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Where Are The Nine?

Luke 17: 17 “And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?” [1]

     I.   Historical

          A. Discovered

          B. Done

     II. Temporal

          A. Delivered

          B. Done     

     III. Miracle

          A. Delighted

          B. Done

     IV. Saving

          A. Done

          B. Do

Introduction:  We have come through quite a week here in Merry Oaks Baptist.  Last Sunday we had a coming home for some and for others it was a first time being here with us.  God knows what will become of the service that He held and He alone is worthy of the glory that will be received.

We had sermons from two pastors here that made my heart glad.  I pray that it was a true revival for many, one person at a time.  For me it was more than revival.  It was vindication that many pastors are going through the same that prophets from past days went through.  God is speaking through us in certain messages yet respect of what is being heard from others is getting in the way of worship to God alone and He is waiting for us to revive our love and faithfulness in Him alone.  Until we do that, we are stuck waiting to see what new calamity will be allowed to strike more fear into His people.  Those who are attempting to take the trust away from God are being strengthened in their take over.  Meanwhile the church is being refined into those who would only trust God alone.  It is hard to watch but we who serve as His voice now are not alone and we are not done.

Today we will study scripture that should be a reminder now in this crazy time that this world is going through as we look back to another time when there was a true pandemic.  We heard sermons from three different preachers who all brought the same message.  DO NOT LET FEAR PREVENT YOU FROM DOING WHAT GOD HAS COMMANDED!

Rachael and I heard from another preacher while we were out on the Outer Banks.  Russ Howard’s central message was the same as what we hear from God through so many others now.  Russ said it was good to have those who were there that Resurrection Day to worship God.  He said that there were thousands more out on the beach worshipping what God gives us and they have no clue.

Those people were out on the beach worshipping creation though they had no clue that the creator wanted them in church assembling together to worship Him. No matter; we are only responsible for what we do right?  But where are they that say that they are Christian?  What can we who are here do to make those at the beach want to be here with us?  Are we our brother’s keepers?  Who is looking at us as their excuse for not being here today?

We will look at an account of ten men today.  One of the ten returned to follow Jesus.  Jesus asked him, “Where are the nine?”  That particular man decided to follow Jesus.  He made up his mind.  Once he was ostracized within a group of unclean people.  Now they were all ten cleaned of leprosy.  Jesus essentially told him that it was good that he was there and had decided to assemble in spite of the world’s decision to change Jesus’ command to assemble.  We will be in assembled in heaven one day if we are truly saved.  If we are truly saved nobody will be able to separate us from the love of God.

Does that mean that we have no responsibility to those we once walked with; those we once ran with so to speak?  Or does that mean that now that we have received the miracle of salvation that we can go back to where we were before?  What is your responsibility as a Christian?  Why are we here?  Why is this assembly of Christians so direly important?

Today as always we will have the opportunity to come to the altar either physically or spiritually.  Jesus left us here not so that we could rest in our salvation.  Paul said to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.  Paul did not say to be afraid of anything that would keep us from assembling.  Jesus paid a great price for our salvation and now He expects us to carry on in our faith.  We cannot carry on in faith as long as we carry our fear.  We cannot answer for the other nine unless we engage them with the salvation that Jesus died for to enable us to live and love each other as He loves us.  Where indeed are the nine?

Scripture:  The scripture today is Luke 17:17.  Please stand if you can for the reading of God’s Word.

Prayer:  Please be seated.

Message:  Before we begin I must confess that this message is because of the message Rachael and I heard while at Cape Hatteras Baptist Church two weeks ago.  The four points of the outline are from Russ Howard’s sermon.  Rachael has prepared a card to send to the church in appreciation for their kind accommodations for us while we were there.  I would ask anyone who will to sign the card before we send it as a way of hand shaking between our churches.

Last week in our coming Home message we discussed two brothers who had different types of relationships with their father.  When the prodigal son returned the father was so joyful because the assembly was again complete.  The relationship that you have with God is the most personal relationship that you will ever have.  The marriage of the Lamb and His bride are so close that it is the only marriage that will survive into heaven.  Church is important!  I can’t say it enough.

The focal text is familiar to most.  Luke 17:12-19 tells of some people who had a terrible skin disease.  Follow as we hear.

The ten men were together but were standing apart from Jesus because they had to be together but apart from healthy people.  Socially distant I guess…  They were quarantined together as outcasts who suffered from leprosy.  Historically during forty years of wilderness for the children of Israel, those who had a skin disease were told to assemble outside the camp.  They had to stay there until the priest pronounced them clean.

This is not the first experience when Jesus performed a miraculous healing for this terrible dreaded disease.  In order to illustrate the first point of today’s message we must turn back to Luke 5:12-16 and maybe find why these ten came to Him for their healing.

Back in chapter five there was another case of miraculous healing from the same ailment.  These ten men no doubt had discovered that there was that guy Jesus who had healed leprosy so they went to Him.  Sure enough, they got healed.  Jesus sent them to the priests so they could be pronounced clean.  The deal is done; so were nine of them.  They were back on their way with their historical knowledge of a guy called Jesus.

What year is it?  You know that it is 2021 AD.  This is from Wikipedia, “The term anno Domini is Medieval Latin and means "in the year of the Lord", but is often presented using "our Lord" instead of "the Lord", taken from the full original phrase "anno Domini nostri Jesu Christi", which translates to "in the year of our Lord Jesus Christ".”

History tells everyone that Jesus indeed walked on this planet.  Is that a saving knowledge of Jesus?  There is a dome standing in Jerusalem called the Dome of the Rock.  Moslems call it a sacred place to them.  Inside the dome around the circle are names of prophets.  They mistakenly have Jesus’ name there along with Jeremiah and many others who are held in lower esteem than Mohammed.  Even they have a historical knowledge of Jesus.

A historical knowledge or knowing that something happened in the past is why the ten went to Jesus but when nine of them were done they were done.  Once they got what they wanted and their healing was delivered, their temporary or temporal need for Jesus was done.  They were through with Him.  Done!

Jesus sent them to the priests for pronouncement of having been cured.  Physically cured they were!  What happened later to them?  Are they still walking around clean today?  No!  Will we see them in heaven?  I don’t know about the nine.  What I do know is earthly healing even though it is often a miraculous thing that is delivered as we pray is not everlasting.  Earthly healing is temporal like everything else here.  Only a saving knowledge of Jesus is eternal.

We believe in miracles!  Of course we do!  Truth is; some people worship miracles.  Not so much now as in the past but there used to be many ministries that only talked about faith healing.  People even today who refuse these shots are given a so-called religious exemption for not taking the shot.  “If God don’t heal me I don’t want to be healed!”  I have news, if God doesn’t heal you no matter if He uses a medical doctor or not, you won’t be healed; and by the way, somebody somewhere was praying for you.

That is well and good but if you worship the cure and not the one who provides it, you are not worshipping God.  If you ever received a miraculous cure and you think that is a sign that you are saved, you better examine yourself again.  If all you want from Jesus is what He will give you, He will withdraw from you.  Belief in a miracle is not a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

We are breaking bubbles today!  What was different about the one guy?  What made him come back to Jesus?  When Jesus reaches out and touches you and you respond by wanting nothing else than to be with Him no matter what; that is a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.  The one was on his way with those he had previously walked with to see the priests.  That is what Jesus Himself told them all to do.  Only one couldn’t do it.  He had a new life that started with and will never end with Jesus.  He had to go no matter what anyone else tried to talk him out of.  I have got to go!  I am done!  Now I must do what Jesus allows me to do and nothing else.

Prayer:

Invitation:  Having a saving knowledge of Jesus is hard on those who walk with you.  Jesus cares about them too.  He expects you to not forget them in your relationship with Him.

As God gave me this message He reminded me of my nine.  Rachael and I have nine grandchildren.  Our one, Stephanie, is autistic.  Stephanie sings about Jesus and I know that she knows Him.  The devil has done his best to take people away from assembling to worship God.  The devil has done his best to separate believers from each other.  The devil is turning this world upside down and he is not done yet.  Are you done or are you ready to do with Jesus?

There is only one knowledge of Jesus that saves.  All others lead to Him but there is only one knowledge that delivers Him to you.

The invitation today is twofold.  If you have knowledge of Jesus that it is only historical, temporal, or because of a miracle, you have not turned your life completely over to Jesus.  You are holding something back thinking that is good enough.  It is not!  Come to Jesus.  That is the first invitation.  Come today!

The second invitation is this.  Okay you are here and you are saved and there is no doubt of that.  Where are the others?  Where are your nine?  You are not off the hook for them.  It they are not here then bring them to this altar right here right now and don’t stop praying for them until He takes the breath from your lungs.  Come to Jesus and serve as that model of Jesus that The Holy Spirit will transform you to be.  Let us sing, Let us pray.  Let us love!

[1] The Holy Bible: King James Version. (2009). (Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., Lk 17:17). Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.