The 10th Leper: Remember to Give Thanks and Praise

The scriptures include Luke 17:11-19 and Psalm 66:1-12.  It was preached on October 13, 2019 at Morton Presbyterian Church, Hartsville, SC and at Florence Communities Vespers service that afternoon..

The 10^th Leper; Remember to Give Thanks and Praise

Count your blessings…

always be grateful…

say thank you;

These are phrases we have all heard before…

Psalm 66 begins with a similar theme:

Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth;
      sing the glory of his name;
     give to him glorious praise.
 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!

Give thanks and Praise!

What are you and I thankful for?

When do we say thank you?

In what ways and for what reasons,

do we give thanks and praise to God?

You and I give thanks through prayer;

we make a joyful noise in song;

we come together in worship to praise God.

There is much to be grateful and thankful for:

God’s grace,

salvation through Christ,

and the gift of the Holy Spirit that resides within each of us.

In the scripture from Luke the 10^th leper

was the only 1 of 10 to return and give thanks and praise.

Before we answer the question why only him,

we need to better understand how the lepers suffered.

You and I encounter the world through our senses…

sight,

smell,

hearing,

taste,

and touch.

We see God’s beauty in creation,

we smell the freshness after a rain,

we hear the birds chirping,

we taste the sweetness of fresh fruit,

and we grasp hands of others as we pray together.

These are just a few ways we encounter God

through our physical senses.

You and I also connect with each other through our senses.

We speak and listen to each other;

we look into another’s eyes;

we hold hands.

What do you and I miss when one of our senses is lacking?

Many times in the Bible,

blindness is used as a metaphor for being unable

to see truth.

Jesus opens their eyes, restores them to wholeness.

In this scripture in Luke, there are 10 lepers.

Leprosy includes many types of skin disorders.

Lepers are considered unclean;

they are outcasts,

separated from others,

unapproachable.

Imagine not being allowed to touch others

or to be touched…

no handshakes,

no pats on the back,

no hugs,

no physical touching at all.

The pain, the isolation,

the loneliness they must experience makes for a hard life.

The 10 lepers approach Jesus, however, they keep their distance

(as they must).

As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him.

Keeping their distance, they called out, saying,

“Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

The lepers desire mercy,

alleviation from their suffering,

they wished to be healed,

to be made clean, whole,

and welcomed back into society.

They trusted in Jesus, God’s agent of healing.

There is another meaning to the translation

when Jesus tells the 10^th leper:

“Get up and go on your way;

your faith has made you well.”

‘Made well’ also means to be saved.

Salvation has been given to the 10^th leper.

Do you realize who the 10^th leper is?

He is a Samaritan.

In Jesus’ time,

Samaritans were disliked and considered outsiders.

So even with his leprosy made well,

he was still a foreigner, an outsider, other.

Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem, to die;

he heals the 10 lepers, the Israelites and the Samaritan;

all are ‘made well’, all are given salvation.

The kingdom of God is for all!

The 9 follow Jesus’ instructions:

Go and show yourselves to the priests.

On the way they were made well.

So why did only one, the Samaritan, return to give thanks?

Perhaps the 9 thought they had been given what they deserve

after so much suffering or

they were preoccupied with the possibilities

they now could embrace

-return to family and friends,

be part of society again

or maybe obediently following Jesus’ instruction

they went to the temple, showed the priests,

and then gave thanks to God at the temple.

Was none of them found to return and give praise to God

except this foreigner?”

The 10^th leper, the Samaritan, is a model of faith.

You and I are to give praise to God.

Psalm 66 says to make a joyful noise, sing praises,

shout so others, all the world knows God’s great deeds!

Bless our God, O peoples,

    let the sound of his praise be heard.

Let our praise be heard!

The first question in the Larger Catechism asks

What is the chief and highest end of man?

Man’s chief and highest end is

to glorify God and fully enjoy him forever.

Praise God!

The apostle Paul tells the Philippians:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again, I will say Rejoice.

And he tells the Thessalonians:

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing,

give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

We are to rejoice, to give thanks,

embrace God’s mercy and grace and share it with all:

all who will see, all who will listen,

all who we can touch with our words and actions.

What are you and I already doing as individuals,

as a community, and

as Christians

to share the Gospel, shout, sing, and rejoice?

As disciples, we strive to live a life where you an I

look beyond our own needs,

and care for others as God has cared for us.

We acknowledge what God has done for each of us,

through God’s grace and mercy,

we have been made well and saved by Christ Jesus,

God’s love made flesh,

and through the Holy Spirit,

you and I answer God’s call to love neighbor,

help those in need,

and spread the Good News.

What new opportunities is God calling us to try and do?

You and I may not encounter a leper,

yet there are those suffering,

feeling like an outsider,

being treated as other,

someone longing for the simple touch of a kind hand.

We can be

the one who listens to their stories,

the one who speaks words of comfort and understanding,

the one who sees when others look away,

the one offering a gentle hand to hold

or a shoulder to cry on.

You and I blessed!

Let us also be a blessing!

As we Get up and go on your way be sure to:

Pray!

Rejoice!

Shout with joy!

Sing to the glory!

Lend a hand, reach out to others!

and finally,

Remember to always give thanks and praise!

Amen.

The Good Treasure

This sermon was not preached.  It was written for Sunday October 6, 2019 (World Communion Sunday).  I was scheduled to preach the vespers service at Presbyterian Communities in Florence, SC but the schedule was changed.

The Good Treasure

Today is World Communion Sunday;

some of you may have attended worship this morning

and received communion.

Communion, the Lord’s Supper is a sign and seal of God’s love

and covenant of grace.

You and I remember as a community the sacrifice, death,

and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and his love and

continuing presence

as we are commissioned to serve God and neighbor.

What is the purpose of World Communion Sunday?

It is simple,

it is about our unity of faith,

unity in Christ.

We are one,

no matter who we are as individuals,

we are one in faith.

So how does this scripture from Second Timothy connect to

our worldwide community of faith?

Second Timothy is part of the pastoral epistles of Paul.

You and I are used to the letters of Paul as he writes

to churches and communities.

However. this letter is to Timothy, an individual,

Paul’s trusted co-worker.

This epistle is about the faithful life of an individual Christian.

Paul uses the familiar kinship language he is fond of,

calling Timothy son.

Throughout his letters he uses kinship to express unity,

that we are all ‘brothers and sisters’ in Christ.

Paul has a relationship with Timothy;

not just with Timothy, also with his family.

I am reminded of your sincere faith,

a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois

and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you.

Lois and Eunice are believers!

Timothy has been raised in a legacy of faith,

a tradition within his family.

I imagine that sounds familiar to most of us.

Faith thrives in families;

we have been nurtured in faith

by family,

by friends,

by mentors.

We are our experiences and

what has inspired us

has shaped us into believers and disciples.

This letter to Timothy is written near the end of Paul’s life,

some scholars view it as a last will and testament;

I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy.

Paul is remembering what he has done

and is in a way,

passing on the torch to Timothy.

Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you have

heard from me,

in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

Guard the good treasure entrusted to you,

with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.

The good treasure.

What is this Good Treasure?

Faith.

Faith is something you and I carry within ourselves.

When I read this verse, I am reminded of Paul’s words

to the Corinthians:

But we have this treasure in clay jars,

so that it may be made clear that this

extraordinary power belongs to God

and does not come from us.

A better translation from the Greek is earthenware vessels;

‘Vessel’ referring to the human body.

The clay jars are you and me;

The treasure is the Holy Spirit working within us,

inspiring our actions of faith.

The rest of the scripture from Second Corinthians

speaks of endurance using the metaphor of clay;

the trials and suffering that we encounter,

yet, there is still strength.

We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed;

perplexed, but not driven to despair;

persecuted, but not forsaken;

struck down, but not destroyed;

You and I are molded by God,

from the second chapter of Genesis:

…then the Lord formed man from the dust of the ground,

and breathed into the nostrils the breath of life;

and the man became a living being.

Through Christ we carry the Holy Spirit

within our earthenware vessels.

Paul know the gift of God (faith) is within Timothy;

it is within each one of us.

Timothy is called to pass on the legacy of faith,

we too are called to do this;

proclaim the gospel,

share our faith,

and do not be ashamed or embarrassed by our faith.

In verses 9 and 10, Paul sums up the Gospel in a few words:

God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling,

not according to our works but according to his own

purpose and grace.

This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages

began, but it has now been revealed through the

appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus,

who abolished death and brought life and immortality

to light through the gospel.

Faith, the good treasure as Paul defines it,

is a combination of

grace enabled energy/power,

the work of the Holy Spirit +

compassion/love +

sound mind and self-discipline.

In the Gospel of Luke, we are told:

The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks. You and I have the good treasure. Grace and the Holy Spirit enables us to do God’s mission in the world. We are called as individuals, as Timothy was called; You and I have been nurtured in faith as Timothy was nurtured: We too have a faith legacy. Grace has been given unto us;       the Holy Spirit enables us;       you and I have the good treasure… The treasure of faith. Guard it well, share it with others,       and pass it on as you would a light from a candle,        one to another, neighbor to neighbor. Your treasure will shine and be a light in the dark places       until finally the worldwide community of faith       will shine in unity.