What S Hope Got to Do with It?

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The Message for Oct 9, 2016

Luke 17:11-19

What’s hope got to do with it?

Rob Miller, Pastor

We continue our series on living our lives the Jesus way – by faith, hope, and love. That’s our mission as Christians. That’s how disciples of Jesus live our lives. Last week we consider that we are to live by faith. This week we consider how we are to live by hope. The question is: What’s hope got to do with it?

Hope is defined as… a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.

Our Bible readingfrom Lukeis all about hope. It is a story about ten lepers who turn to Jesus,hoping he will do something for them. And hedoes. Hehealsthem, all ten of them,butonly onegives Jesus the thanks…

Read Luke 17:11-19

Traveling one day along the border between Galilee and Samaria, on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus approached a village where ten seriously ill men came out to meet him. Ten lepers, ten men afflicted by the worst disease imaginable in those days.

Leprosy was incurable. Leprosy was disgusting, revolting, repulsive. If you had leprosy,it wasproof that you were an evil sinner, that God was punishing you for something really bad. That’s what people thought in those days…

If you had leprosy, you watched your bodyrot away. Your fingers… your ears…your toes… your nose literally dropped off. You would die a slow,painful death, cut off from society, cut off from family and friends. You lived with others like you,other outcasts. Nine others,in this case,kept reminding you,as you looked atthem how bad you were too.

Ten lepers, ten dying, decaying, stinking wretches met Jesus one day and he changed their world. He changed their lives for good. They cried out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

They put their hope in him… Hoping he would do for them what they could not do for themselves. He was their last chance to escape the awful consequences of their disease. If Jesus did nothing for them, they would continue to be walking dead.

“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

Can you imagine… They waited… They hoped… Ten lives turned to Jesus and said… “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

He did not touch them.“Jesus Master, have mercy on us.”

He did not wash them. “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

He did not even pray for them. “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”

Finally, after what seemed like forever... Jesus spoke to these ten men saying: “Go, show yourselves to the priests.”

“Wait!!! What???”

They were probably thinking,“Okay… but why???”

The only reason to go to the priestswas to show them that they were not sick or infected anymore. You go to the priest to get proof-- to get a certificate for a clean bill of health-- so they could return to a real life within the community.

BUT… they were not healthy. They were not clean. There was no reason for them to go and get a health certificate. They were still infected. Jesus said, “Go get a physical examination from the priest.” So they went expecting, I’m sure, for the priests to confirm that they still had leprosy.

Now imagine... They must have stood there… They must have looked at each other and wondered or talked amongst themselves, “But we’ve already been to the priestsand they couldn’t do anything for us. You’ve got to be kidding us... Jesus.”

“Go show ourselves to the priests.” “Why, what can the priests do?”

“Go show yourselves to the priests.” It’s as if Jesus was saying to them, “It’s already been done…”

So they went. They went to do exactly what Jesus told them to do. There was something in his voice… Something about his mannerism… Something compelled them to go… Andthen - it happened.

When we do what Jesus tellsus to do amazing things happen.

They didn’t expect it to happen. I’m sure theyhoped it would. And it did. They turned and start walking towards the priests andas they wentthey were healed, cleansed, made clean.

It was a miracle.

At some point,quite by surprise,those ten outcasts… those ten lepers were changed. Restored – made whole again… Every diseased cell in their bodies was changed by an unseen force, a force that changed everything.

Surely they noticed. Surely they were surprised and amazed. Surely they stopped, looked at their hands, their feet, at each other, and noticed they had been changed. Surely they noticed that a miracle had happened. Surely they knew that Jesus had done it.

Or did they???

We know it was a miracle. We know that Jesus did it. We knowhis reputation is true. We know that ten suffering human beings had been touched by Jesus. We know they encountered the grace of God.

Surely their excitement grew as they considered how the priests would respond.

Surely their excitement grew as they considered being reunited with their families.

Surely their excitement grew as the consideredreturning home – healthy, alive, with a certificate as proof that they belonged. All ten caught up in the joy, and the excitement of the moment.

Did I mention it was a miracle? Did I mention who did it?

They all noticed. They all noticed what Jesus had done for them. He is the miracle worker. And yet, only onewent back to thank him. Only one went back to showed his gratitude. And he, we are told,was a Samaritan.

This is very interesting to notebecause there was no need for him to go to the priests. He was not Jewish. That piece of paper, that certificate from the priests meant nothing to him. He did not belong to that religious community. Besides that, he now belongs to Jesus and to the community that Jesus offers, the changed–life community.

The priests would have turned him away anyway, right away. He was still an outcaste in their eyes,with or without leprosy,but not in Jesus’ eyes.

He didn’t need the priests to give him some proof of restoration. He had Jesus, or better yet, Jesus had him. And by God’s grace Jesus had changed his life. The community the Jesus offers is open to everyone and anyone. All are welcome to live a new life with Jesus.

It was a day that Samaritan would never ever forget. So he returned to show his gratitude for Jesus’ generosity. The other nine did not. I wonder why… Jesus wondered why… Where were the other nine?

The one who returned saw more than a miracle. He saw the miracle worker. He saw Jesus and ran back to worship him, to givehim thanks. It seems that Jesus wanted more for these other nine men too. It seems he wanted a life-changing relationship with them too. But they did not.

The other nine never stopped to think about or reflect on what happened. They did not think about Jesus, or how this could have happened. They just took it for granted. They were healed.

Theycould get back to their lives. They had a lot of catching up to do. They couldn’t see beyond the gift,to see the one who had given it. They never truly saw the giver.

What about you and your life? Do you see the miracles that happen to you every day? Do you know that you are a walking miracle? Do you take things for granted? Do you think you deserve only the good that happens in your life and not the bad?

OR… do you pause from time to time and do you give thanks to the miracle worker who makes your life possible every day?

Are you the one or are you like the other nine?

Listen to one of Aesop’s Fables called, “Androcles and the Lion.”

It happened in ancient times that a slave named Androcles escaped from his master and fled into the forest. He wandered there for a long time until he was weary. He heard a lion near him moaning and groaning and at times roaring terribly. He saw the lion coming towards him.

Instead of attacking him it kept moaning and groaning and looking at Androcles. He noticed the lion was holding out his right paw, which was covered with blood and very much swollen. Looking more closely at it, Androcles saw a big thorn in the lion’s paw, which was the cause of all the lion’s trouble.

Plucking up courage, he seized hold of the thorn and pulled it out of the lion’s paw, who roared with pain when the thorn came out, but soon found such relief that he rubbed up against Androcles, and showed he was truly thankful for what Androcles had done.

One day, a number of soldiers came marching through the forest and found Androcles. They took him prisoner and brought him back to the town. He was condemned to death because he had fled from his master.

Now it used to be the custom to throw murderers and other criminals to the lions,and on the appointed day he was led forth to the arena.

The Emperor of Rome was in the royal box that day and gave the signal for the lion to come out and attack Androcles. It came out of its cage but when it got near Androcles, what do you think it did? Instead of jumping upon him, it rubbed up against him, and stroked him with its paw.

It was of course the lion which Androcles had met in the forest. The Emperor summoned Androcles who told the Emperor all that had happened to him and how the lion was showing gratitude to himfor having relieved it of the thorn in his paw. Thereupon, the emperor pardoned Androcles setting both him and the lion free.

Aesop added a moral to the end of his fables. This one reads:Gratitude is the sign of noble souls.

Question: are you a noble soul?

Are you grateful for the blessingsin your life?

Are you thankful for what Jesus has done for you on the cross - dying for you so that you may life? Jesus has taken away the thorn of death for you – sin, death, and the devilhave no power over you… Jesus has cleansed you and made you whole. Because of Jesus you are a forgiven sinner. It’s already been done.

Can you see the giver? Can you see beyond the gifts, beyond the blessings, beyond the love, beyond the touch of grace in your life and see the giver?

Do you see Jesus at work in your life? And more than that Jesus desires a life-changing relationship with you every day… Do you?

Maybe…only one returned to thank Jesus, because the other nine lacked humility. Maybe they saw this act of healing as something they were due. Somethingthey deserved…

I know a lot of people who live that way in our world today…

We humans can develop such an inflated sense of our own importance that we are tempted to take everything goodthat comes our way as if we somehow deserve it. We don’t. We don’t deserve anything.

Those ten lepers would never forget that day. We have days like that too. There are days when something happens to us that we never forget.

I remember the day I left home for college. I packed up my 1984 Mazda B2000 pickup truck. I hugged my parents good-bye. Then my mother said to me. “Robbie…” Anytime she said “Robbie” it was a term of endearment. If she said, “Robert” I knew I was in trouble and I didn’t listen. But she said, “Robbie,” so I listened… She said. “Robbie, remember this – wherever you go, don’t forget where you came from.” Then she said, “The world does not owe you anything.” I remember thinking –“what???”

I’ve never forgotten thatday. I’ve never forgotten that the world does not owe me anything. I’ve never forgotten where I came from either. I came from the dirt of the earth. And by God’s grace I have been given - life. Someday I will return to the dirt of the earth. And too you will. That’s humbling.

If we take things for granted or we are wooed into thinking that the world owes usthen we will live very disappointing lives. But when we live our lives the Jesus way by faith, hope, and love we find contentment. We find that life takes on a whole new meaning and purpose no matter what...

Consider this... Two grasshoppers fell into a bowl of cream. One just complained and groaned over his plight. He sank to the bottom and drowned. The other kept singing and cheerfully kicked his feet until the cream turned to butter and he hopped away to freedom.

Life can be that way. Bad things happen to usand good things happen too.

There is anold Swedish proverb that reads: “Those who wish to sing can always find a song.” My prayer for you is thisthat you will live your life not kicking and screaming butkicking and singing about the faith, hope, and love we share in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.