Misfortune makes strange associates : and of these lepers one was a Samaritan. Illness, too, will make men think of God who have never thought of Him before : and as our Lord passed along the way He attracted the attention of these poor outcasts. Conscious of their misery, they stood afar off; and yet — even if nothing came of it — they must appeal to Him. They might have heard that one of the distinctive features of His work was that " the lepers were cleansed " ; they might have heard that He had commissioned His representatives not merely to heal the sick, but specifically to " cleanse the lepers." They had an indistinct idea that He was in some sense the Healer of mankind ; and so, as He passed, they lifted up their voices and said : " Jesus, Master ! have mercy on us." This prayer was itself an act of faith : and, as such, our Lord at once accepted and tested it. There they were, all ten, covered with leprosy, but He bade them do that which already implied that they were perfectly cleansed ; they were to take a long journey, which would have been a waste of labour unless they could believe that He would make it worth their while. " Go," He said, " shew yourselves unto the priests." To go to the priests for inspection unless they were healed would only
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have led to a repetition of their sentence as proved lepers ; and therefore, in the miracle after His Sermon on the Mount, He first healed the leper and then sent him to undergo the prescribed inspection. Here — it must have perplexed them sorely — He does nothing but bids them go, as if already cleansed. Could they trust Him sufficiently to make the venture, to obey when obedi- ence seemed irrational at the moment, in firm persuasion that it would be justified by the event ?
Yes ; they took Him at His word : they set out for Jerusalem — a distant journey, along an unwelcome road. But lo ! as they went, and, as it would seem, before they had gone far, a change was already upon them. They looked each at the others, each at himself, and they saw that an Unseen Power was there, cleansing them, they knew not how, of the foul disease, and restoring to them the freshness and purity of early years. "As they went they were cleansed." It was in the act of obedience that they obtained the blessing ; it was by assuming that our Lord could not fail that they found Him faithful.
They were all cleansed — all ten. But, like Naaman the Syrian returning with his blessing for the man of God, one of them thought that something was due to the author of so signal a deliverance. He left the others to pursue their onward road ; they might go on to claim at the hands of the priests their restora- tion to the civil and religious life of Israel. He left them ; he turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and then he prostrated himself at the feet of his Deliverer, thanking Him for this act of mercy and power. And our Lord blessed him once more in another and a higher way. A greater possession than even that of freedom from leprosy was assured to the poor Samaritan in Christ's parting words, " Thy faith hath made thee whole." But ere He did this our Lord also uttered the noteworthy exclamation, " Were there not ten cleansed ? but where are the nine ? There are not found that returned to give glory to God save this stranger." ^
^ In a sermon on this text, Luther says : " This is the right worship of God, to return glorifying God with a loud voice. This is the greatest work in heaven and earth, and the only one which we may do for God ; for of other works He stands in need of none,
1 H. P. Liddon.
ST. LUKE XVII. 17 323
neither is He benefited by them." Luther is surely right ; for we have nothing to give to God, because what we have is all His gift ; but this we may do, we may return thanks to Him for the good- ness and mercy with which He blesses us, and that this is well pleasing to Him we learn from His words in the 50th Psalm, saying : " If I were hungry, I would not tell thee : for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats ? Offer unto God thanksgiving ; and pay thy vows unto the Most High." ^
^ I believe thanksgiving a greater mark of holiness than any other part of prayer. I mean special thanksgiving for mercies asked and received. It is a testimony to prayers being remem- bered, and therefore earnest prayer. It is unselfish, and more loving.2
The subject is Ingratitude. Let us look at — I. Its Extent. II. Its Causes. III. Its Penalty.
The Extent of Ingratitude.
1. Ten lepers were cleansed. Nine went on their way, with never a word of thankfulness. The averages of gratitude and ingratitude do not vary much from age to age, and the story suggests that ninety per cent, of those who receive God's benefits are more or less wanting in gratitude. Man is prone to forget his benefits and mercies. He lays more stress upon what he has not than upon what he has. It is our human tendency to take our blessings for granted and as a matter of course. Man seems to look upon all good things — pleasurable sensations, comforts, even luxuries — as his birthright, upon which he has a natural inalien- able claim, giving him just ground for complaint if he does not receive them. A stroke of good fortune, an agreeable surprise, creates only a transient ripple and leaves but a dim impression ! Instead of being thankful for it as a sheer gratuity, an extra dividend, the individual only finds in it a reason why he should receive more of the same kind and oftener.