The Overwhelming Compassion of Christ Luke 7:1-17

Introduction

Opening: [Potential Butterfly Wall Illustration] The text before us today, as well next week, is a powerful image of the beauty of Christ. Often Christ is spoken about in some distant way, as if he was not alive and present, and intricately woven into our lives. This is a great mistake, because every true Christian knows the wonder and the majesty and the compassion of Christ intimately, personally, and overwhelmingly.

Context: We might call this chapter, “Christ’s Ministry of Compassion.” Both immediately before, and immediately after this chapter, Jesus is busy with his teaching ministry. But in chapter 7, we see four separate acts of compassion that Jesus radically demonstrates. As one author has noted, he demonstrates compassion on: a saddened centurion, a weeping widow, a perplexed prophet, and a heartbroken harlot. Four wildly different and diverse people, with wildly different and diverse backgrounds. Yet the central thread of this entire chapter is the compassion of Christ. Today, we’ll look at the first two stories, and next week we’ll consider the last two of these vignettes.

Compassion for a Saddened Centurion

Luke 7:1–10 “After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him. When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant. And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.” And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard these things, he marveled a…”

I BIG PICTURE & CONTEXT

A Description of a Centurion: The first thing we should note about this story is the description of the man as a centurion. This is a title for a man who served in the Roman military, specifically as someone with quite a degree of power and authority. He would have had charge over 100 men. The historian Polycarp describes the kind of man that Rome looked for to serve in this position. He writes,

“They must not be so much ‘seekers after danger as men who can command, steady in action, and reliable; they ought not to be over anxious to rush into the fight; but when hard pressed they must be ready to hold their ground and die at their posts.”

His job was to be a steady dependable leader who would keep the peace.

B Romans & Jews: That was a difficult job in Israel because the Jews and the Romans had a tense relationship. The Romans essentially occupied Israel during the days of Christ. While they permitted the Jewish people to worship according to their own rules, they still enacted a very close oversight, and the Jews essentially despised the Roman presence in Israel.

C A God Fearer: This man had developed a close relationship with the local Jewish community though. It seems as though he had become what is calld a God-fearer. A God-fearer was the title given to non-Jews who essentially decided to worship the God of the Jews without officially getting circumcized and technically becoming Jewish themselves. He had funded the building of the synagogue in Capernaum, and was seemingly on very good terms with the local Hebrew elders.

D His Servant Was Sick: That man, had a servant who worked for him, who was sick and on the verge of dying. And knowing the Jewish Elders might have some way of getting Jesus to come by, he invites them to speak to Jesus on his behalf. As Jesus gets closer to his house, the man realizes that Jesus is arriving, and immediately sends friends out to stop Christ from coming any closer, and they say essentially, “you have the authority to heal from right where you are. I’m unworthy to have you in my home.”

II MEANING & APPLICATION

The central verse for this story is verse 9

Luke 7:9 ESV

When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”

This is one of only two times in the entire New Testament where Jesus is said to be “amazed” in a positive way. It’s a heavy word that describes a powerful stirring of the soul with emotion. What is so shocking about Christ’s words is that he is looking a Gentile in the face, and saying that this Gentile has more faith than all of the Jews he has met in Israel. This Gentile who was an outsider. This Gentile who would have been limited in terms of how much he could participate in Jewish worship. This Gentile, who other Jews would have considered in some way unclean, is the exemplary image of faith. What is it about his faith that so amazes Christ. For our purposes I would like to highlight three components of his faith that I believe are central to understanding this story.

A Springs from Humility: First, the centurion’s faith springs from humility. Where do we see this humility in this story?

The Word Worthy: The word “worthy” is used three times in this passage. First, by the Jewish leaders who, in verse 4, describe this man as “worthy.” In their minds, this is a man who has done many good things. He helped build the synagogue. He is useful to God’s people. But then when Jesus arrives near the house, twice the man describes himself as “unworthy.” Verse 6, “I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.” Then verse 7, “I did not presume to come to you.” That word for presume is in fact the exact same roote as the word “worthy.” He is in effect saying, “I do not consider myself worthy enough to come to you.”

Unworthy Sees All As Acts of Grace: What this centurion demonstrates here is in fact the root of the Christian faith. The first step in becoming a Christian is recognizing that we are utterly unworthy to approach God. We must not only say this as some doctrinal belief, but deep in our bones we must be aware of our real unworthiness. When unworthiness is the understanding of what you bring to the table with Christ, then you will see every action that God does in your life as an act of grace, free and unmerited. You’ll be overwhelmed by his goodness, and charity towards you. But many Christians maintain a sense of their own worthiness. It would be like this centurion knowing Jesus was approaching, and thinking “He probably knows how I funded the building of the synagogue, he’ll want to help me.”

Transactional Relationships with God: See little thing will change everything about your faith. If you see your relationship with God in terms that do not include your “unworthiness” then you’ll constantly be in an exchange relationship with Christ. You put in x amount, God ought to give you back x amount in return. No friends! The Gospel cuts through this mentality, and says that nothing we could ever do could earn something from God, but Christ has earned everything on our behalf. We are passive recipient of grace, just like this centurion.

Edwards Quote: Jonathan Edwards says it so well.

“The Christians that are really the most eminent saints, and therefore have the most excellent experiences and are the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, humble themselves as a little child, because they look on themselves as but little children in grace, and their attainments to be but the attainments of babes in Christ, and are astonished at and ashamed of the low degrees of their love and their thankfulness, and their little knowledge of God.”

Seasoned with Love: Second attribute of this man’s faith was that it was seasoned with love. Not just any love, but a three-fold love: a love of God, a love of God’s people, and a love for his slave.

Love of God: This man had become a God-fearer. Though he was an outsider to Judaism, he saw the truth of God in the Scriptures, he was convicted of his sin, and put his faith in the fact God had promised that he would send a Messiah, an individual, to reconcile the deceived nations back to him, to bring about justice and peace on Earth. This man loved God.

Love of God’s People: Secondly, this man had a love of God’s people. He had helped fund their local synagogue, as it appears not for some kind of payment in return, but because he wanted to see them flourish. Even while living in a system where others in his position abused their authority, he used his authority to bless God’s people.

Love of His Slave: Thirdly, this man loved his servant. This servant was far beneath him in social status. In fact the proper term to describe his role is “slave” or “bondservant.” Yet, though this centurion had every authority on Earth to treat this lowly servant as a commodity, as a person who was easily replaceable, he really loved the guy, and wanted the best for him. And so when he was sick and nearly dead he called for the only person he imagined could possibly help him.

Turn It On Us: I want you to ask yourself whether this is the kind of love you have. Because when you believe in Christ, this is the kind of love that he begins to develop in you. Do you have a love of God, that you want to know more about him, to fill your life with more of his majesty and glory, to experience more intimacy with Him? Do you have a love of God’s people, a cherishing of the Church, that looks forward to every time you get to gather together on the Lord’s Day? Do you look for ways to pour your resources and your time into the life of the community? Is the church family a burden to you, or is it a central thread of your existence? Do you love the least of these? Remember Christ’s words

Matthew 25:40 ESV

And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

Believes Without Contingency: Third, this centurion believed without contingency. What I mean by that is that his faith in Christ was not dependent on whether or not Christ determined to heal his servant. It seems from the text, that his man had already determined exactly who Christ was. He has no problem speaking with the Jewish Elders, but he knows Jesus is of an entirely different kind. Throughout the Scriptures we regularly see the Israelites demanding signs from Jesus, demanding that Jesus prove himself. But this man does no such thing. He makes the request, but it does not appear that his faith is based upon what Christ may or may not do for him.

Turn It On Us: How many of us have contingencies in our faith. Maybe we don’t say it that way, but our relationship with God ebbs and flows as God does or does not do certain things for us. We see this in little ways. When things get hard, when trials surface, we distance ourself from God and from his church. When trials come the first thing that gets sacrificed is our daily time studying the Scriptures and praying with God, when in reality, that’s the very thing we need. We reveal that there exist in our heart these rotten contingencies that hinder our faith. Remember Christ’s words to the Apostle Thomas after his resurrection.

John 20:29 ESV

Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Close Section on Compassion: I’ll close our discussion of this suffering centurion by reminding us of its place in this chapter. Chapter 7 contains four stories of Christ’s compassion on four wildly different individuals. Here, the first of our four, a Gentile God-fearer, who worked for the very same Roman government that was the enemy of the people of Israel. Christ has compassion on him. God delights in showing compassion towards those of all different backgrounds. He delights in showing compassion towards you. O precious saint, what burdens are you carrying today? What hardships linger in the back of your mind? What people that you love are suffering, and you wish you could do something about it? Like this centurion, ask Christ for help. Call to him, and he will surely answer. Isaiah 30:18 says,

Isaiah 30:18 “Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and therefore he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; blessed are all those who wait for him.”

What a compassionate wonderful God we serve!

Compassion for a Weeping Widow

The second story in chapter 7 is the story of a weeping widow. Quite a different narrative than the suffering centurion. We read:

Luke 7:11–17 “Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. Fear seized them all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!” And this report about him spread through the whole of Judea and all the surrounding country.”

I CONTEXT

A Nain: After his visit in Capernaum, Jesus travels to a small village named Nain, about six miles Southeast of Nazareth. When he arrives there a funeral procession is taking place. In a small town like Nain, this would have been an event that most of the community participated in. have been loud wailing and weeping. It would have been a very public day of sadness.

B Widows: This woman who lost her son was in a position of dire vulnerability. Women in that day, especially in small towns like Nain, would have had very little ability to earn an income or to protect themselves. They were largely entirely dependent on their husbands to provide both income and security. But this woman was a widow and so she was already very vulnerable. Fortunately she had a grown son who could provide for her. But because of some unkonwn cause, this son passed away, and she was left without any hope, other than the potential kindness of her neighbors to live on. In those days, this was close to a death sentence

C She Does Not Come to Him: Notice in this text, the woman does not come to Christ or call for Christ. Very different than the centurion. The centurion called for Christ. Here Jesus just shows up in her misery and the central verse of this story is verse 13

Luke 7:13 ESV

And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.”

II MEANING & APPLICATION

Five Aspects of Christ’s Compassion: He had “compassion” on her. He moved towards her. In her hopelessness, in her weeping, in her worry, and fear, and loss, and mourning, Jesus moves towards her with empathy, compassion, and power. This story is far less a story about Jesus ability to raise the dead. Make no mistake, Jesus has all authority, including the ability to raise the dead. In Christ, he will raise each of us from the dead. But that is not the point of this story. The point of this story is the radical compassion Christ has on a weeping widow. I think there are five aspects to this compassion we can draw from this text.

A Feeling Compassion (13): First, Christ’s is a feeling compassion. His stomach was churned with an empathetic angst for this woman’s plight. He saw her suffering and he loved her. Do you know Christ still has an empathetic angst for you. His resurrection and ascension to heaven has not limited his compassion for you in this regard, but has only strengthened it. His human nature that he had when he ministered to this woman, is now (as one author so poetically put it) “aflame with glory” as he is seated at the right hand of the Father.

“The Bible doth take our hands and lay them upon Christ’s breast, and let us feel how his heart beats… towards us, even now [when] in his glory.”

He goes on to say

“Your very sins move him to pity more than to anger… even as the heart of a father is to a child that hath some loathsome disease, or as one is to a member of his body that hath leprosy, he hates not the member, for it is his flesh, but the disease, and that provokes him to pity the part affected the more.”

Christ’s is a feeling compassion.

A Present Compassion (13): Second, it is a present compassion. Christ moves towards this woman and speaks to her personally, “Do not weep.” This is not compassion-from-a-distance. This is not “I’ll pray for you” and get on with your day. Jesus stopped what he was doing, and he made her the center of labor. Church, because of Christ’s death on the cross, and his resurrection from the grave, God’s presence is promised to be with you in every circumstance. He has sent his Holy Spirit so that no Christian will ever navigate a trial alone. You may feel abandoned by the world, even abandoned by the Church (God forbid), and yet if you are in Christ by faith, Christ will always be in your midst, comforting you.

A Single-Minded Compassion (15): Third, Christ’s is a single-minded compassion. It is interesting how this text continues to reference the woman. Even after he raises the son from the dead, verse 15 says, “He gave him to her.” Christ’s ministry blessed many that day, but his focus was single-mindedly on that weeping widow. O Christian, do you know that when you suffer, Christ is not distracted as he ministers to you? I have heard people say something like this, “God has far bigger things to deal with, than to worry about my little problems.” No, that is to fundamentally misunderstand the compassion of Jesus. His is not a fleeting compassion, nor is it a shallow compassion. He will see you all the way through.

A Simple Compassion (14): Fourth, Christ’s compassion is a simple compassion. Verse 14 is easy to miss, but we read that Christ “came up and touched the bier.” Now this would have made Christ ceremonially unclean. It was not sin or immoral according to Judaism, but to have contact with the dead meant you became ceremonially unclean. But the text explicitly calls out that Jesus touched the Bier. Why? Because Christ’s compassion is not hindered by complexity of layers that we add to our problems. Christ is able to cut right through those layers and minister to the core of the issue. He is not limited by what you see, or what you think, or what you feel. He is not limited by the complexity of culture’s demands. His love is a divine love and carries with it all the power of the Father to you, without barrier or hindrance.

A Resurrecting Compassion: Lastly, Christ’s is a resurrecting compassion. I mean this in two senses. Certainly, Christ resurrects this young man from the dead. We must not miss this display of power in this story. But he also resurrects this woman’s emotional life from the pit of despair. He restores to her what was lost. He brings hope, where there was no hope. And Christ does this for his beloved saints. He delights in pouring his compassion upon them.

Broken marriages: Christ delights in taking broken marriages and healing them! This is a resurrecting compassion.

Wayward prodigal children: Christ delights in taking wayward prodigal children and setting their lives straight. This is a resurrecting compassion.

Doubting Thomas’s: Christ delights in taking those filled with doubt and uncertainty like the disciple Thomas, whos faith is fledling and filling them with the confidence of one who has seen God face to face. This is a resurrecting compassion.

Depressed Naomi’s: Christ delights in taking those who are depressed, overhwelmed, exhausted, like Naomie who changed her name to “Bitter,” and giving her abounding joy. This is a resurrecting compassion.

Guilty sinners: Christ delights in taking guilty sinners, running full speed to hell, unaware of their own depravity, and forgiving all of their sin! Because hi s is a resurrecting compassion.

Christ’s Ultimate Compassion on the Cross: This is your story Christian. Christ has made guilty sinners forgiven, justified, sanctified before God because of his death and resurrection. This is how great his love for you is. He doesn’t just love because its easy for him. His love pinned him to the cross in order to redeem you. He took on flesh, and died, that you could live in light of the resurrection.

Simple Applications

Perhaps I might suggest a few very practical applications for us, ways to think about our faith based on these passages today.

Christ Never Leaves: First, though every other human comforter in this world may fail, we have a savior in Jesus whose comfort will never fail. His is a perfect and eternal love, and his compassion is always at the ready to meet your deepest pains. When we struggle, or are weak, or simply need to be seen and heard and known, we must train ourselves to run first and primarily to Christ, our Savior. He sees. He knows. He cares. He is full of compassion for you. What are you navigating today? Look to Jesus. He is always ready with open arms to receive those he loves.

Comfort Others: Secondly, Consider the words of the Apostle Paul.

2 Corinthians 1:3–4 ESV

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

If we are to be faithful followers of Christ, we must learn to care for others, to show compassion for others, after the model Christ has set. We must learn to have a feeling compassion, and permit our hearts to be tender with those who suffer around us. We must have a present compassion that is not simply at a distance, or quickly abandoning those who suffer around us. But a steady presence that just lets the other person know, “I see you.” We must have a single-minded compassion that is willing to cancel other plans to prioritize those who suffer around us. We must have a simple compassion that does not let modern ideologies and cultural norms overrule the simple command to love our neighbor. And we must have a resurrecting compassion, a determination to always point those we love to the only resurrecting power in the world, to Christ Jesus.