Thy Faith Hath Made Thee Whole

Fourteenth Sunday after Trinity, Sunday, September 1, 2013

Fr. Todd Bragg

St. Margaret Anglican Church

Indianapolis, Indiana

"Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole." (St. Luke 17:11ff)

In today's Gospel passage coming to us from the 17th Chapter of St. Luke's Gospel, we are witness to Our Blessed Saviour travelling to Jerusalem and going by way of Samaria and Galilee, St. Luke reminds us.  On the journey, while travelling, Our Lord encounters a group of ten lepers.  St. Luke makes a point to tell us that this group of lepers must have been raising quite a bit of noise in order to attract Our Lord's attention.  Part of the reason might very well have been due to the fact that lepers were supposed to keep a distance away from those not afflicted with their disease.  We hear from Leviticus 13:46:  " . . . all the days wherein the plague shall be in him he shall be defiled: he is unclean: he shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be."  Thus, lepers were required to be separated from the general population.  Remember the movie Ben Hur, where Charleton Heston's mother and sister were thrown in prison for a crime they did not commit and during that long prison stay, they developed leprosy and had to go live in the area designated for lepers.  

Well, certainly these ten lepers attracted Our Lord's attention because He spoke to them and said nothing more than "Show yourselves unto the priest." (verse 14).  In other words, He does not come right out and tell them that they are cured,  He directs them to go to the priest.  Our Lord does this because He was following Jewish Law and Custom:  "This shall be the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing:  He shall be brought unto the priest." (Leviticus 14:2)  

On the way to see the priest, we are told that the group of ten lepers were cured.  And yet only one out of the ten has the decency to return to Our Blessed Saviour to give Him thanks and pay Him homage.  We hear in verse 15:  " . . .  and when one of them saw that he was healed, turned back and with a loud voice glorified God."  I imagine that he did glorify God when he discovered that he was cured of leprosy!  When we get something that we are wishing for, don't we show excitement?  If we are stuck in a jam, and then we find a way out, don't we show relief?  If we are given a miracle, don't we show amazement?   Well, imagine how it was with those who spent time with Our Blessed Saviour on a daily basis.  "Insomuch that the multitude wondered when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel." (St. Matthew 15:31)  When we witness miracles in our own life or in the lives of others, we should show amazement but we should also show gratitude to Our Heavenly Father Who makes all miracles possible.  This is what the Samaritan Leper did in today's story:  he showed his appreciation for the miracle that he experienced.

Now, Our Lord was surely impressed with the fact that this man took the time to come back and express gratitude and pay homage to Our Blessed Lord.  He was the only one to make a point to do this, Our Lord rightfully points out.  As a result, He says to the Samaritan in verse 19:  " . . . . thy faith hath made thee whole."  Elsewhere in St. Mark's Gospel, Our Lord uses this term when we hear of the blind man being cured:  "Go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole and immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus in the way."  (St. Mark 10:52)

In this context, the word "whole" refers to being restored back to health.  But if we look elsewhere in Scripture, we see that this word "whole" meaning "complete," "perfect," or "entire."  When the leper returned to Our Blessed Lord, he had already been cured, keep in mind.  So it was not until he returned and gave proper thanks and respect to Our Lord, it is then that Our Blessed Saviour tells him that his faith made him whole.  Thus, seen in this light, we are complete, we are whole, only when we give God thanksgiving and acknowledgement for all the wonders He does in our life.  

We can only be "whole" or "complete" when God is apart of our life.  Go to God on a daily basis.  Make God a part of your life.  Read your Bible everyday.  If it is only for five minutes today, work on making it six minutes tomorrow.  Show the proper gratitude and respect and homage and adoration that Our Blessed Saviour deserves.  The world we live in today represents the nine lepers that have received a blessing but do not show the proper respect or adoration that God deserves.  Let us be the Samaritan Leper that comes back to thank Our Lord.