samaritan was probably afraid, thinking the priest would refuse to see him.  You still had leprosy until the priest said you were healed.  So being a leper, the priest would hesitate.  Knowing how they hated Samaritans, the priest might refuse to go near him.

The other nine kept going.  Did they hesitate?  Or did they think following the order given them by Jesus was more important than the sign of gratitude.  And once declared clean by the priest, they could wait until Jesus showed up, since he was headed toward Jerusalem anyway.

I have done a lot of what ifs and maybes here.

Nothing else is mentioned about the other nine.  So, the story gives us the indication that saying “Thank you” is more important than the letter of the Law.  As Paul says, the Law condemns.  Jesus saves.

Jesus wants a relationship with us.  The word “obey” is mentioned four times as often in the OT as in the NT.  But “obey” is found fourteen times in the Gospels, half of those times in John.

But Jesus considered the Samaritan who had once been a leper and asked about the others.  Jesus knew more about the others than did the Samaritan leper.  They were interested in being declared clean.  They were interested in following the rules.

The Samaritan had found his Savior, and he wanted to worship Him.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.