>>>
Luke 17:15, 16 - Praising & Thanking God For His Blessings.

Luke 17:15, 16 - Praising & Thanking God For His Blessings.

Luke 17:15, 16 (NIV) 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.  

Luke 17:15, 16 (MSG) One of them, when he realized that he was 
healed, turned around and came back, shouting his gratitude, glorifying 
God. 16 He kneeled at Jesus' feet, so grateful. He couldn't thank him 
enough--and he was a Samaritan.  

CONTEXT: Jesus Heals Ten Men With Leprosy (Luke 17:11-19).

APPLICATION COMMENTARY - Emphasis On Verse 15 & 16.

Not only was this man a leper, he was also a Samaritan - a race 
despised by the Jews as idolatrous half-breeds (see the note on Luke 
10:33). Once again Luke is pointing out that God's grace is for 
everybody. [Life Application SB] 

People who had leprosy were required to try to stay away from 
other people and to announce their presence if they had to come near. 
Sometimes leprosy went into remission. If a leper thought his leprosy had 
gone away, he was supposed to present himself to a priest who could 
declare him clean (Leviticus 14). Jesus sent the ten lepers to the 
priest before they were healed  - and they went! They responded in 
faith, and Jesus healed them on the way. Is your trust in God so strong 
that you act on what he says even before you see evidence that it 
will work? [Life Application SB] 

  Jesus used this occasion of healing to teach an important 
lesson about thankfulness. "Didn't I heal ten men?" he asked. "Where 
are the other nine?" Jesus recognized our human propensity to ask 
for miracles from God and yet fail to give him the glory. 
  Why is expressing thanks so important? It's really a question 
of need: God doesn't need your thanks, but thankfulness 
acknowledges your dependence upon him. When you acknowledge what he has done 
for you, you are completing the cycle that God begins when he 
promises to meet all of your needs. God gives to you out of his great 
love and compassion, and you "return thanks" to him. Developing a 
heart of praise and thanksgiving gives you a proper perspective of 
your place in God's plan. Being thankful is not so much about what it 
does for God as what it does for you. [The One Year Bible for New 
Believers re Luke 17:11-19] 

  Thankfulness is foundational to the Christian life. 
Thankfulness is a conscious response that comes from looking beyond our 
blessings to their source. As Christians, we have been forgiven, saved 
from death, and adopted as God's children. There could be no better 
reason for a grateful heart! 
  Lepers in Jesus' day were social outcasts. Their highly 
contagious condition ostracized them from those they loved. When ten lepers 
encountered Jesus, they desperately implored Him to show them mercy. Jesus 
sent them to the priest. As they obeyed, they were healed! These ten 
men had been forbidden to enter their own villages, to live in their 
own homes, to work in their own jobs, or even to touch their own 
children. Imagine what unrestrained joy must have filled them as they ran 
back home again! 
  One of the lepers, a Samaritan, stopped and ran back to thank 
Jesus. Samaritans were normally shunned by the Jews, but Jesus had 
healed him! Jesus asked him, "Where are the others?" Ten lepers had 
been healed. Ten lepers were reveling in their newfound health. Ten 
men were joyfully rushing to share the good news with those they 
loved. But only one considered the Source of that blessing and stopped 
to thank and worship the One who had given him back his life. 
  We, too, have been healed and made whole by the Savior. We are 
free to enjoy the abundant life the Savior has graciously given us. 
Could we, like the nine lepers, rush off so quickly to glory in our 
blessings without stopping to thank our Redeemer? God looks for our 
thanks. Our worship, prayers, service, and daily life ought to be 
saturated with thanksgiving to God (Php 4:6). [Experiencing God Day by Day 
by Henry and Richard Blackaby re Luke 17:15, 16] 

LINK TO AN EXCELLENT MINI-VIDEO ON THIS PASSAGE:

Prayers of Gratitude and Praise by Shawn Boonstra:

http://www.itiswritten.com/betterway/episode/2009/11/23