It’s a Thankless Job

Bible Text: Luke 17:11-19 | Preacher: Rev. Jenn Geddes

Saying thank you is one of the first lessons in manners we ever get. Parents turn to their children and ask, “What do you say?” and usually a quiet “thank you” follows. This lesson is often included with a few other manner moments with questions like, “what’s the magic word” followed by “please” and the one I used a lot with my brother. “Tell him your sorry”, “I’m sawry”, “Say it like you mean it.” “I’m sorry”. I don’t know many languages but at last count I knew the words thank you in French (merci), German (Danke), Spanish (gracias), Japanese (Domo), Mandrin (sheshe), Cantonese (doja), Hawaiian (Mahalo) and Hebrew (Toda). This is not because I have any great linguistic experiences but because when we encounter those who speak other languages it is the first sentence we try to learn. It’s a simple phrase that can mean so much. Thank you. But it would appear that sometimes, like children, we need a reminder. This past summer a challenge popped up on facebook, “The Grateful Challenge”. How it worked is that someone would challenge you or nominate you to do the challenge and for seven consecutive days you were to post 3 things for which you were thankful. Days one and two often expressed thanks for things one would expect, spouses, children, friends, family and location. But after about day 5 the things people were thankful for became a little more obscure and a little more trivial, things like the food they ate, the television show they watched. It is actually a more challenging exercise than one might expect. In fact, I would argue it would be easier to write about three things we don’t like for 7 consecutive days. Yet, there really is so much to be thankful for but the very fact that something like the “grateful challenge” exists means that we don’t say thank you enough.
Thankfully, Jesus didn’t expect much thanks in his life and ministry. Good thing too, since most people responded with everything but thanks. This morning’s gospel passage is a little different. When Martin Luther was asked to describe the true nature of worship he answered, “The tenth leper turning back.” I was curious about his answer. It seems obvious, in that the true nature of worship is praise to God. However, this Samaritan leper does a few things differently that makes him stand out from the rest. I wonder what it says statistically, that one in ten praise God with thanks? What other things make this Samaritan leper different.
Jesus often worked in the in between, in between the righteous and the radical, in between the wealthy and the poor, in between men and women, in between borderlands. Luke begins our story this morning by stating that Jesus was travelling to Jerusalem through the region between Samaria and Galilee. Samaria and Galilee border each other which means there really isn’t a region in between . It is also a very bizarre way of getting to Jerusalem. In fact, if Jesus is at the border of Galilee and Samaria he is actually going in the opposite direction, away from Jerusalem. But many scholars believe Luke is using the geography to make a theological point. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem meaning on the way to the cross, and along this journey all over the countryside Jesus encounters the very people who need to meet God, people in between. Along the way he reveals something about the nature of the kingdom God wishes to establish. This story is exactly that, an encounter that happens in between- between ethnic and religious differences, between the healthy and the broken, between those who see and those who don’t. It is those who are on the margins, who are most firmly established in the in between regions, who encounter God.
Jesus is passing by these lepers who call out, “Master have mercy on us.” Taking a good look at them, seeing them for who they are, broken, hurting people, Jesus says “Go show yourselves to the priests.” The priest in the village being the one who has the power to determine whether they are clean or unclean, whether they are welcomed into the community or rejected to the outskirts, whether they show signs of leprosy or not. One of the lepers, who happened to be a Samaritan, someone deemed doubly unclean by the Jewish priests, realizes, sees, that he has been healed and runs back to Jesus, kneeling at his feet in gratitude.
Perhaps part of our thankfulness comes when we truly see what we are thankful about. Meaning that it is only when we stop to recognize what it is that is being revealed that we have a deep sense of gratitude. As people of faith we know that seeing and believing are not necessarily related, we are often required to believe without having any insight or tactile experience, but perhaps gratitude is about seeing, as well as about encountering God.
All the lepers are healed- each and everyone of them but one, however, saw, recognized that his experience included an encounter with God . Our NRSV translation says, “When he saw that he was healed he turned back”. This former leper saw, noticed, stopped rushing off in the same direction as all the others and turned back to praise God. This former leper let it sink in and he realized his gratitude. Because he sees what has happened he recognizes Jesus. Because he sees what has happened he has something for which to be thankful and praises God with a loud voice. Because he sees what has happened he changes directions. I believe this is what Martin Luther meant when he said that this was the true nature of worship. Saying thank you is one of the most basic human behaviours and yet we don’t do it enough or it means nothing more than a greeting. But true thankfulness means seeing, recognizing, changing, and ultimately praising God with a loud voice.
This is often easier than it seems. We might see God in our midst and even recognize Christ’s example in each other but we rarely see change as part of the equation. This story is an invitation to recognize that what we see and how we react makes all the difference. David Lose, President of Lutheran Theological Seminary asks, “In the face of adversity do we see danger or opportunity? In the face of human need do we see demands or gifts? In the face of the stranger, do we see potential enemy or friend?” But this seeing, believing and gratitude goes even further. “When we look to God, do we see stern judge or loving parent? When we look to ourselves do we see failure or beloved child? When we look to the future do we see fearful uncertainty or an open horizon?” How we answer these questions are closely related and shapes our behaviour, outlook, and gratitude.
One key point about this story is that the leper who turned back praising God is told, “your faith has made you well.” Jesus’ vocation was often a thankless one but there were the few who stopped to see God in their midst. Nevertheless, the gift of healing was not restricted to just that one leper. It was given to all ten-regardless of whether they saw, recognized or praised. In fact the only thing these ten have in common is in fact that they changed. These are people who lived in between, on the margins, and Jesus healed each one of them without the expectation of being thanked. Sometimes when we see others we also project expectations- we expect that if we do something for them, they will do something for us. We expect that if the church helps them than they will in turn help the church. But Jesus did not withhold healing from those who did not turn back. Being healed is offered to everyone, those living in between, on either side, or completely lost. There are no restrictions and no expectations. All ten were made well. The difference is that the one who turned back was not only healed but made whole. He has encountered God and when he sees what has happened this former leper is drawn back into relationship with God through his gratitude.
Among the traditions and turkey or the quiet afternoon, between the special events and the ordinary, God is constantly offering moments in which we can truly encounter God and one another. Moments when we are invited to stop, see, recognize, change and ultimately praise God in a loud voice. For that, we can truly be thankful. Amen