The third Sunday after Pentecost, June 5, 2016
Luke 7:1-10, Psalm 96:1-9
Hope International Mission
By Young Kim
May the grace and peace of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Before I start my sermon today, I would like to ask you a question: Have you ever received a memorable compliment from someone in your life? Try to recall that moment. When were you the most proud and happy to hear a compliment? Who was it from? For me, a compliment was something that motivated me to do my best. As the middle child of three, I was under the shade of my elder sister who was highly expected by my parents, and I was under the shade of my younger sister’s cuteness. In order to grab my parents’ attention, I did some crazy things and pinched and hit my younger sister out of jealousy. But as time went by, I realized that it is better to make my parents happy and receive a compliment than having their attention from doing something wrong. From then on, I studied hard and received awards, started to learn the guitar and drums which were quite rare for a girl to learn back then. And I did my best to go into the college that my parents wanted me to go.
And today, in the Gospel reading that we just read, there is someone who was highly praised and complimented by Jesus. Perhaps, the best compliment we receive in this world would be from our Lord God. After college, I met Jesus and started my faith journey by continuously praying that I can be remembered as love in the deepest part of Jesus’ heart. I thought over and over how I can learn more about the love of Jesus, and how I could pay back that love I received. I prayed dearly so that when Jesus thinks of me, all he could remember is the memory of love. And I believe that all of you who are here have the same or even bigger hope inside you for the love of Christ.
Therefore, I would like to look into this Gospel reading today and find out why Jesus complimented this person with such great praise as “I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”
If you look at verse 1, it says “When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum.” What is “all this” that he was teaching? In the previous chapter, chapter 6, he called his twelve disciples, and healed and taught the crowd who were suffering from different sicknesses and pains. Jesus taught and comforted the many people who gathered including his disciples about several disciplines that they should work on. And the most important point of his teaching was “to love”. He even taught them to love their enemies and said, “do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” Give abundantly to the ones who ask, don’t judge others but be merciful as God is merciful, and forgive. This is what Jesus was teaching right before he met this Centurion in Capernaum. I’m sure that Jesus was truly glad and very satisfied to see someone who was already behaving as what Jesus was teaching out loud in the previous chapter.
As the main point of Jesus’s previous teaching, the Centurion loved his enemies, well-treated the ones who hated him, and blessed the ones who cursed him. In the time of Jesus, the regions of Judea had been occupied and colonized by the Roman Empire. Jews had continued to revolt against the Rome for restoration of the kingdom of Judea and caused big and small riots. For this reason, Roman troops were stationed in various parts of the land of Judea for security. The Centurion’s position was a captain of one hundred soldiers of the Roman troops. This means that he was in charge of suppressing the revolt or riots of Jews in Capernaum with his army. Therefore, Jews and the Centurion who was affiliated in Roman army must be hostile to each other as their relationship was the conqueror and the vanquished or the ruler and the ruled. On the other hand, Jews were not close to foreigners, and even despised them because they were considered unclean according to Jews’ strong sense of elitism. However, in spite of the tension between those two groups, today’s reading says that Jewish elders came to Jesus because of the Centurion’s request. Furthermore, they brought up reasons why it would be right for Jesus to comply with the Centurion’s request: “because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue”. In Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written, has distinctive words for love. Eros means the love between men and women. Phillos denotes the love between friends. And like most of us know, Agape stands for the love of God towards people or the love fulfilled by self-sacrifice. The word Agape was used when Jesus said, “love your enemies”. Also, this was what the elder used to say to Jesus that, “he [the Centurion] loves our nation”. In this context, we can think that the Centurion loved the colonized people with the heart of Agape, while at the same time, fulfilling all his duties as a captain of the conqueror’s army. Even though he was treated as the unclean by arrogant Jews, and was reviled or cursed just because he was a conqueror, he still loved the Jews with self-sacrificing love. He loved the ones who he couldn't love; he loved without wanting to be loved backed or be respected; and he loved without picking or choosing whom to love.
In today’s Gospel, there is a good example of the Centurion’s Agape love. The Centurion sent the Jewish elders to Jesus to beg him to heal his servant’s illness. In the books of Gospel, many people came in front of Jesus for their own, for their friends’ or for their loving family members’ illness. It might have been unusual that someone came to Jesus for his/her servant.
Following the Roman rules at that time, the owners had the right to kill his or her servant if the servant was no longer able to serve anymore for any reason. To the owner, a servant was a property and an object which could be sold or bought. A servant could not be treated as a human being. Within this context, the Centurion thought much of his servant and treated the servant as a human being and a loving one. Centurion sent his friends to ask Jesus, “Say the word, and my servant will be healed.” And this word, translated as “servant” in English, its original Greek word denotes a young child, a boy, or a son. Through this, we can think that the servant was a young boy, and the Centurion loved the boy as he loved his own son.
Another example of love is that the Centurion built a Synagogue for the Jews. Why would he use his time and money to build a Synagogue for the Jews? It was not the god he served, it was not for his own country, and it was not his responsibility as a commander of an army. The picture you see is a picture of a Synagogue found in the historical site of Capernaum. This is the Synagogue that the Centurion had built for the Jews out of his own pocket. Just by looking at this picture, we can imagine that it was a huge Synagogue. If he built the Synagogue simply to win the favor of the Jews, then he could have built it just big enough to show off to the Jews. But seeing that this historical site is as huge as or maybe even larger than other Jewish Synagogues, we can assume that this Centurion had put more effort than he could to build this Synagogue. And why did he build this Synagogue? Hold that question in your head. We’ll find out from today’s text.
Like I said a while ago, the servant of the Centurion whom he cared for like a son, was ill and about to die. We’re not sure how long the servant had suffered or how much the Centurion searched for a good physician and medicines. But what we know for sure is that when the servant was about to die, the Centurion asked Jesus for help. Because he was a foreigner, he was probably not able to meet Jesus in person nor directly hear his divine teachings. But he believed that Jesus was the Son of God who can raise people from the dead. And this is the important point. How could he possibly carry such faith?
Perhaps, he heard a lot of rumors about Jesus, since Jesus spent a lot of time in Capernaum and worked many miracles in the city. But if you think rationally, how can a General with hundred Roman soldiers under his authority believe in a young man who is Jewish and hangs around with fishermen, tax collectors, and moreover, sinners and prostitutes? There must have been many other gods in Rome, and there must have been other fancy Synagogues and religious traditions that the Centurion was used to. Plus, how can a Centurion believe in Jesus who even the Jewish religious leaders did not believe in?
But we can find something more amazing than this from the confession of the Centurion. When Jesus heard the request of the Centurion, he headed right to the Centurion’s house. But when the Centurion heard this, he sent his Jewish friends to tell Jesus not to come to his house. Let’s look at his confessions. Let’s read verses 6 to 8 together: So Jesus went with them. He was not far 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.”
Through this confession of the Centurion, we can find out why he sent his Jewish friends and the elders of the Jews, to Jesus instead of going to meet Jesus himself. If we look at the Jewish culture back in Jesus’ time, it was unclean for a Rabbi to enter the house of a foreigner. The Centurion knew very well about the Jewish culture, as much as he could even build a Synagogue for them. Hence, he knew what would happen if Jesus came into his house. Back then, the Jews including the disciples of Jesus had a vague hope and expectation that Jesus will restore the glory of the kingdom of David, and that, as the king, the messiah, Jesus will become the political revolutionist and free them from the Roman Empire. So, if a rumor was spread that Jesus went into the house of a Roman general officer, people might misinterpret it as a possible rebellion. This is how careful the Centurion was about every action and words he made towards Jesus. He deeply understood Jesus and was considerate about the situation Jesus was in.
But furthermore, the confession of the Centurion that he doesn't deserve to come forward to Jesus or see the face of Jesus, proves us that he was in a terrible fear to come in front of Jehovah as a foreigner and a sinner. If you see in the Old Testament, there are several people who stood face to face with the living God Jehovah. But all of them hid their face when they met God. Why do you think they did that? It is because in the Jewish mind, there was an ancient belief that they will die if they see the face of Jehovah. Therefore, the people who met Jehovah groaned and trembled in fear saying, “Woe to me, I am ruined!”
What’s really amazing here is that the Centurion had the same fear as the Jews. It was a far more fearful thing to see the face of Jesus as a foreigner. That is why he sent his Jewish friends to let Jesus know that he does not deserve to meet Jesus. From this confession, we can know how strongly he believed that Jesus was the manifestation, the incarnation of God. What precious faith it is! This is why Jesus joyfully and in surprise complimented this person saying, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”
Out of fear that he may die when he see the face of God, the Centurion trembled in fear, knowing that he is only a sinful human in front of God. And this man makes us look back at ourselves once again.
Why are we here today in this place? For whom is this place? What is the purpose of our gathering? Are you here to listen to the pastor’s sermon? Are you here because of your position and your responsibilities? Or are you here because of the people? Or is it because you may be scolded by someone if you don’t come to this place? Until my college years, I came to church forcefully. I didn’t want to come, but I had to, because I was scared that my parents would scold me for not coming to church. I know very well how it feels to pray and listen to the sermon forcefully, because I used to be the same way.
But there is something that we should never overlook. That is, that God is here right in front of you. The God who sees through all of your heart and thought, is here to receive your heartful and truthful worship. Therefore, this place of worship is a place of fear. Do not treat this time of worship carelessly. Treating this worship badly means that you are sinning directly against God. Let us keep in mind how fearful the Centurion was that he couldn’t even come in front of Jesus. You are here in this place to meet with God face-to-face by the grace of Jesus’ cross. But do you still carry the same fear as the Centurion?
Or is your mind taken away by the hate and negative feelings towards someone who has hurt you? Are you having a hard time concentrating on the worship thinking about what you will do after the worship and what your next plans are for the day? Or are you not able to give the love and sacrifice to the Lord because you are frustrated by someone in this place? I believe that no one is like that here. But don’t forget that worship is a time solely for God and you. It is a place where we fully express God the overwhelming love and grace given to us. It is a place where we sincerely lift up our awe and love for God. God said that God seeks for someone who fears God. It also says in Malachi chapter 3, “A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name” and that they will be God’s treasured possession.
I pray that this worship becomes the time that we focus our mind and heart only to God so that no other thoughts or people can be a disturbance between God and us.
Now, the Centurion confessed in verse 7: “But say the word, and my servant will be healed.” If you look at the four books of Gospel, many people come to Jesus to heal their sicknesses. And there had been numerous miracles of healing in this city where the Centurion lived. Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law, the paralytic who came down through the ceiling, the woman who had been bleeding for years, and Jesus gave life to Jairus’ dead daughter. And there were many other miracles of healing by Jesus. But most of the people brought the sick person in front of Jesus, waited for Jesus to touch them, and invited Jesus to come to their house, because they believed that the miracle of healing would only be possible with the presence of Jesus in that place. That is why Jairus was eager to take Jesus to his house for his sick daughter. And yes, it is great faith to believe that Jesus is God and that by the power of Jesus all sick and dead persons can be raised.
But this Centurion in today’s text cannot even bear his fear to come in front of Jesus. He tells Jesus to not come to his house but say it there where Jesus was standing. He was confessing that his servant’s illness will be healed only by the word of Jesus. As the commander of an army, the Centurion knew that people submit to and obey the word of an authority. And he took this experience as the commander of an army and applied it to his faith that Jesus is the Son of God and that Jesus had the authority and the power to make all the creation obey God’s Word.
When Jesus heard such confession of the Centurion, he was surprised. We see that Jesus was surprised two times in the four Gospels. And both of the incidents relate to faith. First was Jesus being surprised at how much the people of his hometown were faithless. The other incident was what we read today. Jesus was surprised at this remarkably big faith of the Centurion. It is interesting that the people who lived the closest to Jesus, the Jews, did not believe in Jesus, but the foreigner who no one expected to have any faith showed a strong belief in Jesus.
Then how would you surprise Jesus? Will you disappoint Jesus who has great expectations for you by showing him your faithlessness? Or, will you touch his heart by your huge faith and act of love for Jesus?
Now, let us go back to the question why the Centurion built the Synagogue with his own money, why he loved the people of Jews, and why he cared and loved his servant. There should be only one answer to this question. And the answer is that he loved Jesus. He was ashamed and scared for being a sinner that he couldn't come in front of Jesus, he could not directly hear the profound teaching and words of Jesus, and he was not able to build a personal relationship with Jesus. On the other hand, he believed Jesus as the true Son of God and he must have loved the personality of Jesus who forgave the sinners, and visited and healed the sick and oppressed people with deep compassion. He might have watched from a far distance how Jesus spent time with his disciples and how he taught and healed the people. And for himself, he must have tried his best out of his own situation to practice and follow the love of Jesus.
Do you want to be complimented by Jesus like the Centurion? I do. I really want to be complimented and hear God tell me: “Well done, good and faithful servant!” But we need to remember that receiving a compliment from God does not happen by a one-time good deed or a one-time love and generosity. We will need to share our love ceaselessly without wanting others to acknowledge or see us. We will need to change and overcome ourselves as we endlessly face the challenge of faith with deep ponderings and meditations. That is a continuous time of patience that broadens our scope of faith. And, so far, you have done it well. You did a good job. You have overcome it well and you have loved diligently. But just a little bit more, let us share a little bit more of ourselves to the ones beside us. Let us share our time, our tears, our possessions, and our prayers with the people around us. Whenever we fall exhausted and feel like we cannot overcome this scar in our heart, let us remember the sacrificing love of Jesus who took the painful cross for us and remind ourselves every day by saying, “Let me cheer up and love once more. Let me endure it one more time.” And our God who knows the deepest of our heart will remember all the hard work and the tears we shed to love God and others. And finally, we will hear God say, “Well done, my loving son, my loving daughter, my good and faithful servant!” And He will compliment us, make us His crown, and proudly lift us up in front of all creation and people on this earth. So, let us lower ourselves a little more and serve God and others. Let us endure with patience. Let us love more.
Please join me in prayers.
Loving and gracious God, long time has passed ever since I met you and realized your love. The prayer I shouted out every day was my confession and promise to you that I will know you more and love you more. We pray that we give you a more mature and grown faith and love like wine that carries more flavor as it gains its age. Lord, we dearly ask from our heart that our effort and passion to love you will quench your thirst. Help us become lower and more humble as we realize the deep and wide love of yours and confess our sins and weaknesses. And just as that love of yours gave prosperity in our heart, use our life to make others rich with our love. In your name we pray, Amen.
Luke 7:1-10, Psalm 96:1-9
Hope International Mission
By Young Kim
May the grace and peace of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Before I start my sermon today, I would like to ask you a question: Have you ever received a memorable compliment from someone in your life? Try to recall that moment. When were you the most proud and happy to hear a compliment? Who was it from? For me, a compliment was something that motivated me to do my best. As the middle child of three, I was under the shade of my elder sister who was highly expected by my parents, and I was under the shade of my younger sister’s cuteness. In order to grab my parents’ attention, I did some crazy things and pinched and hit my younger sister out of jealousy. But as time went by, I realized that it is better to make my parents happy and receive a compliment than having their attention from doing something wrong. From then on, I studied hard and received awards, started to learn the guitar and drums which were quite rare for a girl to learn back then. And I did my best to go into the college that my parents wanted me to go.
And today, in the Gospel reading that we just read, there is someone who was highly praised and complimented by Jesus. Perhaps, the best compliment we receive in this world would be from our Lord God. After college, I met Jesus and started my faith journey by continuously praying that I can be remembered as love in the deepest part of Jesus’ heart. I thought over and over how I can learn more about the love of Jesus, and how I could pay back that love I received. I prayed dearly so that when Jesus thinks of me, all he could remember is the memory of love. And I believe that all of you who are here have the same or even bigger hope inside you for the love of Christ.
Therefore, I would like to look into this Gospel reading today and find out why Jesus complimented this person with such great praise as “I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”
If you look at verse 1, it says “When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum.” What is “all this” that he was teaching? In the previous chapter, chapter 6, he called his twelve disciples, and healed and taught the crowd who were suffering from different sicknesses and pains. Jesus taught and comforted the many people who gathered including his disciples about several disciplines that they should work on. And the most important point of his teaching was “to love”. He even taught them to love their enemies and said, “do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” Give abundantly to the ones who ask, don’t judge others but be merciful as God is merciful, and forgive. This is what Jesus was teaching right before he met this Centurion in Capernaum. I’m sure that Jesus was truly glad and very satisfied to see someone who was already behaving as what Jesus was teaching out loud in the previous chapter.
As the main point of Jesus’s previous teaching, the Centurion loved his enemies, well-treated the ones who hated him, and blessed the ones who cursed him. In the time of Jesus, the regions of Judea had been occupied and colonized by the Roman Empire. Jews had continued to revolt against the Rome for restoration of the kingdom of Judea and caused big and small riots. For this reason, Roman troops were stationed in various parts of the land of Judea for security. The Centurion’s position was a captain of one hundred soldiers of the Roman troops. This means that he was in charge of suppressing the revolt or riots of Jews in Capernaum with his army. Therefore, Jews and the Centurion who was affiliated in Roman army must be hostile to each other as their relationship was the conqueror and the vanquished or the ruler and the ruled. On the other hand, Jews were not close to foreigners, and even despised them because they were considered unclean according to Jews’ strong sense of elitism. However, in spite of the tension between those two groups, today’s reading says that Jewish elders came to Jesus because of the Centurion’s request. Furthermore, they brought up reasons why it would be right for Jesus to comply with the Centurion’s request: “because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue”. In Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written, has distinctive words for love. Eros means the love between men and women. Phillos denotes the love between friends. And like most of us know, Agape stands for the love of God towards people or the love fulfilled by self-sacrifice. The word Agape was used when Jesus said, “love your enemies”. Also, this was what the elder used to say to Jesus that, “he [the Centurion] loves our nation”. In this context, we can think that the Centurion loved the colonized people with the heart of Agape, while at the same time, fulfilling all his duties as a captain of the conqueror’s army. Even though he was treated as the unclean by arrogant Jews, and was reviled or cursed just because he was a conqueror, he still loved the Jews with self-sacrificing love. He loved the ones who he couldn't love; he loved without wanting to be loved backed or be respected; and he loved without picking or choosing whom to love.
In today’s Gospel, there is a good example of the Centurion’s Agape love. The Centurion sent the Jewish elders to Jesus to beg him to heal his servant’s illness. In the books of Gospel, many people came in front of Jesus for their own, for their friends’ or for their loving family members’ illness. It might have been unusual that someone came to Jesus for his/her servant.
Following the Roman rules at that time, the owners had the right to kill his or her servant if the servant was no longer able to serve anymore for any reason. To the owner, a servant was a property and an object which could be sold or bought. A servant could not be treated as a human being. Within this context, the Centurion thought much of his servant and treated the servant as a human being and a loving one. Centurion sent his friends to ask Jesus, “Say the word, and my servant will be healed.” And this word, translated as “servant” in English, its original Greek word denotes a young child, a boy, or a son. Through this, we can think that the servant was a young boy, and the Centurion loved the boy as he loved his own son.
Another example of love is that the Centurion built a Synagogue for the Jews. Why would he use his time and money to build a Synagogue for the Jews? It was not the god he served, it was not for his own country, and it was not his responsibility as a commander of an army. The picture you see is a picture of a Synagogue found in the historical site of Capernaum. This is the Synagogue that the Centurion had built for the Jews out of his own pocket. Just by looking at this picture, we can imagine that it was a huge Synagogue. If he built the Synagogue simply to win the favor of the Jews, then he could have built it just big enough to show off to the Jews. But seeing that this historical site is as huge as or maybe even larger than other Jewish Synagogues, we can assume that this Centurion had put more effort than he could to build this Synagogue. And why did he build this Synagogue? Hold that question in your head. We’ll find out from today’s text.
Like I said a while ago, the servant of the Centurion whom he cared for like a son, was ill and about to die. We’re not sure how long the servant had suffered or how much the Centurion searched for a good physician and medicines. But what we know for sure is that when the servant was about to die, the Centurion asked Jesus for help. Because he was a foreigner, he was probably not able to meet Jesus in person nor directly hear his divine teachings. But he believed that Jesus was the Son of God who can raise people from the dead. And this is the important point. How could he possibly carry such faith?
Perhaps, he heard a lot of rumors about Jesus, since Jesus spent a lot of time in Capernaum and worked many miracles in the city. But if you think rationally, how can a General with hundred Roman soldiers under his authority believe in a young man who is Jewish and hangs around with fishermen, tax collectors, and moreover, sinners and prostitutes? There must have been many other gods in Rome, and there must have been other fancy Synagogues and religious traditions that the Centurion was used to. Plus, how can a Centurion believe in Jesus who even the Jewish religious leaders did not believe in?
But we can find something more amazing than this from the confession of the Centurion. When Jesus heard the request of the Centurion, he headed right to the Centurion’s house. But when the Centurion heard this, he sent his Jewish friends to tell Jesus not to come to his house. Let’s look at his confessions. Let’s read verses 6 to 8 together: So Jesus went with them. He was not far 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.”
Through this confession of the Centurion, we can find out why he sent his Jewish friends and the elders of the Jews, to Jesus instead of going to meet Jesus himself. If we look at the Jewish culture back in Jesus’ time, it was unclean for a Rabbi to enter the house of a foreigner. The Centurion knew very well about the Jewish culture, as much as he could even build a Synagogue for them. Hence, he knew what would happen if Jesus came into his house. Back then, the Jews including the disciples of Jesus had a vague hope and expectation that Jesus will restore the glory of the kingdom of David, and that, as the king, the messiah, Jesus will become the political revolutionist and free them from the Roman Empire. So, if a rumor was spread that Jesus went into the house of a Roman general officer, people might misinterpret it as a possible rebellion. This is how careful the Centurion was about every action and words he made towards Jesus. He deeply understood Jesus and was considerate about the situation Jesus was in.
But furthermore, the confession of the Centurion that he doesn't deserve to come forward to Jesus or see the face of Jesus, proves us that he was in a terrible fear to come in front of Jehovah as a foreigner and a sinner. If you see in the Old Testament, there are several people who stood face to face with the living God Jehovah. But all of them hid their face when they met God. Why do you think they did that? It is because in the Jewish mind, there was an ancient belief that they will die if they see the face of Jehovah. Therefore, the people who met Jehovah groaned and trembled in fear saying, “Woe to me, I am ruined!”
What’s really amazing here is that the Centurion had the same fear as the Jews. It was a far more fearful thing to see the face of Jesus as a foreigner. That is why he sent his Jewish friends to let Jesus know that he does not deserve to meet Jesus. From this confession, we can know how strongly he believed that Jesus was the manifestation, the incarnation of God. What precious faith it is! This is why Jesus joyfully and in surprise complimented this person saying, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”
Out of fear that he may die when he see the face of God, the Centurion trembled in fear, knowing that he is only a sinful human in front of God. And this man makes us look back at ourselves once again.
Why are we here today in this place? For whom is this place? What is the purpose of our gathering? Are you here to listen to the pastor’s sermon? Are you here because of your position and your responsibilities? Or are you here because of the people? Or is it because you may be scolded by someone if you don’t come to this place? Until my college years, I came to church forcefully. I didn’t want to come, but I had to, because I was scared that my parents would scold me for not coming to church. I know very well how it feels to pray and listen to the sermon forcefully, because I used to be the same way.
But there is something that we should never overlook. That is, that God is here right in front of you. The God who sees through all of your heart and thought, is here to receive your heartful and truthful worship. Therefore, this place of worship is a place of fear. Do not treat this time of worship carelessly. Treating this worship badly means that you are sinning directly against God. Let us keep in mind how fearful the Centurion was that he couldn’t even come in front of Jesus. You are here in this place to meet with God face-to-face by the grace of Jesus’ cross. But do you still carry the same fear as the Centurion?
Or is your mind taken away by the hate and negative feelings towards someone who has hurt you? Are you having a hard time concentrating on the worship thinking about what you will do after the worship and what your next plans are for the day? Or are you not able to give the love and sacrifice to the Lord because you are frustrated by someone in this place? I believe that no one is like that here. But don’t forget that worship is a time solely for God and you. It is a place where we fully express God the overwhelming love and grace given to us. It is a place where we sincerely lift up our awe and love for God. God said that God seeks for someone who fears God. It also says in Malachi chapter 3, “A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name” and that they will be God’s treasured possession.
I pray that this worship becomes the time that we focus our mind and heart only to God so that no other thoughts or people can be a disturbance between God and us.
Now, the Centurion confessed in verse 7: “But say the word, and my servant will be healed.” If you look at the four books of Gospel, many people come to Jesus to heal their sicknesses. And there had been numerous miracles of healing in this city where the Centurion lived. Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law, the paralytic who came down through the ceiling, the woman who had been bleeding for years, and Jesus gave life to Jairus’ dead daughter. And there were many other miracles of healing by Jesus. But most of the people brought the sick person in front of Jesus, waited for Jesus to touch them, and invited Jesus to come to their house, because they believed that the miracle of healing would only be possible with the presence of Jesus in that place. That is why Jairus was eager to take Jesus to his house for his sick daughter. And yes, it is great faith to believe that Jesus is God and that by the power of Jesus all sick and dead persons can be raised.
But this Centurion in today’s text cannot even bear his fear to come in front of Jesus. He tells Jesus to not come to his house but say it there where Jesus was standing. He was confessing that his servant’s illness will be healed only by the word of Jesus. As the commander of an army, the Centurion knew that people submit to and obey the word of an authority. And he took this experience as the commander of an army and applied it to his faith that Jesus is the Son of God and that Jesus had the authority and the power to make all the creation obey God’s Word.
When Jesus heard such confession of the Centurion, he was surprised. We see that Jesus was surprised two times in the four Gospels. And both of the incidents relate to faith. First was Jesus being surprised at how much the people of his hometown were faithless. The other incident was what we read today. Jesus was surprised at this remarkably big faith of the Centurion. It is interesting that the people who lived the closest to Jesus, the Jews, did not believe in Jesus, but the foreigner who no one expected to have any faith showed a strong belief in Jesus.
Then how would you surprise Jesus? Will you disappoint Jesus who has great expectations for you by showing him your faithlessness? Or, will you touch his heart by your huge faith and act of love for Jesus?
Now, let us go back to the question why the Centurion built the Synagogue with his own money, why he loved the people of Jews, and why he cared and loved his servant. There should be only one answer to this question. And the answer is that he loved Jesus. He was ashamed and scared for being a sinner that he couldn't come in front of Jesus, he could not directly hear the profound teaching and words of Jesus, and he was not able to build a personal relationship with Jesus. On the other hand, he believed Jesus as the true Son of God and he must have loved the personality of Jesus who forgave the sinners, and visited and healed the sick and oppressed people with deep compassion. He might have watched from a far distance how Jesus spent time with his disciples and how he taught and healed the people. And for himself, he must have tried his best out of his own situation to practice and follow the love of Jesus.
Do you want to be complimented by Jesus like the Centurion? I do. I really want to be complimented and hear God tell me: “Well done, good and faithful servant!” But we need to remember that receiving a compliment from God does not happen by a one-time good deed or a one-time love and generosity. We will need to share our love ceaselessly without wanting others to acknowledge or see us. We will need to change and overcome ourselves as we endlessly face the challenge of faith with deep ponderings and meditations. That is a continuous time of patience that broadens our scope of faith. And, so far, you have done it well. You did a good job. You have overcome it well and you have loved diligently. But just a little bit more, let us share a little bit more of ourselves to the ones beside us. Let us share our time, our tears, our possessions, and our prayers with the people around us. Whenever we fall exhausted and feel like we cannot overcome this scar in our heart, let us remember the sacrificing love of Jesus who took the painful cross for us and remind ourselves every day by saying, “Let me cheer up and love once more. Let me endure it one more time.” And our God who knows the deepest of our heart will remember all the hard work and the tears we shed to love God and others. And finally, we will hear God say, “Well done, my loving son, my loving daughter, my good and faithful servant!” And He will compliment us, make us His crown, and proudly lift us up in front of all creation and people on this earth. So, let us lower ourselves a little more and serve God and others. Let us endure with patience. Let us love more.
Please join me in prayers.
Loving and gracious God, long time has passed ever since I met you and realized your love. The prayer I shouted out every day was my confession and promise to you that I will know you more and love you more. We pray that we give you a more mature and grown faith and love like wine that carries more flavor as it gains its age. Lord, we dearly ask from our heart that our effort and passion to love you will quench your thirst. Help us become lower and more humble as we realize the deep and wide love of yours and confess our sins and weaknesses. And just as that love of yours gave prosperity in our heart, use our life to make others rich with our love. In your name we pray, Amen.