Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?

Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and 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?" And he said to him, "Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well."

- Luke 17:11-19

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued his teachings on mercy. Over the course of the past several readings, Jesus has given various examples and talks on the practice of mercy to different groups of people who were gathered at table: there were sinners and tax collectors (for which he was criticized by Pharisees and scribes, whom He also addressed), and His disciples. Over the course of the recent readings, Jesus gave parables and teachings directed at each of these groups, and it's been a fascinating exploration of His ability to give each group a lens through which to view the kingdom from their own perspective. Yesterday, the disciples asked Him to "Increase our faith" - He taught them that it was no more than their duty as servants of the kingdom to practice the kind of mercy He taught, especially to the "little ones" under God's care.

Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. My study bible notes, "The lepers stood afar off because they were not permitted to approach people or enter into the villages." Jesus, we're told, is on His way to Jerusalem. This is the beginning of His journey toward His Passion. Jesus has just finished addressing different social groups, all of whom were gathered at table with Him: tax collectors and sinners, Pharisees and scribes, and disciples. He had teachings appropriate to each of them, all on mercy and the merciful use of whatever power or goods we have at our disposal. Here, he is "approached" (by standing afar off) by real social outsiders: ten lepers. Lepers were officially excluded from society by religious authority. In order to "re-enter" into community, they had to receive an official certificate from a priest. Leprosy was considered a direct punishment for sins - and those afflicted could not worship at temple.

And they lifted up their voices and said, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" So when He saw them, He said to them, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. My study bible notes: "Only a Samaritan, despised by Jews, sets the example of gratitude for his healing. God's blessings are all too easily taken for granted or forgotten." This Samaritan is, so to speak, the "outsider's outsider." That is, not only was he a leper, he was also someone from a group despised by the Jews and therefore not one of the chosen people - not a descendant of Abraham. He couldn't place his faith in his genealogy or heritage. Recently we've been given the story of the rich man whose poor beggar neighbor went to the "bosom of Abraham" while he was tormented in hell because of his failure to be generous (see If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one man rise from the dead). Here we have a different facet of those who do not seek Christ's kingdom - even though they've been given the miraculous gift of healing. Their difference with the Samaritan is the faith they put in their inheritance by lineage. It is, in fact, a story of redemption and salvation: only the "outsider's outsider" understands what this means, and its absolute purity of spiritual inclusion based solely on love and mercy.

So Jesus answered and 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?" And he said to him, "Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well." There is an important understanding to this story - that it is the outsider, made well and redeemed, who remains, in the end, in proper relationship to God. We don't really know what happened to the rest of the lepers. Perhaps they went their way, grateful to be returned to the community, and this is enough for them. But it is this outsider, the Samaritan leper, who truly sees the reality of God's mercy and love. It's not conveyed merely by human hands, through the authority of a priest and the worship in the temple - it is, in fact, a gift from God, and he returns with gratitude to the source of that gift. He sees spiritual reality that the others do not see.

It's interesting, also, that Jesus teaches the Samaritan leper, "Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well." Were not the other lepers also made well? But where was their faith? We can assume, it seems to me, that the wellness that Jesus speaks of here is a deeper and different wellness than cleansing from leprosy. This Samaritan is spiritually well: his faith has comprehended where the gift comes from, and he is in right-relatedness to God. So, in the end, it is our understanding of relationship to the ultimate authority that puts us in right relationship. Jesus does not even say - and this is important - that this gratitude goes to Himself personally. No - Jesus as Son is Steward; but all power, just as all confession and spiritual revelation, originates with God the Father. And, we are told that the Samaritan gives not only Jesus thanks, but "gives glory to God." We must therefore conclude that the revelation of faith comes to the Samaritan through the action of the Father - and so, his right-relatedness, return to community, is complete at the deepest and fullest level possible. He is not merely returned to temple and community, but to the kingdom. Therefore, his faith has truly made him well in ways the other lepers are not.

Luke's Gospel repeatedly teaches us of the outsiders who are brought in through this ministry and this kingdom. This story truly teaches us that there are none excluded, and that it is indeed our faith that makes us well. It sets us into right-relationship not just with our fellow beings in this world but also within the entirety of a cosmos and the many dimensions of reality beyond our grasp - with the Father from whom all things come, including the authority of the Son. Where does your faith come from? Is it about being included in community, or lineage or heritage? Or do we reach beyond that, to an understanding of relationship to Creator which reaches over all people, all things, all of Creation and beyond what we know? This is a significant teaching about Christ and what He is here for - and where our faith leads us, and just how far community really extends. Where is your faith and whence does it come? How does it make you well, and for what purpose? Who does it serve?