The Difficulty in Identifying Jesus
It can be difficult knowing exactly who Jesus is. Even John the Baptist, Jesus' relative, wondered if Jesus was the Promised One (Lk. 7:18-20). John wants to know if Jesus was the One everyone was waiting for, or if they should keep waiting. Jesus' response to John in verse 22 is, essentially, "Look at what I'm doing and let my actions speak for myself. Look what I'm doing and you'll see that the kingdom of God is here."
As we come into Luke 7, Luke answers John's question with three stories meant to reveal who Jesus is. First, he tells us about Jesus healing a centurion's servant (vv. 1-10), then Jesus raises a widow's son (vv. 11-17), and then after an excurses addressing John's question (vv. 18-35), Jesus forgives a sinful woman (vv. 36-50). That Jesus did these things among the outcasts of society (a Gentile, widow, and prostitute), further reveals who Jesus is. Luke wants us to see that Jesus is indeed the Promised One who'd come with power and with healing in his wings for those who most need it (Mal. 4:2).
But Luke also wants to make sure we understand something very important, indeed something pivotal to the whole story of the Bible. He wants us to see that the blessings of God's Promised One who comes to rule and heal are only for those who receive him. He wants us to see that Jesus' power and healing are only for those who believe. So, in these stories in Luke 7, yes he's revealing Jesus' power and compassion which identify him as God's Promised One. But he's also revealing our need for faith. For Luke, it's not so much that the Promised One has come, but whether we'll recognize him and receive him.
The main point of our text this morning, Luke 7:1-10, is that Jesus helps those who know they need his help. In this story, we see that without faith, it is impossible to please God, and we see that true faith springs from a humble and honest recognition of our need. We'll see a plea for help in verses 1-5 and the power of faith in verses 6-10.
A Plea for Help
In verses 1-5, we see a plea for help. Jesus has finished his Sermon on the Plain and moves back into his home base of Capernaum. As he comes into town, he's confronted with a delegation of Jewish elders, or leaders in the community. They're coming to him on behalf of a Gentile, a Roman centurion.
Centurions were officers in the Roman army, having charge over around 100 men. A Roman military officer represented the Roman occupation of Israel. A man like this stood for everything the Jews hated.
So immediately after Jesus preaches on loving enemies (6:27ff), he's confronted with an opportunity to practice what he preached. Some surely wondered if there were any functional parameters that would limit the reach of Jesus' gracious ministry? Or put another way, does the good news of Jesus apply to the Gentile world too? How far will Jesus go in "doing good" to those who've harmed his nation? This account shows us that he'll go farther than most of us would.
An Unusual Centurion
Now this centurion doesn't strike us as an ordinary gruff and harsh Roman military commander. Verse 2 says that he "highly valued" his servant (or slave) who was terminally ill. This man of importance and stature loved his servant. He valued his life, not just for what he could produce, but for who he was. Otherwise, he would've just let him die and found a replacement. It's likely that there was a friendship between them.
Oftentimes, we'll treat people at work who're above us with kindness and deference but then be uncaring and cruel toward our subordinates. But it's not so with this centurion. He doesn't just let his servant die but rather wants to help him live. He doesn't just see him as useful; he sees him as human. May it be so with those we work with.
Worldly Negotiating
This centurion heard about Jesus, likely hearing of his power to heal, but because he was a Gentile, he sent Jewish elders to Jesus to see if he could come heal his servant (v. 3).
When the Jewish elders came to Jesus, they "pleaded with him earnestly" (v. 4). They made it clear how serious the situation was. But it's critical that we see what the basis of their plea is (vv. 4b-5). They approached Jesus using the world's way of negotiating.
They come to Jesus asking for his help, not on the basis of need but on the basis of obligation. They operate within the categories of honor and obligation prevalent in the Roman Empire. They're operating within the system of reciprocity that I talked about a few weeks ago. Their argument is, "This centurion has helped us a lot so he deserves to be helped."
They say that the centurion is "worthy" of help because he loves the Jews and had helped finance one of their building projects. The way they present their request reveals a social framework built on the system of reciprocity, a system still alive and well today: "You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours," or "You owe me one."
These Jewish elders are trying to obligate Jesus into doing this for the centurion, but they don't understand that Jesus doesn't follow the world's rules. As one commentator says, "Their words betray their captivity to a world system whose basis and practices run counter to the mercy of God. Even though they apparently seek the welfare of the centurion's household…their motives are suspect." These guys are "captive to a world system that has been nullified by the dawning of salvation."1
If these guys would've heard Jesus' sermon from earlier that day, maybe they would've appealed to his mercy and grace and the need of this lowly servant. Instead, they appeal to the greatness of their benefactor. They're trying to do a good thing, but they're running on the world's operating system. They don't realize that the dawning of a new world is happening right in front of them, and that the rules of the new world are based on grace and mercy, not obligation and reciprocity.
But it appears that the centurion understands that Jesus doesn't operate on the world's principles. It seems that he sees something in Jesus that these Jewish elders don't.
The Power of Faith
So next we see the power of his faith in verses 6-10. Despite the faulty reasoning of the Jewish elders, Jesus goes with them to see the centurion. But when he gets close to the house, he's met by a second delegation from the centurion. This time he's sent "friends" to speak to Jesus (v. 6).
One wonders why the centurion felt compelled to send a second delegation to Jesus. Perhaps it occurred to him that the Jewish elders would misrepresent him by approaching Jesus on the basis of a debt he's owed? We can't know for sure, but we do know that in the second delegation sent to Jesus, the centurion sent people more likely to represent him faithfully (i.e. his friends), and we see that he makes it clear to Jesus that he's not worthy of his help and that he doesn't lay any claim on his help.
The elders said the centurion was "worthy" (v. 4), but the centurion says he "is not worthy" (v. 6). No reason is given for why he feels unworthy before Jesus. Does he realize he's a sinner or is it because he's a Gentile? We don't know. Luke's emphasis here is on this man's humility. He wants us to see that this powerful man understands that he's truly powerless. This man's humility is the key to his faith, and the key to unlocking Jesus' power.
The centurion says in verse 7 that Jesus can just "say the word" and his servant will be healed. He realizes that Jesus can heal without any rituals, ointments, special prayers, monetary gifts to the healer, and even without touch. True faith realizes that the word of Jesus can do anything.
In verse 8, the centurion explains his faith using the illustration of authority. His argument is simple: if he with his authority could say things and they happen, how much more so could Jesus do the same?
When he says, "I too am a man set under authority," he could mean, "Just as I'm under authority and can do things because of that authority, so you too Jesus, being under divine authority, can give orders and heal in God's name." Or he could mean, "Even though I am a man under authority, I can still give orders, but you Jesus have even more power since you are not under authority."2
Either way, his point is that if he, a man of much lower rank than Jesus, can give orders that are obeyed, how much more so can Jesus? One commentator says that "this centurion's statement is among the finest tributes ever paid by one human being to another. It was the acme of professional courtesy."3 Here we see a man of authority saying that his authority is nothing compared to Jesus' authority. This Roman military officer is saying that he's outranked by Jesus!
Jesus Marvels
Earlier I said that Luke wants us to see that Jesus is the "one who is to come" (v. 19). But Luke also wants to make sure that we understand that the blessing of Jesus' power and healing is only for those who trust him. Luke doesn't just want us to see Jesus' glory, he wants us to trust and embrace him like this centurion does (v. 9).
Earlier when Jesus was rejected in Nazareth, Jesus marveled at the unbelief of his hometown (Mk. 6:6). Here he marvels at the centurion's belief in the power of his word. Then he expresses his wonder to the crowd, saying something that no Jew would ever say to a bunch of other Jews: "Not even in Israel have I found such faith."
This is astounding, and offensive. Offensive because the Jews were supposed to be the people of faith, not the Gentiles. But this Gentile's faith stands out as extraordinary among the supposedly faith-full Jews.
Faith that Jesus Approves
Why is his faith so praiseworthy? Because it was a humble faith. He understands that God owes him nothing (vv. 6b-7a). Because it was a faith in the power of Jesus' word (v. 7b). He believes that Jesus' word can do anything. And because it was a faith that understood Jesus' authority (v. 8). He believes that Jesus far outranks him even though he's a man with lots of authority.
The centurion's faith was genuine because it rightly understood his lowliness and Jesus' power. It was genuine because it confessed Jesus' lordship. This man understood that Jesus had power to speak the word and accomplish anything. The centurion may not have had a fully developed Christology, but he understood that Jesus had authority over life and death.
And he was a man who also understood grace. He not only knew that Jesus could heal, but that he didn't deserve anything from Jesus. When he approached Jesus, he didn't promote his faith, his worthiness, his love for the Jews, or his charity. He approached Jesus with a recognition of who he was compared to Jesus, "I am not worthy to have you come under my roof" (v. 6).
Faith and True Revival
Some are saying that there's a new movement of God's Spirit across our land, that a revival is beginning in our country. They say it's seen in the number of young people, especially young men, going to church and believing in God. I thank God for this and pray for it to be a true movement of God's Spirit across our land.
If it is a true movement of God's Spirit, one that'll last, we'll know because people will have a faith like this centurion's faith. True revival is the result of humble faith in Jesus' word and submission to Jesus' authority. The result of a faith that understands our desperate need and Jesus' overwhelming sufficiency. The result of a faith that boldly comes to Jesus, like this centurion, recognizing we don't even deserve to be near him, much less receive anything from him.
John Stonestreet pointed out on World Radio a couple weeks ago that Jonathan Edwards' true signs of revival were that Jesus is exalted, sin is abhorred and repented of, and that it typically happens in churches committed to strong doctrine, not fluffy churches.4
I think Edwards is right. If the rising faith of this generation is only faith in a generic God, or a faith only seeking material blessings or a stronger nation or good families, and doesn't see Jesus for who he is, and doesn't come humbly before him recognizing our deep and abiding need for grace, then it's not real faith.
Faith like the centurion's makes mountains move (Mt. 17:20). Faith like his unleashes Jesus' healing power. And faith like his comes from hearing Jesus' word. The centurion "heard about Jesus" (v. 3) and called on him to do something no one else could do (cf. Rom. 10:17). And he wasn't disappointed.
Notice finally that when the two delegations return to the centurion's house, Luke doesn't mention any marveling over the miracle (v. 10). Why? Because the greater miracle, the one even Jesus marvels over, is this man's faith. It's his faith that's the real story here.
The centurion didn't let anything, not his ethnicity or lack of religion or distance from Jesus, keep him from believing that Jesus could save the servant he loved. His faith connected him to the healing power of the One who'd come to heal the world. Do you have a faith like his?