Matthew 8:5-13 Luke 7:1-10

Matthew 8:5-13 5 And when Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him, 6 and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented.” 7 Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the centurion said, “Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 “For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” 10 Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, “Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel. 11 “I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; 12 but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed that very moment.

Luke 7:1-10 1 When He had completed all His discourse in the hearing of the people, He went to Capernaum. 2 And a centurion’s slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and about to die. 3 When he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders asking Him to come and save the life of his slave. 4 When they came to Jesus, they earnestly implored Him, saying, “He is worthy for You to grant this to him; 5 for he loves our nation and it was he who built us our synagogue.” 6 Now Jesus started on His way with them; and when He was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to Him, “Lord, do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof; 7 for this reason I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8 “For I also am a man placed under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” 9 Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled at him, and turned and said to the crowd that was following Him, “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.” 10 When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

Character often shows up in unexpected places.  We tend to lump people into a large group of people and end up judging individuals by the group with which they are identified.  The Centurion would certainly fit into that category.  He would have been a Roman soldier in charge of helping to keep the peace and stability of Capernaum.  Roman soldiers had a reputation for being cruel and corrupt so we would not expect this man to be cast in a very positive light.  It is a good thing that God does not judge in the same what we do.  He sees us individually and treats us according to our faith in Him and obedience to what He has revealed to us.  The Centurion surprises us on several levels.

THE FAME OF THE CENTURION: When the Centurion makes a request of Jesus, the last thing we would expect is for the Jews to intercede on his behalf.  Normally, any kind of association with a Gentile, much less a Roman soldier, would have met with harsh criticism.  That was not the case for this centurion.  The Jews were thankful for this man who had demonstrated love to the nation of Israel and had shown that love by helping to build the synagogue for the city.  We don’t have any information about how he came to know the Jewish faith but his love for the nation and generosity demonstrated that He was sympathetic to the people.  It is important for us to keep open minds about other people and not judge them by their titles or positions but by their character.  It is also important to remember the impact that our actions have on others.  Loving people in such a way that they understand that they are loved is a very important skill to learn.  It is easy to say that you love someone but this man was famous for loving the people over whom he exercised authority and he served them in very practical ways.  Do the people around us feel loved and served?  

THE FAITH OF THE CENTURION: This loving Centurion had a slave.  Owning a slave would be a serious problem in most of our cultures but was very common and accepted in that day.  This slave became very ill to the point of death.  The Centurion loved his slave and appreciated him so much that he sought out Jesus on behalf of his servant.  In Matthew, it seems like the Centurion came to Jesus but Luke makes it clear that the Centurion sent others to Jesus on his behalf.  Whatever the case, we know that he heard about Jesus, he had faith that Jesus could heal his servant and took the initiative to seek out His help.  When Jesus agreed to come and heal the servant the Centurion’s faith and humility became even more evident.  He communicated to Jesus that he was unworthy of having Jesus come to his home and that He understood that if Jesus had the power to cure it did not matter if He was present or not.  This was a great demonstration of his faith and trust in the power of Jesus.  Most people want to see in order be believe but that is not faith.  If we are going to please God, it is vital that we learn to trust Him.

THE FATE OF THE CENTURION: When Jesus saw the faith of this man he praised him and declared that he had not seen this type of faith in the hearts of Israel.  Jesus then declares that not only this Centurion but that many people from the east and west or the Gentile nations, would be enjoying the kingdom with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, while there would be many Jews who would be condemned for their lack of faith and end up in hell.  God does not treat men based on their nationality but on their faith.  God’s mission is to bring people from all nations of the world into His kingdom.  Jesus made this clear throughout His ministry and commanded His disciples to take the Gospel to all nations.  One day I believe we will have the pleasure of meeting this humble, loving and trusting Centurion in heaven.  It seems certain that he will be there.  Whether or not we will be there depends on our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

APPLICATION: Don’t judge people by the group they may be a part of; treat every person as an individual.  Trust the Lord Jesus Christ with all our hearts, know that He is able to do whatever He wishes and can work in whatever way He chooses.  Walk in humility towards God, love others with tender hearts and serve the people God puts in our path with gladness.  Join God in His pursuit of the nations.