Ultimately with R.C. Sproul

Episode Summary: "Giving Grateful Praise"

Date: November 21, 2025
Podcast Host: Ligonier Ministries
Featured Teacher: R.C. Sproul (via archival audio)
Main Theme: The depth and importance of genuine gratitude to God, as illustrated in the biblical story of Jesus healing the 10 lepers (Luke 17:11–19).

Episode Overview

This episode centers on the deeper meaning of gratitude in the Christian life, illustrated through the well-known story of Jesus healing the 10 lepers. R.C. Sproul challenges listeners to consider whether their greatest sin might be a failure to show proper gratitude to God, not just to feel it inwardly. The message highlights the difference between feeling grateful and acting on it through worship, service, and giving thanks for God's grace.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Weight of Ingratitude

• Opening Challenge (00:00):
  • R.C. Sproul opens with a probing question about personal sin:

    "If I would say to you, what's your most base sin, your worst action of evil, would you come up with something like failure to be grateful to God?" (00:00)

  • He implies most would not consider ingratitude as their gravest failing, yet suggests it is the root problem for many.

The Plight of the Lepers in Ancient Israel

• Historical Context (00:29–02:13):
  • Sproul details the severe social, familial, and religious consequences of leprosy in ancient Israel, highlighting the lifelong quarantine and isolation lepers endured:

    "...you suffered the worst of all possible kinds of quarantines...a solitary life, removed from the community, removed from your family, removed from the religious institutions of your day." (00:38)

Jesus’ Surprising Command

• Instruction to the Lepers (02:13–03:06):
  • Jesus doesn’t pronounce their healing but instructs them to go show themselves to the priests, which, according to Levitical law, is what one would do if cured.

    "If I tell you to go see the priests, I'm telling you to go check yourselves out and you will be clean." (02:41)

Sudden Healing and Its Immediate Effects

• Healing on the Journey (03:06–04:00):
  • As the ten lepers obey and walk, they are progressively healed together, leading to amazement and shared joy:

    "...one leper would say to the other, look at my hand, it's clean. And the other one would say, mine too, it's happening. And they were beyond themselves with joy and excitement as their bodies were being cleansed." (03:31)

The Divider: One Returns

• The Grateful Leper (04:00–05:37):
  • Of the ten, only one chooses to return to Jesus, moved by the need to express thanks directly—despite the urgency to regain his former life:

    "We've got all day to see the priests, but first we have to go back and see him and thank him and honor him." (04:44)

  • The nine, also grateful in their hearts, are too eager for restoration to stop.

Real vs. Expressed Gratitude

• Key Distinction (05:37–06:13):
  • Sproul emphasizes a crucial difference:

    "It's one thing to be grateful. It's something altogether to show it, to manifest it, to do. Gratitude, feeling and doing are not the same thing." (05:37)

The Root Problem: God “Owes” Us Nothing

• Fundamental Human Error (06:13):
  • The episode diagnoses ingratitude as stemming from an attitude that God owes us:

    "We think that God owes us everything that we receive and much more." (06:13)

Worship as the Proper Response

• Call to Action (06:13–07:32):
  • True gratitude is demonstrated in worship and service to God:

    "If a person is truly grateful, he shows it, and he shows it in worship and in service to God. This is why we're here." (06:21)

Jesus’ Question and Affirmation

• Jesus’ “Where Are the Nine?” (07:03–07:32):
  • Jesus’ response underlines the importance of returning thanks. He recognizes the one who returns:

    "...you came back to say thank you. You came back to give honor. You came back to praise God. Where are the rest?" (07:13–07:24)
    "And now Jesus said to him, arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well now. This poor leper was really clean." (07:28)

Personal Application

• Bringing It Home (07:32–08:04):
  • The episode concludes by applying the story to listeners’ lives, challenging them to manifest gratitude:

    "It's your story. It's my story. How do you show your thanks to Christ? How do you give glory and honor to your Redeemer? That's what we're about. Saying thank you." (07:32–08:04)

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the root of sin:

  "Would you come up with something like failure to be grateful to God?"
  —R.C. Sproul (00:00)

• On the difference between feeling and action:

  "It's one thing to be grateful. It's something altogether to show it, to manifest it, to do. Gratitude, feeling and doing are not the same thing."
  —R.C. Sproul (05:37)

• On the true purpose of worship:

  "If a person is truly grateful, he shows it, and he shows it in worship and in service to God. This is why we're here."
  —R.C. Sproul (06:21)

• On Jesus’ expectation:

  "Where are the rest? He's speaking to the man. And the man's still on the ground."
  —R.C. Sproul (07:24–07:28)

Notable Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction & Opening Question: 00:00–00:16
• The Plight of Lepers: 00:29–02:13
• Jesus' Command to Show Themselves: 02:13–03:06
• Healing Happens as They Go: 03:06–04:00
• One Returns to Give Thanks: 04:00–05:37
• The Difference between Feeling and Doing: 05:37–06:13
• Worship and the Practice of Gratitude: 06:13–07:32
• Personal Application and Challenge: 07:32–08:04

Concluding Thoughts

R.C. Sproul skillfully draws out the heart of the biblical narrative by challenging listeners: being truly grateful means acting on that gratitude through worship, service, and giving thanks—not just feeling thankful. He reframes ingratitude as a deep and overlooked spiritual failing, calling Christians to a life of expressive praise.

Final Reflection:

"How do you show your thanks to Christ? How do you give glory and honor to your Redeemer? That's what we're about. Saying thank you." (07:32–08:04)