LEARNING DAILY

Luke 7:3-8, And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die. So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant. And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.” 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. Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But You say the word, and my servant will be healed. 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 does it.”

We have seen the humility of this centurion. In Luke’s account Jesus went with those he had sent to ask Jesus to heal his servant. When they were not far from the house, the centurion sent others to Jesus because he believed himself to be unworthy of Jesus entering his house. Instead, the centurion, in his humility, believed that Jesus only had to, “say the word, and his servant will be healed”. “Beloved, the greater the faith, the deeper the humility” (Charles Spurgeon). The centurion understood that at his word, those in his command did whatever it was that was commanded by him. He related that to the power of Jesus to heal his servant.

Read the response of Jesus to the faith of the centurion in the next verse. “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’.” I tried to find another time that Jesus “marveled” at something and only found that He marveled at the unbelief of the Nazarenes (Mark 6:6). I doubt Jesus was caught off guard by the faith of the centurion.  He certainly let those following Him know that this man’s faith was greater than what the Jewish people had. Jesus recognized the faith that the centurion had believed that He only needed to say a word to heal his servant; He did not need to be in the house. His humility, his sense of not being worthy of having Jesus in his house, yet not doubting Jesus’ ability is something all Believers must sense.

None of us are worthy that Jesus Christ should come to us. But He took our sinful nature, suffered on a cross in our place and now “sits at the right hand of God the Father” (Ephesians 1:19-21), willing to give to His followers “exceedingly above and beyond what we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20). Because one asks Jesus Christ into their heart to save and change him/her, He is willing and able to do so. One’s sense of unworthiness should lead him/her to Jesus just as the centurion’s unworthiness did.

We must look at our own inadequacies, our own unworthiness and trust Jesus is enough to save, change and walk with us on the narrow way into eternal life in His kingdom. Walk with Him in humility and in faith, always believing He is able to do all that shows He is God and in control.