Some of, you know that currently, I'm studying a
theology degree and I'm absolutely loving getting deeper
into God's word delving more Falling In Love With Jesus and
finding out more about him. In particular just recently I've
been in Luke's gospel so it's out of that that I'm going to be
speaking on today. So I'd like you to turn in your
Bibles to Luke chapter 7 verse 1 to 11.
It will come up on the screen if you're here and you haven't got
a Bible then. Please do go to the welcome desk
and we would love to give you a Bible.
I picked up my wrong translation of a Bible this morning.
So, I went and borrowed one from the Welcome desk.
I'm just betting up this stuff up there.
Large print. So if you need one, go and get
one, but that turn to Luke chapter 7 and it's the face of
the Centurion. There's when Jesus had finished
saying all these things to the people who are listening, he
entered Capernaum. When a centurion servant whom
his master valued, highly was sick and about to die, the
Centurion heard of Jesus and sent some Elders to the Jews to
him, asking him to come and heal his servant.
When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him.
This man deserves to have you do this because he loves our nation
and has built our synagogue. So, Jesus went with them, he was
not far off from the house. When the Centurion sent friends
to say to him, Lord, don't trouble yourself for I do not
deserve to have you come under my roof?
That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come
to you. But say the word and my servant
will be healed for. I myself, am a man under
Authority with soldiers. Under me, I tell this one go and
he goes, and that one come and he comes, I say to my servant do
this, and he does it When Jesus heard this, he was amazed him.
And turning to the crowd following.
He said, I tell you, I have not found such great faith.
Even in Israel, then the men who had been sent to return to the
house and found the servant. Well, yes.
So you might be thinking out of the hole of Luke's gospel.
Why has Heather chosen this to share with us today?
I'll be honest is because I feel that God wants us to learn
something from our from it, it's a simple as that.
So we're going to be looking at the story a little bit closer
and seeing what we can learn from it.
So I'm going to be focusing on three main points.
How the Centurion recognized showed a different form of
power, how he recognizes Jesus Authority and acts in humility.
And thirdly, how he has Great faith.
This Story's in Matthew's gospel to, it comes right after Jesus
taught The Sermon on the Mount. I'm going to set you guys
homework. If you've ever heard me preach
before, you know I love a bit of homework groans.
Okay, you doing it, go read The Sermon on the Mount even if
you've read it before. So that's in Matthew chapters 5
to 7 and The Sermon on the plain in Luke chapter 6 verses 20 to
49 I'm using the version in Luke's gospel.
Two reasons. One, is that Luca is a, he was a
historian and he puts just a little more facts around it,
which I really like. And secondly, as I said earlier,
studying, I've been in Luke save my poor little brain, we're
sticking with the same author, let's go be honest.
So Jesus had preached, The Sermon on the Mount And as you
see, when you read it or maybe, you know, it already Jesus sets
out in it, what a real disciple is a true follower of Jesus.
Is someone that humbles their heart and themselves to God?
So what about this Centurion that we read that he's in
Capernaum, where many of the people would have heard him
preach, he's got his juice, what his disciples with him, he's got
some, some devout Jews that are kind of questioning, Jesus
teaching. And I think he's a heretic, he's
got some that have just heard about the Sermon on the Mount
and they're like, oh what, what is it about this guy?
Like I want to know a bit more. So he's got this real diverse
group of people following him. We then read that as Centurion.
The servant, who the Centurion valued.
Highly was dying and he asked for Jesus to heal him.
So I did a bit of reading is some common traits to find out
about centurions because if I'm honest I kind of just had this
picture in my mind of these dude standing there with some weird
like little dress and some Mama didn't really kind of get the
context of who centurions work. So I wanted to find out a bit
more and I found out that they were known to be men of great
status in the nation of Rome. They were called the backbone of
the army. Men who carried Authority, they
were known to be steady in action, reliable, not anxious
and word. The hold their ground.
They were prepared to die at their posts battle-tested, man,
who led by example. His rolling.
Capernaum would have been to lead a hundred Roman soldiers to
keep the peace and to ensure the collection of all of taxes was
carried out. Roman soldiers, were not also
known for their violent methods, and would have been involved
with bloody and gruesome executions.
He was a powerful man, from a powerful Nation.
Who understood the Dynamics of power?
But is that what we see in this story?
Number one, the Centurion recognized different form of
power. Our world can be so fixated on
power content, we get it. So kind of mixed up.
People think of being powerful or having powers being
successful climbing up the corporate ladder.
As soon as I get to that, that is when I'll be powerful.
Well, having money all the money, the Mercedes or whatever,
not that I want to say. Does that do?
Read the money, that's what it is.
Well, maybe he's being really confident or being domineering,
or being feared. Maybe that's what powerful looks
like. It's so it not needing anyone
else and not showing emotion is something that I've struggled
with myself. I grew up in a home with a very
powerful dad. In a lot of ways he was fixated
on his Career. Success was his driver and money
and that would make him feel powerful.
Later on in life, I was surrounded by powerful people,
that's all being feared or being domineering was the sign of
power. So I decided that I wanted to be
powerful. I wanted to be strong
physically, it's squishy around the edges.
These days, I wanted to be strong mentally emotionally, I
wanted to be the god of my own life.
I wanted to show to others that I didn't need anyone or
anything. I didn't need help.
And I could just cope fine by my self.
I was in control or so I thought, but instead of gaining
respect a gained, a lot of loneliness and I became really
emotionally, shut off. The world might tell you, or to
try and Define what power is. But as the Bible says, we are
not of this world. We are in the world, but we are
not of it. And how the kingdom of God
operates is completely different to how the world operates, and
we see that, when we read The Sermon on the Mount, The
Centurion heya is exercising a very different form of power.
The power of humility, he was tender and a caring Master a
considerate, citizen a lover of God.
He knew when he needed help and he asked Jesus to come in and
help how many of us find it hard to ask for help?
I know he's hard. Someone says all.
Can I carry that for you? No, I'm fine.
Thank you. I'm strong enough.
I can do that. It's tough.
I think people are laughing because they know that I've done
that, but the center Ian here, recognize the true.
Jesus truly had the power and authority of God and that he in
self was not as powerful. He was not the god of his life
and He needed, Jesus. When faced, with a crisis of
sickness to be turned to Jesus first.
Who do we think? How can I work this out?
Do we go on dr. Google as start looking for
remedies will do we get on our knees and pray?
Number two, the Centurion recognizes Jesus Authority and
acts in humility, the Centurion. Who was a gentile, which means
that he was a non Jewish believer value to his servant,
which really wasn't the norm. Normally, a Roman Centurion
would treat servants like property and over servant wasn't
doing their job, they would literally be discarded and
replaced like that. If they were sick, they would be
left to die. That's not what happens.
Here, the Centurion shows us his character there.
He's a kind man and not your typical Roman Centurion.
What more is there something that the Jewish Elders came to
Jesus on his behalf? Singing his Praises Jews, hated
their Roman oppressors and the Romans didn't think much of the
Jews either thought they were below them.
They were dirty and quite quite frankly, scum The Centurion is
so countercultural. He loves his slave and he loves
his enemies. The Jews, we read that.
He even had built them a synagogue.
So they, they could worship God. He doesn't go to them demanding
work. I did this for you.
Come get that man now and bring him here, so he can do this for
me. Don't see that?
Do we? He said he comes in humility.
Lord. Don't trouble yourself for I Do
not deserve to have you come under my roof?
That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come
to you. He says, he recognizes who Jesus
is who's Holiness and his own Unholy.
But the Jewish Elders were stuck in their mindsets of rewards,
they believe that they are worthy and deserving of God's
blessing because of their good deeds and works.
We see that play out and how they think that the Centurion
deserves the miracle, because of his Good Deeds.
He's been good to them, right? He deserves it.
How many of us can relate to that?
You can imagine. God, I've done this for you.
Surely surely. I could just have this little
prayer answered, but God, I've given up my sinful desires and
everything for you surely. Surely, I could just have this,
but God, I've been faithful. Even when people have laughed at
me and turned their backs on me, surely, I could just have it
easy for this part of my life. Maybe you've had different
bargaining chips with God but you see I deserve is an attitude
of Pride and ass chewed of the world and not of the Kingdom
Pride will not allow us to come to Jesus.
We will think that we can do it by ourselves like I used to
Pride will not allow us to think that there's a power greater
than us. In order to have faith, we need
to be humble. You see the truth is, we don't
deserve any of it, we deserve death, but it is by God's grace
that we are saved. Not by works, not by anything,
that any of us could do in our own strength or power, but a
free gift from God. Number three.
The Centurion had great faith. The Centurion knew.
Jesus could heal his servant just by saying the words. just
by saying the words, He trusted God and the power that Jesus
had. He didn't put his faith in
Jesus, after Jesus had granted his request but he trusted Jesus
before. you know, where is our faith at Do we have a humble
Faith hungry for God? And a true understanding of his
power and authority? Are we ready to submit to him
and placed him in his right place?
Do you believe in the power that Jesus has and do you trust him
with your life? Or do you face?
Do you have a face that thinks that you deserve a miracle?
You know so awful we can treat God like a genie call me is like
I did this for you surely I can have this just going to rub that
lamb. Are we seeking presents from
God? What we can get from him?
Are we seeking his presence? You know all the car.
The house, the Easy Life, the perfect partner or we seeking
his presence God With Us in all situations, whether we'll get
what we think we want and deserve or not.
I'll be recognizing where the true power and authority comes
from. While the Centurion believed.
God could heal his six servant. He was humble enough to know
that nothing he could do or has done would make a difference.
He gave the one thing that he desired the most, to have his
six servant healed to the will of Jesus, he trusted.
Jesus is Will above his own. He understood the authority and
power that Jesus had. He knew the when Jesus spoke
Storms, stop. He knew that.
When Jesus spoke the sick were healed.
He knew the, when Jesus spoke Darkness would flee.
He knew that when Jesus spoke with men and women were set
free, he knew that when Jesus spoke, he spoke with a power and
authority of the Kingdom, Jesus has their power and authority
for every situation in our lives.
It says, in the last passage that when Jesus heard about the
centurions, humility and faith in him, he was amazed Jesus was
amazed at the level of Faith. This Gentile, Centurion hat.
Whatever, I read that. Just think I want Jesus to be
amazed at the level of my faith and I am.
Sorry, Lord, where I've doubted, you doesn't that excite you
don't you want that? So, what I want to do, I'll be
completely honest, when I Was preparing.
This I sought God, my talk was too short.
What, how can I pad it out? God, I've not that this, right,
but I'm not done that, right? And I just felt like God, say,
uh, you keep his sure. I want to do some business
today. Okay.
I'm not going to get in the way of that.
I won't put it out with jokes, not gonna get too hyper or
behave myself. So, we're just going to spend
some time with Jesus. No hype, just ask and here so
I'd like to invite the worship teen up.