11 As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria. 12 As he entered a village there, ten men with leprosy stood at a distance, 13 crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy. 15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!” 16 He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? 18 Has no one returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you.”
Luke 17:11-19 (NLT)
TRUTH IS SUBJECTIVE?
The Christian philosopher and father of existential thought, Søren Kierkegaard, said something fascinating that, at face value, seems false. In his book Concluding Unscientific Postscript, he makes the statement, “Christianity is subjective.” Now, typically, a statement like this would raise all sorts of red flags. After all, we know that truth is absolute, and we believe Christianity to be objectively true. But the tongue-in-cheek philosopher has often been misunderstood.
What he is not saying is that there is no objective truth or that Christianity might not be true. Quite the contrary! What he means is that the truth of Christianity is worked out in the particularity of the subject. Thus, following Christ is not a matter of impersonal maxims or rote memorization—it is personal devotion worked out in one’s own experience. This is the subjectivity he speaks of.
By now, you’re probably thinking, “You’ve lost me, Ryan.” Hang in there. I noticed something this week in my reading of Luke 17 about the manner in which Jesus heals the lepers. In Luke 5, He heals one leper immediately by touching him. In Luke 17, He heals ten men gradually, without even making contact! As I read these contrasting accounts, a thought struck me: Why doesn’t Jesus heal the same maladies in the same manner?
But the answer goes back to Kierkegaard’s observation. It is because Jesus is deeply personal. He works faith through the relative experiences of our lives. This is the subjective truth of Christian practice. It is why physical touch works for one man while a spoken word works for others. It is also why, out of ten men healed in the same manner, only one returns in gratitude.
Jesus wants a personal relationship with you. Even in the way He performs miracles, He demonstrates this. Ask Him today to work in the experiences of your own life, that you may know Him and be known by Him.
Ryan Hoffer serves as NextGen Production Director at NorthStar. He holds an M.Div in Church History and enjoys playing the harp. He and his wife, Tiffany, live in Acworth and have three children.
