A Study of the Book of Luke
Sermon # 15
An Amazing Faith
Luke 7:1-10
Faith is not believing that God can; it is knowing that He will.
Faith is deaf to doubt, dumb to discouragement, blind to impossibilities and know nothing but success in God.
Walking by faith means being prepared to trust where we are not permitted to see.
Faith allows God to do for us and with us what we could never do alone.
Our text today about a Roman soldier’s faith takes us inside true faith and shows how and what faith does. In seventh chapter of Luke in verses 1-10, we find a centurion who, though he was a Gentile, understood who Christ was and is. It is the story that would of special interest to Theophilus, the Gentile to whom this account is addressed. The story is significant because this was a Gentile who exercised this faith. Even Jesus would remark that this man’s faith was amazing.
“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.”
Only twice in all of Scripture was Jesus said to “marvel” or be amazed. The other time was when he began his public ministry in his hometown of Nazareth, and he was rejected by his fellow Jews – “he was amazed by their lack of faith.” (Mark 6:6, Luke 4:14-30). The centurion had a faith that was more perceptive and sensitive than anything Jesus had witnessed in Israel.
What could be more horrible than to amaze the Son of God with one’s lack of faith? What could be more thrilling than to amaze Him with one’s faith. This centurion had amazing faith!
What I want us to consider “Why was Jesus so amazed?” What are characteristics that made this man’s faith so amazing?
1. THE FIRST CHARACTERISTIC OF AN AMAZING FAITH WAS THAT IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO LOVE ACROSS ALL BARRIERS. (vv. 1-2)
“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.”
Jesus has just completed the teaching know as “The Sermon on the Mount.” Now Jesus entered into Capernaum, a city on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee. While Jesus is in Capernaum, he is approached by representatives of a Roman Centurion. Centurions were commonplace in the Roman Empire. They were equivalent in rank to a modern-day army captain and normally in command of 100 soldiers.
This particular centurion had a servant who was ill, Matthew (8:6) in his account of this incident uses the term (pais) which is young child. Whoever this young man was, Luke who you will remember was a doctor, said he “was sick and ready to die.” If you have ever clung to a loved one that was at death’s door and you felt that he was slowing losing the battle, you know this centurion awful sense of helplessness.
We are told that this man loved Israel, though it was not the land of his birth. It is also evident that this man cared deeply about his young servant, was very out of the ordinary socially. And the crossed racial and ethic barriers when he as a Gentile appealed to a Jew for help.
This man loved people who were not just like himself. I don’t know about you, but I don’t feel particularly effective in loving folks who live outside the social barriers around me.
Hearing that Jesus was in the area, the centurion decides to risk his reputation by going to a Jew for help.
2. THE SECOND CHARACTERISTIC OF AN AMAZING FAITH WAS THAT IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO BE EXCITED AND ACTIVE IN THE WORK OF GOD. (vv. 3-4)
“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.”
We need to understand that the Jewish elders had little love for the Romans in general and Roman soldiers in particular. This man must have been a very unique individual for the elders to be willing to approach Jesus on his behalf.
The elders not only bring the man’s request but they vouch for their Gentile friend. They argue that he is a man of integrity and he was well liked by the Jews, and worthy of Jesus’ help. Verse three says, “The elders when they approached Jesus had said, “for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.” This man had given substantially to the building of a house of worship. Gentile worshipers were barred from the Temple in Jerusalem but not so with the synagogue, the synagogue was a place that even a Gentile could come and listen to the word of God being taught. So in the time and place this centurion lived the major way that God was using to spread his light was the synagogue system, and he used his money, his reputation and his influence to build a synagogue. This centurion consciously chose to participate. He enthusiastically involved himself in what was most apparent that God was doing.
In stark contrast, according to George Barna, the church statistician, among adults who regularly attend church (that is at least once a month) 37% did not give a dime to a church in the last year. He goes on to say that only 3-5% of the people who do give, tithe their income. The average donation by adults who attend non-Catholic churches is $ 17.00 a week. [George Barna. How to Increase Giving In Your Church. (Ventura, Calif.: Regal Books, 1997) p. 20.]
I was give a story that I hope is not true of you.
When Pastor Smith picked up the phone, Special Agent Jones of the IRS was on the line.
He said, “Is this Pastor Smith.
He replied, “Yes this is he.”
“I’m calling to inquire about a member of your congregation, a Dr. Ship. Do you recognize the name?”
“Yes, he is a member of my congregation. How can I be of service?”
“Well, on last year’s tax return, the doctor claimed that he made a sizable tax-deducible contribution to your church. Is it true?”
“Well, I’ll have to have the bookkeeper verify the information for you. How much did Dr Ship say he contributed?”
“Twenty-five thousand dollars,” answered Agent Jones. “Can you tell me if that is true?”
There was a long pause. Then the pastor replied, “I”ll tell you what, Call me back tomorrow and I’m sure that it will be!”
Hopeful you give because you recognize that according to God’s word it is through the local church that he plans to reach a lost world. All of us to some extent are aware of what God is doing in the world. As we remember the example of this centurion I must ask, “What is it that God is doing that you are excited about, that matters to you, that you are enthusiastically giving yourself to?
3. THE THIRD CHARACTERISTIC OF AN AMAZING FAITH WAS THAT IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO APPROACH CHRIST IN GREAT HUMILITY (vv. 6-7a)
We are impressed not only with this man great love, but also his great humility. This passage reveals two essential components of the Christian faith – and understanding of who Christ is and an understanding of who we are.
In verse six we find, “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.”
Before Jesus could reach his house, the Centurion sent a second representative to Jesus, tell him that it was not necessary for him to come to his house. Because was familiar with Jewish religious customs, he did not wish to put Jesus in a position of having to enter the house of a Gentile.
This Roman soldier a man of considerable influence and power, was also uniquely humble, he regarded himself as undeserving of having Jesus come under his roof, and even felt unworthy of meeting Jesus in the street. This soldier, unlike the Pharisees does not ask Jesus for a sign that he was who he said he was. This man doesn’t even ask to meet him.
4. THE FOURTH CHARACTERISTIC OF AN AMAZING FAITH WAS THAT IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO BE WILLING TO TRUST IN CHRIST ALONE (vv. 7a-8)
“… 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.”
The centurion apparently realized the one who had power of life and death; that could heal with a word, must be God. And if Christ is divine, then he as a Gentile sinner, was unworthy to even meet him. Respectfully he kneels before his divine authority. All Jesus must do is say the word, and he believes that it is as good as done. There is no evidence that this man ever personally heard Jesus preach and yet he believed. He made his request based on what he had heard of Jesus.
Jesus promised a special blessing on people like the centurion and you. When Jesus appeared to Thomas and removed all his doubts, and proved that he had rose from the dead he said to Thomas, “Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet believed.” (John 20:29). That blessing extended to the centurion and to every believer today.
In the word “also” in verse eight we see that the officer saw a parallel between the way he commanded his soldiers and the way Jesus commanded diseases. If this Roman, with very little spiritual instruction had that kind of faith in God’s word, how much greater our faith should be.
In verse nine we see the reaction of Jesus, “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!”
This man’s remarks amaze Jesus, in so much, that they come a Gentile. He marveled at a Roman centurion, whose background and circumstances ought to have made it difficult for him to have faith, a man whose occupation prized being big, bad and tough, a man who was steeped in paganism, a man hated by the Jews because he was a Roman. Yet in spite of all the circumstances that went against him, here stood a man who was striking example of faith.
Almost as an afterthought Luke adds in verse ten, and oh by the way when “…those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.”
Conclusion
What startled and impressed Jesus was the characteristics that anyone can have in there lives. Some think that an amazing faith is the ability to do the miraculous, but miracles are something that Jesus can do any time. I am concerned that you understand with me this morning that there are whose lives would impress Jesus, because of their faithful godly lives. The characteristics of an amazing faith are something that anyone can have
CHARACTERISTIC OF AN AMAZING FAITH
1. IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO LOVE ACROSS ALL BARRIERS.
2. IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO BE EXCITED AND ACTIVE IN THE WORK OF GOD.
3. IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO BE TO APPROACH CHRIST IN GREAT HUMILITY)
4. IT CAUSED THIS MAN TO BE TO BE WILLING TO TRUST IN CHRIST ALONE
