Slideshow image

1 After Jesus had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. 2 A centurion there had a slave whom he valued highly and who was ill and close to death. 3 When he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, asking him to come and heal his slave. 4 When they came to Jesus, they appealed to him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, 5 for he loves our people, and it is he who built our synagogue for us.” 6 And Jesus went with them, but when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to say to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; 7 therefore I did not presume to come to you. But only speak the word and let my servant be healed. 8 For I also am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me, and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.” 9 When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him, and, turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” 10 When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

 

The centurion had no true connection to Jesus. He was not raised in the same faith as Jesus. He had come from a foreign land and paid allegiance to someone who was the enemy. Yet, he had grown to have some ties to the Jews he was over. He helped them to build their synagogue. And somewhere along the line, he heard enough about this wandering rabbi to put the life of someone he valued solely in the care of Jesus. This was the kind of faith most of us long for, and Jesus recognized it.

 

Lent is a journey that winds its way to Holy Week where we remember the finals days of Christ’s life. Through the talks in temple, the Last Supper, and death on the cross we sojourn to remember. But it is Easter Sunday for which we truly wait with bated breath. Why? I think it is because Easter is about resurrection, and THAT is the ultimate point of faith for us. All the teachings and miracles lead us there, but without resurrection, what is the point? We want to have the unwavering faith and reliance on Jesus that we see in the centurion. And if we can do that, if we can hold onto the hope, joy and grace of Easter resurrection, we are good. We will stumble over the rest of our beliefs and practices. We will get lost in the theology and fall into our old habits. But if we can have centurion-like faith that Christ died and rose for all the world, that is enough.

 

Mighty Savior, walk alongside us in our Lenten journey so that we can witness the glory of Easter resurrection each day of our lives. Amen

 

Chad Ryberg

Cryberg@livinglord.org

 

Prayer Concern: Give us a generous heart