I want to use this preaching moment to explore with you Matthew 8:5-10 (read).
I want to highlite this headline in our little chat: “Jesus Marveled.”
Basically in the 8th, 9th, 11th and 12th chapters of Matthew, Matthew is treating the Ministry of the Master to the Disenfranchised. Those poor, downtrodden, outcast individual; those whom society thought little of, deemed insignificant nobodies with no meaningful contribution to make because they were economically poor, being socially derived of educational benefits; and therefore, the Roman world had no use for them.
And so basically, we are looking at the Ministry of the Master in the Ghettoes. He is preaching the Gospel to the Poor. The poor had been deprived of hearing the gospel because they could not maintain or support a ministry with their finances, so they were bypassed as far as the good things were concerned. And one of the things the Lord Jesus did say when He proclaimed that the Spirit of the Lord was upon Him was that He was sent to preach the gospel to the poor. And that’s basically what He is doing. He is reaching the Gentiles; those non Jews whether they be Roman, Greek, Barbarian, Women, slaves, the poor or sick.
During the Roman empire it was said that these were the Minorities because they had little purchasing power and political clout. But in reality, they were the majority because there were more Gentiles, Women, slaves and sick folk than there were pompous and proud Pharisees and the militarily strong Romans. And in our Text, we see the Lord himself ministering to Gentiles.
And we know a little about the Ethnos, the Gentiles in our studies in Ephesians. Those who were without Christ, alienated from the life of God and strangers from the covenants and promises to Israel. We find the Messiah is ministering to the Gentiles and particularly to a Roman soldier and his slave.
And to show the arrogance and pompous pride of male Jews who thought they had a lock on God and religion, one of the things I learned in studying Jewish history when I was going to school was that the first thing most male Jews did every morning was to pray a prayer that basically said, “Lord, I thank Thee that I was not born a slave, a Gentile or a woman.” Because slaves, Gentiles and women were, in the eyes of Jews, scum, absolutely nothing. And here in verses 5-15, that’s who the Lord is ministering to: a Gentile, a slave and a woman. In the first 15 verses of this 8th chapter of Matthew, Jesus is ministering to the needs of someone who was on the lower plane of human existence.
This Roman centurion was a Gentile and not a Jew; he was an Italian. And we know how the Jews felt about the Romans. They had an extreme hatred of them. And especially slaves, because to Jews slaves were counted as things to be possessed and used and owned, and when they could render no more service, they were to be thrown away.
In the first two miracles of this 8th chapter, Jesus not only showed mercy and compassion to an outcast leper in verses 1-4, but also to an outcast Gentile and his slave in verses 5-13. And then the third miracle in verses 14 and 15, He helped a woman; He helped Peter’s mother-in-law.
And the Lord’s point here is that physical health, race, social status or gender makes no difference to Him. He came to seek and to save that which was lost. And he didn’t care about how a person looked physically, the color of their skin, whether they were rich or poor, whether they lived on this side of the tracks or on the other side, whether they were males or female; He had compassion on people seeing them as sheep having no shepherd.
And He’s teaching us that as far as the gospel and salvation are concerned, there are no boundaries or barriers when it comes to rendering help and aid to those who are in dire need. Jesus showed special compassion to those whom society had disenfranchised.
And that’s good news because daily hundreds of people are just dropping thru the so-called safety net of society forgotten. And looking at this passage of Scripture I find hope and encouragement. For when others have been locked out, the Lord brings them in. The Scripture says that He has chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith.
In verse 5, Matthew wants us to look at the Ministry of the Messiah in the City of Capernaum. For Matthew-Levi writes in verse 5, “And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum….”
The word “Capernaum” means “Village of Consolation, City of Consolation.” The place where supposedly one could get encouragement, help and assistance provided one knew the right people or had the right background. But we shall find out that the name “Capernaum” and its meaning “City of Consolation” was far from correct. It was a city that offered very, very, very little encouragement, consolation or help especially to the disenfranchised: the Gentiles, women and slaves, to the sick. To the rich, yes. To the educated, yes. To the upper echelon of society, yes. But to the disenfranchised it was not a City of Consolation, it was a City of Oppression.
And it seems odd to me that the Lord Jesus would choose this city of Capernaum to be the headquarters of His Galilean Ministry. He chose to live and operate out of Capernaum as His headquarters. Capernaum was a political center, for Rome had an embassy there with troops stationed. Capernaum was a city of opulence and prosperity and wealth and arrogance because it was a commercial center for trade, fishing and banking. It was an arrogant city because in Matthew 11:23-24 the same city Jesus ministered out of, He now denounces. In verse 20 it says, “Then began He to upbraid the cities wherein most of His mighty works were done, because they repented not.” And in verses 23 and 24 Jesus said: “And thou Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.” The more exalted, the more blessed they were, the more lifted up in pride they became. And at least for a year Jesus had set up headquarters in this city of supposed consolation, and they rejected the Son of consolation; and so Jesus pronounced a Woe on them.
And so I assert that it is no umbrella of protection to have Jesus in one’s midst. It could be a curse to have Jesus in one’s midst especially if the individual does not bow and submit to His Lordship. They were very blessed to have God in the flesh, Jesus the Messiah, the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace in their midst. Here He is out of all the cities in Northern Galilee, He chose to bless Capernaum with His presence, and Capernaum treated Him just like His own home town of Nazareth; they rejected Him. So its really no umbrella of protection to have Jesus in one’s midst, because if one does not receive Him, that same Jesus will become their Judge.
And so here is Jesus entering into the city limits of Capernaum. And it was a city that was estranged from God. For according to Matthew 4:13-17, Jesus left Nazareth (because they had rejected Him) and came and dwelt in Capernaum which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet saying, The land of Zabulon and the land of Nephthalim, by way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
We find here that Capernaum was in the Circuit of the Gentiles, mostly non-Jewish or mixed Jews. They were people who sat in sin being alienated from God, moral darkness, spiritual darkness. And when Jesus entered into Capernaum, being the Light of God, they saw great light, they saw hope. And they were those who sat in the region and shadow of death, being alienated from the life and light of God. And the region and shadow of death is demon controlled and demon possessed. That is why Jesus confronts so much sickness and disease.
Anyone who is away from the light, who does not abide under the shadow of the Almighty, is subject and liable and vulnerable to the attacks of Satan at any time. They have absolutely no protection.
It’s a blessing to be saved. It’s a blessing to know that Christ has arisen and shined upon us and we are no longer alienated or a far off from God; that we have been brought nigh by the blood of Jesus Christ.
And this region was isolated. But what better to put light than in darkness. He said that He was the light of the world. And this place which was most severely Satan’s kingdom, Stan’s seat. And Jesus had already met Satan in the wilderness and beat him. Therefore Satan set up his headquarters in Capernaum, and so the Son is pursuing him; He has Satan on the run. He has come to Satan’s kingdom and light is shining in darkness invading the prince of darkness’s territory, binding him and spoiling him of his goods.
Capernaum had the name of the City of great consolation, but what consolation could it give seeing that it was cut off from God? When wrong was on the throne, when Caesar was governing this land great sickness, great disease, slavery and the mistreatment of women was the rule of the day. It was a society built upon the principle that might makes right; a city built upon injustice. And here is Jesus entering, says Matthew 8:5, this city that was in darkness, that sat in the region and shadow of death. Now light and life has entered into Capernaum.
And I know there was no consolation for the disenfranchised in Capernaum because verse 5 tells us that immediately there came unto Jesus someone who needed help and couldn’t get it, someone who needed encouragement but who couldn’t get it in Capernaum; but who recognized Light and here he came: “And there came unto Him a centurion,” a captain of a hundred men, a Roman officer, a Gentile who was locked out of the system, He came to Jesus beseeching Him and saying.
Here came a man disenfranchised who found no hope in Capernaum for his servant. He found no consolation, so he came to Jesus. Matthew says “beseeching Him,” calling Jesus to his side saying in so many words, I beg You, help me. I need comfort, consolation, encouragement, and help. I can’t find it in village of consolation, but perhaps You can help me.
And here he is a captain, a man of military rank and standing speaking to Jesus. But he didn’t address Jesus as an equal. This word “parakaleo-beseeching” in the Greek does not mean to address one as an equal, but to address a superior. In other words, he is addressing Jesus as he would a colonel or general; he is a captain. He is not standing on the same footing looking Jesus in the eye as an equal, but he is down in a posture of submission. The word beseeching literally means begging or imploring.
And in verse 6, this captain addressed Jesus saying “Lord, Sire, Kurios.” The word “Lord, Sire, Kurios” takes on the meaning of two concepts, and they all mean basically “Lord or master.” But one meaning of this word “Sire” meant a title of honor expressive of the respect and reverence that a slave would have to a master, and is the same as saying “Sir”, as in Matthew 13:27. Where the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir (which is the same in the Greek as Sire, Kurios, Lord)….” Many people addressed Jesus as Sir, which was just a title of respect.
Kurios, Sire, Lord was also a title of respect which the disciples addressed Jesus as their Teacher. In Matthew 8:25 the disciples used this same word Lord in addressing Jesus when they came and awoke Him, saying, Lord (Sire, Kurios), save us: we perish. A disciple had a master meaning a teacher, a rabbi.
Also a son addressed his father as Lord, Sir, Kurios as in Matthew 21:30. When the father came to his second son and said, son, go work to day in my vineyard. And the second son answered and said, I go, sir (Lord, Kurios): and went not. A son would address his father as Lord, Sir, Kurios.
Anyone who wanted to show respect and reverence would address their superior as Lord, Sir. And we do the same today. Our Mister or Mrs. is the same as the word Lord, Sir, Kurios. And so Jesus has already told us in the seventh chapter of Matthew at verse 21 that not everyone who says to Him “Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.” That’s just a title of respect and honor. Some people who say “Lord, Lord” are not addressing Him as the Lord of their life; they have just been brought up to be respectful, nice and courteous. And to them “Lord” does not have the meaning of Owner and Possessor as God. Its just a title of respect, the same as saying “Sir” or “Mister.”
But Lord proper in the Greek means Master or Lord of, He to whom a person or thing belongs and to whom the deposing and deciding of a matter is.
This captain by his posture of beseeching Him tells us that he saw Jesus more than just a man of distinction. And especially his conversation to Jesus tells us that He saw Jesus as more than just a master or rabbi or teacher, because all scribes and Pharisees did not have the authority which Jesus had. His Word could actually start something to happen.
He was not just addressing Jesus as a disciple to his teacher because he was not a disciple or follower of Jesus. He saw Jesus as God. For he goes on to say that he could recognize Jesus’ authority because He didn’t have come under his roof, but Jesus’ Word had so much authority that He could just say in a word and his servant would be healed.
So he must have seen that the Lord was the Owner, the Possessor. And anything that you own, you can dispose of any way you like. You can do what you will with your own. Therefore he was recognizing this fact: You Lord and me servant. You made me and You are over me. You are Sovereign. And I have a servant at home who’s under me, who does what I tell him to do; and You, Lord, have more power than that! Therefore, he is recognizing the Lord’s Sovereignty, Him being actually God.
I want to skip down to verse 10 and work my way back up. After this centurion had made his statement and informed Jesus of his servant and requested that Jesus would just come and heal him and He wouldn’t even have to come under his roof, we find in verse 10 that JESUS MARVELED. “When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to them that followed Him (which was all that multitude that followed Him down from the mountain top because he had just finished with the Sermon on the Mount; and incidentally when Jesus finished with the Sermon on the Mount the people marveled and followed Him)…”
But Here is a man who caused Jesus to Marvel in the sense of to Smile; not that He was shocked because he knew what was in man; but Jesus marveled in the sense that it put a smile on His face. When in the midst of all this madness, mess and melancholy, He found someone, after having gone all over Israel, who had such a great quality of faith. He told Jesus: I don’t need You to come and lay hands, I don’t need You to make spittle of clay, I don’t need You to rub oil; all You have to do is Speak the Word Only.
Now everyone else Jesus had healed wanted him to lay hands on them or to perform the extraordinary where their eyes could see in order to believe. But this man said, I don’t have to see nothing because I can’t even see Your Word; but all You have to do is to Speak the Word Only! I like that!
No wonder Jesus Smiled when He heard that because He said that I have traveled all over Israel from Dan in the North to Beersheba in the South. And if faith was to be found anywhere in the world, it should have been found in Israel. And Jesus said that He hadn’t found faith like this in people who have a history of seeing God doing mighty things like dividing mighty waters and sending great plagues and making the sun stand still or giving victories to Israel’s armies without them raising arms and using any type of weapon.
And Jesus seems to be implying that if anyone ought to have faith in God to know that God can do anything, it ought to be Israel. And Jesus said: Here I am. I have walked all over Israel even in Jerusalem the center and capital of learning, where the very apex of the religious temperament was supposed to have been deposited in the person of the scribes and rabbi. He said: I have been to the temple and had to overturn the tables of the moneychangers and drive out certain folk, but even there I have not found faith like this. Even behind the veil where the priests were offering up the blood as atonement, and I have not even found this type of faith there. And I left Jerusalem and went to the City of David, Bethlehem, and I have not even found it there. And I here I am now in the North where the Judges used to judge Israel, where Samson, Gideon and Debra were used of God to deliver Israel from their enemies, and I haven’t found it here.
But here is a Gentile, someone who was barred from going into the Holy Place and was only allowed to congregate in the Court of the Gentiles, a man who was supposed to be alienated from the life of God and a stranger from the promises and hope of Israel with such a faith that it caused Jesus to marvel! And said to them that followed Him (which was a rebuke to them because Peter, James and John was in that crowd that He addressed; He was saying to them that you have been with Me and have followed me and you don’t have this type of faith, and you are Jews and he is a Gentile) I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.
Jesus had just finished the Sermon on the Mount and just had healed the leper; and here is a harden Roman soldier, a man who was used to war and murder, after hearing what this man said, Jesus Marveled and said to them that followed Him, “Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.” Now the “great” does not speak of quantity, how much, but Quality, such strong faith, because he just wanted His Word only. Unlike Gideon who had to have a sign accompanying God’s Word. If you are with me, God, cause this fleece to be wet and everything around it be dry.
This man didn’t even want a Sign. He said, Lord, just Speak the Word Only. So He is dealing with the Quality of this man’s faith, how strong it was. And that’s strong faith just to take God at His Word! Lord, You don’t have to come and lay hands on him.
Lord, You don’t have to rub him with oil. I don’t need a sign. Just Speak the Word Only!
And sometimes we tempt God with asking for some type of sign, when He has given us the greatest sign, His Word. We often request His Word And, as in Your Word and my doctor, or Your Word and my medicine, or Your Word and my job, or Your Word and some money! But this man said, I don’t need nothing else but Your Word. And that’s great faith! And that’s a rebuke to everyone of us. We say we believe. Yeah Lord, I have Your Word BUT let me have something else!
I have to read what this man said in verse 8. “The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that Thou shouldest come under my roof: BUT SPEAK THE WORD ONLY, and my servant shall be healed.” I wonder is the quality of this type of faith among us today?
The Lord has made so many promises to us. His Word is full of promises. But yet sometimes, when we are caught between a rock and a hard place, we want more than His Word. We just won’t rest, rely, wait and take Him at His Word. We want Him to show us something else, or do something else.
I wonder is this type of faith found in this house today? I wonder is Jesus smiling? We come and ask Jesus to do something for us in prayer and instead of just pleading His Word and saying Your promise says this; and I just believe Your Word. I wonder, after we finish praying, do we start looking for something other than His Word?
Faith is predicated upon God’s Word, what He has said, what He has promised. And if we can’t Believe His Word, Very Rarely Will He Manifest His Power! (repeat) Why? Because we are calling Him a lie.#
Here is a man who says, JUST SPEAK THE WORD ONLY! No wonder JESUS MARVELED. Because everyone else up till now had to have something visible; Jesus had to do something tangible, something they could see. And that’s not faith! You say, I’ll believe if I see it. Faith says, Even if I don’t see it, I believe it!
Jesus Marveled! Here is God smiling, not at a Jew, not at a Christian; he’s not smiling at a church member, He’s smiling at a Gentile who is putting church folk to shame! And this tells me that perhaps there’s greater faith in the world than there is in the church! I believe that the Quality of Faith that causes God to Smile is Out There, Un-Churched rather than in here in the Church Setting. I believe that! I’m taking God at His Word.
For Jesus had ran into many religious folk and they didn’t believe God’s Word, for if they did, they would have received their Messiah. They didn’t even believe the Prophets. They had thrown God’s Word aside and started teaching the commandments and doctrines of men. They did not believe God’s Word.
A lot of folk talk about the Word, but you’ll be very surprised how very few people within church settings really believe God’s Word. Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by Every Word that proceeds out of the Mouth of God.” I’d venture my life to say that in this city, very few folk Live, I mean really trust God to do as He said according to His Word. I’d venture my life to say that very few folk really take God at His Word!
Do you know why? Because we always have an Alternative Route that we pursue. We always have other things to do rather than what God has commanded us to do. That means, we don’t believe His Word. We’re saying, I’ve got to have more than Your Word. Your Word is not good enough!
Here is a prime example. If we are a Christian nation, as some say they believe and proclaim, then why would a Christian nation take the aggressive posture of war when Jesus says, I know what I am doing: I am sending you forth as sheep, not hawks, in the midst of wolves; be ye therefore wise as serpents but harmless as doves. But we are waging war which tells me, we don’t take God at His Word!
We are living in very perilous times. Very few people believe God’s Word. Very few say, Lord, JUST SPEAK YOUR WORD ONLY and I believe whatever my situation is, shall be rectified. You don’t have to come under my roof: but Say The Word Only!
Do you know why churches that are founded upon the Word of God grow? Do you know the key to growth? What this centurion said. Lord, we don’t need a lot of other things. We don’t need gadgets, gimmicks and programs. But if You Just Speak in our midst, YOUR WORD IS ENOUGH! I’m convinced that’s the key to the growth of any church: HIS WORD AND NOTHING ELSE. Not His Word and Philosophy. Not His Word and what I Think. Not His Word and the world and what they do. JUST HIS WORD ONLY! That’s the Key because I have seen it in operation in the Book of Acts.
The Greatest Spiritual Blessing Is TO HEAR GOD SPEAK TO ME! Now if He doesn’t Speak to me, I’m in Trouble! (repeat). But if He just Speaks to me, that the Greatest Blessing in the world. JUST SAY THE WORD. In other words, Lord, Just Speak! If You would just communicate with me, fellowship with me, I’d know that I’m Your child. And regardless of what I might be going thru, IF YOU JUST SPEAK!
And that is significant because A WORD IS THE FORECAST OF A PRESENCE! If He speaks, even if I don’t see His face, I know He’s around! That’s what we need today more than anything else: For God To Speak to Our Spirits! The song says: “On the stormy sea, Jesus speaks to me; and the billows cease to roar.” He doesn’t have to speak to the storm; but if He just speaks to me, the billows cease to roar! What we need now more than anything else I these days is FOR GOD TO SPEAK TO US!
This centurion was saying something: LORD, JUST SPEAK! I’m disenfranchised in Capernaum; seems like no one else is speaking, no one else is concerned about me and my servant; but if You would Just Speak!!! In our situation, if we aren’t delivered from them, if someone would JUST SPEAK, it would encourage us to hold out!
And when God Speaks, He Gives Encouragement! The apostle Paul in the storm in Acts 27:19-25.
