Luke 7:1-10 "The Centurion's Faith"

Let’s Pray!

Good Morning, Calvary Chapel Lake City!

We have received a grant to cover 1/2 the cost for a trip to the Creation Museum & Ark.

The grant can be used for admission, hotel, food, gas, parking…

We are looking at June 26th & 27th and need to gauge interest to figure out the best way to allocate the grant money.

If you are interested… please add your name to the interest sheet at the info table…

This is a great opportunity… and we appreciate the Center for Congregations for providing the grant via the Lilly Foundation.

Well, let’s open our Bibles to Luke. Luke 7:1-10.

Last week, we finished looking at Luke’s abbreviated version of the Sermon on the Mount.

Which some prefer to think of as the Sermon on the Plain.

It was Jesus’ Greatest Sermon… a challenging sermon Jesus delivered primarily to His disciples… though a multitude of people were present as well.

It’s a message that challenges us still to this day… as Jesus taught about the character, conduct, and heart attitudes He expected for His Kingdom Citizens… those who follow Jesus… those who have built their house upon the rock.

Today, we turn the page… entering Luke 7 where we continue the narrative of Jesus’ second year of ministry…

And Luke records next… Jesus performing two miracles... which leads up to John the Baptist’s disciples asking Jesus, “Are You the Coming One [the Messiah], or do we look for another?”

To which Jesus replies in Luke 7:22–23 “Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. 23 And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.””

OT prophets prophesied that the Coming Messiah would perform miracles and preach the Gospel…

And here in Luke 7… the case is built that Jesus is Messiah as…

The sick are healed in our account of “The Centurion’s Faith”… our message title today.

And the dead are raised, as we’ll see next week.

So, let’s now read our passage… And, in reverence for God’s word, if you are able, please stand as I read.

Luke 7:1–10 “Now when He concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum. 2 And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die. 3 So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant. 4 And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, 5 “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.”

6 Then Jesus went with them. And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. 7 Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 For I also am a man placed under authority, having 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.”

9 When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!” 10 And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.”

Praise God for His word. Please be seated.

V1 states “Now when He concluded His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum.”

Let’s pull up our map of our scene today.

And at the top of the map… is a red asterisk… which is thought the location of the Sermon on the Mount…

To the right of that asterisk… is Capernaum… a village on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee…

Which served like a base of operations for Jesus’ ministry.

Heb kĕpar naḥum- meaning “City of Consolation” or “Village of Comfort.”

It was a small town… a lake town… in a beautiful location… surely a place of peace.

And how important is is for us to have a place to recharge… a place of comfort.

Not that Jesus always had this privilege… near the end of His second year of ministry He explained the demands saying in Luke 9:58 “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”

Jesus held loosely to the world… to be able to give His all in ministry…

And we see the truth of that in our scene here in Capernaum. Jesus comes down off the Mount of Beatitudes…

He must have been tired… but upon entering Capernaum Jesus is met with a ministry request.

There was a Centurion who was well thought of by the Jews… and his servant was “sick and ready to die.”

Matthew 8 tells us the servant was “home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” (Matt 8:6)

A couple interesting observations on the people introduced in this scene… we see there is a Centurion and his sick servant (introduced in V2), and elders of the Jews (introduced in V3).

Centurions were battle hardened military men in the Roman Army.

They led from the front into battle… they inspired their legionaries (common soldiers) by example… and they had a high causality rate.

In Gk. Centurion is hekaton-tarchēs … a compound word… hekaton meaning “a hundred” and archo meaning “to rule”…

And they ruled over… were Commanders of a hundred men.

About 80 fighting Roman Soldiers… and 20 slaves for logistics.

The mention of a Centurion also remind Luke’s readers and us today… that the Gospel’s take place under Roman rule.

… and under the Roman fighting machine that was one of the most organized, ruthless, and brilliant forces in history to ever exist.

And one of the longest to exist… The combined Roman Republic and Empire lasted for almost a thousand years… almost 1,500 years if you count the Eastern Roman Empire.

Compared to the United States… which is coming up on our 250th year birthday this July 4th.

There are 24 mentions of Centurions in the NT Gospels and Acts… and the Bible consistently speak favorably of Roman Centurions for their faith or kindness to Jews…

Of the 24 mentions there are four keys accounts of Centurions…

The Centurion of Capernaum… here in Luke 7 and Matt 8.

The Centurion at Jesus’ Crucifixion who glorified God… declared Jesus was righteous and truly the Son of God.

In Acts 10… Cornelius the Centurion was described as … devout… just… one who revered and prayed to God with all his household… and he gave alms generously to the people (he had a good reputation among the Jews)…

He is generally considered the first Gentile convert to Christianity.

In Acts 27… Julius the Centurion escorted Paul as a prisoner to Rome.

He treated Paul kindly and protected Paul from soldiers who wanted to kill the prisoners during shipwreck.

Upon arriving in Rome… the Centurion did not deliver Paul to the captain of the guard where most prisoners would face horrible ends in the gladiatorial games.

Instead Paul was “permitted to dwell by himself” under guard.

Three other lesser mentions of Centurions in Acts portray them as law abiding and professional soldiers.

The Bible consistently portrays Centurions in a neutral to positive light… often highlighting their loyalty to duty… but also mercy and faith… AND they are used to demonstrate God’s work even among Roman occupiers.

Who from a Jewish perspective were Gentiles… and Jews kept separate from Gentiles… as they were considered pagan… unclean…

To even keep company with a Gentile was considered unlawful (as Peter stated in Acts 10:28)… though God showed Peter otherwise that he should not call any man common or unclean.

But even before Peter’s vision… here in Luke 7… is THIS Centurion… who stands out early… as he had a servant who was dear to him… and the Jews thought very favorably about him.

The servant is introduced in V2… and what we know about him is…

First, he is a servant in Gk doulos…

The word is used 127x in the New Testament…

83x translated as servant.

26x as slave. 17x as bondservant… this was how Paul often introduced himself in Epistles.

And once as “menservant.”

And in the Roman Empire during the 1st-2nd centuries… the total population was estimated at 45-60 million… with about 5-10 million being slaves.

Slaves were classified as property of Roman masters… and slaves had limited to no personal or legal rights.

It’s said that a doulos was considered the lowest of slaves tasked with the lowest work like washing the feet of incoming visitors to a home.

Now… while the Roman world could abuse and even kill their slaves without consequence… this Centurion’s servant was… in V2 “dear to” or “highly valued” by him…

“Dear” in Gk means “honored” or “precious”… and this sheds light on the character of the Centurion.

In fact in V7… the word servant is not Doulos, but pais… the word used for a child in relation to their parents.

He was like a son to the Centurion. In a society that viewed slaves as property… he viewed his servant as family.

It’s also fascinating that the Jews felt positive about this Centurion because they certainly hated Rome and it’s occupancy… and they certainly hated Gentiles.

And this Centurion was stood for Roman rule… and was a Gentile, but was respected by the Jews for his kindness to them.

So… that’s why we read “he sent elders of the Jews to Jesus” in V3…

V3 reads, So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant.

Before we talk about the Jewish elders… notice the words “when he heard about Jesus.”

How many people have felt hopeless and helpless over the life of a loved one… or even one’s own life… and then they heard about Jesus?

What a blessing to think back on the first time we heard about Jesus… and even more… when we believed in Jesus.

What a blessing it is to be the one to share Jesus with another person… to proclaim the gospel.

Seeing a loved one sick… or even lost in the world is never easy, but that bad can be used for good…

For in the low times of life… hearts often soften to listen to the gospel.

And if the opportunity to share the gospel presents itself to you… be faithful to share the good news… so they hear about Jesus.

I do wonder who shared Jesus with the Centurion…

We know word about Jesus was getting out… news about His miraculous healings were spreading…

And someone said something about Jesus to the Centurion…

“Have you heard about Jesus? He’s been healing people… and teaching with authority.”

And so this Centurion pleads for healing on behalf of his servant.

In Matthew’s Gospel it appears as if the Centurion himself goes to Jesus…

Matthew 8:5–7 reads, “Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” 7 And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.””

But, in Luke’s gospel… here in V3, we read about the Jewish elders pleading with Jesus… is this a contradiction?

NO contradiction at all. Just the same account from different perspectives… where Matthew condensed the account for emphasis… and Luke expanded the full narrative.

The Centurion initiated the request, but did so through intermediaries (Jewish Elders at first… and then friends).

The ancient custom of representation… a person would send an authorized representative to speak on their behalf.

In Jewish law… there was a well-established principle called shaliach (Hebrew for “sent one,” “agent,” or “emissary”)…

Which was everyday knowledge for Jews in Jesus’ day.

The core rule was “A person’s agent is regarded as the person himself.”

What the Shaliach did or said was treated as if the sender did or said it personally.

Today… we have similar agents…

A power of attorney acts or sign on one’s behalf.

A Press Secretary is a spokesperson for a company or even the President.

Executive Assistants often send emails on behalf of C-Level staff.

Ambassadors represent their governments in foreign lands.

So… we too should understand the principle of representation.

Now… to add another layer of depth to this scene… consider the Ultimate Shaliach… Jesus Christ… the ultimate sent one for the Father… sent to us.

Jesus is the “word of God” (John 1:1)… “His name is called The Word of God” (Rev 19:13)…

And as the Word… He speaks on behalf of the Father.

Jesus said in John 14:10 “The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works.”

And in John 14:24 “… the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father’s who sent Me.”

But Jesus is no mere messenger… He is the perfect embodiment and representative of God the Father.

Hebrews 1:3 states “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”

Jesus said in John 14:9 “Anyone who has seen Me has seen the Father.”

And so there is a beautiful parallel in Luke 7…

As the Centurion sends the elders and his friends to represents him to Jesus.

This is exactly and more what Jesus does for us. He represents God the Father to us…

As “No one has seen God at any time” (John 1:18; 1 Tim 6:16; Exo 33:20), so Jesus in the OT came to people as a Theophany… an appearance of the pre-incarnate Christ.

And as the Son of God… as the second member of the God-head… He is one with God… making Him more than just any representative…

… but the Ultimate Representative who had divine authority from the Father.

Jesus said, “I and My Father are one.” (John 10:30)

When Jesus said that… Jews picked up stones to stone Him… accusing Jesus of blasphemy… saying, “You, being a Man, make Yourself God.”

They knew exactly what Jesus was saying, but they were too blind and hard hearted to receive the truth.

But, this Centurion… this Roman outsider from Israel… He grasped the principle of delegated authority and representation…

Which led to his simple and clear understanding… to have faith in Jesus’ authority where the Centurion could say in V7, “But say the word, and my servant will be healed.”

And Jesus’ response underscored just how well the Centurion intuitively understood the principle…

For Jesus marvelled at his faith… and said in V9, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!”

So… when these Jewish Elders come to Jesus… they represent the Centurion…

Which in no way was the Centurion being lazy… or taking advantage of the Jews…

He was being culturally appropriate to send a Shaliach…

AND… was being sensitive to Jewish customs of ceremonial defilement upon contact with Gentiles.

He doesn’t feel worthy (V6) for Jesus to even enter his home.

Even though Jesus was willing… Matthew recorded Jesus said, “I will come and heal him.” (Matt 8:7)

Jesus did not fret about ceremonial law… He did not worry about even touching lepers.

Jesus had authority over the law… He came to fulfill the law… and He had authority over all disease.

When Jesus touched lepers… they did not get Him sick. He cleansed them.

And surely He could have and would have entered the home of the Centurion and remained clean.

Now… back to the Jews…

They went to Jesus speaking on behalf of the Centurion.

Which was wild… because… again… Jews typically hated Romans soldiers… Rome… and Gentiles… but this Centurion had won them over.

Look at 4 And when they [the Jewish elders] came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, 5 “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.”

It’s interesting to see the Jewish elders asking Jesus to heal… and not denying that He had the power to heal.

In other scenes we see the Religious Leaders trying to find fault with Jesus… or catch Him working on Sabbath…

They even set traps attempt to accuse Him of breaking the law. They would eventually plot against Him to kill Him.

But here they seek Him out… knowing in their minds that He had the power to heal…

And yet they lacked the faith to believe. True were Jesus’ words in V9 “I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!”

But here they “begged [Jesus] earnestly”… V3 states they ‘pleaded with Him to heal the Centurion’s servant.’

They are imploring Him… appealing to Him strongly to work another miracle for this paralyzed and dreadfully tormented slave.

And they do this because they deem the Centurion “deserving”… meaning “of worth.”

And their analysis of his worth comes by his good works.…

Namely “he loves our nation” and “has built us a synagogue.”

And in the world… if you love and spend a lot on someone… you can often win them over…

With God… you don’t need to work or buy anything… you just need to believe in His Son… even though we come to Him unworthy.

Romans 4:5 “But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,”

God has a totally different economy than the world… and praise God that anyone can come to Him in faith to be saved…

Even though we are unworthy… and even if we don’t have the funds to build a Synagogue… which most of us do not.

Being that our scene is in Capernaum… we can assume the Centurion built the synagogue there.

I have slides depicting Capernaum… the first is an aerial view… and the White Synagogue has a big Red Arrow pointing at it.

I didn’t want you to get confused by the spaceship next to the red “X.”

The spaceship looking structure is actually NOT a spaceship… sorry if you thought you had proof for “Aliens are real.”

That’s actually a modern Catholic Church built over the ruins of what’s thought to be Peter’s home.

Now… the White Synagogue… was made from imported white limestone… built in the 4th Century… NOT the original Synagogue that the Centurion built.

The original synagogue was built with black basalt… which in the second slide you can see more clearly.

The White Synagogue was built on top of the foundation of the original synagogue...which you can see in the third slide.

There is a sign on the synagogue today that reads, “The Late Fourth Century A.D. “White Synagogue” built upon the remains of the “Synagogue of Jesus.”

And if you go to Capernaum, Israel sometime in the future… you can see the sign… and walk where Jesus walked.… or at least… over top of where Jesus walked.

And one day you’ll likely meet the Centurion in heaven. And you can tell him, “Hey, I visited the Synagogue you built.”

He might ask you, “How’s it looking?”

You could tell him, “Well, the foundation is still there, but they imported this white limestone… so it’s now white.”

And he’ll reply, “No way… I really liked the black look.”

And you can assure him… “Well… black may trend back around.”

But going back to the fact that this Centurion actually built a synagogue… this highlighted the wealth of this Centurion.

Centurions would receive a nice salary… about 15-20x more than basic foot soldiers… or legionaries.

A legionnaire made about 225 denarii annually roughly $20,000-$30,000 US dollars today.

While Centurions grossed about $4000 denarii… roughly $200,000 US dollars per year. …

.… which by the 3rd century shot way up to $400-$500,000 on the high end.

Not to mention bonuses or gifts from the emperor…

Plus shares from plunder during campaigns…

And perhaps the occasional bribe… or investments.

So… many centurions retired wealthy… thus it’s not surprising that our Centurion here had the funds to build the synagogue in Capernaum.

So… the Jewish Elders beg Jesus earnestly on the Centurions behalf…

And Jesus says, “Go away you bums… last month you accused me of working on the Sabbath… and now you want something from Me? I think not.”

No that’s not right…

V6 reads, “Then Jesus went with them. [Interesting… Jesus just preached, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you...” And now He puts His preaching to practice which was a great lesson for His disciples.] And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him [more representatives], saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof. 7 Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed.”

So, Jesus approaches the house of the Centurion… which gives us the sense that the Centurion must have lived close to Capernaum.

Difficult to say, but in looking at the account in Matthew… some think the Centurion eventually comes out of his home to speak to Jesus personally.

Regardless… whether by his own words direct… or through these friends… we hear the Centurions incredibly insightful and faith filled statement about Jesus authority.

He recognizes that Jesus need only to simply speak and it would be so.

And, the Centurion was correct. Jesus needed only speak the word… and the servant would be healed.

Interesting… note the words “worthy” in vv6-7.

The Jews in V4 stated the Centurion was “deserving” Gk axios… meaning “of weight” or “of worth.”

The Jews looked at his works… his love for them and financial generosity and deemed him worth.

But in V6, the Centurions self-assessment was… “Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof.”

Worthy here is Gk hikanos… meaning “sufficient.”

He did not feel himself worthy for Jesus to enter his home.

Further in V7 “Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You”

Worthy Gk axioō… meaning “to esteem deserving.”

This word shares a root word with the word “deserving” that the Jews used for the Centurion…

The Jews thought himself worthy for his works, but this Centurion feels entirely inadequate to be in Jesus’ presence at all.

And we don’t know why, but sometimes soldiers carry a lot of weight… and are deeply impacted by war.

Was he scared from the battlefield? We don’t know.

Were there moments in the heat of battle where he could have expressed mercy, but his training as a Roman soldier told him otherwise? And there was regret?

There was something that led him to feel unworthy. What was it?

Some people try to cleanse their conscience by good works like he did in building a Synagogue.

They recognize they owe much… and think if they do enough good works, perhaps they have a chance at entering heaven.

Charitable deeds becomes a kind of penance to them.

And while people on earth will appreciate the generosity and may deem one deserving… this is not God’s economy.

God is like the Father in the account of the prodigal son… He waits… scanning the horizon for when the son returns…

And runs to him… embraces him… and celebrates his return.

He just wants you back. There is no deed that you’ve done that make you unworthy to come to God.

And there is no work that will earn you His favor.

He just wants you. Your trust in Him… and your love towards Him.

No matter what scars you are carrying in life, look to and believe in Jesus… and your sins will be forgiven.

We can’t earn salvation. We can’t earn or buy our way into heaven.

We’re all inadequate. We’re all unrighteous to go to Jesus.

So God sent Him to us… because He loves the world… and whoever believes in Jesus will have eternal life.

It’s grace.… it’s the free gift of God… and it comes by faith.

You can believe in Jesus from your seat right now, and God will cleanse you of your sin… and fill you with the Holy Spirit.

Truly believe and pray to Him… telling Him you believe. Ask Him to forgive your sins.

If you did that… tell someone after church so we can make sure you have a Bible… and praise God with you.

Jesus said, “I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.” (Luke 15:7)

Repent- meaning “a change of mind.” If you don’t believe in Jesus… repent… change your mind to belief and you will be saved.

Well… after expressing his unworthiness… the Centurion also states… Luke 7:7 “But say the word, and my servant will be healed.”

Which is him expressing faith in Jesus’ authority to heal… even by just speaking.

So filled with faith… and so humble in his unworthiness. And these are not incompatible.

Spurgeon wrote, “Your faith will not murder your humility, your humility will not stab at your faith; but the two will go hand in hand to heaven like a brave brother and a fair sister, the one bold as a lion the other meek as a dove, the one rejoicing in Jesus the other blushing at self.”

Spurgeon… the Prince of Preachers.

The Centurion continues… sharing his own experience of earthly authority to relate it to the authority he recognizes in Jesus.

V8 For I also am a man placed under authority, having 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.”

Historians compare Centurions to modern warrant officers or sergeants major…

Soldiers who are career professionals… that enforce discipline… train troops… lead them into combat, and manage the unit.

So… Centurions had a mindset of giving orders that would be obeyed… but the power and authority they held… was not inherent of their position… it was passed down as they too were under authority.

The Centurion said he was “a man placed under authority”… he was under Caesar’s authority. Under the Roman Emperor’s authority.

The power that the Centurion had was because he submitted to the authority of Caesar.

And when Caesar decreed a command, that word would be passed down… eventually coming to the Centurion…

And he would obey the words of Caesar…

For soldiers under him… to disobey the Centurion would be to disobey Caesar, and this could be considered a capital offense.

And so this Centurion is expressing ideas from his military framework… of command, authority, and submission.

And he relates this to how Jesus is also under authority… and therefor has authority.

Note the words in V8 “For I also am a man placed under authority...”

“Jesus… like you are under authority… so am I.”

And because of the authority Jesus is under… He could say the word and the Centurion’s servant would be healed.

His position… and His authority… and His submission to God above…

Permitted Jesus to speak a word… which would be in alignment with the will of God.

He spoke not on His own authority, but from above.

Jesus only did the will of the Father, so if He spoke a healing to the servant… it was the will of the Father.

In various contexts… Jesus demonstrated submission to the will of the Father.

Jesus said in John 5:30 “I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.”

Again in John 6:38 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

His ultimate act of submission was spoken from Gethsemane when He said, Luke 22:42 “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.”

Jesus was clearly submitted to the will of the Father… even unto death to pay for the sin of the world.

And we can relate these same ideas of authority and submission to life in the church and life in the home.

God is a God of order… and has placed a Pastor over the church… and a Husband over the home.

BOTH of whom submit to Christ as the head.

Ephesians 5:23 states, “For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.”

Submission is not about superiority, but about order.

Ephesians 6:1 states, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.”

1 Corinthians 11:3 “But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God.”

Even Jesus… again is under submission to God the Father… and He delighted to submit.… and God honored Jesus for His sacrifice and submission.

One of the clearest passages on this is… Philippians 2:5–11 which reads, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

We are to have the same mindset as Jesus… to willingly humble ourselves and obey the will of the Father… which is in part submission to His given order.

And He honors us for doing so.

In fact in 1 Pet 5… as we are “submissive to one another” and “clothed with humility”… Peter promises God will “exalt you in due time.”

And this is not always easy… sometimes we just obey… we do the outward minimum…

Like how the Jews would obey the letter of the law, but their hearts were far from God. He called them whitewashed tombs for their hypocrisy.

But God looks at the heart, and wants us not just to obey outwardly and look good outwardly. He wants us to obey… even more to submit… even joyfully… in our hearts.

NOT doing so is rebellion. And some Christians look for loopholes in the word, just like Jews looked for loopholes in the law.

The first chance they get.… they conveniently forget what is written… or just rebel against it and follow their own will.

This is a sign about not being submitted.

For leaders… in the church or the home… there is a greater expectation…

This is clearly expressed for church leaders…

James 3:1 “My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.”

Leaders are judged for their words.

The writer of Hebrews therefore admonished the people to submit to their leaders… Hebrews 13:17 “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.”

It’s not easy being a leader… knowing the leader must give an account to God… and will receive a stricter judgment.

So, how important for the leader to not just have authority, but to be under authority and that is of Christ the head.

And when that is in order… the leader is “an example to the flock” as 1 Pet 5 declares.

If a leader is not submitted to the headship of Christ… there is a tendency for them to “lord over those entrusted” to them.”

Which can happen really in any role. The Pastor… the Husband… and the Wife especially, but some children also try to lord over others… even their parents.

To be in authority means to be under authority, and if you’re not under authority, then you won’t be in authority.

You’ll start acting out in rebellion… in the flesh… and will lord authority over others.

Sometimes this manifests in abusive declarations like, “You’re going to listen to me because I’m the man of the house!”

A husband submitted to Jesus won’t need to make this declaration because he loves his wife as Christ loved the church… and she will happily submit to and respect that kind of God-fearing man.

When your submitted to God’s authority… people recognize it.… you don’t need to flex your authority.

But, sometimes people are in rebellion… thus the reminder from the writer of Hebrews, “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls...”

That wouldn’t need to be written if there wasn’t a tendency to rebel.

Certainly the OT is full of example of God’s people directly rebelling against God.

It’s part of our fallen human nature. It’s a struggle.

Regardless… we can control our submission… and that is first to Christ… all of us are to be under His authority…

And the authority of His word… which He gave to us in Scripture.

And if we can get that part down… we are moving in the right direction to come under the order God has designed for His kingdom citizens.

Well… back in Luke. As the Centurion relates his own experience of command, authority, and submission to Jesus’ authority as one under authority…

And therefore the Centurion’s faith that Jesus could speak the word and the servant would be healed…

Jesus responds in astonishment…

9 When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, “I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!”

Not to say there was no faith in Israel… but this Centurion stood out for his ‘great faith.”

And Jesus “marveled...” He stood in wonder…He was amazed.

It takes a lot to make God marvel… and this Centurion’s Faith moves Jesus to marvel.

Only 2x in the New Testament is Jesus recorded to be amazed.

Here in a positive sense… by the faith of a Gentile Centurion.

And in a negative sense.… when Jesus returned to Nazareth and was rejected there.

Mark 6:5-6 records, “Now He could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And He marveled because of their unbelief.”

Jesus marveled at the faith of the Gentile Centurion and marveled at the unbelief of His own countrymen…Jews from Nazareth.

The Jews should have been able to discern the times…to connect the scriptures, the prophecies, and the signs to Jesus, the Messiah, but instead they rejected Him; thus Jesus sadly marveled at their unbelief.

For you and I… I hope our faith in Jesus leaves Him marveling.

That our submission to Christ as our head… and how we walk with Him… and those around us… astonishes Him.

And Lord forgive us for the many times we fail. And thank you for your grace.

Like the Jews… we have the scriptures, the prophecies, and the signs…

How sad would it be if we make Jesus marvel because of unbelief.

He can either be amazed at our faith OR our unbelief.

Well… closing out…

10 And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.”

Matthew closes this scene with a little more detail… Matt 8:13 “Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.”

This account closes with Jesus answering the request of the Centurion and the Jewish Elders… and demonstrating His authority over disease…

That Messiah was with them. (Worship team please come).

Only twice did Jesus heal from a distance… here and in Matt 15… when He healed the Gentile Syro-Phoenician’s daughter.

So both healings from a distance came from the faith of Gentiles. Interesting.

If only National Israel had the same faith… then the Kingdom Age would be upon us.

And as Israel failed to respond… the Gospel went to the Gentiles.

And the responsibility in this day to “preach the Gospel” has been passed to you and I… and we stand today as God’s Ambassadors.

We are God’s Shaliachs… “sent ones,” “agents,” “emissaries”…

Sent to speak the good news on His behalf… to a world that needs hope.

May you be be filled with the Holy Spirit and may God open doors for you to share the Gospel in the week ahead.

Let’s Pray!

If you need prayer… perhaps for a loved one who is sick like the Centurion requested Jesus to heal…

Please see our prayer team on the sides as we close in prayer.

“The Lord bless you and keep you;

The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you;

The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.” ’”

God bless you in this week ahead.