from scorn as part of the hated occupation of Palestine. without people knowing he was not one of them. conqueror, his own heart had been conquered. Weary of the tales of the drunken, adulterous and murdering gods of Roman mythology, he found himself drawn to the Jewish religion that proclaimed a holy God, tran- scendent above all creation, who chose to draw near to humanity in love. Opening his heart to the true God made him an outsider among his own troops. a favor from Jesus, the Jewish elders reported his good deeds. "If anyone deserves your help, he does," they said, have the means to build a whole synagogue? He could have been born into wealth, but this is unlikely. Soldiers were known to extort money from conquered populations, but this would have been common knowledge among the Jewish people had he done that. Most likely he was a career soldier who had joined in many military campaigns. The custom of the day included the division of spoils among the officers and men, the size of the share according to rank. The wealth he had accumulated was most likely from risking his life for the emperor, no doubt with scars to prove his bravery. one of the spoils of war, taken to be a lackey, but as the centurion's heart was changed, he saw the man as some- thing more than that. He became even more of an out- sider to his fellow Romans. A well-known Roman named Chrysolgus wrote about slaves: "Whatever a master does to a slave, undeservedly, in anger, willingly, unwillingly, in forgetfulness, after careful thought, knowingly, un- knowingly, is judgment, justice and law." So it was: there was no inhumane act prohibited when it came to slaves. heal his servant. He asked the Jewish leaders to inter- cede for him, as Jews tried to avoid direct contact with Gentiles. But as the men talked with Jesus, the cen- house was worse still. As a high-ranking officer in the Roman army, he could have ordered Jesus to come, but instead he was mortified that in his desire to see his servant healed he might have offended Christ. and receive anyone who came to Him. He was on His way when, "just before they arrived at the house, the officer sent some friends to say, `Lord, don't trouble yourself by coming to my home, for I am not worthy of such an honor. I am not even worthy to come and meet the authority of my superior officers, and I have author- ity over my soldiers. I only need to say, `Go,' and they go, or `Come,' and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ish leaders--that Jesus Christ was God Incarnate. He reasoned that if a mere mortal like him could send a soldier forward in battle to certain death and expect obedience, how He was God then there was nothing impossible to Him, and certainly no obstacle such as distance, that could keep Him from doing His work. And further, since Jesus was God, the centurion was even more unworthy to have Him walk into his house. The centurion's faith was both an encouragement and a rebuke: "Turning to the crowd that was following Him, He said, `I tell you, I haven't seen faith like this in all Matthew's account of this miracle (8:5-13), Jesus further remarked, "I tell you this, that many Gentiles will come from all over the world--from east and west--and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven" (vs. 11). Here the rejects, the outsiders and people on the fringe find a place to sit and dine with the Most High God. Here all who are in Christ are honored friends, beloved members of the family. Literary Secretary. |