Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Religious Art
Luke 17: Jesus’ Call to Forgive, Have Faith – Advent Day 17

Luke 17: Jesus’ Call to Forgive, Have Faith – Advent Day 17

Last updated on: December 16, 2025 at 4:49 am by Andrew Laflamme

Luke 17: Jesus’ Call to Forgive, Have Faith – Advent Day 17 2025-12-15T22:56:36-06:00 Andrew Laflamme

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Jesus' Call before Christmas Luke 17

Christmas is coming (Photo by A. Laflamme)

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.

General Christian

Religious Events

About Andrew Laflamme

Andrew is a husband and father with experience as a musician, engineer, and Catholic missionary. You can read more about the author here.

Previous Post

December 15, 2025

Luke 16: Focus on the Spiritual to Prepare - Advent Day 16

Next Post

December 17, 2025 Luke 18 & 19: Jesus Heals the Rich - Advent Days 18-19

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Feasts and Holy Days Music Review Parenting Reflection Uncategorized

Select a Month February 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 September 2024 August 2024 May 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was the name of the disciple who replaced Judas Iscariot?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Matthias Silas Timothy Barnabas