Luke 17:1-21

One day Jesus taught his disciples: “Betrayals are inevitable, but great devastation will come to the one guilty of betraying others. It would be better for him to have a heavy boulder tied around his neck and be hurled into the deepest sea than to face the punishment of betraying one of my dear ones! So be alert to your brother’s condition, and if you see him going the wrong direction, cry out and correct him. If there is true repentance on his part, forgive him. No matter how many times in one day your brother sins against you and says, ‘I’m sorry; I am changing; forgive me,’ you need to forgive him each and every time.” Upon hearing this, the apostles said to Jesus, “Lord, you must increase our measure of faith!” Jesus responded, “If you have even the smallest measure of faith, it would be powerful enough to say to this large tree, ‘My faith will pull you up by the roots and throw you into the sea,’ and it will respond to your faith and obey you.” Jesus continued, “After a servant has finished his work in the field or with the livestock, he doesn’t immediately sit down to relax and eat. No, a true servant prepares the food for his master and makes sure his master is served his meal before he sits down to eat his own. Does the servant expect to be thanked for doing what is required of him? So learn this lesson: After doing all that is commanded of you, simply say, ‘We are mere servants, undeserving of special praise, for we are just doing what is expected of us and fulfilling our duties.’ ” On his way to Jerusalem Jesus passed through the border region between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered one village, ten men approached him, but they kept their distance, for they were lepers. They shouted to him, “Mighty Lord, our wonderful Master! Won’t you have mercy on us and heal us?” When Jesus stopped to look at them, he spoke these words: “Go to be examined by the Jewish priests.” They set off, and they were healed while walking along the way. One of them, a Samaritan, when he discovered that he was completely healed, turned back to find Jesus, shouting out joyous praises and glorifying God. When he found Jesus, he fell down at his feet and thanked him over and over, saying to him, “You are the Messiah.” “So where are the other nine?” Jesus asked. “Weren’t there ten who were healed? They all refused to return to give thanks and give glory to God except you, a foreigner from Samaria?” Then Jesus said to the healed man lying at his feet, “Arise and go. It was your faith that brought you salvation and made you whole.” Jesus was once asked by the Jewish religious leaders, “When will God’s kingdom come?” Jesus responded, “God’s kingdom does not come simply by obeying principles or waiting for signs. The kingdom is not discovered in one place or another, for God’s kingdom realm is already expanding within some of you.”