Luke 17:1-19

Jesus had been spending much of His time teaching the disciples concerning numerous truths which would help them live life according to God’s ways, especially after His death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven. Many of His teachings were in direct contrast to the teachings of the scribes and Pharisees, who were the so-called religious leaders of the day. In the first ten verses of Luke 17, Jesus instructs them regarding the obligations they have to other people (17:1-4) and to God (17:5-10). Jesus says, “It is impossible that no offenses [opportunities to sin] should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones” (17:1-2). Those who claim to follow Christ should never be guilty of presenting someone with an opportunity to sin; in fact, Jesus said that it is better to die than to lead someone down the wrong path. Followers of Christ also have a responsibility to confront those who are sinning in hopes that they will repent and if they do, they should always be forgiven no matter how many times they have sinned against you (17:3-4).

After addressing the obligations Jesus’ disciples have to others, He talks briefly about the obligations they have toward God. This conversation begins with the disciples saying, “Increase our faith” (17:5). The disciples’ words here may have been a reaction to Jesus’ last statements about the high standards He had given them regarding their relationships with others. They knew that they needed Jesus to give them more faith if they were going to be able to achieve these standards. Jesus responds to their request for more faith by saying, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you” (17:6). Jesus was revealing that the amount of a person’s faith is not what is most important, but rather the object of that faith. God alone must be the source of a person’s faith and the disciples had to realize that they could never maintain right relationships with God or others without exclusive faith in Him. In case the disciples felt as if obeying Jesus’ commands through faith in God made them special, Jesus reminded them that these obligations were expected duties (17:7-10).

It is apparent that some time lapsed between Luke 17:10 and Luke 17:11, so we find Jesus stopping somewhere near Samaria and Galilee while on His way to Jerusalem (17:11). When He arrived in this village, ten men with leprosy shouted from a distance, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” (17:12-13). Jesus immediately cleansed all ten lepers of this horrible disease, but only one of them, who was a Samaritan, returned to thank Jesus for His miraculous work (17:14-16). When Jesus saw that only one of them returned to give thanks He said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” (17:17-18). The fact that the only leper who returned to give thanks was a Samaritan, shows that Jesus is teaching about the acceptance of Him by the Gentiles while the Jews continued rejecting Him. Salvation from the penalty of sin has been offered to all people (Jews and Gentiles), but only applicable to those who receive it by faith in Jesus Christ.

Dear God, with Your help, I desire to do Your will.