Where Are The Nine?

“Where Are the Nine?”

Introduction – A Lesson in Gratitude

Let me start with a little story.

A farmer once found an injured eagle lying in one of his fields. Its wing was broken, and it could no longer fly. The farmer gently took it home, wrapped its wing, and nursed it back to health. For several weeks, he fed it, protected it, and watched it regain strength. Then one day, the eagle’s wing was whole again. The farmer carried it out to a high hill, removed the bandages, and let it go. The eagle soared upward into the sky — higher and higher — until it disappeared into the clouds.

Days went by. The farmer looked up each day, half hoping that the eagle would come back, maybe just once, to circle over him or perch on the fence in gratitude. But it never did. It simply flew away — healed, free, and forgetful.

Friends, that story paints a picture of how many people treat the blessings of God. We call on Him when we’re broken, but once we’re healed, we often just keep flying without ever turning back to thank Him.

That’s what we’re going to talk about today — the great need for the people of God to thank God.

Scripture Reading

Let’s open our Bibles to Luke 17:11–19.

“Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. And they lifted up their voices and said, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!’ So when He saw them, He said to them, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and said, ‘Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?’ And He said to him, ‘Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.’”

Point 1 – Understanding the Leper’s Condition

To appreciate this story, we must understand how terrible leprosy really was. Leprosy was the most feared disease in that day. It didn’t just scar the skin — it destroyed the body. It began with small growths on the eyelids and palms, spread across the body, caused open sores, swelling, and finally ate away the flesh and bone.

In the end, the leper was literally rotting alive. But even worse than the disease itself was the isolation. The Law demanded that lepers live outside the city walls. They couldn’t hug their children, hold their spouses, or worship in the temple. They were outcasts — untouchable, unwanted, unclean.

Now think about that. Ten men, cast out, alone, sick, dying, and hopeless. Yet when they saw Jesus, they lifted up their voices and cried, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

And you know something? That’s exactly where all of us were before we met Jesus. We were covered in the leprosy of sin. We were separated from God, spiritually rotting away. But one day, we cried out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on me!” — and He did.

Point 2 – Healing Through Obedience

Verse 14 says, “So when He saw them, He said to them, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.”

Notice something here — the healing didn’t happen instantly. It happened as they went. They obeyed His word, even before they saw the results.

Sometimes God asks us to step out in faith before we see the miracle. He says, “Go,” and as we move in obedience, the healing comes.

Many Christians miss their blessing because they won’t take that step. But these lepers did — and as they went, the sores disappeared, the pain vanished, the flesh was made whole.

That’s the power of obedience to the Word of God.

Point 3 – Only One Returned

But here’s where the story turns tragic.

Verse 15 tells us, “And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God.”

Only one! Ten were healed — only one turned back.

Jesus Himself asked the question: “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?”

The nine received the blessing, but only one gave the Blesser the glory.

And church, that’s still happening today.

Many cry out for mercy — few return in gratitude.

Many receive God’s blessings — few remember who gave them.

Point 4 – The Samaritan’s Example