Digging Deeper – Along the Way

Avatar photo Ryan Hoffer on March 28, 2025

 

And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy. 

Luke 17:14 (NLT)


ALONG THE WAY

Lord willing, this May, I will celebrate ten years of sobriety. The beginning was tough. I was in outpatient rehab for 18 months while also participating in support groups and submitting to weekly drug tests. There was work to be done, habits to be undone, and accountability to be established. It was a process—often tedious—but something happened along the way. My heart started to follow my body into those rooms as I continued to comply with the process. A miracle was rendered in me—I was made well.

Was it instantaneous? No. Does that make it any less miraculous? Again, no. I guess you could call it a slow miracle.

In Luke 17, we see another slow miracle (albeit much faster than mine!). Jesus tells the ten lepers to go and present themselves to the priests, at which point they will presumably be cleansed. Note that He does not heal them and then tell them to go. On the contrary, they depart in faith, hoping that by the time they reach the priests, they will be cleansed. They have “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Verse 14 tells us, “As they went, they were cleansed.”

We don’t know how long it took; any guess would be purely speculative. But we do know that it happened along the way.

What is Jesus doing in you along the way? Has He asked you to go out in obedience, giving you everything needed for faith—except the results themselves? Are you in the middle of a slow miracle?

 

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.

Digging Deeper – Truth is Subjective?

Avatar photo Ryan Hoffer on March 27, 2025

 

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.

Digging Deeper – The Master

Avatar photo Ryan Hoffer on March 26, 2025

 

and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master…

Luke 17:13 (ESV)


THE MASTER

The title Master (Greek epistates) is unique to the phraseology of Luke. He is the only New Testament writer to use this specific Greek word and frequently substitutes it where others use Rabbi—possibly an indication that he was writing for a Gentile audience. The word was used in the Greco-Roman world to denote someone who is “set over” others, such as a supervisor, owner, or magistrate.

Of interest is the fact that in every New Testament occurrence—except for one—it is always the disciples who address Jesus with this title:

  • Luke 5:5 – But Simon responded, saying, “Master…”
  • Luke 8:24 – They went to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master…”
  • Luke 8:45 – Peter said, “Master, the crowds are pressing in…”
  • Luke 9:33 – Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here.”
  • Luke 9:49 – Answering, John said, “Master…”

In the story of the ten lepers, we see the title used again:

“And as He entered a village, He was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance and lifted up their voices, saying, ‘Jesus, Master, have mercy on us’” (Luke 17:12-13).

These lepers, unlike the privileged twelve, are not speaking from a teacher-disciple relationship. Nevertheless, they bestow upon Jesus the title Master. In doing so, they acknowledge His authority—authority great enough that they implore Him to heal them, believing even disease to be subordinate to His command. As a result, they are healed.

We also serve the Master. Remember today that He is “set over” all things in your life—work, health, friends, family, finances, trials, blessings, and everything in between—and thank Him for His mastery.

 

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.

Digging Deeper – The Lame Walk, The Lepers are Cleansed

Avatar photo Ryan Hoffer on March 25, 2025

 

When he saw them he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed.

Luke 17:14 (ESV)


THE LAME WALK AND THE LEPERS ARE CLEANSED

Leprosy has a well-documented history in the writings of the ancients. Of course, the Old Testament offers a thorough discourse on the purification laws of the Israelites (see Leviticus 13 and 14), but many other sources also record descriptions of the severity of the disease. The historian Josephus, recalling the history of the Jews, states, “And for the lepers, [Moses] suffered them not to come into the city at all, nor to live with any others, as if they were in effect dead persons.” The church father Gregory of Nyssa refers to those infected as a “terrible… spectacle of men who are living corpses.” The celebrated Greek physician Aretaeus describes how leprous family members would be exiled to the desert or mountains in the hope that they would soon perish. Therefore, leprosy was essentially a death sentence.

Jesus, however, is able to break the sentence of death and alienation—both in a physical and spiritual sense. It is, in fact, for this very reason that He came. He alone performed miracles that none but the Son of God could do, proving His Lordship, as is the case with the ten lepers He healed in Luke 17. When John the Baptist was imprisoned, he inquired of Jesus, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” (Matthew 11:3). Jesus’ reply to this question has always struck me. He chooses not to answer in a straightforward manner but rather to appeal to the effects of His work—which is, perhaps, a more enduring affirmation to counter persistent doubt. He says, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have the good news preached to them” (Mt. 11:4-5).

This week, as you reflect on the story of the ten lepers, know that Jesus is “the one who is to come” and has demonstrated this by His miraculous power—both then and now.

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.

Digging Deeper – Crying Out

Avatar photo Ryan Hoffer on March 24, 2025

 

As he entered a village there, ten men with leprosy stood at a distance, crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

Luke 17:12-13 (NLT)


CRYING OUT

En route to Jerusalem, Jesus encounters ten lepers on the passage “between Samaria and Galilee” (v. 11). They maintain their distance—as required by Mosaic law—and entreat the Savior to have pity on them. The law literally required diseased persons outside the camp to cry out, “Unclean, unclean,” as a warning to those approaching, lest they come into contact and become defiled. The text says that they “lifted up their voices,” or, as the NLT puts it, “they cried out.” The verb is not to be overlooked, for after they are cleansed, the grateful leper returns to Jesus and again cries out, this time “praising God with a loud voice” (Lk 17:15). Thus, there is a parallel structure to the story—crying out in the beginning and crying out in the end—albeit from very different affections.

But isn’t that always the case? When we cry out, our Lord hears and has compassion on us. This idea is presented repeatedly throughout Scripture, most notably (and personally) in the Psalms. Psalm 30 says:

O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,
and you restored my health… (v. 2, NLT);

…that I might sing praises to you and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever! (v. 12, NLT)

God has the power to transform our deepest sorrows into profound joy—if only we would cry out to Him. But let there be a corresponding cry as well, an expression of praise. Whichever side of the crying out you’re on, know this: You can take comfort in the fact that He hears you, or you can take joy in the fact that He heard you.

 

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.

Digging Deeper – God’s Hospitality

Avatar photo Chris Boggess on March 21, 2025

 

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8 (ESV)

And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

Luke 5:31-32 (ESV)


GOD’S HOSPITALITY

Yesterday, we looked at the word hospitality and the root “hospes,” which means guest. There is another familiar word from that same root, the word hospital. We usually think of a hospital as a place of last resort. If you hear that someone you care about is sick and has been admitted to a hospital, your first thoughts are probably not that they are a hospital guest. You think of them as a patient, and the word patient comes from another Latin word, “patiens, ” meaning to suffer.

So, a hospital is a place where suffering guests can find help. That may be why hospitals make people nervous; if you go into the hospital, you have to admit you are sick at that point. Or maybe not. We can talk ourselves into believing all kinds of things. And we can find many reasons why we don’t need a doctor or any treatment for ailments. Men can be incredibly stubborn about admitting they need help or are hurting. I think about the black knight of Monty Python fame who, when looking at his severed arm on the ground, exclaims, “tis but a scratch.”

Jesus said he came for “those who are sick.” But admitting our sickness is often the most challenging part. When confronted by our sins, we try to rationalize them or compare ourselves to others like the Pharisee from the passage a few days ago who prayed, “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ (Luke 18:11-12) Or we may even, like this Pharisee, lean into the good things we do, like attending church or giving a tithe. But if we think all of that means we are not sick, we are fooling ourselves, not God.

We must admit that we are sinners in need of a savior and that we can’t heal our sins on our own. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) Then, our great physician can heal us.

Take a moment to pray. Thank God for the gift of salvation he has offered you, and ask Him to show you the areas in your life where you need his healing.

 

Chris Boggess is the Next Generation/Family Pastor at NorthStar Church. He grew up in St. Albans, West Virginia, and still cheers for the Mountaineers. He and his wife, Heather, have two grown children and one granddaughter.

Digging Deeper – Hospitality

Avatar photo Chris Boggess on March 20, 2025

 

When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

Luke 19:5 (ESV)

Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Hebrews 13:2 (ESV)


HOSPITALITY

At the beginning of this year, I did a Bible reading plan called the “30-Day Shred.” If you have the Bible app on your phone that says “Holy Bible,” you can look up the reading plan. It takes a couple of hours a day to get through, but there is an audio setting, so you can listen to it in your car or during workouts to stay on track.

It is an interesting way to experience the Bible. Reading that quickly, you don’t get caught up in individual words or phrases; instead, you start noticing repeated themes and patterns. One theme that comes up over and over is the call to hospitality. God tells His people to remember their time as outsiders in Egypt by caring for outsiders and showing them hospitality.

In the story of Zacchaeus, Jesus is the outsider geographically—this is not His town; He is just passing through. But in this case, Zacchaeus is the true outsider. I don’t imagine many people in Jericho lined up to invite Zacchaeus to sit down for a meal and conversation. And I also don’t imagine that Zacchaeus extended many invitations either. He had to know what people thought of him, and rather than face the rejection of turned-down invitations, Zacchaeus probably ended up alone often.

So Zacchaeus hides in the branches and heavy foliage of a tree, trying not to be seen—because to be seen would be to risk rejection. But when Jesus sees him, He accepts him. Jesus extends hospitality by inviting Himself to Zacchaeus’ house.

As I type this devotion, I am on a mission trip to Miami with our Wave College ministry. One of the missionaries here told us that most people think a church starts when someone plants a church, makes disciples, and begins engaging the community with the gospel. But he said that when you look at how churches started in the New Testament, they always began by personally engaging the community with the gospel, making disciples, and then planting the church—that came last.

The word hospitality comes from the Latin hospes, which means guest. The Greek word for hospitality is philoxenia, which breaks down into phileo (brotherly love) and xenos (foreigner or stranger).

Take a moment to pray. Ask God to show you the outsiders and strangers in your life today—those who need your hospitality and an opportunity to engage with the gospel through you. Then, reach out to them and see what God can do in their lives through you.

 

Chris Boggess is the Next Generation/Family Pastor at NorthStar Church. He grew up in St. Albans, West Virginia, and still cheers for the Mountaineers. He and his wife, Heather, have two grown children and one granddaughter.

Digging Deeper – Greed and Fear

Avatar photo Chris Boggess on March 19, 2025

 

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?[a] 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 

Matthew 25:25-29 (ESV)


GREED AND FEAR

So much of greed is driven by fear. We fear not being able to take care of our family or ourselves. We fear what trials the future may bring. We fear what other people think of us. We fear that we are missing out. All of these fears can manifest as greed in our lives.

We don’t know what Zacchaeus feared, but he was certainly afraid. Grown men do not hide in trees unless they are scared. After his encounter with Jesus, this fear changes. Zacchaeus states his future fearless intentions:

“But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.'” (Luke 19:8)

He chooses not just to move on with his life and do better but to face those he has wronged and make amends. Confronting the people he has cheated would be a frightening prospect, yet this verse shows that he is moving past the fear that once drove him to live greedily in the first place.

Take a moment and pray. Ask God to show you the areas of fear in your life where you are holding back from others and from Him. Ask Him to replace that fear with peace, and from that peace, let generosity flow. Ask God to reveal if there are people you have wronged because of fear, and ask Him for the courage to make things right.

 

Chris Boggess is the Next Generation/Family Pastor at NorthStar Church. He grew up in St. Albans, West Virginia, and still cheers for the Mountaineers. He and his wife, Heather, have two grown children and one granddaughter.

Digging Deeper – Jesus Doesn’t Hate Tax Collectors

Avatar photo Chris Boggess on March 18, 2025

 

8 But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.”

9 Jesus said to him, today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Luke 19:8-9; 13-14 (ESV)


JESUS DOESN’T HATE TAX COLLECTORS

Sometimes, it’s hard to see the good in people. Or maybe it’s just me.

A couple of years ago, someone suggested a TV show to me and told me how great it was. They described the show’s general plot, and it sounded exciting, so I gave it a watch. Three episodes in, I quit watching. When my friend asked me how I liked it, I admitted that I gave up because all the characters were so bad and kept making wrong choices. I couldn’t root for them or find a hero. Then my friend responded that this was exactly why they watched—it would be great if one of them had a change of heart. My friend saw the potential for good in them. I just saw broken people.

When Jesus was faced with tax collectors—the people everyone considered the worst kind—He always used them to show that no one is beyond redemption when God is in the equation.

Look at when Jesus meets a tax collector earlier in Luke:

Luke 5:27-31
“After this, he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ 28 And leaving everything, he rose and followed him. 29 And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at the table with them. 30 And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, ‘Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?’ 31 And Jesus answered them, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.’”

This tax collector not only followed Jesus but also invited a bunch of his tax collector friends. Jesus’ approach to sinners—viewing them as sick people in need of healing—was very different from the Pharisees’ approach of shunning and shaming them. This tax collector is identified elsewhere in the Gospels as Matthew, who became one of Jesus’ disciples.

A few chapters later in Luke, we see another contrast in attitudes in this parable:

Luke 18:9-14
“He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and treated others with contempt: 10 ‘Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.” 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.’”

And we see this again with Zacchaeus, the sinner and outcast whom Jesus calls by name:

Luke 19:5-10
“And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.’ 6 So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. 7 And when they saw it, they all grumbled, ‘He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.’ 8 And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, ‘Behold, Lord, half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.’ 9 And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.’”

The world saw sinners, but Jesus saw future saints.

What would our lives look like if we saw people with the same potential as Jesus?

Take a moment and pray. Pray that God will give you eyes to see past the sins of the people around you and recognize their potential. Pray that you will be able to set aside your negative opinions of others and begin to view them as sick people in need of a physician. Pray that Jesus will start to change their hearts, just as He did with the tax collectors.

 

Chris Boggess is the Next Generation/Family Pastor at NorthStar Church. He grew up in St. Albans, West Virginia, and still cheers for the Mountaineers. He and his wife, Heather, have two grown children and one granddaughter.

Digging Deeper: Hearing Before Seeing

Avatar photo Sellers Hickman on March 14, 2025

 

46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

 

Mark 10:46-52 (ESV)


HEARING BEFORE SEEING

 

When I think of the quote, “You have to see it to believe it,” I immediately think of the movie Now You See Me. The premise of the movie is about illusionists who perform mind-blowing magic tricks—while secretly stealing money from their audience members. The first time I watched this movie was with my wife’s family, and they had all seen it before. They had a great time watching me react to each and every illusion on screen.

In the second movie, there is a crazy scene where the main characters pass a card around while being searched (using the real magic of CGI). It was one of those moments where I had to rewind just to process how they pulled it off.

This movie was a wild story that you had to see to believe, but ultimately, it was just a fictional story meant to entertain. However, the story of Bartimaeus in Scripture is also one that might seem hard to believe at first, yet I assure you—it is completely true.

It’s easy to put our faith in things we can see and trust. But put yourself in Bartimaeus’ shoes for a moment. He had never seen Jesus perform a miracle. He had never watched as Jesus taught the crowds. He probably didn’t participate in any of the other stories written in Scripture because of how difficult it would have been for him to get there. Yet, he had full faith in Jesus as the Son of David, the promised Messiah.

I wonder how Bartimaeus even heard about Jesus. Maybe it was as others walked past him on the side of the road, sharing stories of healings and miracles. Maybe it was from people he used to spend time with before his blindness isolated him from society. Imagine how much faith it must have taken to fully believe in something he had only heard about but never seen for himself. His faith was not based on sight but on trust in what he had heard about Jesus’ power and goodness.

This is the same place where many of your friends might find themselves today. Maybe they are familiar with who Jesus is or have heard the stories of the Bible, but those truths haven’t yet taken root in their hearts. We must fully depend on the Holy Spirit to open our eyes so we can truly understand and receive the Word of God. This is why two people can read the same verse—like John 3:16—and have completely different reactions. One person may be unmoved, while another may be so deeply convicted that they put their trust in Christ on the spot. It’s not just about hearing the Word but having the spiritual eyes to see and believe it.

Now let me ask you: What are you believing in God to do before you ever see the fruit of it? What do you trust Him to do because of His faithfulness to His promises so far? So often, we wait for visible proof before trusting in God’s plan, but faith calls us to trust before we see.

Can I assure you today that if Jesus accomplished the work of bringing us new life spiritually through the cross, then truly anything is possible? He is still faithful, still working, and still calling us to trust Him… even when we haven’t yet seen the full picture.

 

Sellers Hickman serves as College & Teaching Pastor at NorthStar Church and loves cheering on his Ole Miss Rebels. He and his wife, Hannah, live in Dallas, Ga. with their two daughters. He also serves as the chaplain for the KSU Men’s Basketball team.