“THE FEAR OF THE LORD”

Luke 19: 1-10

An elderly woman had just returned to her home from an evening worship service and was startled to find an intruder in her house. Catching the man in the act of burglarizing her home, she yelled, "STOP! Acts 2: 38!" ("Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven.")

As the burglar stopped dead in his tracks, the woman calmly called the police and explained what she had done. Shortly, several officers arrived and took the man into custody.

As he was placing the handcuffs on the burglar, one of the officers asked, "Why did you just stand there? All the lady did was yell a scripture verse." "Scripture?" replied the burglar, "She said she had an axe and two 38's!"

There is a story told about young Teddy Roosevelt: Mittie (his mother) had found he was so afraid of the Madison Square Church that he refused to set foot inside if alone. He was terrified, she discovered, of something called the "zeal." It was crouched in the dark corners of the church ready to jump at him, he said.

When she asked what a zeal might be, he said he was not sure, but thought it was probably a large animal like an alligator or a dragon. He had heard the minister read about it from the Bible. Using a concordance, she read him those passages containing the word ZEAL until suddenly, very excited, he told her to stop.

The line was from the Book of John, 2:17: "And his disciples remembered that it was written, 'The ZEAL of thine house hath eaten me up.'"

People are still afraid to come near the "zeal" of the Lord, for they are perfectly aware it could "eat them up" if they aren't one of His. Our Lord is good, but He isn't safe.

In our gospel lesson for today we need to keep a “fear of the Lord” mindset in order to understand Zacchaeus’ reactions and words when Jesus comes to visit Him.

Listen to Luke 19: 1-10:

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it. A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature.

So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way. When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today."

So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him. All who saw it began to grumble and said, "He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner."

Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, "Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much."

Then Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost."

We've  all heard the Sunday School version - but perhaps there

may be more to this story.

Zacchaeus finds himself hosting God’s only Son at His house and he is so excited, happy, and scared that he immediately promises to do a whole bunch of things to make himself right in Jesus’ eyes. You’ve met people like this that are caught up in an extraordinary moment who over-reacts.

People who are so over-the-top that they turn other people off (and miss God’s mark) that people think they’re a little bit touched in the head. They are kind of like Westboro Baptist Church responders protesting at funerals of people because they may have talked in love to/with a gay person.

The type of person who sees a sinner and begins to pile up rocks. You know what I’m talking about. People who insist on direct application of God’s Old testament fury as if Jesus has never happened, who insist that God still demands a Temple Sacrifice system. 

The answer is somewhere in the middle.

Jesus’ response sticks to message – “yes, Zacchaeus, salvation has come to your house because you are qualified to receive it,” but HE doesn’t acknowledge Zacchaeus’ “Pharisee” moment of attempting to earn his own salvation.  

Jesus has already taken care of the price and restitution of Zacchaeus’ salvation.

Zacchaeus overdoes it in his fear of the Lord. But what is the middle ground?

What is our biggest fear? Being separated from God or being with God? We have been promised that nothing can separate us from God’s Love unless we choose not to seek it.

Satan, whose name really should be “splitter,” because that is his desire to separate as many people from God as possible operates on a kind of reverse Holy Spirit and gives us at least 5 reasons to fear and keep God out of our lives.

>  If you let him, God will ruin your life (God will take all of you).

>  If you let him, God will ask you to be a fool for him and make you do all kinds of strange things normal people don’t do.

>  Getting “saved” (whatever that is?) is really boring and you will never have another fun day ever.

>  Even if you do come before God it’ll never last and you will be right back at all the old bad stuff quickly (old dogs can’t learn new tricks) because you are a loser.

>  Even though God is fantastic you fear you will backslide and then God won’t take you back and you will never be perfect because you never can be perfect.

(Most of these issues Jesus has covered in His teachings – our future perfection comes from His perfection and our victory over death is HIS victory over death!)

That said, very few people today fear God. Hebrews 10: 31 plainly warns, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” We should fear God. Only a fool doesn't fear God. Even for born-again Christians, the Bible warns of “the terror of the Lord” in 2 Corinthians 5: 11.

He has promised us that we are His Children so we need not worry, nor fear for His wrath. He asks us to confess and place His Son in our hearts as Savior.

Americans do not fear God anymore. Our culture is saturated with demonic influences that has deteriorated into a decadent society of pleasure-seeking, ungrateful, spoiled-brats.

Those who fear God obey God. They believe the Bible is God's Word, which hardly anyone believes these days. You'll have a difficult time finding someone who is a genuine born-again Christian today, let alone someone who tries to diligently live by the Bible because they love Jesus Christ. Even back in Bible times such people were rare. Philippians 2: 21, “For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's.” 

It is becoming once again as it was during Noah's time before the flood, when everyone lived only to eat, drink, get married, and party (Matthew 24: 37-38). They do not fear God.

America has largely deteriorated into a drugging, boozing culture of dirty-minded television addicts, selfish pleasure-seekers, gluttons, sports-fanatics, gossipers and critics, self-righteous hypocrites, liars, marriage quitters, idolatrous celebrity worshippers, immoral ingrates, arrogant fools, SMART-PHONE IDOLATORS who have NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.

Americans are aborting babies at the rate of 24% of all pregnancies. Old people and sick people are being offered suicide options, Nasa admits that our skies are being laced with Lithium Salts, our water is being poisoned with chemicals, and our government officials aren’t being held accountable to laws.

Politicians are giving each other huge sums of money to get along while veterans are being asked to return already earned bonuses and pay for wartime services. It’s chaotic out there, but you can’t find any fear of God out there.

Instead you find a music celebrity who says she’ll demean herself to encourage you

to vote for a certain person. Now that’s probably what happened before the flood.

“If we're the far right, they're the far wrong! Amen! They call us pro-life, they're pro-death! ... If they're politically correct, we're Biblically correct! ... You can't be both!”

As God’s people we are charged with living out the grace of Jesus Christ which was fore-ordained in Isaiah 11: 1-5:

And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root. And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel, and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of godliness. 

And he shall be filled with the spirit of the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge according to the sight of the eyes, nor reprove according to the hearing of the ears. 

But he shall judge the poor with justice, and shall reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: land he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. And justice shall be the girdle of his loins: and faith the girdle of his reins.

We live in fear of God as we cultivate these characteristics:

Wisdom                 Understanding                 Counsel

Fortitude                Knowledge            Piety

Fear of the Lord

I’d rather fear God and be wrong about the world then to win the respect of the world and be separated from God. Help change Satan’s nickname from splitter to splutter in your life. Amen. 

When you know it, confess it!

Luke 18: 9-14

One of the most basic ideas of Christianity is “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10: 9)

Yet there is another element that must also be considered: All of us have likely heard the phrase, “Confession is good for the soul.” It’s an old Scottish proverb but there is a word missing. The proverb actually reads, “Open confession is good for the soul.”

I believe there is biblical truth to this idea of confessing a little bit more than just Jesus as Savior. In fact, the Bible supports the conclusion that absent open confession, salvation is not guaranteed.

You can imagine how startled I was to come to the realization that most mainline denominations today don’t believe open confession is necessary for salvation. Just this past week a woman told me she asked her pastor if confession was necessary for salvation. He told her no and emphasized that Jesus saved her 2,000 years ago when he died on the cross.

I wonder how any denomination, pastors, and biblical scholars could read what Scripture says repeatedly and reach such a conclusion. Interestingly, this person went on to say that all she needs to recite for salvation is the Apostles Creed. “I say it every Sunday,” she said.

I believe the Apostles Creed, too – every word of it, and we’ve spent a lot of time on it. But the Apostles Creed is a statement of faith, not a tool to secure one’s salvation.

I also believe that the Catholics have it wrong in confession. You don’t have to confess to a priest, you have to confess to God. Given how humans wrongly repeat things why would I want somebody between me and Him? Today we’re going to talk about confession, repentance, and salvation.

BUT LOOKING AGAIN

The Prussian king, Frederick the Great was once touring a Berlin prison.

The prisoners fell on their knees before him to proclaim their innocence -- except for one man, who remained silent. Frederick called to him, "Why are you here?" "Armed robbery, Your Majesty," was the reply. "And are you guilty?" "Yes indeed, Your Majesty, I deserve my punishment."

Frederick then summoned the jailer and ordered him, "Release this guilty wretch at once. I will not have him kept in this prison where he will corrupt all the fine innocent people who occupy it." 

In 1884 Grover Cleveland was running against James G. Blaine for the presidency of the U.S. Blaine supporters discovered that Cleveland, who was a bachelor at the time, had fathered a son by Mrs. Maria Crofts Halpin, an attractive widow who had been on friendly terms with several politicians.

Subsequently, Republicans tried to pin an immorality tag on Democrat Cleveland by distributing handbills showing an infant labeled "One more vote for Cleveland" and by having paraders chant, "Ma, Ma, where's my pa? Gone to the White House, Ha, Ha, Ha!" The move, however, backfired badly.

Rather than deny the story, Cleveland decided to tell the truth and admit the intimacy. This candor helped defuse the issue, and Cleveland was elected president. 

When you know you are wrong admit it. Confess it. Repent and clear your soul.

There is a right way and a wrong way to confess that makes your repentance so much hot air. Listen to Luke 18: 9-14

Jesus told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt:

"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, `God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.'

But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, `God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."

There are plenty of people like the Pharisee among us. They do what they do because of arrogance or ignorance. They have been taught wrongly or have, because of a “faith-heart” defect chosen the road that will lead to death.

People get into the mindset that says “I’m good because I do…” “I’m good because I give…” “I’m good because I don’t …” “I’m good because I’m not like…” God doesn’t want you for what you think or do, He wants you because you are willing to submit to His Will and embrace His Love.

People who campaign for social, civil, animal, or personal rights or are working to reduce Greenhouse gasses aren’t ever going to earn salvation because of it. You have to have a “come to Jesus moment.”

If you believe for a moment that Jesus’ work on the cross saved you automatically from hell, you are dead wrong. The verse I used to begin today’s message says that you have to do two things to secure salvation. Note that if you do, the verse emphasizes, “You will be saved.”

“The verb “will” is the future tense. In other words, salvation was been provided for us by Jesus’ death on the cross, but it is secured at a future date and time when the two conditions prescribed by Romans 10: 9 are met.

That is exactly what Jesus meant at John 14: 6 where he said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus death on the cross is the “way” to salvation – the means, not the end.

There are other verses that support this truth. Think about these as you examine what your church believes.

• 1 John 1: 9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 

• Matthew 10: 32: “Therefore whoever confesses me before men, him I will also confess before my father who is in heaven.”

• Psalm 32: 5: “I acknowledged my sin to you, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.” 

• Acts 2: 21: “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

We are creatures who have been given free will. We must use that free will to seek out what we must do to be counted among God’s elect.

When it comes to salvation, Jesus provided the way, and God will knock on the door to our hearts. But the next move is up to us. Indeed, confession is not just good for the soul. It’s what saves it for an eternity.

Amen.

WAKE-UP CHURCH 2 Timothy 3: 14- 4: 5

This coming weekend (October 20-22) I will be attending the Southwest Radio Ministry’s Conference entitled “Wake-up America 2” being held in Gettysburg, PA.

During these three days there will be presentations such as “The Role Of Christianity In American Government,”  “Is America Being Set Up for an Arab Spring,” “Big Brother and the Coming Apocalypse,” and “America In Prophecy 2017: Are You Ready,” among many others.

Some would find it a very boring and dry meeting, others, like me, who study Bible Prophecy and know what signs of the end times are, approach it with an attitude caught between viewing a train wreck and fascination at seeing God’s Word come alive before our eyes.

Now I know most Christians are living each day as if they are walking down a dark path and whistling with false bravado. Each of us sees things going on that scare us but we want to just maintain that “self-imagined” protective bubble around us and our families that prays for sameness and safety for our lives. We want things to stay the same and think God will not allow us to be caught-up in it because we believe in Him.

“Hold off on that end-of-the-world-stuff Jesus,” we pray.

Friends, I’m sorry, but it ain’t going to happen. The driving forces for what will become the “end-of-the-world-stuff” has everything to do with hating God, and hating us as His people.

The worldwide deceptionalism of Satanism, globalism, open borders, and one-world government and religion will not go away, and will not be stopped by God

as it has been foretold in our Scriptures as part of His plan to restore His Creation to His initial intention.

God will remain in control even when it’ll look extremely bad for His plans and His will. Never forget that and never give-up!

  

We are guaranteed a place but we will have to experience a small part of the resulting turmoil as the process sorts itself out. Others, those deceived by evil will perish after suffering great torment at the hands of those whom they accepted as their leaders, idols, and role models. Listen to 2 Timothy 3: 14- 4: 5 –

As for you, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I solemnly urge you: proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke, and encourage, with the utmost patience in teaching.

For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths. As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.

The apostle Paul said, “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils” (1 Timothy 4: 1).

The Holy Spirit has an important message especially for those who attend church: Pay attention. Be on guard.

When the last days of the Church are winding down on earth, many who call themselves Christians will abandon what the Bible says. They will depart from the Scriptures because they are allowing themselves to be led astray by satanic spirits advocating satanic doctrines dressed up as human values.

Satan doesn’t walk up to his victims in a red suit with a pitchfork in his hand. He has filled the atmosphere with demonic spirits that present themselves as ministers of righteousness:  Listen to 2 Corinthians 11: 13-15:

For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. And no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.”

They are cunning. They know who is vulnerable. They know how to lead people astray. The deceptions and fractioning of our families, churches, communities, is intentional, and it is real. American culture is at risk today because of a lack of assimilation and integration into what was once called nationalism, patriotism, idealism, and American spiritualism. We have no common goals, purposes, or vision anymore.

Instead we are sold individualism, me-ism, materialism, me-and-mine over you-and-yours. I won when America won – now it doesn’t matter as long as I get mine.

Few would deny that Satan tempted Jesus many times. This is important because the Church in the U.S. is in decline, and with it the culture and society it held up.

Articles about church members becoming inactive and churches closing their doors are becoming legendary. There are more church closings than new churches openings. The percentage of U.S. citizens who have no affiliation or have any interest in church is rising. And on and on it goes. Satan and his demons are very active.

Did you know that members of the Satanic Temple recently announced that they have opened their international headquarters in Salem Massachusetts. Their website says, “The fact that we have a home in Salem is a testament to the progressive mentality of the people there, and the local government’s support of diversity.”

Even worse, the Satanic Temple has now opened after school Satan Clubs in elementary schools in several states. A 2001 U.S. Supreme Court ruling allows them to do this.

It is well known that the re-creation of an arch** at the Temple of Baal was recently  erected at City Hall Park in New York City just near Ground Zero and many other historic Christian sites. Baal worship led to God’s destruction of Israel in Old Testament Times, but Roman Catholic Mayor Bill de Blasio thinks he has done a good deed.

(**This arch is Jonathan Cahn’s last “Harbringer” of destruction for the U.S. by the way.)

Authorities in the Roman Catholic Church in Italy and the U.S. recently said there has been a “sharp rise in people dabbling in Satanism and the occult.” According to them demonic possessions are rising and there is now an urgent need for more trained exorcists.

Christian eschatologists, (those dealing with end-time prophecy – of which I am one) watch for stories of people claiming what’s called SRA (Satanic Ritual Abuse) and see these people as being those behind a lot of occult activity and “new age” religious practice. I feel we can blame the rise in Satanism and the occult on the direct activity of Satan and the decline in faith and values in the world.

On the other hand there is the good news: This Satanism and the decline of the Church are two important signs that we are getting close to the Rapture.

On Sept. 28, 2016, christianpost.com posted an outstanding article on their website titled “Globalism Is Anti-Christ, Demonic, Theologians Argue.” The article is about globalism (world government) and a global value system (a world religion).

The author pointed out the demonic aspects of globalism, its opposition to the  kingdom of God, and the inherent danger of removing borders, and losing national identities as being the key to the rise of a world dictator. The article points out that one of the candidates for President of the U.S. opposes this demonic globalism and the other fully embraces it (I’ll let you figure out which!).

Many people don’t seem to realize (is this the ‘strong delusion’ mentioned in scripture?), that the coming world government will be headed up by the Antichrist and he will be a Satan worshipper. Revelation 13: 3-4 says:

“And I saw one of his heads as if it had been mortally wounded, and his deadly wound was healed. And all the world marveled and followed the beast. So they worshiped the dragon who gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast? Who is able to make war with him?"

They don’t seem to understand that demonic activity will lead to the battle of Armageddon.  Revelation 16:13-14 tells us:

And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon,

out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

Finally, one of the prophecies of the Tribulation period is a day of darkness and gloominess. Spiritual darkness is about to flood down on America if we forget our God and our Savior.

Zephaniah 1: 14-16 records that:

“The great day of the LORD is near; It is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the LORD is bitter; There the mighty men shall cry out. That day is a day of wrath, A day of trouble and distress, A day of devastation and desolation, A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, A day of trumpet and alarm Against the fortified cities And against the high towers.”

It is hard to sugarcoat these words to give comfort and aide. It must be enough that we have Jesus’ promise to return and come for us. We have the promise and premise of eternal life to cling too. Tomorrow will get worse but our faith will grow to overcome what will come.

Look around our world and our country right now. So many things are in a state of chaos and corruption.

People don’t know what to do, what to think, and especially who to vote for or against. Right is wrong, down is up, and there are no clear “voices” calling in the wilderness.

Our people have never been more fractured; our leaders pushing and pulling gender and racial disharmony, smearing whole groups of people with the brush of hatred and oppression.

The family, civic organizations, and many societal infrastructure points are being warped, destroyed, or redefined that our very identity is wavering.

This is as the adversary desires so that people can be deceived in great numbers.

What way are you and your house going? Hopefully you are putting on the full armor of God as specified in Ephesians 6: 10-20 (Faith, Salvation, Prayer).

It should both set us free from this worldly crap and also to wait and watch as we see the signs and birth-pangs of the end.

Paul tells us to wake-up and smell the sulfur around us, but that all is not lost if we remember what we have been taught:

“As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.”

Amen.

GRATITUDE SHOULD BE THE 11^th Commandment

Luke 17: 11-19

Gratitude! We define gratitude as “the quality of being thankful; the readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness.” Our context for gratitude for today of course is God, the Creator of the universe, and occurs in concert with the many blessings and gifts He has bestowed upon us.

There was a tailor named Mendel and he was worried about his business. Mendel was down to his last $50 and was torn between buying a sign and getting food for his family. Mendel decided to pray.

“Dear GOD,” he said, “I don’t know what to do. If I buy a sign it may bring in business, but I need to buy groceries for my family…and if the sign doesn’t bring in sales, we will starve.

GOD replied, “Mendel, buy the sign. Don’t worry, your family won’t starve.” So, Mendel bought the sign and business took off. The tailor fed his family and all was well. However, as time passed it became evident that Mendel couldn’t keep up with orders all by himself. He contemplated hiring on a helper, but wondered if he could afford it. So, he asked GOD if getting help would be a prudent move.

“Go ahead,” GOD tells Mendel, “hire some help, you’ll do okay.” And so Mendel did. And business took off beyond his wildest dreams. After a time, the tailor decided to move to a larger site that would accommodate the growing demands of his business. As he surveyed certain locations, he found a perfect storefront, but the rental price was really steep.

“GOD” Mendel again prayed, “I found the perfect place to relocate my business. But the cost of the lease worries me. I don’t want to get in over my head.”

“Go ahead and a get a lease on the store, Mendel,” said GOD. “Trust me, you’ll be okay–I haven’t steered you wrong yet, have I?”

So Mendel signed a lease on the 5th Avenue store and profits from his business went through the roof. Out of heartfelt gratitude, Mendel proposed to the Almighty that he dedicate the store to Him. “How do you like the name “Yaweh and Mendel,” the tailor asked. “Nah,” GOD said. “Let’s go with ‘Lord and Taylor.'”‘

The opposite of grateful is ungrateful. I came up with nine symptoms of a possible ungrateful heart so let’s see if we can  recognize them in ourselves and others:

(1) Every day seems like the last one—there is never anything new.

(2) God seems far away and unconcerned with you—recognizing you would be like recognizing one grain of sand on a beach front. 

(3) You are apathetic towards other people—after all they don’t care about you so why should you care about them.

(4) Your prayers are shallow and routine—you really don’t have much to pray about.

(5) Your environment is boring—you can’t see anything in it.

(6) Problems seem bigger than they really are—you don’t remember the last time anyone helped you.

(7) You feel alone and uncared for—love is something that only exists in a chic-flick or a biography.

(8) You never have enough—no matter how hard you work or try.

(9) You are constantly plagued by a feeling of impending doom—what else could the future hold?

How did you do? I have to work on a couple of those.

Listen to our Gospel Lesson for today from Luke 17: 11-17:

On the way to Jerusalem Jesus was going through the region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten lepers approached him. Keeping their distance, they called out, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!" When he saw them, he said to them, "Go and show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were made clean.

Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan.

Then Jesus asked, "Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" Then he said to him, "Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well."

In our scripture for today why did only one cleansed leper return to thank Jesus? 

Was it ingratitude or some other reason? The following are nine suggested reasons why the nine did not return:

1. One is CALLOUS. He did not feel his misery as much as some, nor is he much stirred now by his return to health. Sullen, torpid, stony men are thankless. Callousness is a common cause of ingratitude.

2. One is THOUGHTLESS. He is more like shifting sand than hard stone, but he never reflects, never introspects, never recollects. The unreflecting are ungrateful.

3. One is PROUD. He has not had more than his merit in being healed. Why should he be thankful for what his respectability, his station, deserved? Only the humble-hearted are truly grateful.

4. One is ENVIOUS. Though healed he has not all that some others have. They are younger, or stronger, or have more friends to welcome them. He is envious. Envy turns sour the milk of thankfulness.

5. One is COWARDLY. The Healer is scorned, persecuted, hated. The expression of gratitude may bring some of such hatred on himself. The craven is always a mean ingrate.

6. One is CALCULATING the result of acknowledging the benefit received. Perhaps some claim may arise of discipleship, or gift.

7. One is WORLDLY. Already he has purpose of business in Jerusalem, or plan of pleasures there, that fascinates him from returning to give thanks.

8. One is GREGARIOUS. He would have expressed gratitude if the other eight would, but he has no independence, no individuality.

9. One is PROCRASTINATING. By and by someday he’ll come.

Meanwhile Christ asks, "Where are the others?"

Additionally, we discover that salvation is individual. Each of us must respond, or not, for ourselves. Human nature is a strange and awful thing. What motivates or deceives us?

We’ve all heard the warning against looking a gift-horse in the mouth or biting the hand that feeds you.  Likewise, we’ve all been challenged to count our blessings and look for the silver lining.  For some of us, this is hard to do because our inability to be mindful of any kindness received is plagued by what I call the Three E’s – Envy, Entitlement, and Expectation.  These are three root causes of ingratitude.

1. Envy.  People who suffer from envy walk through life painfully obsessed by the advantages enjoyed by others.  Their strong desire to experience the same advantages causes significant resentments, which often lead to anger and unhappiness. 

You’ve heard of the green-eyed monster; jealousy can impede contentment and satisfaction in all areas of our lives.  In comparing what we don’t have to what others do, we reduce our ability to appreciate the blessings in our own lives.

2. Entitlement.  People who unfoundedly believe they deserve certain privileges, benefits, or advantages tend to experience life through a series of demands, and struggle to balance taking from others with giving. 

They value relationships based on what others can give them and are dissatisfied when they don’t get what they feel they deserve. 

Examples of this include teen-agers demanding to be compensated or rewarded for tasks they should be doing as a matter of course.

Then there are college students who feel they deserve an “A” because they are paying for their education but haven’t worked for their grade; and situational victims who use their misfortune as justification for why they should receive additional benefits or favor.  Entitlement often leads to disappointment and dissatisfaction.

3. Expectation.  Some expectation is normal.  For example, my boss can expect me to show up to work each day, and I can expect a paycheck every two weeks in return; if I don’t show up, I can expect I won’t get paid. 

Unfortunately, ingratitude is the result of unreasonable or inappropriate expectations, like expecting others to read my mind; expecting others to drop everything to accommodate my needs before theirs; and expecting others to give, give, give when I offer nothing in return. When expectations like these go unmet, resentment and anger surface and interfere with our ability to celebrate and not take for granted the good things in life.

Envy, entitlement, and expectation are dangerous attitudes and usually lead to unhealthy levels of anger, resentment, disappointment, unhappiness, and depression, an attitude of ingratitude.

Emotions like these make it extremely difficult to cope when things don’t go our way, and cause us to behave ineffectively when navigating change, overcoming setbacks, or meeting the needs of others. It makes us the “unprofitable” servants that Jesus talks about.

The good news is that these three root causes of ingratitude can be conquered. 

With an intentional daily effort to look for and celebrate the silver lining in all situations, ingratitude can be replaced by thankfulness and a spirit of genuine appreciation for all life has to offer.

When we realize the sacrifice that Jesus made on our behalf, and the loving actions of our Creator God, how can we not be grateful for it? Recognition of it must come as a daily exercise of faith, love, and respect. Amen.