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11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy[a] met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” 14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:11-19 NIV)
Friend, may the Lord watch over me and thee; this day and all. Grant us your stength to keep us fully in service to Thee and Thine; in Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
This is not the favorite text for squeamish people on Thanksgiving; something about skin diseases and turkey and dressing do not mix well. I've shared how one Thanksgiving Day (Yes, kids, there were once upon a time, churches that held Thanksgiving Day worship on the actual, real day of Thanksgiving! It's in the history books, well, those that haven't been redacted yet). But I was a campus minister and I had been asked to fill in for my mentor pastor who had been injured. It was as I sat down in the pulpit chair to await the service to begin that a woman came up to where I sat and handed me a note that said for me NOT to preach on this text as it would make her mother lose her appetite for the important meal of the day. Gulp. I already had prayed and prepared a sermon and felt led by God to preach it, which I would.
In biblical times, leprosy was considered a terrible disease, which it is; but not to the extend of limited scientific understanding available today; but those who were diagnosed as being afflicted with the disease were considered as good as dead and relegated to go and live among the tombs, away from the living for fear of the spread of the disease. Thus the phrase, "They stood at a distance." As Jesus walks by these ten men, they cried to Him, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" Jesus simply replies, "Go, show yourselves to the priests," meaning you are healed now and ready to join the living; and as they moved towards where they could find the priests, they were made clean of this disease. It was yet another miracle performed by Jesus, removing the death curse and replaced it with life. Make that the fullness of life, for now they would return to their wives, their children, perhaps mothers and fathers, aunts and uncles, and start life again. What joy filled their hearts!
Yet, the point of this passage, in my opinion, is that only one of the ten, when seeing he was healed, returned back to Jesus to thank Him. Actually, as he saw the newness of his skin, praise filled his mouth and he praised God in a loud voice. The man threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. The Bible makes it clear to us that his man was a foreigner, a not-always-welcome kind; who took the initiative to give thanks to God in a very loud way. Remember, all ten are healed. Every single one. The miracle isn't partial or selective—it's complete and comprehensive. Their skin is restored. Their strength returns. Their identity as outcasts is over. They can go home. They can embrace their families. They can worship again. They can rebuild their lives.
For ten desperate men, this is the answer to years of prayers. This is the miracle they've been begging God to provide. This is everything they've been longing for.
But something stunning happens in verse 15: only one turns back.
One man—and significantly, he's a Samaritan, a foreigner, someone doubly marginalized—realizes that healing without thanksgiving is incomplete. He doesn't wait until after he's seen the priest, doesn't delay until he's properly certified as clean, doesn't postpone his gratitude until it's convenient. He turns around immediately, praising God at the top of his voice, and throws himself at Jesus' feet.
Jesus' response is telling: "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?"
This isn't petty scorekeeping. Jesus isn't wounded by their ingratitude in a personal sense. Rather, he's pointing out a profound spiritual reality: the nine received healing, but only one received wholeness. The nine got what they asked for; the one got something more—he got relationship with the Healer.
The nine were content with the gift. The one came back for the Giver.
How often are we like the nine? We cry out to God in our desperation. We plead for help when life falls apart. We make promises about what we'll do if God comes through for us. And when the answer comes—when the job appears, when the relationship heals, when the diagnosis is good, when the crisis passes—we simply move on with our lives.
We're grateful, in a general sense. We might even acknowledge that God helped us. But do we return? Do we interrupt our schedule to say thank you? Do we make worship and thanksgiving a priority, or just a pleasant addition when it's convenient?
The Samaritan shows us that gratitude isn't primarily about good manners—it's about recognizing the source of every good gift and maintaining relationship with the One who gave it. It's about understanding that God's blessings aren't just transactions to meet our needs; they're invitations into deeper connection with Him.
Jesus' final words to the Samaritan are crucial: "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." Wait—hadn't all ten been made well? They were all cleansed of leprosy. But the Greek word here for "made well" is sozo—it means not just physical healing but wholeness, salvation, complete restoration.
The ten received physical healing. The one received something more comprehensive—a healing that touched not just his skin but his soul, not just his body but his relationship with God. His faith wasn't just faith that Jesus could heal; it was faith that led him into grateful worship and relationship.
This is the difference between using God and knowing God. The nine used Jesus to get what they needed and moved on. The one returned to establish relationship with the One who had given him everything.
In our microwave culture of instant gratification and constant forward motion, the Samaritan's return is countercultural. He stopped. He turned around. He retraced his steps. He made thanksgiving a priority even when he had legitimate reasons to keep moving forward toward his destination.
Gratitude requires intentionality. It means stopping our forward momentum to acknowledge where our blessings came from. It means making space in our busy lives for worship even when—especially when—we've received what we asked for and could easily just move on to the next thing.
The question isn't whether God will continue to bless the nine who didn't return. The question is whether we want to settle for blessings alone or whether we want the fuller relationship with God that comes through the practice of grateful return.
Where are we in this story? Are we like the nine, blessed but moving forward without looking back? Or are we like the one, who understood that the greatest gift wasn't the healing itself but the relationship with the Healer?
PRAYER: Jesus, help us be like the one who came back—not just receivers of your blessings, but returners in grateful worship who recognize that knowing you is better than anything you might give us. And this we pray, in full faith, in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! OUR CALL TO ACTION: This week, identify three specific blessings in your life and intentionally take time—interrupting your normal schedule if necessary—to thank God not just for the gifts but for His presence as the Giver.
I love you and I thank God for you! Remember, you matter to God and you matter to me. Bless someone today with a blessing!
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
