Title: Gratitude of the Poor
Contents
Last October, we preached the word about prayer. Above all, we must never forget that God's people must be equipped with full armor (Ephesians 6:14) to win spiritual warfare.
In autumn, when the leaves turn red, this November is also the month of Thanksgiving. So, by making November a month of thanksgiving, I sincerely pray that it will be a month to live in gratitude before God. Just hearing the word gratitude seems to mean abundance. In addition, it is the character of a Christian that our God is very fond of.
Today's text, Luke 17, tells the story of ten lepers who met Jesus and were healed. Instead of giving them a healing command or declaration, Jesus tells them to go to the priests and show himself. At that time, lepers were isolated from the community and were required to have their clothes ripped and their hair loose and shout “unclean” and “unclean” (Lev. 13:45-46). The priest examined a leper who was said to be healed outside the camp, and when he was healed, he went through a very complicated and lengthy purification and atonement rite before accepting him into the community. When Jesus commanded this procedure to be performed, he had already presupposed that he would be healed.
As they went, their bodies were cleansed. But one of them stopped on his way and came back to Jesus to give thanks, and it is said that he was a Samaritan. Jesus said, “Were the ten not cleansed? But where are the nine? Is there only one foreigner who has returned to glorify God?” (verses 17-18). There are many other places in the Gospel of Luke where Samaritans and Gentiles are praised in contrast to the Israelites. The story of the Good Samaritan is an example. Also, in the story of the healing of the Gentile centurion's servant, when the centurion asks Jesus to give orders without needing to come personally, Jesus said, “I tell you. I have never seen such a faith among the Israelites” (Luke 7:9), contrasting the Israelites with the Gentiles.
The phrase “Is there only one Gentile?” implies that the other nine are Israelites. They received the same grace, so why did the Israelites go their way and only the Gentiles came back? Here is the secret of gratitude. The Samaritans are neglected and marginalized by the Israelites. those in the lowest positions. When our business is not going well or the economy is difficult, we often say, “I give thanks a lot to people who are good, I should have something to be grateful for,” but the truth is the exact opposite. It is not that those who are well and have received grace are thankful Rather, gratitude arises from those who are humble and lowly, such as the Samaritans, and those who are poor in spirit.
The idea that the rich are grateful is a mistake
It is a mistake to say that we will be grateful if we achieve something and become rich. There is no room for gratitude in the heart that strives to achieve more and is greedy. Conversely, like the Samaritan, who, because of his humility, felt grateful and grateful for Jesus' love for caring for someone like him, when we stand in humility and our hearts become poor, we can show genuine gratitude.
Gratitude begins with praise
To find the true meaning of gratitude, we need to look carefully at the actions of the Samaritan in today's text.
“But one of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and fell at his feet, giving thanks” (Luke 17:15-16).
Gratitude is Returning to Jesus
and he turned Here, the word turned around is a situation that occurs simultaneously with the previous 'praise'. To praise the Lord is to give thanks to Him, and at the same time it means to return to Him. This word is also originally used to mean to repent, which means to change the direction of one's path. We think of repentance only as something like penitence that takes place in a very heavy atmosphere, but the original meaning of the word is to turn back. We often think of repentance by bowing our heads and weeping, but here repentance, that is, repentance, takes place in loud praises of God. Repentance, repentance, and a turn in life are also in the loud praise of God. in the midst of being grateful. are two sides of a coin
As the ten men were walking on the road, they found that they were healed, but they all just wanted to go to the priest and show themselves. They didn't seem to do anything wrong. It was done as Jesus instructed. They would have returned to their homes and societies. That's it. But this Samaritan cried out and returned to the Lord, so that his body did not end in healing, but he was truly saved. Your body may get sick again or you may die, but it is good news that will never disappear to return to the Lord and hear the blessing of “your faith has saved you” and live a saved life. This is only possible in praise, thanksgiving, and turning to the Lord. By believing in Jesus, we too can experience healing or miracles and receive amazing success as a gift. But it must not be just going to the priest. The history of turning to Jesus, shouting and cheering at that very moment, is the most important history of our lives.
Gratitude is bowing down to Jesus
Finally, the Samaritan fell at Jesus' feet and gave thanks. At the beginning of the story, it is said that the ten lepers “stopped at a distance and raised their voices and spoke.” This is because lepers were not allowed access to healthy people. They said, “Jesus, have mercy on us,” and the title 'Teacher' used here is called 'Epistata' in Greek. It is a very high honorific name used when calling . That is why they desperately called on Jesus.
However, the other nine called them earnestly when they were sad, but did not think of Jesus when they were healed. Perhaps they also praised and thanked God. When you visit the priests, you are obliged to perform such a ceremony. But they forgot Jesus, whom they fervently called “Epistata.”
But this Samaritan came to the epistata he had called for, and fell at his feet. His appearance at the feet of Jesus itself is a beautiful scene and is a sign of salvation. A little while ago he had to cry out to Jesus from afar. Now that he is healed, he can come to Jesus' feet. The fact that he fell at the feet of Jesus is not merely a sign of worship, but the restoration of his being that he has become a complete man of God, and it is a confirmation that he has been saved.
The ten men glorified God in the same way, but this Samaritan glorified and praised God by bowing down before Jesus and giving thanks. This is the true meaning of glorifying and praising God. To truly glorify God, to truly praise Him, to truly give thanks, we must turn to Jesus above all else and bow before Him. Strictly speaking, the place of worship is neither a church space nor under the cross. Right at the feet of Jesus, this is a place to glorify God, to praise God, to worship, and to give thanks.
Some people try to live their lives with gratitude and not forgetting them by hand, who is the benefactor of their life. During the holidays, I visit such a person and express my gratitude. Sometimes I feel very sorry for not being able to see you. But there is only one person to whom we truly have to go, bow down and give thanks. He is Jesus Christ. If you go and meet the people who have given us love and become benefactors, you can see that they are all people who owe Jesus and are grateful to Jesus. No matter how well we greet and visit many people during Chuseok, if we do not give thanks to Jesus Christ, our gratitude will be in vain.
Like this Samaritan who did not dare come to the Lord and sang the epistata from afar, I hope that you will always come before the Lord with such a longing heart, such a humble heart and such a poor heart. When all the people in the world think that they have grown up and become who I am today, I hope that they will become humble and poor and realize deeply that what I am today is the grace of the Lord. So, I hope you will glorify and praise God with a loud voice and turn back to the Lord. I pray in the name of the Lord that I will throw my whole being before the Lord, fall at his feet, and give thanks only to Jesus Christ.
In addition, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will become Christians of faith who glorify God with conditions of thanks for the rest of 2007.