Lessons from Matthew 8:5-13 · 5:12am Nov 10th, 2018

5 Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.”
7 And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! 11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

I've been attracted to this verse numerous times before. It's rather stirring once one thinks about it.

Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.”

Notice how a Roman Centurion (the approximate military rank today would probably be that of Army/Marine captain) - one of the detested occupiers - is coming to Jesus, who was born, after all, into the Jewish nation. The man must have had a lot of faith, or perhaps he knew of no other way for his servant to be healed. Whether the servant was a slave or hired help, the centurion must have have cared deeply for him, and doesn't seem to be of the character to have been a cruel slave driver. He was a fighting man, probably a veteran of numerous campaigns; see the video in the link for more details, 2:10-2:26.

Also, let's get a possible issue out of the way; someone is going to point to the Gospel of Luke, where, instead of the centurion coming himself, a delegation of the man's friends comes to Jesus. It's possible that both Gospels can be true, because Matthew may have left out the intermediaries to compress the narrative; later on, in 27:26, he claims literally that Pilate whipped Jesus (the Greek literally means, "he [Pilate] flogged Jesus), though this was almost certainly done by men under Pilate's command and was probably not done by the governor himself.

And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

Jesus shows no favoritism, whether towards the Jewish population or gentiles, even those part of the conquering army. He says right away that He will come and heal the centurion's servant at once.

The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof.

The centurion comes out and says that he is not worthy of Jesus. How he came to this conclusion - whether he thought this way beforehand, or felt, in the presence of the Lord, a sense of moral guilt - isn't quite clear. But the (probably veteran) career soldier humbles himself before the Son of God.

But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed.

This is amazing. The centurion (or his friends), who presumably never met Jesus before, believes that Jesus doesn't even have to present for the healing; all He must do is just speak, and the healing will be accomplished. The centurion shows a great faith.

For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.

The centurion sees that Jesus is acting under divine authority, and has been given authority to act on Earth in God's cause. To make his point, the centurion notes that their positions are similar; the centurion has superiors to answer to, and has soldiers under his own command to give orders to. He essentially states that Jesus has power to command all on Earth according to His will, including the illness which has befallen the centurion's servant.

When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!

Far from dismissing the centurion, Jesus commends him for having a great faith.

And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.

Jesus' message is for all people, not just the Israelites. All who believe are saved.

But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

A solemn warning for those who do not come to Him, aimed specifically at those among the Jewish population who refuse to believe.

Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.

Jesus graciously fulfills the centurion's desire. The centurion, having come by faith, is rewarded according to that faith. The servant is healed by Jesus.

A lot to unpack from just a few verses, but worth it. It's a very touching moment, between the Lord of all Creation and a Roman soldier, one probably despised by the Jewish people as an occupier and an oppressor. It shows that not all of the Romans were cruel or evil at heart, and is a wonderful moment of a Gospel meant for all peoples.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. May God go with you all.