MY DAILY COVENANT WITH GOD DEVOTIONAL
Devotion for Sunday June 28,
2020
Topic: Where Are The Nine?
Text: Luke 17:11 – 17
People
who had leprosy were required to try to stay away from other people and to
announce their presence if they had to come near the place where normal people
are living (Leviticus 13:46; Numbers 5:2, 3). It was for this reason, these
lepers were in village in between Samaria and Galilee (Luke 17:11) as we have
in our bible passage for the day. These lepers might have heard about Jesus
which made them to stand afar off and with a loud voice shouted "Jesus,
Master, have mercy on us!"
Sometimes
leprosy went into remission. If a leper thought his leprosy had gone away, he
was supposed to present himself to a priest, who could declare him clean
(Leviticus 14). Jesus sent the 10 lepers to the priest before they were healed
and they went! They responded in faith, and Jesus healed them on the way. Is
your trust in God so strong that you act on what He says even before you see
evidence that it will work?
Of
the ten lepers, it was a Samaritan (Luke 17:16) that came back to thank Jesus
for the mercies of healing received. This prompted Jesus to ask the question in
17:17, 18. Jesus had been distressed many times with his own people’s lack of
acceptance and faith (Luke 7:9; 8:25; 12:28). This time was no different.
Familiarity
breeds contempt. Ten men had been healed, but only one, the foreigner
(referring to the man from Samaria), came back to give glory to God. Jesus was
not so much concerned about being thanked as he was about the men’s
understanding of what had happened. The other nine went off, free from leprosy
but not necessarily free from sin through the salvation Jesus could offer.
What
is usually your attitude when God does something for you? Do you return to
thank Him or you behave like the nine?
Food for Thought: “A man’s indebtedness is not virtue; his repayment is. Virtue
begins when he dedicates himself actively to the job of gratitude” – Ruth
Benedict
Memory verse: Luke 17 v 17
Prayer:
Grant unto me O Lord, the heart of gratitude for everything you do for me.
