"The Attitude Of Gratitude!"
Luke 17:11-19
INTRO.Psalms 92:1-2says,"It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To show forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night." America has a lot to be thankful for! We live in the greatest Country in the world. Most of us have plenty to eat and to spare, and we have the freedom to speak, worship, and express ourselves freely! But too often we are ungrateful for the things we have!
Matthew Henry said, "What a pity it is that this earth, which is so full of God's goodness, should be empty of His praises, and that of the multitudes that live upon His bounty there are so few that live to His glory!" (Matthew Henry. The Quotable Matthew Henry. pg. 310). 1 Thessalonians 5:18 encourages us, "In everything give thanks…". Songwriter Wendell P. Loveless told of a 64-year-old woman in Illinois who had been confined to a bed for more than 16 years. She was in constant pain and unable to move her limbs. Yet she was one of the most thankful people Loveless had ever met. She rejoiced that God had left her a great blessing-the use of the thumb on her right hand. The other hand was stiff and completely useless. With a two-pronged fork fastened to a stick she could put on her glasses, feed herself through a tube, and turn the pages of a large Bible.
Although it took great effort, everything she did was with the use of lust one thumb. She once said to a visitor, "I have so much to be thankful for." When asked why, she replied, "Now that my sins are forgiven, I can lie back and daily drink in the great love of Jesus my Savior." Asked if at times she became despondent, she replied, "I'm perfectly content to lie here as long as the LORD keeps me in this world, and I'm also ready to leave whenever He calls me." (Henry G. Bosch. Our Daily Bread. Volume 38. Number 2. May 14, 1993).
That lady had the "Attitude Of Gratitude!" I want us to see today that, as God's people, we must have "The Attitude Of Gratitude!"
NOTICE:
(1)The Grace Bestowed To The Ten
Luke 17:12-14—“And as he entered into a certain village, there
met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: And
they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have
mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go
showyourselvesuntothepriests. And it came to pass, that,
as they went, they were cleansed.”
*Our LORD, on His way to Jerusalem to face death on the Cross for all mankind, was met by ten lepers. These stood afar off and cried, "Jesus, Master, have mercy upon us."
NOTE:
A. All Were Lepers Which Stood Afar Off (v12). Reduced by Leprosy
to the common consciousness of humanity! Leprosy was a dreaded
disease, which began with brownish-red spots on the body which
later became thickened nodules, losing their skin covering,
becoming "running" ulcers with subsequent loss of tissue and
ensuing deformity. These had leprosy and stood afar off! Why?
They commanded to by the Law. Leviticus 13:45-46 says, “And
the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his
head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall
cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days wherein the plague shall be in
him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall dwell alone; without
the camp shall his habitation be.”
Leprosy in the Bible is symbolic of sin! We are all horrible sinners!
Isaiah 53:6 tells us, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have
turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him
the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 64:6 says, “But we are all as an
unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we
all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us
away.” Romans 3:23—“For all have sinned, and come short of the
glory of God.” The words “come short" are translated from a Greek
word which means "to miss the mark" Sin is like leprosy! We are all
born sinners (Psalm 51:5)! We are not great sinners when we are
born, but gradually Sin grows in our lives until it eats away at our
lives, causing great devastation! If not cured, it brings death! James
1:14-15 warns us, “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn
away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it
bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”
All of us, at one time, were "spiritual lepers"! We were afar off from
God! But by His grace through His blood we are made NIGH! Paul
wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9, 12-13—“For by grace are ye saved
through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of
works, lest any man should boast. That at that time ye were without
Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers
from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the
world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are
made nigh by the blood of Christ.”
B. All Cried For Mercy (v13). “And they lifted up their voices, and
said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” The LORD wouldn't have
healed them unless they asked! God won't save the sinner unless he
calls upon Him! Romans 10:13 says, “For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
ILLUS. Olympic silver-medal figure-skater, Paul Wylie remembers
how he came to Christ. He had heard a minister preaching
about Bartimaeus the beggar, blind and helpless. When
Jesus saw him, He asked, "What wilt thou that I should do
unto thee?"
That story touched Wylie's heart. For the first time, he saw
the importance of putting his faith in Jesus-not just
knowing about God. He learned that just as Blind
Bartimaeus had to ask to be healed, so he had to admit he
was a sinner and ask forgiveness. (J. David Brandon. Our
Daily Bread. Volume 38. Number 4. July 31, 1993).
Salvation is FREE, but you have to ask for it!
C. All By Faith Received The Word Of God (v14). “And when he saw
them, he said unto them, Go show yourselves unto the priests. And it
came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.” To be
cleansed of their leprosy, all ten had to go show themselves unto the
priests! This was in accordance to the Law of Moses! Leviticus 14
By faith, the sinner must receive Christ as his LORD and Savior or
else die in his sins! Romans 10:9-10 says, “That if thou shalt confess
with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that
God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the
heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth
confession is made unto salvation.” Jesus said in John 3:18—“He
that believethonhimisnotcondemned:buthe that believethnotis
condemnedalready,becausehehathnotbelievedinthenameofthe
only begottenSonofGod.”
If by Faith we receive Him, God declares us clean! In Isaiah 1:18 the
Lord invites, “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD:
though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though
they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Friends, THAT’S
GRACE!
(2)The Gratitude Of The One
Luke 17:15-16—“And one of them, when he saw that he was healed,
turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, And fell down
on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a
Samaritan.”
- THE SHOUTING. “And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God, And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks…”. Notice the one which turned back to give glory and thanks to the LORD was a Samaritan (vl6b). This Samaritan had a lot to be thankful for! So do we! Psalm 103:1-5 says, “Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases; Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies; Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's.”
ILLUS. There's a legend about the day the Sun didn't rise. Six O'clock
came and it was dark. At seven o'clock it was still night. Noon
came and it looked like midnight. By four in the afternoon.
people thronged the Churches to beg God for Sun. The next
morning, huge crowds gathered outdoors to face the eastern
sky. When the first rays of sunlight pushed open the door of
the morning, the people burst into cheers and praised God tor
the Sun. (Haddon W. Robison. Our Daily Bread. Volume 37.
Number 12. March 30, 1993).
- THE SURPRISE. Recall the shock of the Samaritan woman in John 4, from the request of water made of her by our LORD! The Jews and Samaritans had little dealings. The Samaritans were half-breeds and thus hated by the Jews! But THANK GOD! Our LORD never saw nationalities, races, colors, or creeds; He just saw people in need! Aren't you glad God is still the same today? No matter who we are or what we have done; Christ will receive us, if we will come to Him by faith! The Lord assures us in John 1:12—“But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” God has saved us, given us a good Church home, a fine family, and a roof over our heads, shoes on our feet, clothes on our back, and food in our stomach! He is due our gratitude! Ephesians 5:20 tells us, “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
ILLUS. The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No
Americans have been more impoverished than those-who,
nevertheless, set aside a day of Thanksgiving. --H.W.
Westermeyer (Albert M. Wells, Jr. Inspiring Quotations-
Contemporary & Classical. pg. 202).
What is gratitude? It is thankfulness in action! Hebrews 13:15 tells
us, “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God
continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” This
Samaritan, when he saw that he was healed, stopped to give glory and
thanksgiving to God (vv. 15-16)! This leper was told by Jesus that he
had received an even greater blessing (v19)! A cleansed soul now
resided in a cleansed body. (Herbert Lockyer. All The Holy Days And
Holidays. pg. 167). We have so much to be thankful for (Psalm
139:17-18a)! Yet so many times, we are as the nine, we fail to show
gratitude to our God! Gratitude finds cause for thanksgiving in the
most ordinary and sometimes most painful things in life! (Romans
8:28; Philippians 4:4).
ILLUS. If you set before me a tray of sand containing small particles of
iron or steel, clumsy fingers, as mine, would never be able to
separate the two.
But give me a magnet to swing over the tray, and in a moment
of time the invisible particles of metal will be drawn by the
attraction of the magnet. The unthankful heart is like a finger
in the sand searching for filings. It can find no mercies for
which to praise God, but as the magnet attracts metal, so
gratitude finds in every circumstance, something to praise and
glorify God about. (Herbert Lockyer. All The Holy Days And
Holidays. pp. 167-168).
The hymn-writer wrote:
"Count your blessings, Name them one by one, and it will surprise you what the LORD hath done."
(3)The Ingratitude Of The Nine
Luke 17:17-18—“And Jesus answering said, Weretherenotten
cleansed?butwherearethenine? There arenotfoundthat
returnedtogiveglorytoGod,savethisstranger.”
- THE LORD’S INQUIRY. “And Jesus answering said, Weretherenotten cleansed?butwherearethenine?…”. Ten were cleansed, yet only one, him a stranger, returned to show gratitude! Where are the Nine? It is evident that this ingratitude on the part of the Nine, stung at the very heart of our LORD Jesus Christ by His question (v17). Christ, the very essence of gratitude unto His Father, was deeply saddened when His own countrymen failed to return to say, "Thank you!" But are we not many times as the nine? In Isaiah 1:2-3 we read the Lord’s complaint, “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the LORD hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.”
- THE LOST OPPORTUNITY. “There arenotfoundthat returnedtogiveglorytoGod,savethisstranger.” Once an opportunity passes it can never be reclaimed. God blesses us all beyond measure and gives us many opportunities to praise Him for his blessings! We, all, like the nine, take all we can get from God, but give Him very little in return!
David asked in Psalm116:12, "What shall I render unto the LORD for
all his benefits toward me?"
As believers, He Is due:
- Our Time (Psalm 90:12).
- Our Talent (1 Peter 4:10).
- Our Testimony (Psalm 107:2).
--He Is due our ALL! "All to Jesus I surrender, All to Him I freely give..."
But many times, we show indifference and ingratitude! What is
ingratitude? :
1)It Is Sin! (Romans 1:21)--It is sin against God, Society, and Self!
2) It Is Robbery!Malachi 3:8a—“Will a man rob God...”. The nine
robbed the heart of Jesus the gratitude His miracle of healing
deserved. (Herbert Lockyer. All The Holy Days And Holidays. pg.
167). We rob Him when we fail to acknowledge His wonderful
works toward us! Psalm 68:19 reminds us, “Blessed be the Lord,
who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation.”
3) It Is Cruel! Colossians 1:3 says, “We give thanks to God and the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you.” Scottish
poet, Robert Burns said, "Man's Inhumanity to man makes
thousands mourn." (Herbert Lockyer. All The Holy Days And
Holidays. pg. 168). Sometimes, sadly enough, people have to die
before they are appreciated! We must, as believers, show gratitude
to each other here and now! The epitaph, "Gone, But not
forgotten," should in some cases read, "Gone, But soon forgotten!"
because of our ingratitude and unloving remembrance of the
departed one! (Herbert Lockyer. All The Holy Days And Holidays.
pg. 169).
4) It Is Selfishness! It may be that the "nine" cleansed believed they
received only what was their due! But all of us are where we are t
today by grace! (1 Corinthians 15:10).
What a happier and more joyful world this would be if people were more grateful! We must, as God's people, have an "Attitude Of Gratitude!"1 Thessalonians 5:18 says, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”
CLOSING:How grateful are we for what God has done for us? Do we thank Him continually for His love, grace, and mercy? Or are we as the nine, unthankful and ungiving of praise?
God's Will for us is that we live a life of "Thanks-Living"!