There is but One of whom we will think tonight, our divine Lord, who was on his way to Jerusalem. Passing along the frontiers of Samaria and Galilee, he had the Jews on one side of him, and the Samaritans on the other. He took a middle course, as if to show how he was going up to the New Jerusalem, loaded with blessings for the Jews on one side, and Gentiles on the other.
Luke 17:12. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers,
Oh, the abundance of human misery that met the Saviour’s eye: “ten men that were lepers”! I was reading only yesterday of what happened in Westminster, many years ago. When the king went along the highway, there were crowds of poor lepers on either side of the road, a shocking sight to see in this dear land of ours; and the king, in his tender mercy, simply passed a law that the lepers should not come near the road again to hook his gracious majesty with their misery. That is all he had to do for them; but our glorious King treated lepers very differently: “There met him ten men that were lepers.”
Luke 17:12. Which stood afar off:
The rule was that they should never come upon the public road, or near the highway, lest the disease should be taken by others who might come near them.
Luke 17:13. And they lifted up their voices,
Not much of voices were they likely to have, for the leprosy dries the throat, and the voice is low and husky, and when lepers cry, “Unclean, unclean,” it is an awfully sad sound, but very weak. These ten lepers lifted up their poor voices.
Luke 17:13. And said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.
They raised a plain cry, and the whole ten of them had to lift up their voices before they could be well heard.
Luke 17:14. And when he saw them,
Even before he heard them, he saw their pitiable condition.
Luke 17:14. He said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests.
That is all Jesus said to the lepers: “Go shew yourselves unto the priests.” They were not to go to the priests till they were clean, for the priests could not heal them. It was the healed man who went to the priests to get a certificate that he was healed, and so might mingle in society again. It was a strange message, then, that the Saviour gave to these lepers: “Go shew yourselves unto the priests.” And oh, the faith of these men! With only this shell of a promise, as it were, they cracked it, and found a promise inside it, for they said to themselves, “He would not send us to the priests for nothing; he would not mock our misery; he must mean to heal us:” and therefore away they went. A grand faith this! You are to come to Christ before you feel any grace in you; you are not to wait until you feel you are healed, and then come to him. Come just as you are, without any sense of grace, or any kind of feeling within you that is worth the having. Come just as you are.
Luke 17:14. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
As the sinner believes, he is saved. As a man begins to go towards the Saviour, the Saviour’s grace meets him.
Luke 17:15. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed,
They all saw that they were healed, and they all must have felt extremely glad. Oh, the happiness of feeling the hot blood cooled, and full health taking the place of languor and disease!
Luke 17:15. Turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God.
This was a sure sign that he was healed, that he had his voice back; the disease had so thoroughly gone that the sound, which seemed to hide away in his husky throat, now came out clear and loud, like the stroke of a bell.
Luke 17:16. And fell down, on his face at his feet, giving him thanks
When I read these words just now, I thought, that is where I would like to be, and that is what I would like to do, all my life, to fall down, “at his feet, giving him thanks.”
Luke 17:16. And he was a Samaritan.
Ah, me! nine of the seed of Israel were ungrateful, and only one poor outcast Gentile was grateful to the Lord for the miracle of healing that had been wrought.
Luke 17:17-19. And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There, are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith, hath made thee whole.
May the Lord Jesus thus speak to many a poor, leprous sinner here tonight! “Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole.”
This exposition consisted of readings from Psalms 113, and Luke 17:11-19.