Luc. 17, 11-19.
And it came to pass, as he journeyed toward Jerusalem, he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And when he was come into a market, ten leprous men met him, which stood afar off, and lifted up their voice, and said: JEsu, dear Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them: Go and show yourselves to the priests. And it came to pass, as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned again, and praised God with a loud voice, and fell on his face at his feet, and gave thanks unto him. And this was a Samaritan. And Jesus answered and said, Were not ten of them clean? But where are the nine? Has no one else been found who has turned back and given glory to God, except this stranger? And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath helped thee.
In today's Gospel, you will hear at the end how the Lord praises faith. Your faith, he says to the Samaritan who was a leper, has helped you. So he gives credit, not to himself (otherwise he would say, "I have helped you"), but to faith. With this, he wants to provoke us to believe in God with all confidence according to such an example, and to be sure of what we believe, that we will have it through Christ. If we believe in forgiveness of sins and eternal life through Christ, it shall be yes; if we believe that God is gracious and merciful to us for Christ's sake, He will be gracious and merciful. So that everything should be attributed to faith, not to God, who alone does it. So that everyone may learn, where we do not obtain something that we would like and need, that it is not because of God, but only because of our unbelief; otherwise, if we believed firmly, we would certainly have it.
(2) This then is the first lesson of today's Gospel, that we should know that everything we can provide for and comfort ourselves in God should be yes. But whoever does not believe in God and does not want to provide anything good for Him, let him not think that he will get anything. As Jacob says in his epistle, Cap. 1: For he who wants to deal with God and ask something of Him, must not doubt or waver, saying, "Who knows whether God will give it to me, or whether I am worthy of it? No, not at all; but thus you shall say, "I know what I ask of God, that He will gladly do and give it for Christ's sake. And if he does not do now and in this way as I would like, he will do it in another time and way.
For a fickle heart that does not believe, nor does it think for certain that it will obtain anything, will never be granted. For God can give him nothing, even if he would like to. It is like a vessel that is held in one's hands, and yet one does not want to hold it still, but moves it back and forth, so that one cannot pour anything into it; and even if one would like to pour something into it, it still misses the mark and perishes in vain. So it is for an unbelieving, wavering heart also
done. God would gladly give us what we need, but there we stand, like a mad beggar, holding out our hat that he might throw something in for us, and yet we will not keep still. Our Lord God does not want to throw His gifts away in vain, so that they fall by the wayside and are lost. It is just as if you had a candelabra or a bottle in your hands and wanted someone to pour wine into it, and yet you always wanted to throw it back and forth with your hand. This would make a very unwilling host, especially if he were to give you the wine and not take any money for it. He would say: Always roll yourself, do you think I want to pour the wine on the ground? It is just such a thing with a wavering, unbelieving heart; God cannot pour anything into it, even if he would like to.
4 Again, if one does not waver, but keeps still, he will gladly give. As we see here in the ten lepers, who stand and cry, "Jesus, dear Master, have mercy on us. They keep still, and do not doubt that he will help. Therefore, as they believe, so shall it be done unto them. We should keep this in mind so that we may learn to trust in God's goodness, and not waver in our hearts, but keep quiet in everything we ask for, be it health, food, happiness, wisdom, or righteousness. For God will gladly give all these things, provided they are for His glory and are useful and good for our salvation. He does not sometimes hesitate to try us if we want to persevere with prayer and faith. This is the first part of today's Gospel, that we should pray in firm faith and not despair of God's gracious will through Christ.
5 The other piece is a very frightening example, that ten of them initially have such a fine faith and are healed, and yet the nine fall away again and do not give thanks to the Lord Christ because of such a blessing.
(6) Such an example should serve us to be grateful and to guard against the shameful vice of ingratitude. For it is our Lord God's will, and not unreasonably, that we should have the honor of thanking Him for all His benefits.
We should do this willingly and gladly. For it is a thing that does not cost much effort and labor. For what harm can it do you to turn to God and say, "O Lord, you have given me healthy eyes, healthy hands and feet, this and that; I thank you from my heart for it, for it is your gift. So what harm can it do you to thank your father and mother, your master and wife, your neighbor, if a good thing has been done to you by them? After all, it does not break your leg, and the only thing that matters is to see whether it has been done to you. So the Samaritan does here, returns to the Lord and gives thanks. It cost him not a penny but a few words, and yet it pleases the Lord so much that it is a miracle.
(8) People are also pleased with gratitude, and it does them good; they are also provoked by it to help more at another time. The heathen have said that ingratitude is the greatest vice. Therefore, if one scolded someone for being ungrateful, he was scolded to the highest degree. Nevertheless, we learn that such ingratitude is very wicked, and is most common to those who deserve all the thanks they get from us, such as: Father and mother, who dare to give their children life, limb, honor, property, and all that they have. But how do the children reward them? What do they experience in them? It is seldom that a child is grateful. That's what the wretched devil does. It's the same in other classes.
9 Therefore learn to beware of the great and shameful vice, from which the spring runs dry, from which all faithfulness and good deeds flow among men. For where one finds an unthankful heart, the desire and love to help and to do something too good for such people vanishes. For whoever helps other people should receive no other thanks than to be given in return, that is a very annoying thing. The first word is to say, "All is lost with the wretched man. Let him always go, I would not look at him, that I help him with a penny. So people become unwilling. This is what shameful ingratitude does, and yet it is a very common vice in the world.
(10) Therefore, if you wish to be devout Christians, learn to be grateful first to God, our gracious Father in heaven, who gives and sustains life and limb; and then give all that pertains to eternal life. Then also be grateful to your parents, friends, neighbors, and all who have shown you good, and show them good again; so that, though you cannot repay them by works, yet you may show yourselves grateful and kind by words. This is good for you, and God wants it from you. But the least part does it. For since the world cannot be made to show gratitude with words, it is no wonder that people cannot be made to repay; as the saying goes: Nihil citius senescit, quam gratia: Beneficence is soon forgotten.
In monasteries, the young monks who gave them only a cut feather were accustomed to bend down and say: Benedictus Deus in omnibus donis suis: God be praised for all that he gives us. This was not a wicked way; for it was done so that the young people would be accustomed to accept everything with thanksgiving to God and man. Therefore, although it was not always so in the heart, it was nevertheless fine that the words were spoken. Thus it is written in the 116th Psalm, v. 12, 13: "How shall I repay the Lord for all his benefits that he has done for me? I will take the cup of salvation and preach the name of the Lord," that is, I will praise, extol and give thanks to him and say that he has done me good. Yes, dear child, says our Lord God, I have just had enough.
(12) But the kind Father can obtain it from few people. Most of them persecute his word and blaspheme him, regardless of the fact that everything we have we have only through him and from his graces. And this is not enough; his only begotten Son, whom he gave us to comfort us against sin and eternal death, they still hang on the gallows. This may ever be a world that God should be justly hostile to and do it no good. But he will not be angered, he remains kind and merciful, and helps everywhere.
Therefore, it is not enough that we learn to be thankful, but we must also become accustomed to the virtue that can suffer ingratitude. This is only God's virtue and the virtue of right Christians. For there are enough examples before our eyes, which testify that the world cannot do such things. The Greeks had very fine people who faithfully stood by their country and risked life and limb for it. But as soon as they found that gratitude was not forthcoming and that they did not enjoy such favors, but that people wanted to add to them and squeeze them, they became impatient about it. So that just as they had protected the fatherland against the enemies before, they helped the enemies against the fatherland afterward, and became the worst enemies. This is our way and nature; but it is an evil way, which we should renounce, and take God's way to us, who, though he is hostile to ingratitude, as a shameful, great vice, yet he is not moved by it to be also evil; he always remains good and gracious to everyone who needs his help.
(14) He who wants to be a Christian, let him learn that he will not earn thanks everywhere with all his good deeds, faithfulness and service, but must also suffer ingratitude. But we should not let ourselves be moved in this way, so that we no longer want to serve or help others. For this is a Christian virtue and the true fruit of faith, that when thou hast done thy best, and it is thrown into thy hand, thou be patient, and say, Nay, thou shalt not offend me with this, nor make me displeased; I will suffer it, and yet help where I can. Wilt thou be ungrateful? I know one above us in heaven who will thank me in your stead; I would rather have that than have you thank me. That is, to be Christian, and as Solomon calls it, to heap burning coals on the head of the ungrateful.
You will never learn this art from the world. She does the antithesis. If you do not want to be grateful, she makes you think that what she has done is gone and lost, that she will no longer use her good deeds so badly. But it is our Father in heaven, since we have such art from
He makes his sun shine, not only on the pious who thank him for it, but also on the wicked who do not thank him, but misuse all the gifts. He could also say to the right half: I have let the sun shine for so many years, I have given grain, wine and all kinds of fruits and benefits; but I deserve little thanks; therefore I will let it shine no more, and let the ungrateful world die of hunger. But he does not do it, the gracious father. No, he says, the ingratitude of the world should not be so great that it should make me angry with it. If it will not be grateful, yet I will be merciful, and will find the ungrateful well in his time.
16 We should also learn this art if we want to be Christians in a different way. For this is the way of Christian love, that it bears and endures everything, and yet does not allow itself to be made bitter. But there are very few of them who have such love; therefore there are also very few true Christians. Otherwise we would gladly do good to people and help them, and yet not be annoyed by the ingratitude, nor let it seem strange to us, as it does to the world: it hurts it, and annoys it very much, when the good deed is not repaid. But think and be accustomed to it. If you have done good to someone today and he escapes you tomorrow through ingratitude, do not let yourself be challenged. For he will know how to enjoy such ingratitude. Go on, and say: If it is lost in him, quickly bring another, and he will also do well. If he will not do well, bring the third, and so on, that you may learn to say, as our Lord Christ says here, "If ten have not been healed, where are the nine?
17 The dear Lord deserves little thanks, but he is content that one of the ten should come back and thank him. He would not have asked about the others if he had not done so to show how hostile he is to ingratitude. As if he should say: "Be thankless, you will not escape me like this; I will ask where you have been, that you have never thanked me for giving you life and limb, and for creating everything.
868 D- 3,63-65. on the fifteenth Sunday after Trinity. W. xm, iss4-iss7. 869
I have what you need. Then you will find out what a shameful vice ingratitude is.
18 Therefore we must be accustomed to learn from the example of our Lord Christ that we can despise ingratitude. For experience shows, and everyone can see, that when our Lord gives us ten good years, we hardly thank Him a little for one; indeed, what is more, we always misuse the best years in the most shameful way. If God gives a rich year with wine, grain, and other things, there are miserly people who buy it up and wait for a theurung. Others think that because much has grown, they must kill all the more, indulge and drink; thus they thank God for His blessing. Thus, hardly a tenth of His gifts and goods are thanked to our Lord God. We should be accustomed to this, and not let it hurt us, but let it be enough for us, if we find one among ten who is able and willing. The others will find it in their time. For they shall not so bear it away to our Lord God, who will have thanksgiving.
(19) Therefore your love has these two lessons from today's Gospel: the first, about faith; the other, about the two beautiful virtues, that we should be thankful and learn to suffer ingratitude along with it. We are to learn gratitude from the Samaritan, and follow his example, so that we are not found ungrateful to God and man. But from Christ we are to learn, even if we do good to someone, and
But we do not deserve thanks, because we do not want to be angry with them, much less repay others. For as I said before, it is a very wicked vice in the world to make people displeased and disgruntled by ingratitude, and often have to pay off ten of them to an ungrateful person. But if you are a Christian, do not do this. If nine deceive thee, be content, that only the tenth be justified and thankful. For Christ himself does not find people who would be grateful for such a great benefit; would you then have it better than he? Therefore let it come to the ninth, you will have no more harm than Christ. But you will have to have harm, that neither happiness nor salvation will be with the ungrateful people.
20 In sum, we will be fine Christians if we first have a firm faith and trust in God's goodness; then we are not only thankful, but also able to suffer ingratitude. For we will have no better than Christ our Lord. We should prove all good things to the people, but wait that there will be hardly one of them among ten who is well disposed and will be grateful. And it may well come to pass that it is he who gives thanks, and since it is well appointed, when one has least confidence and hope; as the Samaritan is here. May our dear Lord God grant us His mercy, so that we may mend our ways and earnestly shun and flee the shameful ingratitude towards God and man, amen.