2.18.22 4.27.2025 Jesus our Authoritative Teacher Matthew 8.5-13

Second Mid-series transition refocusing on the teaching of Jesus.

  A preacher is like a cook. We must balance nutrition, flavor, and expectation. I say cook and not chef. A chef, or a restauranteur is a specialist “cook” for special occasions. A cook, regular old cook like mom or dad @ home cooks in the most mundane as well as “special” circumstances.

Throughout the year the Church has “special” circumstances like Easter, just last week. And today we gather again for another basic meal. So, I must balance what you expect and want with proper balanced nutrition and hopefully the enjoyment that comes from flavor. I shoot for nutritious, delicious, and interesting. Goodness knows you can be Biblical and still miss everything that makes a sermon attractive. I sure don’t want to do that.

 I chose to spend 1/2 of the year in Matthew. To make that balanced meal attractive I needed to rearrange the material to discuss resurrection last week. And now we return to Chapter 8 to reconsider other aspects of Jesus’ life.

Entice: Today I want to look at this little text:

Matthew 8:5–13 ESV

5 When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, 6 “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” 7 And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I too am a man 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.” 10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

Engage: You may never have considered what this text teaches. It is a simple nondescript story of Jesus. Yet, I think that to really understand the teaching of Jesus and His social and cultural impact we need to get our heads around this seemingly inconsequential story and other similar episodes.

Expand: Now, the Herodians were Romo-philes. All the Herod’s, Antipas’, Philips’ organized their armies— along Roman lines. This Centurion is not likely Roman, because Antipas controlled greater Galilee. Though it was likely that he was a Gentile. We presume he has power, money, and authority. He certainly seems to understand those elements of social control. And He comes to Jesus because He knows that there are some things that all the power and money in the world can’t accomplish.

Excite: We are here today for largely the same reason. We might not come because one of our dear one’s is sick, but we come because we recognize that each of us, afflicted by Sin. needs to find an authority higher than what we find around us. By Matthew 8, and certainly after Easter, we know who we are dealing with.

Explore:

The appeal of Jesus is found in His words, His approach and His actions.

Expand: In today’s text we see some outcomes of How Jesus presents Himself to people.

Body of Sermon: First, entering Capernaum he finds an

1 Expectant Audience.

Matthew 8.5-7

An audience of one. An audience anticipating Him. An audience anxious for His intervention. We see the expectant man

1.1 Approaching Him.

We hear the expectant man

1.2 Appealing to Him.

We experience the expectant man

1.3 Acknowledging Him.

This expectant audience one, one man —is coming to Jesus as a seeker.

The next outcome is we see him

2 Engaging Authority.

Matthew 8.8-10

The authority of Jesus. Not some vague God “out there” but God present before Him. He demonstrates that the authority of Jesus is

2.1 Appealing.

and He states that the authority of Jesus is

2.2 Obvious.

His trusting words also demonstrate that the authority of Jesus is

2.3 Transforming.

The final outcome of this engagement with Jesus is we witness His

3 Expanding Attraction.

Matthew 8.10-13

As a gentile this Centurion reminds us of the nature of our Gospel, it’s

3.1 Universal Appeal.

Jesus appeals to insiders and outsiders. If this centurion is a Gentile, he is welcome. If he is Judaean or Galilean, He is welcome. Jesus is appealing and appeals to every human person. This appeal becomes a signal feature of the Gospel. All are welcome to come to Jesus.

The attraction of Jesus reminds us that we are now faced with

3.2 Universal Accountability.

Because his appeal is universal the expectations for faith are as well. It would have been a scandal for a Galilean or Judaean to think that the Kingdom was open to outsiders and that the insiders and outsiders were all expected to respond to Jesus in faith. That is the clear testimony of the Gospel beginning with Jesus and throughout the balance of the NT. With great opportunity comes great responsibility and accountability and these allow for

3.3 Universal Acceptance.

Faith is the issue. Grace, compassion, and kindness extended lavishly.

Shut Down

     The life of Jesus was revolutionary and transitional. We need to recognize that the Old Testament ends in the Gospels and the NT dawns, but each is in twilight.  Issues we now take for granted had a beginning, and we read of these beginnings in the Gospels. The passion is the point of demarcation. And

very soon thereafter the Gospel is preached, the Church born, and the mission begins. But first; Meetings like this one.

This little story is important because much of what will happen in the rest of the New Testament will involve this social, cultural, religious, and national shift. After that day in Capernaum everyone was on notice “The Us vs. Them” approach to living is not a part of the Kingdom. Inside and outside is entirely a matter of faith in Jesus. He is the only boundary marker.

     And so, we preach Jesus. His death, burial, and resurrection—surely, but also His life and teaching. We rejoice as the passion brings salvation, even while we recoil at the expectations of His life and teaching. Why? Because we like the game of naming the other and keeping the outsider outside. Either you are with Jesus or not. Jesus offers us the liberation he offered the Centurion. When we come to Jesus, we find we are not the only expectant one coming beneath His expanding authority, and the expanding attraction of God-with-us.