Behold the King: Marvel the Marvelous King

And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

The Bible records two things that caused Jesus to marvel. One was the unbelief of the Jewish people that had been given every advantage to sustain a vibrant relationship with God.

Mark 6:6 KJV 1900

And he marvelled because of their unbelief. And he went round about the villages, teaching.

The second is this Gentile soldier that despite the fact that his upbringing taught him that in order to be a god you had to be a person that conquer and control many people. This centurion placed his faith in Jesus.

Like the centurion, our current geographical majority can see the difference those between playing church and those sincerely following Jesus.

Jesus can see it at a deeper level.

Objectively Contemplate Maxims

The ability to contemplate common statements that seem to express norms in society objectively is not common place.

This is why people like William Wilberforce, Harriet Tubman, and Rosa Parks seem so brave. Because they stood against modern maxims in pursue of what was right.

The Jews would consider this solder a dog!

Paul states that those who were not born Jews were considered aliens.

Ephesians 2:12 KJV 1900

That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

The Gentiles tended to see the Jews as prude hypocrites. And rebellious toward authority. Pilate seemed to ellude to this diplomatically during the trial of Jesus.

Matthew 27:22–24 KJV 1900

Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified. And the governor said, Why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more, saying, Let him be crucified. When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.

We see this kind of distrust in our society today:

“Millennials don't trust advertising, celebrity endorsements or any of the more traditional, one-way communications strategies. They're even growing skepticism of 'influencers,' and are beginning to doubt their credibility.”

Observe Common Methods

Matthew—All Authority in Heaven and on Earth Picture Two: The Centurion’s Servant

In his Ethics, Aristotle said there should be no friendship and no justice toward inanimate things, as well as a horse, ox, or slave. Roman writers like Varro and Cato “maintained that the only difference between a slave, a beast, and a cart was that the slave talked.”

For this centurion to come to a Jew and ask help for his servant counter culture to the ethics he had been taught as a youth.

For the centurion to acknowledge that a Jew had authority was unheard of.

Humility was seen as a weakness. In the mind of a Greco-Roman it ment that you had been defeated.

For someone who observes common methods in light of reality will see that God rewards the humble.

1 Peter 5:6 KJV 1900

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

James 4:6 KJV 1900

But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

James 4:10 KJV 1900

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

For a Jew to agree to go to a Gentiles home was tantamount to blasphemy.

Obtain Confidence in the Miracle Worker

The aliens, those afar of from God have now been given a way to become a naturalized citizens of the kingdom, not just a travel visa!

Ephesians 2:13 KJV 1900

But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

This was a little taste of what God was going to do through the New Covenant of His blood.

Acts 11:18 KJV 1900

When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

Faithway can reach millennials and Gen Z’ers by adapting evangelistic efforts to reach

millennials' needs, focus on the gospel rather than the millennial's culture, and provide programs

that reach millennials' children.

Your life can be a marvel. Have you trusted in Jesus? If you are a believer are you following by faith? Are you living with the understanding that you are under His authority?

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