This week's sermon

Only one came back

        In today’s Gospel, Jesus healed ten lepers.

        Only one came back to praise him and thank him for the healing.

        Out of ten, only one came back.

 

        Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s Disease, is a terrible affliction.

        It comes from the Greek words “lepra”, meaning ‘skin’ and ‘lepros’ meaning ‘scaley man’.

        Leprosy damages skin, the respiratory system and the eyes.

        It often results in an inability to feel pain which can lead to not avoiding horrible injuries.

        People can lose parts of their bodies to the disease.

        Since it is so horrible it is hard to believe only one of the ten came back to thank Jesus for the healing.

        Lepers had to avoid contact with healthy people so they were forced into little groups of lepers by themselves.

        None of the normal divisions mattered to lepers. Jew and Gentile, Hebrew and Samaritan were all together in the colonies.

        And the one who came back to praise Jesus was a Samaritan, who Jews thought of as ‘unclean’ and ‘foreigner’, as Jeus called him.

        So, why did only one come back?

        Surely some of them wanted to go home to family and friends, brothers and sisters, children and wives and reengage with their lives before leprosy.

        One or two may not have believed they were truly healed. Not everyone believes in miracles.

        So, fully well, they may have stayed with the leper, living out their lives in exile.

        But one came back and Jesus told him his faith had made him well and sent him on his way.

        One came back.

 

        To make this more personal, have you ever been healed in some way, made to feel more whole than they had been by someone’s intervention in your life?

        Did you go back to thank them? To give them praise for what they did for you?

        Or did you merely go about your business?

 

        And on the other hand, did you ever support and help someone in their lives and have them come back to thank you and let you know what your help meant to them?

 

        I fear not many come back as that Samaritan did.

        Let’s take a few moments and ponder life-changing moments in our lives.

        Let us in our hearts and minds ‘go back’ and give thanks to those who helped us and accept the thanks of those we helped.

        Let us go back to God in silence and praise the Almighty for the many gifts of our lives God gave us.

        Let us go back and give thanks….