17:1 in the Greek actually reads as a double negative -- "it is impossible for scandals not to come," which adds to the gravity of the situation. This opening passage certainly puts the burden on followers of Christ to act appropriately. It occurs to me that the congregation's baptismal vows to nurture and help raise an infant speak to this passage.
I believe I have preached a sermon in Troy on the ten lepers, offering an explanation for why only one returned to give thanks. Notice that the leper who returned to give thanks is a Samaritan, an outsider to the faith. This is another example of Luke expanding the circle of believers. It would appear that the faith that Jesus commends is seen in the leper's thankfulness, not in his belief that Jesus could cure his leprosy.
The chapter finishes with Jesus sharing some perplexing words. On the one hand, he says that the "kingdom of God is among you" (17:21). On the other hand, he talks bout what must take place before the Son of Man returns and the suddenness in which that will take place. How do you understand the kingdom of God? Is it a present reality? A future reality? Some combination of both?
Perhaps part of what is going on is that Jesus' standard operating procedure is to deflect and redirect questions. Jesus' answers are usually contextual because he is responding in the immediate moment to the person's question, and I think he is often trying to challenge the assumptions the person has. To take Jesus' answer to any particular question and apply it to another question may not be fair to his comments.
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