Salvation for the Gentiles

Salvation for the Gentiles

5When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him,
6 “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” 7 And He said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
8 But the centurion replied, “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 too am a man 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 servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard this, He marvelled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.
11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,
12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

❖ The centurion came on behalf of his servant

What we see here, firstly, is that a centurion, a Gentile, Roman officer, comes to Jesus. Apparently, word had gone around at this time that there was a man who did many miracles. Now, as recorded in Matthew 4, Jesus had been doing miracles and healings in the area of Capernaum and throughout Galilee before this time. So, we can say, in a sense, that He had made a name for Himself already. What is striking here is to see that a Gentile was coming to Jesus. And
this Gentile was appealing to Jesus. He was concerned about his servant who was terribly sick. He was paralysed and, as our text says, suffering terribly. The appeal must have been sincere because Jesus, without hesitation, said that He would come and heal him.

❖ Christ is compassionate and willing to heal

7 And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
Once again, we see Jesus’ compassion and willingness to help. This reality should make us attentive. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever (See Hebrews 13:8). He is always willing to come and help us, always willing to alleviate suffering. Now, we must understand, again, that when Jesus was physically present on earth, He healed and did many miracles only for the last three years of his life. This was a special time – a time when Old Testament prophecies had to be fulfilled. It was a time when the world had to see, hear and experience his miracles. The miracles authenticated the fact that He was, indeed, the long-awaited Messiah. Jesus did not heal and deliver every sick and paralysed person on earth then, and we should not expect Him to do that now. God ordains a time and a place for everything.

❖ The nature of his faith

8 But the centurion replied, “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 too am a man 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 servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.

In these verses we see a number of things: but the most striking thing to recognize is the nature of true faith, saving faith. We see Jesus commending this man’s faith, the faith of a Gentile.

Five points to notice about the centurion:

➢ The object of saving faith was Christ, as Lord

➢ He believed in the power of Christ’s word
➢ He believed Christ was under authority
➢ He believed Christ had absolute authority
➢ True faith makes a person humble

8 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof”
The centurion knew he was not worthy. Remember Job. After God revealed Himself to Job, he said, “I repent in dust and ashes“. Remember the tax collector in Luke 18, he was “beating on his breast”, praying, “have mercy on me, a sinner”. Remember Abram who prayed for Sodom in Genesis 18 and said, “I have undertaken to speak to the Lord, I who am but dust and ashes”. Time does not permit to speak of Peter, Paul, David and Daniel. True faith in God, debases the self. John the Baptist said, “I must become less, and Christ must become more” (John 3).

➢ The object of his faith was Christ, as Lord

8a But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come
under my roof …”.

He addressed Jesus in the same way as the leper, as Lord. His faith was anchored in the Person of Christ. He believed that Christ was Lord, Yahweh (God). You see, faith has no power in and of itself. It is not a kind of a magic, a gas, or something you can toss around and expect wonderful things to happen. His faith was in Christ as Lord. He believed that Christ was King, the Ruler, even though he was a Roman centurion.

➢ He believed in the power of Christ’s word

8 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come
under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.”
This centurion believed that Christ had the power to say things which would then happen – power to create, power to perform a miracle, power to heal those who are suffering. And his faith was of such a quality that he believed that just a word from Jesus would heal his servant. He understood something about Jesus that many did not. Christ, in fact, has the power to give life to the dead, the power to hold the whole universe in His hand and sustain all things (See Hebrews 1:1-3).

➢ He believed Christ was under authority

9 For I too am a man 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 servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

We don’t know how much the centurion understood about the Trinity, but at least he understood that Jesus was sent by God. He recognized that Jesus was doing miraculous things, not by his own authority, but under authority, because he said, “I am also a man under authority”. In the military, a command from a superior must be obeyed immediately. He understood that Jesus was doing miracles because he was sent by God to do them.

➢ He believed Christ had absolute authority

9 For I too am a man 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 servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

By this statement of faith, the centurion expressed a clear understanding of how faith works. It all depends on the person who has authority. As a centurion, he exercised authority over those under him. They obeyed his commands because of his position of authority. He had been given this authority and he exercised this authority over others, and when he did, those subject to him immediately obeyed. So, he believed that the Lord Jesus had been given this authority over others and over sicknesses and could exercise it. Why did the centurion believe this? The short answer is God gave this gift of faith to him. This is the nature of saving faith – it is a gift from God.

10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.

What follows is significant:

❖ Saving faith belongs to the nations

11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,
12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

Jesus emphatically told those who were following Him, that saving faith, or salvation, belonged to the Gentiles as well as the Jews – it was not for the Jews only. In fact, many Jews, the sons of the kingdom, would reject him. The nation of Israel who had received God’s promises, the Law, the temple service and the oracles of God, would be thrust out, if they did not mix the word with faith. They would experience the gnashing of teeth and weeping. Not the weeping of repentance, but that weeping, and gnashing of teeth associated with those in torment in hell forever. Those who do not believe the word of God, those who do not believe in Christ, will, at the judgement, be thrown into the outer darkness of hell.
What is the lesson for us? Just because you know the Bible and attend church and pray and know the promises of God, doesn’t mean you are in the Kingdom of God. You have to believe that Christ is the Son of God, accept His authority and submit yourself to Him as your Lord. You have to trust and worship Him like the leper, expecting good things from Him.
Jesus said they will come from the east and the west and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the Kingdom of Heaven. You see, the Kingdom of God (Kingdom of Heaven) is open to all nations, all ethnic groups. Jesus’ prophesy has already come true. There are, today, more Christians in China or South Korea than in Israel or probably in South Africa. The church of Jesus Christ is a global phenomenon.

❖ The Unbelieving Jews will be cast out

13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have
believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

Again we see the power of God. At the very moment Jesus said the word his servant got healed. Let it be done as you have believed. That is the key of the kingdom: faith: that’s the difference between those inside and outside the kingdom: faith.
Do you have such faith? The faith to be cleansed from sin. The faith to believe in His word that can save your soul from torment? Come to Christ just as you are and believe. Ask God to help your unbelief. Believe!