Capernaum served as the focal point for Jesus’s ministry in Galilee.
It was situated near the border and along a major trade route. A sizeable presence of Roman soldiers were present in that important city.
It was there that the leader of a hundred soldiers, a centurion, came to Jesus.
When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him 6 and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress” (Matthew 8.5-6).
The last words of Jesus to his disciples in Matthew are, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28.19). The coming of the Gentile army officer prefigures a worldwide mission for all humans.
Just as Jesus accepted a leper, he now is willing to serve a Gentile. And he said to him, “I will come and cure him” (Matthew 8.7)
The Issue of Authority
The issue of authority is a major theme in the Gospel of Matthew. The centurion recognized Jesus’ authority and responded to Jesus’ willingness to accompany him to heal the servant.
The centurion answered, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed.
“For I also am a man 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” (Matthew 8.8-9).
The centurion knew that he had the authority of the Roman government to back up his decisions. When he told one of his soldiers to do something, he knew they would respond because they recognized his authority.
He recognized that Jesus had authority from God to command disease with a similar result.
Great Faith
Not only did the army officer believe that Jesus had authority over sickness, but also that all Jesus had to do was say the word and his servant would be healed.
Jesus responded by saying that he had not seen this kind of faith anywhere in his travels throughout Israel.
When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, “Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith” (Matthew 8.10).
Jesus’s next statement more than likely startled the crowd. He talked about the inclusion of the Gentiles in God’s plan and the tragic rejection of Jesus by the people of God.
“I tell you, many will come from east and west and will take their places at the banquet with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,
“While the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8.11-12).
As we read through the Gospel of Matthew, we see an increased opposition to Jesus from the religious authorities. At the same time, we find glimpses of the worldwide mission to all humans through his activity.
Paul understood this and wrote about it extensively in Romans 11. He said that Israel would reject Jesus so that Gentiles could be grafted into the family of God. This is part of God’s plan.
It is worth noting that the first followers of Jesus were Jews. This passage is not a rejection of Jewish people and a replacement of them by Gentile Christians. Rather, it is a statement of what actually took place.
A man expressed great faith and he prefigured the acceptance of Gentiles into the family of God, which was God’s purpose all along (See Genesis 12.1-3).
Healing and Faith
Faith is not achieved by creating a state of mind that we would call faith. Rather, faith is simply coming to Jesus and trusting Him to do what we believe He will do.
When the centurion did this, Jesus responded by acknowledging his faith and releasing the power for the servant to be healed.
And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; let it be done for you according to your faith.” And the servant was healed in that hour (Matthew 8.13).
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today. It is on the Bob Spradling channel.
Real Voices 