Faith That Amazed Jesus Luke 7:1-10

Luke: Gd n Display June 7, 2015 Faith That Amazed Jesus Luke 7:1-10 Intrductin: This stry is a clear illustratin f the message f the sermn n the munt f what faith in actin lks like. Or t say it anther way, what des a persn lk like wh lives his life like the huse built n the rck. Jesus is amazing, but t amaze Jesus, that is smething else altgether Only tw times that Jesus was left amazed, which is in itself an amazing lk at His humanity. The first was in Mark 6:6, where it says that Jesus was amazed because f the peple s unbelief after He was rejected in His hmetwn f Nazareth. The secnd instance was cmpletely ppsite and psitive, and its fund in this passage. He was amazed, r marveled, at the faith f a man wh had n human business believing in a carpenter frm Nazareth, yet did s in a way that left Jesus awe struck. It was the peple f Israel wh SHOULD HAVE respnded this way, yet cnsistently failed. This man s faith is seen as ne t be emulated, s in rder t fllw his example, we need t understand what He did and why it mattered. A stry f amazing faith: The main character A Rman Centurin Luke 7:1-2 After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing f the peple, he entered Capernaum. 2 Nw a centurin had a servant wh was sick and at the pint f death, wh was highly valued by him. Given charge ver (r up t) 100 sldiers Equivalent t a mdern day Captain f military r branches f law enfrcement. This man was used t a structure f authrity and thse in subrdinatin fllwing ut his cmmands withut questin. He als wuld have been largely feared/revered in the area as n "in charge" in city (nt a guy t be messed with) Nn-Jewish Pssibly frm Syria, but a Rman citizen. He was bviusly a lver f the Jewish peple (as Rman sldiers ften wuld adpt the religin f the area they were assigned t), but clearly nt a Jew by heritage Pssibly wealthy In a perid where the lwest-paid sldier earned 75 denarii, a centurin earned between 3,750 and 7,500 denarii 1. He had enugh mney t build the lcal synaggue, a building fr gathering and wrship Slave wner This was the cmmn practice f the Rman empire, and a slave was ften made t be part f the family, culd be trusted, but was abslutely under the authrity f the master f the huse Unique master This particular servant was sick and t the pint f death. Sme have taken highly valued as ne f functin, that he didn t want t lse a valuable servant because f what that servant DID. Hwever, the wrd is als used in Luke 14:8 which means hnred (in 1 Peter 2:4 its used as precius ). This servant was valuable because f their persnhd, nt functin. This man had a high view and respect fr 1 Darrell Bck. Luke: Baker Exegetical Cmmentary, p. 635 1

Luke: Gd n Display June 7, 2015 life, and even had affectin/lve fr this servant, and went ut f his way t help/heal them. The situatin An unusual request Luke 7:3 When the centurin heard abut Jesus, he sent t him elders f the Jews, asking him t cme and heal his servant. There are several striking issues that g int this request, things that simply did nt happen in this time: A Rman asking fr help frm the Jews - In the given structure f authrity, this was nt prtcl. Rme was in charge, Jews were under authrity. This was as unusual as it was striking. A Centurin asking fr help frm a carpenter - Remember, Jesus was simply a carpenter and sn f a carpenter in the regin. Capernaum was a functining hme city fr Jesus (Matt. 4:13), and thugh He was wildly ppular in the present, He was still a nbdy in the culture. A centurin wuld interact with the leaders f the cmmunity far mre frequently than the lw end cmmners. A Rman asking a Jew t cme t his huse - Maybe the mst striking f all was the fact that a Rman gentile (nn-jew) wuld invite a Jewish man int his huse. This wuld have rendered the Jewish man unclean, and wuld nt have been nrmative at all. The mtivatin Wrthiness Luke 7:4-8 And when they came t Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, "He is wrthy t have yu d this fr him, 5 fr he lves ur natin, and he is the ne wh built us ur synaggue." 6 And Jesus went with them. When he was nt far frm the huse, the centurin sent friends, saying t him, "Lrd, d nt truble yurself, fr I am nt wrthy t have yu cme under my rf. 7 Therefre I did nt presume t cme t yu. But say the wrd, and let my servant be healed. 8 Fr I t am a man set under authrity, with sldiers under me: and I say t ne, 'G,' and he ges; and t anther, 'Cme,' and he cmes; and t my servant, 'D this,' and he des it." The religius/civil leaders mtives revealed - It is clear why these leaders were s eager t help. Typically they wuld have harbred bitterness and anger tward him, but here was a case fr expediency, and they fund a centurin in their twn wh was sft tward their peple and religin. Their mtive was nt altruistic, but they saw an pprtunity t gain sme plitical equity by scratching the back that had scratched theirs. T them, the centurins wrthiness was based n his lve fr the natin and the fact that he built their synaggue. This was equivalent t giving a medal, award, r special favr t a big financial cntributr t a church r nn-prfit. They did nt find the centurin as a gd man, simply ne that they culd get things and cntinue t get things frm. The centurins mtivatin - Ntice the stark difference in terms f wrthiness between he and the leaders. Instead f listing ut his credentials, basting f accmplishments, r rattling ff qualificatins ("yu shuld help me, since it was I that built yur 2

Luke: Gd n Display June 7, 2015 synaggue"; "life in the future can be easy r difficult based n yur answer t this request...chse wisely). In fact, there is a deep sense f humility and respect that drve him t use an intermediary and an unwillingness t have Jesus cme as far as his hme. I am nt wrthy t have Him under my rf. This was nt a humblebrag. This was nt manipulative. This was nt a type f reverse psychlgy. This was a man wh had a true, clear, and humble view f reality, and hw he fit int the csmic scheme f the universe. The reslutin Amazement by Jesus Luke 7:9-10 When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning t the crwd that fllwed him, said, "I tell yu, nt even in Israel have I fund such faith." 10 And when thse wh had been sent returned t the huse, they fund the servant well. Amazed by faith f a Rman - The cnclusin f the stry ends n a high nte. The servant wh was n deaths dr was fund t be nt simply recvering, but t be made well.. Befre Jesus healed the servant, He marveled at this man wh had nthing that wuld make him a likely candidate f this kind f faith, and used it as an pprtunity t teach the crwd. This man shuld have let his servant die (he culd always buy anther), shuld have been a thrn in the flesh f the Jews, and shuld have viewed Jesus as a threat t security, nt ne with faith and wnder. Faith cmes frm hearing, and hearing frm Gd's Wrd. Faith is a gift f grace (Eph. 2:8-9), and seeing this faith play ut in this man left Jesus amazed at the wrk f His Father in the life f this Rman sldier. Dismayed by the lack f faith f the Jewish natin - In the reverse teaching, Jesus left nthing uncertain as t His feelings abut the rest f the crwd, especially the religius leaders. The natin f Israel had every pprtunity t respnd in faith, t embrace Jesus, and t trust Him as implicitly as this man. Yet, fr all their advantages, they missed Him. They were seeking their wn advantage. They were seeking their wn way. They were nt willing t yield t Jesus' authrity, lrdship, r leadership. Because f this, they truly missed Him. Nw, this is the stry as laid ut in Luke. It is straightfrward enugh. But if Jesus declared His amazement at this man's faith, and indirectly called the crwd t fllw the example f this man, what is it that we learn abut faith and fllwing Jesus frm this? What is it abut this man's life that made him s exemplary? What was it abut the actins based n faith that left Jesus in wnder, teaching the crwd t be mre like this Rman? Lessns frm amazing faith: Fllw his faith Humility Humility is a fundatinal necessity f faith - Gd saw fit t give this man the grace t believe. Much like Abraham in Genesis 15:6, Gd gave Abraham the ability t believe (in the midst f a culture f mn wrship) t believe Gd and have it cunted t him as righteusness. Humility is what is necessary 3

Luke: Gd n Display June 7, 2015 t see urselves in realistic terms. That means we see urselves nt by lking in a mirrr nr by lking at thers, but by cmparing urselves t Gd Himself. When we see urselves in light f Gd's hliness, His glry, His untainted nature, we can be prperly humbled befre Him. They that knw Gd will be humble they that knw themselves cannt be prud. Jhn Flavel Humility is fundatinal t glrify Gd - "Or d yu suppse it is t n purpse that the Scripture says, 'He yearns jealusly ver the spirit that he has made t dwell in us'? But He gives mre grace. Therefre it says 'Gd ppses the prud, but gives grace t the humble." James 4:5-6 Nt nly is salvatin based n ur humility, s is ur life in Christ. Gd is ppsed t the prud, but gives grace specifically t the humble. We can d nthing apart frm His grace, and anything nt dne by faith is sinful (Rm. 14:23) and thus cannt glrify Gd. Our gal and purpse in all f life is t glrify Gd, s we see all f life n lnger thrugh selfish lenses, but new eyes that see every circumstance, every situatin, every mment f the day as pprtunities t express trust in Gd's grace rather than self trust. True humility is nt thinking less f yurself, its thinking f yurself less. C.S Lewis, Mere Christianity Humble faith fuels prperly mtivated wrk - It was the centurins humble faith that drve him t act selflessly when it was nt necessary t d his jb. Humility turns self-seeking wrks that dishnr the Lrd int pprtunities t magnify the gdness f Gd in Christ. Humble faith embraces tugh circumstances as instrumental t grwth - One way that we knw if we are humble r prud is ur view f trial/circumstance. When we feel the effects f this brken wrld, it tests ur true view f urselves. If we believe life is abut us t the pint that we set ut t set up a bubble f perfectin arund us, financially, with family, friends, a hme, and life in relative ease and cmfrt. When that bubble is punctured r burst, ur respnse shws what we truly believe abut urselves and Gd Himself. Humility is willing t take every circumstance and view it thrugh the lens f faith, declaring ur belief that Gd is wrking this ut fr ur ultimate gd, jy, and His glry, whether its a shattered hip,, the expsed sin f a lved ne, r the impending diagnsis f a lved ne. The centurin requested f Jesus t heal his servant, but did nt demand it. He knew Jesus had the authrity, trusted it, and received the results in faith. Humble faith sees me as the persn in need f change - Mst ften ur prblems in all relatinships cme frm unmet r unrealistic expectatins based n a prideful view f self. In ur marriages, we see ur spuse as the ne wh nags r cmplains and that we culd never d enugh t please them. We never have enugh mney, never have a jb that brings fulfillment, and ur kids never measure up t the ther kids in class. We see the biggest prblems t ur happiness as smething that is OUTSIDE f us, bstacles placed there t make sure we never achieve the happiness we s desperately want. The prblem is that we miss the pint f marriage and relatinships. Each day what is in ur heart is expsed a little bit by thers in ur life, with an pprtunity t see that expsure and humbly repent, turn, and trust Gd, knwing that He will fulfill us 4

Luke: Gd n Display June 7, 2015 and give us what we really need. When we walk each day in reliance and find new ways t turn frm self-trust t trust, we glrify Him. Fllw his view f peple Dignity Here is an aspect f the centurins faith that is nt at first the mst explicit. This man's faith was such that he viewed thers thrugh a lens f humility, and thus saw peple in reality, nt artificial externals. He treated his servant with value, ne that he had abslute cntrl ver. He treated the religius leaders with respect, fllwing their prtcl with requests, nt demands. He viewed a lcal carpenter with respect in that he made n demands and did nt even feel wrthy t bring Him int his huse. This is such an imprtant cncept t make sure we are clear abut. Hw we view peple f ther races, beliefs, and practices will matter t hw we can witness the greatness f the gspel t them. Hw we view the diverse makeup f relatinship in this church matters t hw we demnstrate the revlutinary change that the gspel brings t a cmmunity. We s quickly lk dwn n peple wh are different than us because f ur wn pride, insecurity, r fear. We easily dismiss and marginalize thers wh are nt exactly like us. As lng as yu are prud, yu cannt knw Gd. A prud man is always lking dwn n things and peple and f curse, as lng as yu are lking dwn yu cannt see smething abve yu. C.S Lewis Sees thers as having inherent value D nt discunt the radical differences represented in this stry. Jews and Gentiles. Slave and Master. Civil leader and peasant. Sldier and religius leader. Each f these grups culd nt nly functin as il and water, but they culd als have strng hate fr each ther. But the centurins faith meant that he treated everyne as having inherent value as being an image bearer f Gd Himself. Each man is made in Gd's image and thus is exactly hw Gd intended. Dignity is nt derived frm hw a persn functins but the fact that they are human. This means we view all peple thrugh the same lens: humility f a fellw image bearer, amazed at the incredible creativity and diversity that Gd gives us. Sees thers as bjects t lve and serve, nt hate and manipulate - Nt nly d we give initial dignity t all, we see all peple thrugh the lens f lve and service, the greatest f this being the willingness t impart the gd news f the gspel t them. Instead f fear driving ur view f thers, we see thers as being part f a brken wrld, a brken system, and a brken relatinship with the Lrd. We have cnfidence f Wh is in us, in ur missin, and in ur message t break thrugh cultural nrms, whether it is smene f anther ethnic backgrund r a categrically sinful view f sexuality. We cannt change the system (since the centurin did nt change the way the Rman army viewed the Jews), but we can live ut the prmises we knw are true. Our gal is t view successes ne persn at a time, and that is hw lve and the gspel is pured ut. Fllw his submissin t authrity - Dependency Stps trying t figure and wrk ut all f life In ne f the greatest expressins f faith, dependency, and recgnitin f Jesus' authrity, the centurin tld Jesus thrugh his friends that he knew exactly hw authrity channels wrk. If 5

Luke: Gd n Display June 7, 2015 Jesus was willing t heal, bdily presence was unnecessary, since the sldiers rders were always fllwed withut questin (much like mine at the church). This is called entrusting neself t the authrity f anther. This is the essence f everyday faith. We cease striving t cntrl, figure ut, and d everything thrugh sheer frce and effrt, and instead, entrust urselves t a Gd wh judges righteusly. A sick servant was beynd the authrity and cntrl f even a centurin. He culd n fix it. He simply needed t make his request made knwn t Jesus, and that wuld lead him t rest. Finds rest in the authrity f anther - There is rest in knwing that yu are cvered by smene else's authrity. When that Persn is Jesus, it becmes jyful and mtivating. We can rest in knwing that Gd will give us exactly what is best fr us, what will lead us int great jy, and change us t be mre like Christ. That may cme with pain and disappintment, but faith raises ur view abve present circumstances and trusts One wh gave up the glry f heaven t becme a Galilean carpenter, being nailed t a crss f wd, and succumbing t a brutal death, in rder t buy us back ut f ur sin. D yu have faith that wuld amaze Jesus? If smene wuld bserve yur life, wuld they marvel at the way yu live humbly, treating thers with dignity, and entrusting yurself radically t the authrity f Jesus? Let that questin ruminate in yur mind this week. Cncluding questins: What are the parts f yur life that are susceptible t pride? Hw des it manifest in yur view f life and thers? Where des it shw in yur marriage? In yur jb? Hw d we grw in ur humility? What des it lk like t truly give value and dignity t thers wh are different than yu? Hw wuld that change hw yu interacted with unbelievers? Believers in this church? I find its even hard nt lking dwn n thse wh haven't had the same experience as me (h, yu have never been thrugh, s yu prbably dn't understand - thus yu are nt as as me). If we truly understd Jesus' authrity, what wuld change abut ur prayer? Our wrry and fear? Our actins? 6