Luke 17 consists of some sayings of Jesus, as well as some warnings. We can summarize them as Jesus’ call to forgiveness, faith, gratitude, and selflessness.
Jesus’ Call to Forgive
The chapter opens with Jesus teaching his apostles that “temptations to sin are sure to come” (Luke 17:1). I don’t hear this spoken of very often, but it is nice to know that even then men who followed Jesus physically would have their own struggles ahead. Jesus knew this.
His warning however is to anyone who leads others to sin. This is an especially grave offense with Jesus saying it’d be better for that person to be at the bottom of a lake. This makes sense because leading innocent souls away from God is the opposite of our call to make disciples.
That teaching leads right into His call to forgive. Based on the seriousness of leading others to sin, this makes sense as well. When those around us offend us, there is a temptation to hold it against them or retaliate in some way. That could lead to a vicious cycle of peers leading each other into grudges, resentment, or harm. Instead we want to reconcile as soon as possible, forgiving as long as they repent (Luke 17:4).
Let’s bring back saying “I forgive you” when someone says they’re sorry.
Jesus’ Call to Faith
This one is a self explanatory call to try to increase our faith even by the smallest amount.
And the Lord said, “If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this sycamine tree, ‘Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you”
Luke 17:6
Whether it’s moving mountains or uprooting trees, I love the imagery of these calls to faith.
We need to trust in confidence (con fides) that if God needed that tree moved, He can make it happen.
Jesus’ Call to Gratitude
Ten lepers are healed. One returns to give thanks and praise God.
“and he fell on his face at Jesus’ feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan.”
Luke 17:16
Jesus commends this man for his faith.
Gratitude is almost like faith for events that have already occurred. It is a trust that all of these good things that have happened to me are of God.
It is also interesting the Jesus points out when it is the foreigner who sets the best example, showing His desire to be for all nations.
Jesus’ Call to Selflessness
“Whoever seeks to gain his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it.”
Luke 17:33
In the last section of Luke 17, Jesus talks about the temptation to believe others about end times of Jesus’ coming. But we shouldn’t worry about how or when. Even just this year in 2025 there was someone claiming the end times. So this has been happening for 2,000 years, and we shouldn’t worry about it.
Instead we should worry about our own life. Forgiving those we need to forgive, having faith, having gratitude like the leper, and being as selfless as we can, losing our life so as to preserve it in eternity.
To follow along with these readings, you can find recent posts at Formed by a Flame.
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