30th Mar 26 | 13:54
Studies by Book
Luke 17 11-19 Surrender, Thankfulness, Gratitude and Worship of God 10 Passionate love for God
📖 Luke 17:11-19
03Aug2020 - *Passionate love for God* - _Luke 17:11-19_ - SURRENDER, THANKFULNESS, GRATITUDE AND WORSHIP OF GOD 10 – Bible reading: _I Corinthians 10:11-12_
_Luke 17:17 So Jesus answered and said, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?_
As we read this verse, we can feel the pain in the voice of our Lord. He knew that all of them were cleansed. Yet, it was only one who returned to surrender, show gratitude, be thankful and to worship God.
This has been the narrative from the very beginning. God has done all things well for us. Has God kept us lacking in any way? Look at the beauty of creation and how wonderfully it is set up in order to provide for all the needs of man. Today, we are experiencing harrowing repercussions from nature because of our poor and foolish care of creation, which is God’s, of which we were made to have dominion.
Man’s response to God has been rebellion and even when we did return back to God, our hearts were not entirely for Him. We were seeking our own gain.
Consider the missionary heart of God, when God had provided the very best to Adam and Eve, they chose to rebel and go away from Him. What was God’s response? It was a response of pain in the heart of God. _Genesis 3:9 Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, "Where are you?"_
Within the next few chapters, we see that man’s rebellion against God was so great that every intention of man’s heart was only evil, continuously. What was the response of God? _Genesis 6:6 And the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart._
God sees us today and what does He see in our hearts? _Isaiah 29:13 Therefore the Lord said: "Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honour Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,_
He sees that our worship of God is only from our lips but not from our heart and we have reduced worship of God to rules, symbols, rituals and traditions. We pat ourselves on the back that we have worshipped God when we have completed our various ritualistic acts of worship. I imagine that the nine Jewish lepers would have done so. The Lord, on the other hand, was grieved that they had not returned to Him.
_Isaiah 30:15-17 For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: "*In returning and rest you shall be saved*; In quietness and confidence shall be your strength." But you would not, (16) And you said, "No, for we will flee on horses"— Therefore you shall flee! And, "We will ride on swift horses"— Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift! (17) One thousand shall flee at the threat of one, At the threat of five you shall flee, Till you are left as a pole on top of a mountain And as a banner on a hill._
To return to Him and to find our rest in Him is what our Lord requires of us but we have other plans.
We have considered the life of the Israelites before but let us look at their experience once again. God was not pleased with most of them, though they had all partaken of God’s miracles in the wilderness. _I Corinthians 10:5-12 But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. (6) Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted._
They did not seek their rest in God but came to God only for their problems to be solved. They repeatedly rebelled, complained and questioned the faithfulness and presence of God with them. This restless generation perished in the wilderness
All of these incidents have been written as a warning for us, who are at the end of the age. _(11) Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. (12) Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall._
God’s heart breaks over us that we as His people seek our nourishment from sources that can never satisfy but do not come to Him, the fount of living waters. _Jeremiah 2:13 “For My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns—broken cisterns that can hold no water._
Let us cast aside our lukewarmness, our cynicism, our superficiality and be cast upon Jesus with passionate abandonment.
*Thought to ponder*
```Let us not break His heart anymore.```