One of the ways our inherent sinfulness becomes obvious is in our self-righteousness. As we have walked through the gospel of Luke, I am struck by Luke’s emphasis on this reality. The temptation to look down on others and consider ourselves better is ever with us. The first-century Jews exhibited this in many ways, especially in how they looked down on foreigners. When Jesus healed ten lepers in Luke 17, He calls out their self-righteousness by pointing out that the only thankful one was a foreigner. Surely, the ones who would return to give glory to God would be the good Jews who “followed” God and “knew” His law. But the only one who recognized the gift of God’s mercy was a Samaritan. This reminds us that our actions reflect what our hearts believe. By not giving God glory, the Jews whom Jesus healed revealed their distorted beliefs about themselves and Jesus. Although they all called out for mercy, only the Samaritan really believed it was mercy. He knew he didn’t deserve Christ’s healing, and he showed it. We also must recognize the mercy we’ve received by giving God glory for His work in us. When we fail to give worship to Him for our salvation, we reveal that we believe we deserve it. This attitude shows that we have lost sight of our sinfulness and the glory of salvation. It reveals that we think we’re better than we really are. Praise God that His mercy extends to the worst of sinners and saves us from our self-righteousness. –Pastor Rory
Sunday at Liberty
9AM: Outreach Training for Fifth Sunday
10AM: Pastor Nate–A Faith That Heals–Luke 17:11-19 (sermon notes)
6PM: Missionary Hudson Taylor
Leave a Reply