Jesus had been ministering in Perea. He then returned to Bethany, about 1.5 miles from Jerusalem, to raise Lazarus. After raising Lazarus, He and His disciples went north away from Jerusalem. In Luke 17:11 we find that Jesus and His disciples had gone as far north as Samaria and Galilee. While returning to Jerusalem, the encounter with the ten lepers took place.
Commentators say circumstances meant Jesus took an alternative route to Jerusalem.
Maybe it was due to the unreceptiveness of people in Samaria towards Jesus. Samaria was the normal, direct, and easy route a traveller would take to get to Jerusalem.
Maybe it was due to God’s timing as Jesus was on his way to the cross.
Maybe it was God plan that these desperate men encounter Jesus and his mercy.
What we do know today is that God is everywhere. We know whenever we gather in His name He is there; we know He promises He will never leave us or let us down. (Matt 18:20; Heb 13:5)
However, we also know that Jesus is restricted in doing His stuff when there is unreceptiveness. (Mark 6:5) A receptive heart, church or atmosphere is an open door to Jesus’ involvement.
Paul encourages the Corinthian christians to open wide their hearts that the power of God’s message might impact their lives. (2 Cor 6:13)
If we will offer an invitation Jesus will come. If we will open closed doors He will come in.
I know you would never slam the door in Jesus’ face if He came knocking. I know God’s people don’t want to have closed doors to God in their lives.
Often our unreceptiveness to Jesus is not about Him, it’s about how He does things.
However hard the Church tries WE Can’t Prescribe how Jesus should or shouldn’t operate.
However hard the Church tries We Can’t make Jesus Predictable. (John 6:14-15)
Jesus is not obliged to take the normal, usual, easy or direct route to do what He wants to do.
It’s God’s Way or No Way.
There is a spiritual battle in our lives and in God’s Church between God’s Way & My Way. I am sure you know the song made famous by Frank Sinatra, “I did it my way.” My way often means what I am comfortable with, what I familiar with, what I want, how I want it, when and where I want it.
So when God does things a different way a spiritual battle can occur. We can become unreceptive to God’s way of doing things, but unreceptiveness shuts the door in Jesus’ face.
Ten Men were standing on the outskirts of a village begging. They were not on the usual route to Jerusalem, but they had still heard about Jesus.
When they realised it was Jesus coming towards them hope, excitement, and expectancy arose in their hearts.
Sometimes the church can get so familiar with the familiar that they don’t get excited any more, just bored! If we are bored then church is boring.
We can become so familiar with the time of worship, the preaching, a quick drink and off home till next week when we do it all over again. That’s boring! It’s no wonder people stop coming to church.
To change the boredom may mean God has to change things. More importantly, to change the boredom in our own hearts we must keep watching out for Jesus and get excited and filled with hope and expectancy.
Sometimes Jesus came in an unfamiliar way, using a child, a sinner or a prostitute to get people to listen or to open their lives to him. (Matt 19:14; John 8)
God may use me to change you or you to change me.
Ten Men were standing on the outskirts of a village, religiously/socially ostracized because of their leprosy.
They stood in the normal place for lepers.
Jesus has a heart for the disadvantaged, vulnerable and sinful so the place the lepers stand is where Jesus can be found.
Who is standing on the outside of our lives/church feeling they are unacceptable? Not good enough?
Do we need to change our approach to reach people?
The message of the Church is often all about what is wrong in the world and in peoples lives. Instead our message should offer hope, excitement and expectancy.
The Church is often drawn into talking about what we are against, such as Muslims, Homosexuals, Palestinians etc. I am not against them because they are people whom God loves passionately.
Recently thousands upon thousands of people lost their lives or were fighting for their lives under fallen buildings and some Christians came out with, ‘it’s because there is voodoo in Haiti. That is why the earthquake happened.’ What a stupid, uncompassionate statement to make!
Is it not better to talk about the exciting hope, life, joy, peace, fulfilment and satisfaction there is in being a follower of Jesus?
Ten Men were standing on the outskirts of a village at a distance to those passing by. They were standing in the normal place for lepers.
This story shows us that no one is too far away for God to hear their cry for mercy.
A cry for mercy was the normal thing a leper would shout if a Rabbi like Jesus was passing by. A Rabbi would either say, “you are clean. Go and show yourself to the priest” or “you are not clean. Stay away.”
Jesus, in an unfamiliar manner, didn’t touch them or elaborate as to who was to blame for their illness. He didn’t tell them to tithe or give an offering.
Jesus told them to do what a Rabbi would not tell them to do, ‘go and show yourselves to the priest.’ They had not been healed so they should have stayed in the same place.
Their Healing was not instant, their healing was delayed, and their healing took place after they departed from Jesus.
Let’s not live for only the instant, spectacular moments that may never happen in our lives.
Let’s Just obey and follow Jesus because He loves us and we love Him, and following Jesus means the blessing of God will follow us.
Ten stigmatised Men were now Ten Blessed Men. You may have once been sick, depressed, lonely or sad. But NOW you are blessed. Maybe you were none of those things but you were once a sinner, lost and blinded to the Gospel. NOW you are blessed because of Jesus.
Only One of the ten men returned to thank and praise God. What happened to the other nine?
Perhaps, they were so excited and went on to see family or carried on to see the priest. Maybe they said, “it’s about time my blessing came” and wrote a book on it.
I have seen people get blessed, healed, supported, a job, a wife, but off they go without returning to thank Jesus
The issue is not saying “thank you,” but is the continuation of the journey / walk with or without the Lord. You can get something from Jesus but if you are not going on in life with the Giver, then you have not really got anything.
Maybe today you need to cry for mercy. God is not too far away.
Maybe you are bored with church and you need to find the excitement of following Jesus.
Maybe God is changing you and you want it your way. This is not Subway, it has to be God’s way.
