 |
| Jesus marvels at the centurion's faith |
Key Truth: Luke
wrote Luke 7:1-10 to teach believers that the faith that honors Christ
yields greater compassion, humility, and power.
Key Application: Today I
want to show you what God’s Word says about Christ-honoring faith.
Key Verse: Luke 7:9
Pray and Read:
Luke 7:1-10
Sermon Points:
1. Christ-honoring
faith yields greater compassion (Luke 7:1-5)
2. Christ-honoring
faith yields greater humility (Luke 7:6-8)
3. Christ-honoring
faith yields greater power (Luke 7:9-10)
Contextual Notes:
By
comparing the unbelief of Zechariah the priest and the faith of the virgin
teenager Mary, Luke’s Gospel calls us to believe that Jesus is the Messiah who
fulfills God’s covenants with Abraham and David (Luke 1-2). Luke says that the
first step in belief is to repent of our sin (Luke 3:1-20) to God’s suffering
Servant, who, through his sacrificial death (Luke 3:21-23a), is the truly
obedient Son of God, unlike sinful Adam (Luke 3:23b-38), defeating Satan in
every area of human life: body, mind, and spirit (Luke 4:1-13).
In
the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus begins his ministry around the Sea of
Galilee (Luke 4:14-9:50[1])
as Luke powerfully contrasts belief and unbelief in a series of events. After encountering
unbelief at the Nazareth synagogue (Luke 4:14-30),[2]
Jesus is met with faith and unleashed power at Capernaum (Luke 4:31-44). After
calling his first disciples to follow him in faith (Luke 5:1-11), Jesus’
ministry arouses the hostile unbelief of the religious leaders by forgiving sin
(Luke 5:12-26). When Levi the tax collector responds in belief and follows Him
(Luke 5:27-32), the Pharisees respond in unbelief and anger to Jesus’ dining
with sinners (Luke 5:33-39).
In
contrast with the unbelief of the Pharisees regarding their rigid ideas of
keeping Sabbath (Luke 6:1-11), Jesus appoints twelve believing disciples as
apostles (Luke 6:12-16) and outlines for them the blessings of walking by faith
and the woes of walking in unbelief (Luke 6:17-26), putting faith into practice
by developing Christ-like love (Luke 6:27-36), Christ-like integrity (Luke
6:37-42), Christ-like character (Luke 6:43-45), and Christ-like stability (Luke
6:46-49).
Following
the Sermon on the Plain, Luke narrates a series of episodes which demonstrate
people responding in faith or unbelief to Jesus’ person and his message. In
Luke 7, Jesus returns to Capernaum with his disciples in tow, training them, ministering
to the people, and healing the sick servant of a Gentile Roman centurion (Luke
7:1-10). Though Jesus came especially for the “lost sheep of Israel” (Matt 10:5;
15:24, 26; John 1:11), Luke shows that Jesus often finds greater faith among
those outside of Israel. Luke makes it clear that Jesus has come to save all
the nations and foreshadows the expansion of the Kingdom to the nations in his
sequel Acts, paralleling the salvation of the centurion Cornelius, whose
conversion confirms God’s plan to take salvation to all the nations (Acts 10).
Exposition: Note
well,
1.
CHRIST-HONORING FAITH YIELDS GREATER
COMPASSION (Luke 7:1-5)
a. (|| Matt. 8:5-13; and perhaps John
4:43-54)
b.
Centurions – These officers were mainstays of
the Roman army, commanding a “century” of about 100 soldiers (A Roman legion
was composed of sixty centuries). These veteran soldiers maintained discipline
and commanded great respect, and were paid 15 times an ordinary soldier’s wage.
They were highly motivated, competent soldiers, and generally decent persons. In
fact, the New Testament portrays every centurion mentioned in a good light
(Mark 15:39; Acts 10:2; 27:53). This centurion, obviously a Gentile serving in
the oppressive Roman Army, models what Luke calls “great faith,” illustrating two
of Luke’s key themes of walking in faith vs. unbelief and in the Gospel’s
extension to the Gentile nations.
c.
Luke 7:2 – Sick and about to die: Matthew
tells us that his “son” (pais) was paralyzed/palsy
and suffering/greatly tormented (Matt. 8:6). Palsy begins with spasms, then
respiratory problems to eventual death.
d.
Since
Roman troops were not stationed in Galilee until AD 44, this centurion may have
served under Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee (Luke 3:1), performing police,
security, or customs services. He seems to have been a “God fearer” like
Cornelius (Acts 10:2), a Gentile worshiping the God of Israel but has not
converted to Judaism. Apparently he financed the construction of the Capernaum
synagogue (Luke 7:5) because the local Jewish leaders first come to Jesus,
asking him to do something for the man. There is, in fact, archaeological evidence
on inscriptions that Gentiles supported synagogues, and Josephus says that
Gentiles frequently supported synagogues. These people were highly respected by
Jews.
e.
ILLUSTRATION: Slaves in the ancient world,
though they may be highly skilled craftsmen or even physicians like Luke, existed
to serve their masters alone. They had no rights as persons, and their lives
had little value to society. Cicero once apologized for having a twinge of
regret when a slave of his suffered a painful death.
f. Bob Pierce the founder of World
Vision and Samaritan’s Purse, prayed, “Let my heart be broken by the things
that break the heart of God.”
g.
APPLICATION: Compassion for others is a
by-product of walking in Christ-honoring faith. So how do you react when you
hear of children being killed in the womb, or of people becoming human traffic
and sold as slaves for labor and other purposes, or when you learn of the
persecution of brothers and sisters in Christ, or when you hear of a mother
down the road who is struggling to provide for her family, or of a family who
has lost their home in a disaster, or when you hear of someone in the hospital
or having lost a loved one? Do you care? Does it motivate you to do anything at
all for them? As Christians we are called to respond in compassion. How much
more compassionate should we be toward those who have an eternal destiny before
them of punishment because they do not have faith in Christ Jesus. How are you
sharing Christ with those around you?
2.
CHRIST-HONORING FAITH YIELDS GREATER
HUMILITY (Luke 7:6-8)
a.
Luke 7:6 – I do not deserve to have
you come under my roof:
Entering a Gentile home made a Jew unclean (Acts 10:28; 11:12), and the
centurion knowing that is being thoughtful of Jesus. But there is more, by
calling him Lord and recognizing Jesus’ superiority, the centurion subordinates
himself to Jesus, seeking a favor from his patron Lord.
b.
Luke 7:7 – But say the word: The Roman army was renowned for
its discipline and organization. This soldier commanding authority, he recognizes
Jesus as having greater authority with the authority of God’s word to heal
(Psalm 107:20). Psalm 51:17
c.
APPLICATION: Do you want Spiritual Authority?
Then cultivate in your life the virtue of humility. Paul tells us in Romans
12:3, “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of
yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has
given you.” But humility is not weakness. It is strength. There is a boldness
in humility. Proverbs 28:1 says, “The wicked flee when no one pursues, But the
righteous are bold as a lion.” Proverbs 22:4: “By humility
and the fear of the LORD Are riches and honor and life.” Proverbs 15:33: “The
fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom, And before honor is humility.”
Pride is the source of most all other failures of sin in your life. By asking
the Holy Spirit to replace personal pride with humility, you will gain
spiritual authority and Christ-likeness.
3.
CHRIST-HONORING FAITH YIELDS GREATER
POWER (Luke 7: 9-10)
a.
Luke 7:9 – I have not found such
great faith: Not
only an extraordinary praise for a Gentile, but also an indictment at the
unbelief of Israel. The story parallels in Elisha’s healing of the Syrian
General Naaman (2 Kings 5:1-16) where Elisha is not present (2 Kings 5:10), and
the healing results in the recognition of the power of the Lord and the prophet
representing him (2 Kings 5:8, 15; Luke 7:16).
b.
This
is one of only two times (cf. Mark 6:6) in Scripture when Jesus was amazed (thaumazo). Notice that Jesus was not
more amazed at the man’s building the synagogue, but at his faith.
c.
Luke 7:10 – and found the servant
well: Jesus’ act of
healing from a distance serves not only to illustrate his miraculous power to
heal, but also his present power to save. Jesus may be absent in the flesh, but
His Word is enough. This is the same Creator, who, the writer of Hebrews says
in his great chapter on faith, created the universe (aionas – ages) at His Word (Heb 11:3). “Let there be light, and
there was light (Gen 1:3). Isaiah said that his word would not return to him
void, but would accomplish the purpose for which he sent it (Isaiah 55:11).
d.
APPLICATION: In the same way, Jesus need only
speak, and our broken, thwarted lives are made whole.
Invitation:
[1] Culminating at Luke 9:20 with
Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Anointed of God.
[2] The incident parallels the beginning
of the birth narrative, in which the priest Zechariah responds in unbelief to
the announcement of the angel Gabriel. The Capernaum synagogue’s faith
parallels the believing faith of the Virgin Mary.
No comments:
Post a Comment