Luke 17

Sin, Faith, Duty

1 Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come.2 It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.

3 So watch yourselves.
“If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him.

4 If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.”

5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”

6 He replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you.
7 “Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’?8 Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’?9 Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?

10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’ ”

Ten Healed of Leprosy

11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee.12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosymet him. They stood at a distance

13 and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

14 When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.
15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice.

16 He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him–and he was a Samaritan.
17 Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine?18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?”

19 Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”

The Coming of the Kingdom of God

20 Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation,

21 nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.”
22 Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it.23 Men will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them.24 For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other.

25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.
26 “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man.

27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.
28 “It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building.

29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all.
30 “It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed.31 On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything.32 Remember Lot's wife!33 Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left.

35 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.”

37 “Where, Lord?” they asked.
He replied, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.”

LUKE 17

Faith and Service

(Matthew 18.6,7,21,22; Mark 9.42)

1 Jesus said to his disciples:
There will always be something that causes people to sin. But anyone who causes them to sin is in for trouble. A person who causes even one of my little followers to sin 2 would be better off thrown into the ocean with a heavy stone tied around their neck.

3 t So be careful what you do.
Correct any followerst of mine who sin, and forgive the ones who say they are sorry.

4 Even if one of them mistreats you seven times in one day and says, “I am sorry,” you should still forgive that person.

5 The apostles said to the Lord, “Make our faith stronger!”

6 Jesus replied:
If you had faith no bigger than a tiny mustard seed, you could tell this mulberry tree to pull itself up, roots and all, and to plant itself in the ocean. And it would!
7 If your servant comes in from plowing or from taking care of the sheep, would you say, “Welcome! Come on in and have something to eat”? 8 No, you wouldn't say that. You would say, “Prepare me something to eat. Get ready to serve me, so I can have my meal. Then later on you can eat and drink.” 9 Servants don't deserve special thanks for doing what they are supposed to do.

10 And that's how it should be with you. When you've done all you should, then say, “We are merely servants, and we have simply done our duty.”

Ten Men with Leprosy

13 and shouted, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”

14  t Jesus looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.”t
On their way they were healed. 15 When one of them discovered that he was healed, he came back, shouting praises to God.

16 He bowed down at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. The man was from the country of Samaria.
17 Jesus asked, “Weren't ten men healed? Where are the other nine? 18 Why was this foreigner the only one who came back to thank God?”

19 Then Jesus told the man, “You may get up and go. Your faith has made you well.”

God's Kingdom

(Matthew 24.23-28,37-41)

21 There is no use saying, ‘Look! Here it is’ or ‘Look! There it is.’ God's kingdom is here with you.”t

22 Jesus said to his disciples:
The time will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not. 23 When people say to you, “Look there,” or “Look here,” don't go looking for him. 24 The day of the Son of Man will be like lightning flashing across the sky. 25 But first he must suffer terribly and be rejected by the people of today. 26 t When the Son of Man comes, things will be just as they were when Noah lived.

27 t People were eating, drinking, and getting married right up to the day when Noah went into the big boat. Then the flood came and drowned everyone on earth.
28  t When Lott lived, people were also eating and drinking. They were buying, selling, planting, and building. 29 But on the very day Lot left Sodom, fiery flames poured down from the sky and killed everyone.

30 The same will happen on the day when the Son of Man appears.
31  t At that time no one on a rooftopt should go down into the house to get anything. No one in a field should go back to the house for anything.

32 t Remember what happened to Lot's wife.t
33  t People who try to save their lives will lose them, and those who lose their lives will save them. 34 On that night two people will be sleeping in the same bed, but only one will be taken. The other will be left.

35-36 Two women will be together grinding wheat, but only one will be taken. The other will be left.t

37 Then Jesus' disciples spoke up, “But where will this happen, Lord?”
Jesus said, “Where there is a corpse, there will always be vultures.”t