Nobody Deserves it, but Anybody can Get it

Steve Bowyer

Words & Works of Jesus • Sermon • Submitted a year ago • Presented a year ago

Luke 7:1–10

Centurion with an Ill Servant

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Everything Changed

Warning: Don’t allow yourself to go down any political rat holes. Just some observations about how things were exposed and changed.

There is one event in recent history that changed the political, governmental, congressional, legislative, judicial, presidential, religious, and just about every other arena more than anything else.

Whatever you think of the man, whether you voted for him or against him. Whether you think he’s guilty, or being railroaded. Just about everything changed when we elected Donald Trump to be the President of the US in 2016.

Nobody expected him to win. The odds in Las Vegas we stacked against him. Washington insiders privately and publicly lobbied against him from both sides of the aisle. Hollywood and Broadway award shows become political commentaries and their ratings plummeted.

I remember watching the news that night, watching the returns as they called states one way or the other. Late, they came back from commercial, everyone behind the news desk had a stunned look on their face. The first story they did, Vegas had changed the odds and their predicted winner. What?

States that were assumed to go one way, went the other.

Some said Hillary Clinton believed she deserved to be elected, it was her turn. I don’t know that t/b true. But I do know nobody deserves to be elected President. You’ve got to get out and earn the votes.

For the first time, a business man was elected. An outsider. He ran the gov’t like a business. The many of the numbers improved.

But, divorced more than once, bankrupt multiple times, rumored affairs, and an ego the size of Trump Tower and the Empire State bldg combined. For the first time someone w/ so many obvious and known flaws won the vote.

He claims to be a Xian, people close to him say his faith is genuine. But there were times he used his Xian connections in way that was offensive, immature, and arrogant. None of us here is perfect. And if our lives were scrutinized the way his is, we’d probably come off in a poor light more often than not, as well.

Belief, not behavior makes you a Xian. Even a famous, rich, and powerful one.

Jesus’s point in the sermon on the mount is we can’t judge whether or not he is a saved man. We can judge his actions as wise or foolish, sinful or good. There’s plenty on all sides of those spectra.

Did his ego get him in trouble this time? People ask me what I think of the indictments today. Well, tell me who I can trust to explain what’s really going on so I can come to an informed decision.

As someone who, on a much smaller scale, respects confidentialities, I know things about ppl I cannot share, I understand there is much more to this story. Some of it, we may never know. But we have to be able to trust the ppl who do know.

His election exposed biases we had no idea went so deep in places that are supposed to enforce the laws blindly and evenly.

And, does anybody trust the media to hold politicians accountable?

Some of the questions that have unsettled us: What is the truth? Who can we trust? What do the principals deserve? The situation changed everything, are we okay w/ the changes or not? Everyone was shocked and stunned for different reasons.

There was another event that changed everything. Not so recent. But it changed the political and religious environment like nothing else ever had.

Jesus came along and turned the world upside down. He exposed the hypocrisy religious leadership and the deep distrust of them by the ppl. The political leaders didn’t know what to make of him. Most just wanted him to keep quiet and keep the peace. Some believed. Some hated.

Some felt they deserved what God offered. Most, didn’t care. Then, a guy came along who demonstrated the power of God offered to anyone who has faith. And, He made it clear that nobody deserves it, but anybody can get it.

In a world where trust is questioned, the facts and science are questioned, leaders are questioned, Jesus provides the answers. He can be trusted. Our faith is based on facts and fills in the cracks between the facts. He is the Good Shepherd who leads us to our best life.

Nobody deserves what Jesus can do for them, but anybody can get it.

Just his arrival changed things. Most of the changes he made were gradual and incremental. But then, there were times when the changes were drastic, dramatic, and monumental.

Right after the Sermon on the Mount, when he healed the Centurion’s servant, was one of those monumental changes.

This was completely unexpected. Anyone watching was stunned. Here was an unexpected man with unexpected faith and Jesus did an unexpected thing.

We’re in Luke 7 today.

Unexpected Man

Luke 7:1–2 NIV

When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people who were listening, he entered Capernaum. There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die.

Jesus had just finished the Sermon on the Mount. One of the main themes of this sermon is ushering out the old way of doing things and bringing in the new.

The religious leadership had their expectations of their participants. Jesus had different expectations of His. There was a clear contrast drawn.

Good trees produce good fruit. Bad trees produce thorns and thistles. Build your house, your life, on solid ground. Any man building his life on solid ground would respond to Jesus w/ faith in Him and produce good fruit.

From that public teaching, Jesus headed to Capernaum, his hometown as an adult. The same hometown of Peter. He had been there before. This was where he cast the demon out of the man who was in the synagogue. Healed Peter’s MIL and many others. Later, He would teach them that He is the bread of life coming off feeding the 5000 Jews and 4000 Gentiles.

A centurion was a Roman commander who oversaw 100 soldiers. An officer, but not high ranking. Centurions were usually not highly educated nor very cultured. He was definitely not Jewish. And would not fit the target market of the Jewish leadership.

Most centurions were self-made men. Accomplishments were of their own ingenuity. They were promoted for their ability to figure things out on their own and get their men to follow their lead.

Roman soldiers, as a rule, were not liked by the Jews. They extorted money from them and abused their power. They made their demands but asked little of the Jews. They felt as though they had little to offer.

This guy was one of the few exceptions to these rules.

He had a household slave that he valued highly, cared about a great deal. He was near death. This was not the usual response from a centurion to a sick slave.

“Rub some dirt on it. Get up. Let’s go.”

There are others just like him up for sale. Easy to replace.

He had heard about Jesus and the power he exhibited from his previous trips to town and his reputation in the region.

So, he sent a group of representatives to meet with Jesus and ask Him to come and heal his servant. The representatives were elders in the synagogue. Lay leaders who were Jewish. This would have surprised everyone.

They would have been even more surprised at Jesus’s response to their request.

Unexpected Response

Luke 7:3–6 NIV

The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.” So Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof.

Up to this point Jesus had not done much of anything w/ or for anyone who was not Jewish. He certainly had not performed any miracles for non-Jews. There was little reason to believe He would do anything this time.

The centurion must have assumed it wouldn’t hurt to ask, but also assumed Jesus would not respond to him, so he sent a delegation of Jews on his behalf. His thinking was He would be much more likely to respond to them.

He clearly believed in the power of Jesus or he wouldn’t have bothered him w/ this. He believed He could do something. His question was, would He do something?

It would have been highly irregular for a Roman soldier to approach a Jewish rabbi and ask for anything. A delegation of rep’s was basically the same thing.

Matthew records this and wrote that the centurion himself came to Jesus. But Luke is probably more accurate w/ his description.

They generously pled his case to Jesus. Please come and heal his servant. They argued that he deserved this kind of attention from Jesus. Clearly, they did not understand grace nor the condition that Jesus would expect.

No one deserves this.

Their argument was based on 2 things. He loves Israel which was unusual. And, he oversaw and helped build their synagogue. In most cases, the Roman soldiers extorted money and put up road blocks to synagogue construction. It was classic racketeering.

“If you pay us, we will protect you. If you don’t, we will obstruct you.”

This centurion was an honest man, he had integrity and high morality. He did the right things by these Jewish worshippers.

So, this delegation worked this angle hard. It was unusual to say the least that the 2 parties had this kind of relationship. Doing each other big favors like this.

This is a picture of the ruins of synagogue he helped build in Capernaum.

There was probably some political motivation to this, as well. Synagogues helped maintain civility, order, and morality in a town. The Jews would have stirred things up to get their synagogue. And, for those who followed the teaching of the rabbis, they would have been civil and educated.

But, as you look at this synagogue, it’s much nicer, more ornate, bigger and better than the typical synagogue of the day. For all those in charge of its construction, they went above and beyond what was expected in the day. This centurion would have been right in the thick of it.

Still under the law, a Jewish man, much less rabbi, would not be caught dead in the house of a Gentile. Just to walk thru the threshold would render the Jewish man contaminated and DQ him from any synagogue or worship participation until he cleaned himself up.

No different than cleaning out your septic tank then coming straight to church. What’s that smell?

Outsiders would have been deeply insulted by the insinuation that their home was contaminating and somehow someone needed t/b purified after leaving.

Yet, what did Jesus do? He responded by heading the man’s house. To say this was unprecedented would be an understatement. Any Jews watching would be appalled.

It’s interesting that the Jewish elders would even ask him to do this. That they would ask anything like this on behalf of a Roman soldier would have been unheard of. So many more reasons not to do it.

People like this were enemies in every other town. Here, they demonstrated it was possible for Jews and Romans to get along.

And, Jesus did something that was totally unexpected.

He never made it, though. He was stopped on the way w/ a remarkable response from the centurion.

Unexpected Faith

Luke 7:6–8 NIV

So Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

This is a man who was not used to bowing to anyone w/ fewer stripes or clusters on his uniform.

Humility is not an expected characteristic of a centurion.

Yet, he did not consider himself worthy of Jesus’s visit to his house. Would he have welcomed Caesar? Pontius Pilate? Herod? Maybe. Probably. But, he believed Jesus was in a class beyond his worth.

He sent another delegation, this time friends. They met Jesus and the first delegation before he made it to the house. He was close, not far away. But, they stopped him from completing his journey.

And the message they relayed showed remarkable and completely unexpected humility on the part of the centurion.

Even though the first delegation argued their belief that he deserved Jesus’s attention. He believed he did not deserve it. This was a favor that went well beyond anything he might have earned.

There was something else even more unexpected that came w/ the message, too.

He used the term, ‘Lord.’

He had already demonstrated faith in the power of Jesus to be able to heal. Now, he demonstrated faith in the person of Jesus. This is the faith that saves someone.

Lord. This is a religious and official term. It’s a position of authority. He understood authority. As a man of authority himself, all he had to do was say the word, even at a distance, and his command would be carried out.

And he believed Jesus was in a position of authority.

Jesus taught w/ authority. He dressed humbly. But b/c of Who He is, Who His Father is, He has the authority to say the word, even long-distance, and his command will be carried out.

In every instance of healing up to this point, Jesus had physically been in the presence of the one being healed. So, not only had Jesus not healed a Gentile, yet. He hadn’t done anything long-distance, yet.

This centurion, who had subordinates who would obey his commands, believed the disease his servant suffered from was subordinate to Jesus, and all he had to do was make the command.

That’s remarkable faith. And this was a truth that would be important for the disciples to understand and believe, themselves. Soon, Jesus would be out of sight. So to know that He does not need to be physically present for him to exercise his power would be vital to the progress of their ministry.

This unexpected man, w/ unexpected faith, became an unexpected example for everyone.

Unexpected Example

Luke 7:9–10 NIV

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.

This man who was not circumcised, had never sacrificed a lamb on the Passover, didn’t know the law and traditions of the day; became a perfect example of what it takes to be saved.

His actions demonstrated his faith in Jesus’s power.

His approach demonstrated his faith in Jesus’ person.

Jesus stopped, turned to the crowd, and said he hadn’t seen faith like this in all Israel.

Who was in the crowd? The elders from the synagogue. The disciples. Whoever else. And according to Jesus, none of them had the faith of this Gentile, Roman soldier, dog.

What an unexpected example for the disciples to follow.

Jesus praised him for his faith and at the same time challenged the rest for their lesser faith.

As you look at these last 2 verses, what did Jesus say? If there is power in his word, what words did he use to heal the servant? What was the process? He didn’t touch him. Didn’t spit on him. He just spoke. What were the words that prompted the miracle?

Doesn’t say.

That’s because the miracle is not the point. Too often we get hung up on the miracle and miss the message.

And, what is the message? Nobody deserves what Jesus can do for them. But anybody can get it.

Matthew included this in his description of the events of that day.

Matthew 8:11–12 NIV

I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Remember, Matthew wrote to a Jewish audience. Luke wrote to Gentiles. The Jews needed to know that their assumption that they would get to have a seat at the table in the kingdom just b/c they were Jewish was a bad assumption.

Many are going to be left out making room for non-Jews to have their seat.

Luke, writing to the Gentiles just made this last point. There’s room at the table in the kingdom for you if you have faith like this centurion. You don’t have to be Jewish.

The big question that Luke asks and answers in his entire book is, “I’m not Jewish. Who is Jesus to me?”

The answer is, He is the Savior of all ppl. You don’t have to be Jewish or become Jewish to get into heaven.

This was a major transition in the message of Jesus and gospel. Up to this point Jesus had been exclusively Jewish in His message and miracles.

This is where the unexpected change in course began. The exclusion of many who assumed they were in and the inclusion of many who humbly appreciated the opportunity to get in b/c of their faith.

Most of us here should be very thankful that this transition occured. If you’re not Jewish, who is Jesus to you? Your Savior. All you have to do is believe. You don’t have to have the blood relation.

This changed everything. It exposed the religious leadership for the hypocrites they were. It exposed the distrust of the ppl in leadership but they had no other options up to this point.

Who could they trust to tell them the truth? Who could they follow who would lead them to their best life?

No matter who wins in ‘24. No matter what is reported or investigated, who is indicted or convicted. We can always trust Jesus to tell us the truth. His truth works no matter which party is in power. We can follow his leadership and learn from his teaching that will show us the way to live the best life we can.

An unexpected man, w/ unexpected humility and faith, providing an unexpected example for us to follow; changed everything.

Praise God for those changes.

Applications

Worthy

Don’t feel worthy? Welcome to the club.

If you don’t feel like you deserve what Jesus is offering then you’re on the right track to get it. If you don’t feel like you’re good enough for Jesus to come into your world, you’re right. But He will anyway.

He will go where others wouldn’t dare to help anyone who asks.

No one deserves what Jesus can do.

Humbly, faithfully approach and ask.

Don’t not ask b/c you feel like He won’t. That’s actually the right attitude to take when you do ask.

Land Last Week’s Plane

The Sermon on the Mount.

Jesus finished by saying that applying his teaching is like building your house on solid ground. It will w/stand the strongest of storms this life can throw at you.

Every person building their life on the solid ground of Jesus’s teaching will respond w/ faith and produce good fruit.

Let this centurion be an example for you, too. Someone no one expected to have faith became and example for those who do.

Be that example no one expects but God blesses.

We can get along

This Roman soldier loved the Jewish leadership. It’s not like they believed the right things. They though he deserved Jesus’s healing miracle. They didn’t understand grace.

If they can get along, so can we. Believers and non-believers, Democrats and Republicans, independents and Libertarians. We can work together for the good of the community.

All we are called to do is lead the ppl close to us closer to Christ. Let Him handle what does, or does not need to change.

There was an event in history that changed everything. It changed the political and religious environment like nothing else ever had.