Joyful Moments in Christ

This Bible study lesson is for people who are learning English (ELL or ESL students). It is made for advanced beginner and intermediate English learners. Children who speak English or adults who prefer easy English may also enjoy it and learn from it.

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Lesson Icebreaker Question

When was a time someone did something kind for you? Did you remember to say thank you?

Lesson Highlight

In this lesson, we will learn about ten sick men who asked Jesus for help. We will see how Jesus healed them and how only one man came back to say thank you. We will talk about how important it is to be thankful to God.

Vocabulary List (GNT)

1. At A Distance — Not close; a little far away.
2. Border — The line that separates two places, like cities or countries.
3. Came Back — Returned to the place where someone was before.
4. Dreaded Skin Disease — A sickness of the skin that people were very afraid of, often called leprosy in Bible times.
5. Examine — To look at something carefully to check it.
6. Faith — Believing and trusting in God.
7. Foreigner — A person from another country or place.
8. Galilee — A place in the northern part of Israel where Jesus grew up and did many miracles.
9. Get Up — To rise from sitting or lying down.
10. Ground — The solid surface of the earth.
11. Have Pity — To feel sorry for someone and want to help.
12. Heal — To make someone healthy again.
13. Jerusalem — A very important city in Israel, where God’s temple was and many Bible events happened.
14. Let — To allow or give permission.
15. Loud Voice — A voice that is strong and easy to hear.
16. Made Clean — Healed from sickness, especially one that made a person ritually unclean in Bible times.
17. Made His Way — To travel or move toward a place.
18. Master — A respectful word for a leader or teacher, like Jesus.
19. Met — To come face-to-face with someone.
20. Only One — Just a single person or thing; no more than one.
21. On The Way — While going from one place to another.
22. Praising — Saying good things about someone, often about God.
23. Priest — A person who served God in the temple and helped people worship.
24. Samaria — A place between Galilee and Jerusalem. People from there were called Samaritans.
25. Samaritan — A person from Samaria. In the Bible, Samaritans and Jews usually did not get along.
26. Saw — Looked at and noticed something.
27. Shouted — Spoke in a very loud voice.
28. Spoke Up — Talked so others could hear clearly.
29. Suffering — Feeling pain or sadness.
30. Thanked — Said kind words to show you are grateful.
31. Threw — Sent something through the air or moved quickly into a place or position.
32. To The Ground — Down onto the earth’s surface.
33. Village — A small group of houses and people, smaller than a city.
34. Went Along — Traveled beside or near something.
35. Well — Healthy and not sick anymore.

Summary of the Passage

This passage tells the story of Jesus and ten men who were very sick. They had a skin disease that made them stay away from other people. In those days, if you had this kind of sickness, you could not live with your family or go to the temple. The ten men saw Jesus coming and called out to him from far away. They asked him to have pity on them and help them.

Jesus saw them and told them to go show themselves to the priests. In those days, the priests would check sick people to see if they were healthy again. While the men were walking to the priests, they were healed. Their skin was clean, and the sickness was gone.

One man, a Samaritan, saw that he was healed and came back to Jesus. He thanked Jesus loudly and praised God. He fell down at Jesus’ feet to show his thanks. Jesus asked where the other nine men were. Only one had come back to say thank you. Jesus told the man that his faith had made him well.

This passage teaches us about the kindness of Jesus, the power of faith, and the importance of saying thank you to God.

Read The Passage

Jesus Heals Ten Men
11 As Jesus made his way to Jerusalem, he went along the border between Samaria and Galilee.
12 He was going into a village when he was met by ten men suffering from a dreaded skin disease. They stood at a distance and shouted, “Jesus! Master! Have pity on us!”
14 Jesus saw them and said to them, “Go and let the priests examine you.”
On the way they were made clean.
15 When one of them saw that he was healed, he came back, praising God in a loud voice.
16 He threw himself to the ground at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. The man was a Samaritan.
17 Jesus spoke up, “There were ten who were healed; where are the other nine?
18 Why is this foreigner the only one who came back to give thanks to God?”
19 And Jesus said to him, “Get up and go; your faith has made you well.”

Luke 17:11-19 (GNT)

Most English learners should use the New International Reader’s Version (NIRV) or the Good News Translation (GNT) because they are easy to read. If you want to try something harder, you can read one of the other Bible versions:

• Very Easy: New International Reader’s Version: Luke 17:11-19 (NIRV)
• Easy: Good News Translation: Luke 17:11-19 (GNT)
• Medium: New Living Translation: Luke 17:11-19 (NLT)
• Hard: New International Version: Luke 17:11-19 (NIV)
• Very Hard: English Standard Version: Luke 17:11-19 (ESV)

Comprehension Questions

1. Where was Jesus going?
2. Who met Jesus as he went into the village?
3. What disease did the ten men have?
4. What did the men shout to Jesus?
5. What did Jesus tell the men to do?
6. What happened to the men while they were on the way?
7. How many men came back to thank Jesus?
8. What did the man do when he came back?
9. What was special about the man who came back?
10. What did Jesus say made the man well?

Application Questions

1. Why do you think only one man came back to thank Jesus?
2. How do you feel when someone forgets to say thank you to you?
3. Why is it important to thank God for the good things in our lives?
4. How can we remember to show thankfulness every day?

Theological Insights

1. Jesus cares for people who are hurting and asks us to do the same.
2. Faith in Jesus brings healing and hope.
3. God loves people from every place, no matter where they are from.
4. It pleases God when we remember to thank him for his kindness.
5. Even small faith can lead to big blessings from God.

Closing Prayer

Dear Father, thank you for loving us and helping us when we are hurting. Help us to remember to say thank you for all the good things you give us. Amen.

ELL Resources for the Gospel of Luke

More ELL Resources

You can find more Bible lessons for English learners on the main ELL page.

Scripture quotations marked (GNT) are from the Good News Translation in Today’s English Version- Second Edition Copyright © 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.