Return and Give Praise - Luke 17:11-19

Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup

The communion meditation today is based on a passage of Scripture from the New Testament, Luke 17:11-19 (NIV). In this passage of Scripture about Jesus healing 10 lepers on the road to Jerusalem, we are reminded of the importance of pausing to praise Jesus for the blessings of in our lives, the greatest of which is the forgiveness of our sins. As we partake of the bread and drink the fruit of the vine from the cup, we remember His death on the cross to save us. All Scripture quotations are from the New International Version (NIV) and are used with permission.

As you listen to the episode today, my hope is that you will be encouraged from the time spent meditating on what Jesus has done for you. You are a special person; the one Jesus died to save!

Transcript

Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The title of my communion meditation today is "Return and Give Praise" I read from Luke 17:11-19 (NIV). All Scripture quotations are from the New International Version and are used with permission.

11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan.

17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

To have leprosy meant you were cut off from community and all human contact except among other lepers. There were no hugs for you. Everywhere you went, folks gave you a wide berth in response to your cry, "Unclean! Unclean!" Onlookers were devoid of sympathy because they believed either you or your forebears must have done something dreadful to warrant such punishment. You got what was coming to you. I say this because it was in these depths of despair that the lepers found Jesus and were healed! In faith, the lepers turned and headed for Jerusalem as it was only there they could appear before the priest and offer the required sacrifices. If they had been driving together in a van, Jesus would be quickly disappearing in their rearview mirror. Despite their good fortune, only one said, "Stop! Let me out! I want to thank Jesus!" And he was a Samaritan. He was the one who was twice removed from community - once, because of his genealogy, and second, because he was a leper. If we examine this passage of Scripture figuratively and look for meaning for us today, we see several parallels. All of us were like the lepers, we were excluded from the community of God, His kingdom, by virtue of our deadly disease, sin. Then in the depths of our despair, we found Jesus and were healed. I refuse to judge the nine lepers who hurried off in their van but clearly, they forgot to pause and give grateful praise to Jesus. Like the Samaritan, most of us are Gentiles by birth, we are not God's chosen people, but now we are His people by adoption, and we are healed - from death to life! There are many times in our busy lives we could pause and thank Jesus for our blessings, but I cannot think of a more fitting tribute and expression of thanks than partaking of the bread and drinking the fruit of the vine from the cup together this morning. After all, it was the way He wanted to be remembered. Let us pray.

Abba, Father. Today we bless and set aside this bread and the fruit of the vine in this cup to remember Your Son, Jesus. We know that the bread represents His body that was nailed to the cross, and the fruit of the vine represents His blood that He shed for us. As we pour out the wine from the cup, we are reminded of how Jesus poured out His own blood that our sins might be forgiven. Abba, Father. Thank-you for sending Jesus to save us. He offered His life on the cross that we might have the forgiveness of our sins through faith in Him. We are so grateful, Abba, Father, and we pause just now to remember and praise Him for this great gift. As we partake of the bread and drink the fruit of the vine from the cup, we remember His suffering on the cross for us. Like the Samaritan, help us to remember to be grateful. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Today, Jesus invites you to partake of His supper. I read from Matthew 26:26-28 (NLT).

26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.” Let us partake of the bread.

27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many." Let us partake of the cup.

And the assembly of believers said, "Amen!"

Until next time, from Numbers 6:24-26 (NIV), “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”

Artist's Note: If you have questions about the Lord's Supper, I invite you to visit my website, https://eatthisbreaddrinkthiscup.com, for a brief overview. The Eat This Bread Drink This Cup podcast is listed in most podcast directories, and I invite you to add my podcast to your favorites and be notified of new posts. There is a written transcript that accompanies each podcast, and you are free to use the transcript in accordance with US copyright law. My prayer is that you will benefit personally from this time with Jesus and encourage others to observe the Lord's Supper. In these trying times, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus!