A REMARKABLE HEALING
And when Jesus was come into Capernaum, there came unto Him a centurion
beseeching Him and saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy and
grievously tormented. And Jesus saith
unto him, I will come and heal him. Mt.8:5-7.
We read today the first 13 verses
from St. Matthew Chapter 8. They are the
kind of Gospel passage any preacher should love to see, because they abound in
opportunities to preach. I cannot
imagine what depths Charles Spurgeon, for example, would have mined in this
passage, but I am sure they were deep indeed.
As I have said several times before
from this pulpit, there are very few redundant words in the Gospel narratives. I would add to that that there are no redundant ideas or illustrations, and
in that respect, this particular miracle is quite extraordinary.
The centurion is a Gentile, a member
of the Roman army. He is not just any
member, however, but a man who, as he says of himself is, a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say unto this
man, Go, and he goeth; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
We often think of the Roman
soldiers, of any rank, as rough men, given to violence rather than to acts of
kindness. Their servants were really
slaves and were often treated harshly.
The first lesson we learn from this man then, is, not to jump to
conclusions – not to judge. St. Luke, in
chapter 7, tells us rather more than Matthew does about this soldier. In the first place we are told that the
centurion sends to Jesus the elders of
the Jews, beseeching Him that He would come and heal his servant.
Of course, it would have been
perfectly possible for the centurion to have done this as a straightforward
command and the elders would have had little choice but to obey. That is not what happens, however, as Luke 7
vv 4 and 5 tell us. And when they came to Jesus, they besought Him instantly, saying, That
he was worthy for whom He should do this: for he loveth our nation, and he hath
built a synagogue.
This Gentile soldier had earned the
love and respect of the Jews by first showing them love and respect. What is that but a Gospel truth – we love God
because God first Loves us. More than
that, the centurion had shown respect for the religion of the Jews, even though
there is no hint that he converted to Judaism.
He built them a synagogue, and
although this is speculative, it seems likely that he went to services there,
at which he would hear in the ancient scriptures the Messianic prophecies. If so, he may have suspected in what he knew
of Jesus, that the Messiah had indeed arrived.
Being in contact with his
surroundings was part of the centurion’s job, so he would have had excellent intelligence and
would have paid attention to anything out of the ordinary. The stories of Jesus, of his miracles, of his
teaching and of the crowds which gathered around him were anything but
ordinary, and so would be a feature of the regular reports the man’s informants
and fellow Roman functionaries would provide him. If he did not suspect Jesus to be the
Messiah, the centurion certainly knew that He had extraordinary healing powers.
So here is a man many commentators
describe as a “heathen” who lives among a conquered people, yet shows enough
love and respect for their religion to build them a place of worship. The Holy Spirit operates even in what may
seem to be barren wasteland. What great
hope that should give us! What great
determination it should foster in us to use the knowledge we have to turn to
the Holy Spirit and ask Him to fill us to overflowing with the guiding light of
our Lord Jesus Christ!
But there is more. It is not for himself that the centurion
turns to Jesus, it is for his seriously ill servant. All too often a servant in that position
would have been turned out to die and replaced with a servant strong and
capable of completing his duties. Even
today that goes on, in corporations and in homes of the wealthy.
The centurion again shows himself to
be different. His love goes beyond a
love of a strange religion – it extends to humble human servants. This man may not be a member of what we could
consider a godly religion, but he is a godly man. The Holy Spirit works in wondrous ways, and
He turns the centurion towards the great healer to obtain help for his servant.
Look at what is happening here. The Holy Spirit has united Jew and Gentile
and brought them to Jesus Christ for healing.
That in itself is miraculous and never, never, should we underestimate
the power of the Holy Spirit to produce good from what we may be inclined to
think of as hopeless cases.
I have been guilty in the past of
speaking disparagingly of Christians in other denominations, but in my work
with the
How often do we hear a prayer ended
with the words, in the unity of the Holy
Spirit, one God world without end.
If the Holy Spirit describes the unity of God, how much more must the
same Spirit describe the unity of God’s people.
The centurion, then, has his mind on
higher things in which his understanding must surely be growing; but he is also
very mindful of earthly things – of the need of those around him who are less
fortunate than he is. What an
outstanding example that is for Christians.
We must keep God first and foremost in our minds, but let us never lose
sight of the fact that a soul dwells in a body prone to so many sicknesses and
it is the duty of Christians to tend both.
We cannot afford to become so spiritual that, in the words of Charles
Spurgeon, we spirit away the spirit of
Christianity. Christian charity is a
holistic love, caring for body and soul in those around us who need our
care. That is why, in our Prayer Book,
we have a healing service in which we lay on hands and anoint the sick. It is why we give to the church, but also
give to the Red Cross or some other organisation serving the bodily needs of
those in trouble.
Look at the miracles in today’s
reading; not one, but two physical healings.
The purpose of our Lord’s Incarnation was our redemption, the most
spiritual of purposes. Yet he never once
turns aside from healing the physical ailments of the people around him. Sometimes it must have looked as if He was
actually in a hospital, because the sick were brought to Him in a constant
stream. The blind cried out to Him as He
passed by; the lame staggered to Him on crutches; the possessed foamed at the
mouth as the devils within screamed in terror at the one force they could not
resist. Even, on some occasions, the
dead lay waiting for the touch of His unique power. And Jesus healed them all. He is the great physician.
So Jesus says very simply to the
centurion, I will come and heal him.
At once, we learn two more things
about the centurion; two more essential elements which make up the genuine
Christian character. We learn of his
humility and of his faith.
The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou
shouldest come under my roof. Mt.8:8. Roman centurions did not call others Lord
unless they were aware of a reason to do so.
It is often the case that an outsider will recognise a truth which those
who are completely immersed in the evidence will miss. So it may well be that the centurion saw in Jesus
the promised Messiah, and it kindled in him that remarkable humility, expressed
in the statement, Lord, I am not worthy
that thou shouldest come under my roof.
Perhaps the man was appalled that
his request would lead to an interruption of Jesus’ great works of preaching,
teaching and healing. He knew how fully
occupied in these things Jesus was, how the crowds followed Him and gathered
around Him no matter where He went. Perhaps
he took a good look at Jesus, poorly dressed and ill shod as He was, and
thought – no way, I don’t want this man in my beautiful home! I can certainly think of a few people who
would react that way.
No, whatever the cause of his
statement, there can be no doubt that the centurion’s humility was
genuine. Had it not been, had it been a
cloak to achieve an end, Jesus would surely have exposed it, but the Lord’s
response shows that the centurion is not feigning humility, but is acting out
of it. Jesus displays not the slightest
mistrust of the Roman’s motives or actions.
In recognising that, we should also
admire the courage of the centurion in bringing his request to one whose
greatness he is convinced of. Speak the word only, and my servant shall
be healed. What an amazing
acknowledgment of the power of Jesus Christ.
What faith the centurion shows in that power.
Do we feel sometimes that our
prayers are not answered? Of course we
do! Then let us look at ourselves and
ask if our approach to God resembles closely, distantly, or in any way at all
the approach of the centurion. Do we
acknowledge the glory of the God to whom we pray? Do we truly come to Him fully respecting the
power He wields?
If not, we might just as well phone
up our local MP and ask him or her for the same thing. If we do not believe that God can accomplish
anything we ask of Him, it is a waste of time asking. The centurion had that faith. He knew Jesus did not have to move one step
closer to the sick servant to cure Him.
He knew that the power of the Lord can cross time and space to
accomplish what the Lord wants done.
That is the kind of faith, rooted in
humility, to which God responds. In
fact, if we do not have the humility which allows us, in the very depths of our
being, to acknowledge the greatness of God we will never develop the faith we
need to have in Him.
Even with such faith, we may not get
the answer we want. We will, however,
get the answer we need. God Loves us and
He will always do for us what is in our best interests.
So Jesus does not move one step
closer to the sick servant. Remaining
where He is, He says to the centurion, Go
thy way, and as thou hast believed, so it shall be done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the self-same
hour.
Across time and space, the right
hand of God will stretch forth to help and defend us, through Jesus Christ our
Lord.
Peter Jardine+
Third Sunday After
Epiphany, 2010