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"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." - Luke
There were ten of us there that day. Each of us needed healing from the leprosy that ravaged our bodies. We were outcasts...society didn't want us. In fact, we were ordered to stay away from the public and forced to cry out "unclean, unclean" if anyone approached us.
Then, we saw this man. He didn't avoid us like the rest, in fact, He came forward and called to us. We saw that it was Jesus. We had heard of this man. Some said He was the Messiah. Others said a great teacher. But, one thing they all agreed on was the fact that He had a healing touch. That's what we needed, so we cried out, "Have mercy on us."
I'll never forget what happened next. He told us to go show ourselves to the
priests. That could only mean one thing, we were going to be healed! We all looked at each other in disbelief and my friend turned and started towards the temple. We all followed, excitedly discussing the possibility of being cleansed.
Then, it happened. We hadn't gone very far and I felt kind of warm, even tingly. I could scarcely believe my eyes! My skin dried up. I was healed. I looked in disbelief at the others and they too were clean. It was a miracle! This man, Jesus, He WAS a healer!
My friend turned around and headed back. We called out, "Where are you going?" He said, "I'm going to thank Him. I'm going to thank Jesus."
I thought about turning around and going with him, but then one of our group
said, "I'm not going to thank Him until I make sure that this healing is permanent. I might get leprosy again tomorrow, for all I know." The others murmured in agreement. "We would have been healed anyway," another spoke up. "Yeah, we suffered enough, we were owed a blessing."
"But, don't you see, Jesus healed us. He is the one who.." I was interrupted
immediately. "You are the one who doesn't see," another man said roughly. "I've got to get home and tell my family and friends the good news. I've got to make up for lost time. Maybe I can get my old job back."
"Yeah, let's throw a party tonight." a younger man said.
"But, don't you think we should at least thank Jesus," I continued.
"Thanks, shmanks," the younger man said. "Jesus knows that we appreciate it, now let's move on."
It shames me to say it, but I never went back that day. In fact, I never did
say "thanks." I got so caught up in the healing and the comments of the others and wanting to start my life over that I never did tell the healer, Jesus, that I was grateful He came my way on that day. I never told Him how much I appreciated Him taking a chance on me. I never told Him how much His blessing meant to my life and to the lives of my family and friends. I never told Him how new I felt and how He changed my life that day.
That's gratitude for ya.
Christian, when I wrote the above story it was, of course, based on the account of the ten lepers who Christ healed. Only one returned to give thanks. However, as my version of the story unfolded before my eyes, I saw more than some ancient Bible story with men dressed in virtual rags, walking on the desert sands, tending sheep and armed with staffs. I saw ten of us standing around in our Tommy Hilfiger jeans, our Old Navy t-shirts and wearing our Nike tennis shoes. I saw a man holding a cellular phone in his hand, another one with a laptop under his arm and still another with a Gameboy. There weren't camels and horses, there was a line of Fords and Chevys and Saturns. It wasn't the desert, it was the Wal-Mart parking lot.
We weren't headed for the temple, but the mall. I saw Jesus standing
off in the shadows, watching us with sad eyes and longing for us to take just
a minute to come over and say, "Thanks." "Thanks, Jesus, for making our lives so comfortable." "Thanks, Jesus, for blessing us with so many things." "Thanks, Jesus, for eyes that can see, ears that can hear, legs that can walk." "Thanks, Jesus, for our families, our children, our spouses, our homes, our cars, our jobs, our churches." "Thanks, Jesus, for the peace and joy and assurance and companionship and patience that you give me each day."
He longed for us to just say, "Thanks, Jesus, for what you did that day, oh
that day, when you took my place, when you took my beating, when you died my death, when you paid that price that I had no way of paying."
"Thanks, Jesus, for changing my life when you saved my soul."
There are hundreds reading this devotional today, each having been blessed
by the Lord in many, many ways. Only some will turn back. Only some will take the time this morning to say, "Thank you," to Jesus for all that He does.
Will you be one of them?
Have a "Wonderful DAY in Christ,"
Jimmy D. Brown