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1 out of 10

On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village, he was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.”When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice; and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan. Then Jesus answered, “Were not ten cleansed? Where are the nine? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:11-19)

This isn’t intended to sound crass, but the 10 lepers were not on Jesus’ itinerary. They happened to be on his way to Jerusalem. Of course we know that no one happens to be on Jesus’ agenda–He does everything on purpose. Theirs was a desperate plight. They had no hope of healing, no promise of restoration, no chance of relationships. Ostracized, they were confined to being outside the city gates. Their calling card was “unclean.” This day they cried to Jesus for mercy…and he responded. And as they went they were cleansed.

Then one of them. Only one. Ten were set free from a life of condemnation and shame. Only one said “thank you.” Ten were liberated from social isolation. Only one fell at Jesus’ feet. Ten were healed. Only one praised God. Only one. Jesus noticed.

“Were not ten cleansed?”

Yes!

“Where are the nine?”

Who knows? “

Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”

Yes, that’s right.  And he’s a Samaritan.  Samaritans were Israel’s outcasts. This leper turned worshiper was an outcast because he was a Samaritan. He was an outcast because he was a leper. Hopeless was his middle name. Rejection was his constant companion. Despair was his roommate.

And he said to him, “Rise and go your way; your faith has made you well.”

1 out of 10.

Will you be among the 9 this Thanksgiving? Or will you be the one who remembers your life before Christ and returns to give him thanks?

Be the 1.

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Ignorance is Deadly

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge;
because you have rejected knowledge,
I reject you from being a priest to me.
And since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.  Hosea 4:6

Israel traded the glory and grace of God for the shame and disgrace of the world.  They didn’t know God.  Their lack of knowing God resulted in their destruction.  They should have known better.  Hosea’s own life was an object lesson in the deep love of God for His people.

In Hosea 1:2, God gave Hosea a strange command: Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord.  Hosea, God’s prophet, married a prostitute.  They had three children together.  Then she left him for another man.

Then Hosea did the unthinkable.  He showed up in the red light district and found his wife, Gomer, selling her body.  He stepped into the fray of lust-filled men and bid on his own wife.  In his words: “So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and a homer and a lethech of barley.”  I wonder how she felt.  The embarrassment.  The shame.  What was the look on her face when she looked over the men who wanted her and saw her own husband?  And he wasn’t any husband…he was the prophet to the king of Israel!

Then he said to her, “You must dwell as mine for many days.  You shall not play the whore, or belong to another man; so will I also be to you.” (3:3)  In other words, Gomer, you’re coming home!  I want you to be mine.  There’s no mention that he asked her who she had been with, what she had one, or where she had gone.  He bought her back.

Then, in chapter 4, God calls Israel out for her ignorance.  Israel was ignorant of a God who would stand among the lust-filled suitors of the day and bid the highest price on his bride.  Israel was ignorant of a God who would embarrass himself by condescending to her and bringing her home.

And today most of the world is dying from ignorance:  ignorance of a God who became a human being, was tempted in every way like we are–yet without sin–and was ultimately made sin for us that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Ignorance is killing people.

They can’t imagine a God who would mingle among the mess of their lives and take them home to live with Him.

He did and He does.  That’s the message of Christmas.  God became a human being, the Creator walked among the created.

Do you know Him?

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3 Shibboleths for Modern-Day Saints

shib·bo·leth

ˈSHibəliTH,-ˌleTH/

noun

noun: shibboleth; plural noun: shibboleths

  1. a custom, principle, or belief distinguishing a particular class or group of people, especially a long-standing one regarded as outmoded or no longer important.

I stumbled across this word. In Judges 12, the Ephraimites fought with Jephthah, God’s appointed judge. They tried to disguise themselves and Jephthah had one test for them: pronounce “shibboleth.” The Ephraimites couldn’t pronounce the word! They couldn’t make the “sh” sound and pronounced it “sibboleth.” It’s a simple word meaning corn, but it’s hard to pronounce. Talk about a spelling bee with a price–when they couldn’t pronounce it they were killed for trying to infiltrate God’s people!

Today would be impostors still try to infiltrate God’s people. I call them the “If-thens.” If God is good, then why…? If God is loving, then why…? If God is just, then why…?

Let me provide you with 3 modern-day shibboleths.

  • God will do whatever you need for as long as you need because He loves you. In Deuteronomy 31:6 Moses is encouraging his protege Joshua: Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. Whatever or whoever is assailing you, God is with you.  He promises His presence and provision always.
  • God will only ask of you what is good for you and what is glorious for him. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Jesus, Matthew 6:9-11) God knows what we need better than we do and will only give us what is ultimately good for us. I confess that I struggle at times to see the goodness in the path carved out for me. But it is a shibboleth I hold onto.
  • God will make all things right. When I struggle with the injustice and unfairness in the world, I cling to this. In Psalm 58 David is crying out to God against evildoers. His last words ring loud: Mankind will say, “Surely there is a reward for the righteous; surely there is a God who judges on earth.” In a sentence David is saying that God rewards the righteous and punishes the wicked. This life cannot serve as a measure of fairness or justice. The wicked sometimes prosper and the righteous sometimes suffer. One day it will all be made right.

I carry these three statements in my planner. Every week I pull them out and read them.  I need to be reminded.  I’m writing to remind you today.