In the movie, Forrest Gump, some bullies are throwing rocks at Forrest as he’s talking to his friend Jenny, and so she tells Forrest to run. But there’s a problem, because Forrest wore braces to correct a problem with his spine. And so he stumbles off, trying desperately to run, even though the leg braces kept him from bending his knees. And then the strangest thing happens: the braces begin to crack and break, the screws that hold things together come out, and the braces fall off of his legs. And Forrest begins to run for real. So fast that he escapes from the boys trying to chase him down on their bicycles. His friend Jenny had told him to run, and it was in the doing as she said that he was healed.
It is the same thing with the ten lepers in today’s Gospel. Because they had a skin illness, they stayed away from Jesus, so as not to make him unclean with their own sickness. Instead, they called out to him and asked him to heal them. They had heard of this man, walking around the country, healing people, and so they knew that there was at least a reasonable chance that this man could provide the physical healing they needed in order to become part of society again.
Now, Jesus did not tell them that they were healed. Instead, Jesus told them that they should go, and show themselves to the priests. In those days, if you had a skin illness, and wanted to rejoin society, you needed to have the priests look you over and declare you clean. Jesus did not tell these men that they were healed, he only implied that they might be healed by telling them to go to the priests and show themselves.
And, as they went, the Gospel tells us – as they went – they were cleansed and made whole. The healing didn’t happen by Jesus declaring them healed, but only as they responded to his command to “Go.” Believing something is one thing. These men believed that Jesus could heal them, given what they had heard of him. But faith requires action. And these men acted on the command that Jesus gave them to “Go.” And getting up to go and present themselves to the priests indicated that they not only believed in the idea that Jesus could heal them, but also that they were willing to put that belief to the test – even before Jesus had said the words “You are healed.”
And as these men were going, one of them, the Gospel tells us, noticed that he had been healed – his skin had been made clean. And, instead of continuing on to the priests to show himself and be restored to society, this man turned around and returned to Jesus. And when he had returned to Jesus, he threw himself down on the ground in front of Jesus, and thanked him.
This act of throwing himself down in front of Jesus indicated that he knew there was something more to Jesus than just that Jesus was a great healer. To throw yourself down in front of someone like that is to show that you recognize their authority over you – that you are submitting yourself to them. This man made sure to thank Jesus for healing him physically. And this man did all of this before he had gone and presented himself to the priests – the priests who could restore him to society by declaring him clean. Returning to thank Jesus was more important to him than going to the priests who could declare him clean and restore him to his place in society.
This is how thankful the man was for his healing. He was so thankful that rather than continue on to the priests who could set him free from the scourge of being unclean, he stopped in his tracks, turned around, and came before Jesus where he threw himself down and thanked him.
Now, we know that Jesus intended to physically heal all of the ten lepers – and we know that Jesus did physically heal all of them. Jesus himself says, “Weren’t all ten of the lepers cleansed from their skin illness?” That’s a rhetorical question. He knows, actually, and he just wants to point out the other odd factor in this story. The only person that came back and gave thanks to Jesus was a foreigner. That is, the only person that came back and thanked Jesus was a Sarmaritan. Not even one of Jesus’ own people. But a man from a region of the country that were sworn enemies of the Jews. And so Jesus’ rhetorical question was intended to point out something important.
The very next thing that Jesus says to this man is, “Get up and go; your faith has made you well.”
This phrase, “Your faith has made you well,” has caused a lot of problems throughout history, as people will take this saying of Jesus and tell you that the reason that you didn’t get healed from your illness, or whatever it is you were praying for, is because you simply didn’t have enough faith. But, we have to remember this: the man had already had his physical illness cured by the time Jesus says this to him. And this man found out that he was physically healed as he was in the process of “going” just as Jesus had told him to do. So the man’s faith – in one sense – has already healed him. Physically at least. And then this man threw himself down in front of Jesus and thanked him.
This comment by Jesus: “Your faith has made you well,” can also be translated as “Your faith has saved you.” And this is where it gets interesting. This man had reacted to Jesus’ first command to go and show himself to the priest before he even knew if he would be physically healed. So his faith had indeed healed him – physically. But it is in the act of coming back, in throwing himself down, and giving Jesus the gratitude and thanksgiving for his physical healing that we discover that faith is only made complete in the act of giving thanks. Faith is only complete when we acknowledge where the grace came from, express our submission to the one who granted us the grace, and express the gratitude for what we have received.
Jesus says, “Your faith has saved you.” That is, “Your faith has not only physically healed you, but made you one of my followers. Your physical body may have been healed, but your soul has now been sealed and named as one of my own. You have been healed not only in your body, but also in your mind, and also in your soul.”
This would have been shocking for the Samaritan to hear. And, it would have been shocking for Jesus’ disciples to hear. And, since this Gospel of Luke was written well after Jesus’ death, and to an audience of people who were not Jews, this declaration that a Samaritan, a Gentile, could be saved, would have been both outrageous, but also incredibly joyful news to those that heard it. It meant that salvation was open to all people, not just the people of Israel. Salvation is, in fact, open to all people. The very fact that we are here today shows us this, since all of us would have been considered Gentiles, just like this Samaritan man.
But back to this troublesome comment, “Your faith has made you well.” We all know someone – a person of great faith – who became ill – with whatever disease – and they prayed and prayed and prayed. Perhaps the entire church has prayed with them. Maybe even their friends and coworkers prayed with them. But they did not receive any physical healing.
Did they just not have enough faith? Was their faith lacking in some way? Was their belief lacking?
Not at all.
Ten lepers followed Jesus’ command. Ten lepers started on their journey to show themselves to the priests so that they could be restored to society. Ten of them were healed on the way to do what Jesus had commended them. All of these ten lepers received physical healing. They had a reasonable expectation of being healed because of the stories they had heard about Jesus. That is why they did what Jesus asked them to do and headed off in the direction of the priests who could declare them clean. But only one of them returned. And that man was told that not only had his faith made him physically well, but that he had been saved. Made whole. Been liberated from his ailment. His gratitude had completed his faith. His submission to Jesus by throwing himself at Jesus’ feet had completed his faith. This man had not only believed that Jesus could heal him physically, but had come to understand who Jesus is, and who that made him, the Samaritan, in relation to Jesus. This man now knew who he was, because he knew and understood who Jesus is.
This is an important distinction. Sometimes Jesus heals people physically – and yet they have no real understanding of who Jesus is – or who they are in relation to Jesus. Their belief in Jesus has healed them physically of their ailments, but they still do not know who Jesus really is, and what might save their soul. They are like the nine lepers who knew that there was a reasonable expectation that Jesus could do something for them that would feel like restoration, but they failed to see the greater identity of Jesus.
On the flip side, there are people who have come to understand Jesus, and who Jesus is, and therefore who they themselves are – and they express gratitude for the fact that their faith has saved them. But still they live with debilitating illnesses, physical ailments, unsightly skin problems or disabilities. And yet – and yet – these people seem to still exude the joy of God in all they do.
C.S. Lewis once said, “I noticed how the humblest and at the same time the most balanced minds praised most: while the cranks, misfits, and malcontents praised least. Praise almost seems to be inner health made audible.”1
Inner Health.
Ten lepers were given physical health. And only one of them returned and thanked Jesus for what Jesus had done. And he received inner health. Salvation. The cure of his soul. This Samaritan was made complete and whole, restored to his people through his physical healing, and brought into the kingdom of God through his understanding of who Jesus is, and therefore, who he was.
What this man – this Samaritan – understood about Jesus is that God is not there to do his bidding. That is, Jesus owed this man absolutely nothing. And still, Jesus provided him with physical healing. And for that healing, the man realized that the only response was true and honest gratitude, because God had shown him mercy and grace, and provided him with a gift that God was not required to give.
Faith requires action – as witnessed by these ten lepers who were healed “as they went…” But faith is made complete in the act of giving thanks. And faith can be complete – and full of gratitude – even when the physical healing does not come.
There’s a lot we can take away from this, depending on where we are in this journey of life. Are we stuck in believing that something is possible – but we are not taking action? Or are we stuck in believing that God needs to do as we ask? That is, are we like the nine men who did not return because they asked for, and got what they wanted? Or are we like the Samaritan, who realized who Jesus really is, and therefore received a greater gift by coming back and living in a state of gratitude – worshiping the One who saved him?
Faith requires action. And faith is made complete in gratitude.
Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.
[This sermon was delivered at St. Alban’s Episcopal Church in Wickenburg, AZ on October 5, 2025.]
- Reflections on the Psalms, London: G. Bles, 1958, p. 78-81 ↩︎
