Skip to main content

109. Unmerited Favor


Luke 7:1-10, Matthew 8:5-13
Key Verse: "Say the word, and my servant will be healed."
Matthew 8:8B & Luke 7:7B

Did the centurion deserve to have his servant healed? The Jews thought so. That is the world's way of thinking. "If you are good, good things will happen." Here was this Centurion, the enemy no less, and the Jews were begging a favor of Jesus for him.

What had this man done? Well, he loved them and he had built a nice new synagogue for them. He was nice, and, he obviously had money. The Jewish elders obviously saw a way to keep a good thing going. Maybe, if Jesus were nice back, this centurion would stick around and do even more. Perhaps he would protect them from the more cruel element of the Roman occupation. Perhaps he would be even more generous toward them in appreciation of having his servant's life restored. The Jews were opportunists here, acting like the world always does, "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours." In so many ways, the Jews were constantly showing disrespect to Jesus, but in this one instance, they saw how they could use Him to their advantage.

Jesus and the centurion, however, were operating on a different level. In Matthew 7:28-29, we read, "When Jesus had finished saying these things, (the Sermon on the Mount), the crowds were amazed at His teaching, because He taught as one who had authority." That authority is what the centurion saw even if the Jewish leaders did not. The centurion recognized also that Jesus was a man with authority. Authority over what exactly may have been a mystery, but the centurion did recognize that there was something about Jesus that might be able to help. Evidently, out of respect for that authority, the centurion asked the Jewish elders, (Matthew calls them friends), to intercede on his behalf.

While I'm sure that Jesus' compassion is what motivated Him to respond, there are also two other points to this episode that we should consider for ourselves. First of all, though the centurion was an enemy by being both a Gentile and an oppressive Roman, yet Jesus demonstrated that God's love and compassion is not limited by the boundaries that man creates. God so loved the world, not just the Jews, or Americans or Christians, but all people, deserving and undeserving; and His grace is available for all.

Secondly, because the Jews had a worldly way of thinking, they probably continued to believe that Jesus responded because of their persuasive arguments concerning how much this man "deserved," this favor. In so doing, they robbed God of the glory that He deserves, thinking that the man had earned it by his good works. That is the pitfall of salvation by works. It diminishes from the glory and praise that God deserves for His graciousness. Our works blind us to the truth of His generosity. We give ourselves credit for having earned something that we can never pay for. But we are so proud of what we've earned that we don't see it for the generous gift that it is.

The centurion understood that he didn't deserve what he was asking for. He also knew that Jesus could heal with a simple word and for this way of thinking Jesus said the centurion possessed great faith. "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel." (Luke 7:9B) Sadly, faith was something that the Jews lacked. We cannot manipulate God, but we can trust that when He says the word, we will be healed.

Hymn: Grace

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

211. The Sons of Thunder's Request

Matthew 20:20-28 , Mark 10:35-45 , Key verse: "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all." Mark 10:43B-44 In our readings for yesterday, in which Jesus outlined what was about to happen to Him, for His disciples, the passage in Luke ends: "The disciples did not understand any of this. It's meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what He was talking about." ( Luke 18:34 ) Now, we see just how truly clueless they were. Jesus had laid out a plan before them of pain and suffering and death and now James and John are focused on a promotion. The disconnect is so obvious. It's really not important to know whether James and john came up with this request on their own or if their mother put them up to it. The request was made and James and John thought that they could handle the responsibility that would come with it. What is that saying, "Fools rush in where angels fe...
Post a Comment
Read more

These Boots are Made for Walking

Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-15 These Boots are Made for Walking. Of course, I picked that title because it has a reference to popular culture, and it connects with our text today about “feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” I was tempted to play the video of that song, but it’s really not amenable to worship. If you remember that old song, it was quite confrontational. The singer had a righteous complaint against a boyfriend or spouse who was cheating on her. She’s not going to put up with that, and the song goes on to say, “One of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you!” And that “take a stand” bravado made her a hero! It was a #1 hit in 1966. I mention it because it has one interesting parallel and one major contrast with the message of grace and forgiveness. That parallel is this. God has a righteous complaint against the entire human race for cheating Him out of the loving relationship He desires with us. As the God who created us, he h...
Post a Comment
Read more

186. Ten Healed, Or One?

Luke 17:11-19 Key Verse: Then He said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well." Luke 17:19 At last, Jesus has left the crowd behind and again is continuing His journey toward Jerusalem. His path takes Him and His disciples along the border of Judea and Samaria, between the pure Jews, and the hated half breeds of the day. On His way, Jesus encounters an interesting group of people. We only learn the nationality of one of them and, though we don't know the nationality of the others, because Jesus sends them to the priests in Jerusalem we can probably assume that at least some of them are Jews. Isn't it interesting that through leprosy, a disease that causes much suffering, the dividing wall of hatred has come down for the sake of companionship? We encountered one leper earlier on our Journey. Lepers were the dreaded untouchables of the day. Their disease cut them off from all they loved. It was a very lonely life. No wonder these people had ...
Post a Comment
Read more