Podcast: http://redemption-clc.podomatic.com/entry/2016-01-25T11_31_35-08_00
Theme: A
Strong Faith Thinks of Others
2) Think of
your Lord
A: In Humility – Declares
unworthiness
B: In Respect – Trust sight unseen
1) Think of
your neighbor
We always
thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard
of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints,
because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in
the word of the truth, the gospel:
Matthew 8:5-13: When He entered Capernaum, a
centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 "Lord, my servant is lying at
home paralyzed, in terrible agony!" 7 "I will come and heal
him," He told him. 8 "Lord," the centurion replied, "I am
not worthy to have You come under my roof. But only say the word, and my servant
will be cured. 9 For I too am a man under authority, having soldiers under my
command. I say to this one, 'Go! ' and he goes; and to another, 'Come! ' and he
comes; and to my slave, 'Do this! ' and he does it." 10 Hearing this,
Jesus was amazed and said to those following Him, " I assure you: I have
not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith! 11 I tell you that many will
come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the sons of the kingdom will be thrown
into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of
teeth." 13 Then Jesus told the centurion, "Go. As you have believed,
let it be done for you." And his servant was cured that very moment.
I want you to
think of someone you look up to, perhaps someone you think of as a hero.
Someone that you respect so much that you would wait in line to meet or even
pay money to see. Perhaps it’s a celebrity, a professional athlete, or a
bestselling author. If someone told you tomorrow that you’d be able to meet
them and visit with them, I’m sure you’d spend some time thinking about what to
say. No doubt you’d nervous as well as the day approached, you’d probably even
be uneasy about how it was going to go.
Few of us ever
get the opportunity to meet someone that we look up to so highly. Even fewer,
when they get the chance, make the most of it. When you’re in the presence of
someone you greatly respect, it’s easy to fumble over words or lose your train
of thought. And suddenly, the meeting you were looking forward to so much,
doesn’t go as well as you planned. It’s an easy thing to miss your one chance.
That’s one of
the reasons that our text for today is so special. This centurion had his one
chance with Jesus and he didn’t falter. Think of how many people, even just in
Israel, wanted this same opportunity. Imagine all the crowds that pressed about
Jesus wherever He went. Looking for just a glance, let alone a moment of
conversation. To this centurion, it must have felt as if heaven itself was
opened to him. The opportunity to request anything from the Son of God. Some
might have called it luck, but we know differently. God had a plan through this
story, and it continues to unfold to us today.
The lesson we
learn is about faith. We see clearly where faith comes from; that’s easy: it’s
found in Jesus. But we also what faith can do and how it expresses itself,
especially a strong faith. We could point a number of blessings of having a
strong faith, but we single out one because this particular blessing eludes us
often. A strong faith thinks of others. It may not seem like this is
much of a blessing. Much of the world would probably look at thinking of others
as more of a hindrance than a help. But when this centurion had his moment with
Jesus, it was how he thought of others that impressed Jesus.
Yes, we’re
told that Jesus was amazed at what the centurion confessed. Can you imagine
having your one, long-awaited moment with your special someone and amazing them
with what you said!? It’s quite a surreal thought. How much more when it comes
to Jesus! This centurion didn’t impress some movie star or athlete. He was
standing before the almighty and eternal God. That’s the miracle of our faith.
It doesn’t seem like much on the outside, but it contains the power of God unto
salvation. The lesson to be learned for increasing the strength of our faith is
to follow the centurion’s attitude. Surely, if this man could impress Jesus to
the point that He declared that He had not seen a greater faith, we should perk
our ears up and listen. Even the great Jews, the sons of the kingdom, weren’t
close to the faith of this centurion. And one of the reasons why this man’s
faith was strong was that he thought of others above himself.
So often our
attitude thinks only of ourselves. We get mad or angry at God because we don’t
think He’s doing enough for us. We complain to others because they don’t give
us enough credit or consider our feelings. What this self-centeredness really
becomes is a cycle. Others don’t think about us enough so we get upset and we
don’t think about them. All along the way, thinking about God fades away.
In our
account, the centurion has a different mindset. The first thing he admits is that
he is not worthy of Christ. He is not
thinking of himself. He is not only
concerned with his desires and goals. Literally in the text the centurion says,
“Lord, I am not sufficient for You to come!” That’s the attitude of repentance
and repentance in the antidote for selfishness.
With the
humility of repentance in this man’s heart from the beginning, he was open to
be filled with Christ’s power. And this power revealed itself in the fruit of
trust. What power this was too! The centurion didn’t have to see the miracle.
He wasn’t about that, as so many others were. He wasn’t there with Jesus to
gratify what his flesh wanted. He was there for a blessing and the only
blessing worth having comes from God in the way God chooses to give it.
The centurion
testified to his trust by using examples from his own line of work. You could
tell he was a good commander, a leader that his soldiers respected. He issued a
command and they listened. When trust is established, there’s no room for
doubt. Sometimes a thought of doubt occurs; that can’t be helped, it happens to
us all. But when trust is present, doubt never prevails. Rather, doubt only
leads to further strengthening of that trust by trial and perseverance.
Do you think
this centurion wasn’t nervous? Did he had no shortcomings or doubts within his
heart? Hardly! He just got done confessing his unworthiness to even be in the
Lord’s presence; to be so bold as to take up his Master’s time. This centurion
was not the model of someone who had it all figured out. He was crumbling under
the pressure of his sins. He was desperate on his own. Such are the very
individuals who find the deepest rest and comfort in the arms of their Savior.
The simple
fact was that if this man was not as broken as he truly was, he would never have
displayed the strength of faith that he did. The lower we are on our own, the
stronger we become with Jesus. Dear
friends, could it be that our faith is not so strong because our need is
not so great? It foolish to think in such a way because our needs are far too
insurmountable on our own. It’s folly to suggest that we could ever be in
control on our own. Yet, we must talk about it because we’re continually
tempted to think in such a way. We are led to distraction after distraction to
keep us from seeing our ailments. We’re told that it’s the fault of others and
not our own responsibility. And on the darkest corners of that path we’re told
that our lack of faith is because of God’s insufficiency.
Isn’t that
what we hear, and dare I suggest, what we believe from time to time? God’s Word
can’t help me here. Jesus doesn’t solve this problem. This is too modern to be
in the Bible. My pastor isn’t equipped to lead me this time. Those pesky doubts
will always be present, but they are never greater than faith in Jesus, even
when everything else in the world may be screaming the opposite. The key, I
repeat, is in thinking of others. As the centurion did, think first of your
Lord. He’s more than just a miracle worker. Trust in His power over sickness
and disease was certainly strong for those who saw it, but defeat of doubt came
at a much greater cost. The humility of respect feeds off something much
greater than power over earthly foes or what my eyes can see.
Ultimately,
the strength of faith goes to back to the cross. Faith equips us for the
variety of problems we face on earth, such as the disease of a loved one as
witnessed here. But it only comes from one source; forgiveness in Jesus. We
don’t get that impression from what the centurion says, we have to take it from
Christ’s response. He said, " I
assure you: I have not found anyone in Israel with so great a faith! 11 I tell
you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. Though the source of
the problem was initially physical, the ultimate reward would be spiritual and
eternal. We know this centurion’s faith was founded in the gospel because the
blessing Jesus promised was the pure gospel hope of heaven.
No matter what
happened with the servant, eternal salvation in Jesus Christ would never
change. That’s where the strength of faith came from. When the centurion let go
of his own cares and plans, and thought only of Jesus, he was surrounded in
complete hope and protection. That’s the way faith operates. It helps us with
the day-to-day problems while always reminding us of the greatest hope in
heaven, because that’s where faith comes from. It shifts our focus from our own
responsibilities and problems to Jesus. When we think only of ourselves, we
separate that connection. When we separate that connection we start to doubt
faith’s effectiveness in our lives. Then enters the age old lie that faith must
be so strong in order to be effective. And then we’re told; Go ahead and
strengthen that faith by works of charity, dedication to the church, sincere
thoughts, and the like. And further down we dive, away from Christ our Lord.
Friends, we
all want a stronger faith. But it doesn’t come by pitting our works against
other Christians, or by creating arbitrary levels of commitment. There is one
source – think of your Lord. Look to Jesus, the Author and Finisher of your
faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the shame, despising the
cross, and has sat down at the right hand of the Father (Hebrews 12:1-2).
Once Jesus is
in your thoughts and in your hearts, your faith will grow. And that will lead
you to our final point, to think of your neighbor. The way our text reads, it
sounds like the main emphasis is on the centurion’s love for his servant. It
sounds like it is the first thought to enter the scene. But in spiritual terms,
the servant came after the Savior. Only when the centurion’s faith was properly
fixed upon Jesus was he bold enough to request the healing miracle. To put
it in another way, his love from Jesus and for Jesus led to his love for his
neighbor.
Our lives work
the same way. The fruits we express for others are to flow from our Savior. If
we desire to help someone, but leave Jesus out of the situation, what good are
we really doing? Does it help our neighbor to lend aid but lead them farther
from Jesus at the same time? That’s certainly not how faith operates. When
faith is at work, our connection to Jesus will always be present, not shrouded,
because it’s the Spirit who produces those very fruits in our lives.
The key to a
stronger faith. It’s not in our works. It doesn’t come by trying harder or
being nicer. And it doesn’t help to call others to faith but to leave Jesus out
of the picture. The key is to think of your Lord, which will lead you to think
of your neighbor. Think of Jesus and everything He has done for you. He is your
Redeemer, your Substitute, your King, and your Friend. He has all power in
heaven and earth. He is the source of wisdom and love. Now as you think of
that, I ask this; what can happen in your life that is greater than Jesus? Keep
your focus on Him, and your faith will be strong. Amen.
The peace of
God which surpasses all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in Christ
Jesus, Amen.
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