“And one of them, when he saw that he was healed…”
It always astonishes me that the lepers head off to see the priests before they are healed. Jesus tells them to go show themselves to the priests, and they go, even though their skin is still nasty and gross. And as they walk, they are healed – it happens without their notice at first.
The workings of God often slide by past us unnoticed. This is true even for us who are Christians. We who ought to be most prepared to recognize the gifts that God gives both in creation and salvation often let them slide by unawares. We don’t continually marvel at all the blessings God gives us simply out of His Fatherly divine goodness and mercy. There are times when hearing His Word or heading to Church doesn’t excite us or astonish us. We so often overlook God, even when He has told us what He is doing in the Scriptures.
And here is one of the key differences between God’s goodness and our sinfulness. I know that if I that I am being overlooked or under-appreciated, I tend to want to pull back on what I’m doing. I’m tempted to “take my ball and go home” as it were. And yet, consider Jesus. He doesn’t pout or sulk. 10 are still cleansed, even if only 1 comes back. This is what Jesus does constantly – He shows love because that’s what He does, not in order to garner praise.
God’s love for you is not determined by how thankful you are. He doesn’t give you more if you promise to praise Him more. Jesus Christ has already done it all, and He still pours out His Word and Spirit upon you. Sometimes we are distracted (and even sometimes distracted by good things) and don’t always focus upon this, but know that His love for you remains constant, and He continues to be your Savior.
