Matthew 8:5-13 AMPLIFIED
5 As Jesus went into Capernaum, a [a]centurion came up to Him, begging Him [for help], 6 and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, with intense and terrible, tormenting pain.” 7 Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the centurion replied to Him, “Lord, I am not worthy to have You come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man subject to authority [of a higher rank], with soldiers subject to me; and I say to one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard this, He was amazed and said to those who were following Him, “I tell you truthfully, I have not found such great faith [as this] with anyone in Israel. 11 I say to you that many [Gentiles] will come from east and west, and will sit down [to feast at the table, and enjoy God’s promises] with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven [because they accepted Me as Savior], 12 while the sons and heirs of the kingdom [the descendants of Abraham who will not recognize Me as Messiah] will be thrown out into the outer darkness; in that place [which is farthest removed from the kingdom] there will be weeping [in sorrow and pain] and grinding of teeth [in distress and anger].” 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; it will be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was restored to health at that very hour.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
But I Have Promises to Make … (and to Break?)
5 As Jesus went into Capernaum, a [a]centurion came up to Him, begging Him [for help], 6 and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, with intense and terrible, tormenting pain.” 7 Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the centurion replied to Him, “Lord, I am not worthy to have You come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man subject to authority [of a higher rank], with soldiers subject to me; and I say to one, ‘Go!’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come!’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this!’ and he does it.”
The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep. Robert Frost 1922
When the poet Robert Frost wrote “But I have promises to keep”; he means that
(a) He has to make promises to make his and other lives successful
(b) He has a certain authority, duties, which he must discharge
(c) He has to make promises, follow what he has said to his friends
(d) Promises: He has to make certain people happy and others sad.
The purpose of the passage is simple: Jesus has just taught with great authority; God then uses a Roman centurion to give the insight that the authority comes from God Himself. We learn from this exchange not to overestimate our own place in eternity, not to underestimate the promise of Jesus’ place in eternity.
We’ve all seen great scenes where the little guy confronts the big bad guys, and because he brought some support, the bad guys don’t mess with him.
Seriously—is anyone truly going to mess with the little kid with the giant dog?
Of course not!
If you mess with one, you mess with the other.
While you can probably overcome the little child without too much trouble … but overcoming a big dog – say a German Shepherd or a Doberman, Pitbull, is another matter entirely – you most certainly risk painful significant injuries.
We have seen the movies. It’s a great movie trope (a funny variation of it is the “scared of what’s behind you” trope), and it has great real-world application.
How do you confront a bully? With a bunch of friends at your back, that’s how!
Preferably really big and tough friends.
Here’s where I’m going.
The Roman Centurion in this week’s passage understood how that worked.
When he said something, he had an entire army to back him up. If anyone had messed with him, his authority, they messed with the authority 0f Rome itself.
Likewise, he realized that when Jesus spoke, He had the authority, backing, of God almighty. [Then you can make the application: “Shouldn’t that be the kind of support we have from our church family? If something happens to one of our class members, by God’s authority, will the rest step in to defend or support?”]
“My Word Is My Bond.”
There’s another way you can go with this if you want to—talk about promises.
The Centurion understood that when Jesus spoke, things happened. Literally.
When Jesus gave His word, it was done.
What kind of reputation do we have? Are we known for having good intentions to get a thing done, for promising more than we can deliver, for being people of our word, or not? With Jesus, His word is always good. The Centurion got that!
The centurion met Jesus.
Our prayers to God can be modeled after the way this man approached Jesus.
First, he asked for help simply by stating a fact: “Lord, my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”
This Roman-army commander didn’t make an official request or ask politely for anything from Jesus. He just cried out to Jesus in his need. When our prayers are no more than a heartfelt deep cry of pain, Jesus hears those prayers too.
Second, the centurion trusted in the sure promise of Jesus’ power to respond.
Even though Jesus offered to come in person and heal the servant, the centurion surprisingly, humbly replied, “Just say the word, my servant will be healed.”
The centurion knew that Jesus was so powerful that he could heal people, even Romans, even Romans with sharp swords, even if he was not physically present.
We too can publicly exhibit that kind of trust that Jesus will answer our prayers.
Sometimes Jesus heals us physically, and other times Jesus heals us emotionally or spiritually. Sometimes Jesus promises us future healing and asks us to wait until the right time. No matter what, Jesus’ words are powerful enough to heal.
Jesus was amazed at the faith of the Roman, healed the centurion’s servant and praised the faith of the centurion. We are invited to trust in Jesus, just as this man did. Jesus does listen to our prayers with love, answer prayers with power.
Seeking, Discovering Finding Hope in God’s Promises
Psalm 42:5-11 Amplified Bible
5
Why are you in despair, O my soul?
And why have you become restless and disturbed within me?
Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall again praise Him
For the help of His presence.
6
O my God, my soul is in despair within me [the burden more than I can bear];
Therefore I will [fervently] remember You from the land of the Jordan
And the peaks of [Mount] Hermon, from Mount Mizar.
7
Deep calls to deep at the [thundering] sound of Your waterfalls;
All Your breakers and Your waves have rolled over me.
8
Yet the Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime,
And in the night His song will be with me,
A prayer to the God of my life.
9
I will say to God my rock, “Why have You forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?”
10
As a crushing of my bones [with a sword], my adversaries taunt me,
While they say continually to me, “Where is your God?”
11
Why are you in despair, O my soul?
Why have you become restless and disquieted within me?
Hope in God and wait expectantly for Him, for I shall yet praise Him,
The [a]help of my countenance and my God.
Like the Centurion, in our lives we can often face times of discouragement.
Our spirits can feel overwhelmingly heavy and our hearts heavily burdened.
When that happens, and God’s promise is that it will happen. however, we can turn to God and lean on him, finding hope in his promises and unfailing love.
Discouragement can come from various sources—economic disappointments, the wide assortment of personal failures, prolonged healthcare challenges too.
Yet even in the midst of such trials we can choose to put our hope in God. He is our refuge and strength, the one who always sustains us through every season.
When such great measures of discouragement threatens to overwhelm us, we can find solace in God’s Word. His mighty acts and daily provisions remind us of his faithfulness, and his promises give us hope for the future. God is always present to help in times of trouble, and his love and grace are sufficient for us (Psalm 46:1-11; 2 Corinthians 12:9).
Hebrews 6:17-20 Amplified Bible
17 In the same way God, in His desire to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable nature of His purpose, intervened and guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things [His promise and His oath] in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled [to Him] for refuge would have strong encouragement and indwelling strength to hold tightly to the hope set before us. 19 This hope [this confident assurance] we have as an anchor of the soul [it cannot slip and it cannot break down under whatever pressure bears upon it]—a safe and steadfast hope that enters within the veil [of the heavenly temple, that most Holy Place in which the very presence of God dwells], 20 where Jesus has entered [in advance] as a forerunner for us, having become a High Priest forever according to the order of [a]Melchizedek.
As we read and study and pray the Word of God, we anchor our hope in God, our perspective subtly shifts into His wisdom. We begin to see beyond our present circumstances, and we focus on the unchanging nature of our heavenly Father.
He is the source of true joy and peace, and in him we find strength to persevere.
Today, if you find yourself discouraged, turn to God in prayer. Pour out your heart before him and listen for his promising voice. Trust in his perfect timing and purposes, knowing that he is working all things together for your good.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 42 The Message
42 1-3 A white-tailed deer drinks
from the creek;
I want to drink God,
deep drafts of God.
I’m thirsty for God-alive.
I wonder, “Will I ever make it—
arrive and drink in God’s presence?”
I’m on a diet of tears—
tears for breakfast, tears for supper.
All day long
people knock at my door,
Pestering,
“Where is this God of yours?”
4 These are the things I go over and over,
emptying out the pockets of my life.
I was always at the head of the worshiping crowd,
right out in front,
Leading them all,
eager to arrive and worship,
Shouting praises, singing thanksgiving—
celebrating, all of us, God’s feast!
5 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He’s my God.
6-8 When my soul is in the dumps, I rehearse
everything I know of you,
From Jordan depths to Hermon heights,
including Mount Mizar.
Chaos calls to chaos,
to the tune of whitewater rapids.
Your breaking surf, your thundering breakers
crash and crush me.
Then God promises to love me all day,
sing songs all through the night!
My life is God’s prayer.
9-10 Sometimes I ask God, my rock-solid God,
“Why did you let me down?
Why am I walking around in tears,
harassed by enemies?”
They’re out for the kill, these
tormentors with their obscenities,
Taunting day after day,
“Where is this God of yours?”
11 Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul?
Why are you crying the blues?
Fix my eyes on God—
soon I’ll be praising again.
He puts a smile on my face.
He’s my God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 