This week’s theme – “Old Ways; New Ways”
After Jesus had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. A centurion there had a slave whom he valued highly and who was ill and close to death. When he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, asking him to come and heal his slave. When they came to Jesus, they appealed to him earnestly, saying,
Luke 7:1-10
“He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our people, and it is he who built our synagogue for us.”
And Jesus went with them, but when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to say to him,
“Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; therefore, I did not presume to come to you. But only speak the word, and let my servant be healed. For I also am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me, and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.”
When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him, and, turning to the crowd following him, he said,
“I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.”
When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.
A centurion figures prominently in this story, and even though we never learn his name, he is hugely important. Why? Well, fun fact, the word “centurion” comes from the Latin word “centurio”, which is a form “centum”, which means “one hundred”. Thus, in the Roman army, a centurion was the commander of a literal ‘century’ – a unit of one hundred soldiers! He was therefore a powerful Roman military officer, and so he symbolized everything the Jews despised about Roman oppression. But this was no ordinary power hungry centurion: He had compassion for a slave – something that was unheard of in those days when animals were often treated better than slaves were. Furthermore, this man had deep faith in God. And in his faith, he knew that Jesus could heal his servant, even without physically meeting him. He was courteous and respectful toward Jesus, recognizing that Jesus’ authority was far greater than his own. Adding to this, even the Jewish elders of Capernaum felt he was worthy of Jesus’ time – worthy because he loved the Jews and built their synagogue – in other words, worthy in very earthly terms. Looking at all these factors, it is not surprising that Jesus was amazed at the man, and remarked on the depth of his faith. As you reread the passage, perhaps consider asking yourself these questions:
Questions
- Think about the word faith. What does it mean? Are there different definitions of faith depending on the context in which it’s used? Why or why not?
- How does the healing of the centurion’s servant challenge the ethnic and cultural barriers of the time and in our current world?
- This passage highlights that our faith is often in things we cannot see. How does this make faith difficult?
- Faith is humble yet bold. It enables us to go to God with confidence and hope but ultimately it honours God’s will. How does the Bible’s vision of faith inform some of our modern day definitions?
- How can we cultivate a faith like the centurion’s in our daily lives?
Bulletin for Sunday