Read Luke 7:1-10 to start

This morning I’m going to start with a disclaimer: this is not the sermon I originally planned to preach today. My original plan was a sermon on the topic of being worthy. This was inspired largely as a result of the Bible study we are doing as a family on the book of Revelation, as that is a topic that comes up repeatedly in the early chapters, in particular in relation to how Christ is worthy to open the scroll, and how He is worthy to receive glory, and honour, and praise. Certainly a sermon on the topic of Christ’s worthiness would be a significant and valuable topic, but that’s not even what I planned to preach.

I was looking at how people can be worthy, what does it mean to be worthy, especially when you consider that in Romans chapter 3 we are told quite specifically that none of us are worthy, for we are all unrighteous, unprofitable, lacking in understanding, and gone astray. We know that we have all gone wrong, gone off the path. That is not in dispute. Even at our best we certainly do not measure up to God’s standards. That is at the very core of why we need a Saviour, because we cannot save ourselves.

And yet, we see certain people in scripture who are found to be worthy in some manner or other. Noah, for example, found grace in the eyes of the Lord, we are told in Genesis chapter 6, verse 8. Abraham’s faith was accounted to him for righteousness, we are told more than once. And Enoch of course walked with God, and God took him.

When thinking about this topic, I considered various people in scripture who we would call worthy, who we would say that God must have found worthy, and I noticed one in particular that caught my attention.

You might think that I chose one of those well-known patriarchs, famous examples of those that had uncommon and frankly, unconventional relationships with their creator. Or maybe one of the prophets, someone like Daniel or Isaiah or Elijah. Any one of those would be a reasonable person around whom to centre a sermon on this topic. But as you may have guessed, none of those are the character I found. It’s someone less well known, someone who only is mentioned in a single passage, and someone who technically, we don’t actually meet in scripture. I’m speaking of course about the centurion of Luke chapter 7.

It’s interesting to note that we don’t actually see the centurion directly in the passage that we read, because we know more about this man than we do about many other people who sought healing from Christ. Sure, there are some details we don’t know, such as his name. But this Roman military officer, who never actually went to meet Christ in person, stands out in scripture as someone we can learn a lot from. And so it was that my sermon on being worthy instead became a study on this one man.

Is he really that interesting and exceptional? In some ways, yes. He goes against the common pattern of so many people we meet in the four gospels, and for that matter, of people we see today. But at the same time, nothing he did is out of reach for you and me.

What do we know about this man? We know his position. A centurion was a professional soldier, someone responsible for commanding a century, which was a company consisting of 80 to 100 men. Not a high ranking officer, but rather a boots-on-the-ground practical soldier. We’re talking about a field officer, someone who would have been promoted based on valour and capability. They often looked after the logistical needs of the troops under their command, and they typically lead by example. Centurions were the backbone of a Roman legion. They were soldiers who got things done.

Centurions were also well paid, especially when compared with the average legionnaire. And this is the next thing we know of this man, his prestige. Being a centurion was a position of that came with a certain level of prestige. You were only promoted if you had proven yourself, and longer serving and capable officers would be further promoted within their legion to higher ranking cohorts. Later in life, centurions often become influential members of society, especially after retirement from active duty. We don’t know if this particular centurion in Capernaum was retired or still an active soldier, but it does seem that he had become a prominent and well respected person in the city. He was influential enough that he was able to have some of the elders of the Jews go to see Jesus of Nazareth on his behalf.

Well, I say on his behalf, but really it was on behalf of his ailing servant. And this brings us to the next thing we know about him, we know his compassion.  While the KJV and many other translations refer to the sick man as a servant, in all likelihood this was a slave. Slavery was fully integrated into Roman society, to the point that in some regions as much as a third of the population might be enslaved.  Many of those with any level of wealth would own slaves, often many slaves. This seems appalling to us, but in the Roman Empire it was normal and expected. The centurion was not at all unusual in this. What was not so usual was the fact that he cared enough about this slave in order to seek special help to save his life.

It wasn’t that the centurion looked to hire a doctor to come and treat his servant, not at this time. Maybe he had tried that already, with no success. No, he had heard of Jesus of Nazareth, who healed the sick from all manner of illness, conditions like leprosy, paralysis, and disfigurement, just to look at the examples we see in the previous chapters of Luke’s gospel. The centurion no doubt thought that if He could heal all those others, certainly He could his servant.

But there was a problem, because the centurion was not a Jew. We are not specifically told that he was from Rome itself, but He was certainly a Roman citizen, and of course a gentile. He may have been a popular and prominent member of Capernaum society, but he was still a stranger, a foreigner. He was not one of God’s chosen people, and from the general understanding at the time, their Messiah was not specifically his Messiah. No matter how much he had invested into the community, how close he felt to the Jewish people, how much he loved and respected them, but he was still on the outside looking in.

This brings us to another key detail about the centurion, his generosity. He was under no obligation to fund building projects in Galilee, but in verse 5 the elders of the city told Christ that this centurion not only loved their people, but he had built a synagogue. By that I think it’s safe to assume that he had paid for building a synagogue, not that he had constructed it himself with his own two hands. Mind you, as a man who would have had experience in logistics and supplies, it’s possible that he directed the construction, we don’t know the particulars of that project from twenty centuries ago. But he was someone who considered the people in his community, who took care of their needs, and they appreciated and respected him for it, to the point that they were willing to help a Roman soldier because of it. They considered him to be worthy of their assistance, and of whatever help that Jesus of Nazareth would provide.

For the city elders to seek help for this centurion’s servant was unexpected. But for him to even seek help was also a quite a reach.

It’s important to remember that the Jews were part of the Roman Empire, but they were far from being ready and willing participant in it. It was not so many years after this that there was a general rebellion leading to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, with countless thousands of people killed. The Jews were not closely integrated with surrounding people groups, they kept to their own ways, their own religion, their own culture, and they were not well liked for it. They fact that they generally considered themselves to be better than other nations, whom they looked at as idol worshipping pagans, well, that no doubt did not help matters. Jews and Romans did not mix all that much, and it was generally an oil and water situation when they did.

Most people might look at this situation and say “Well, I hear lots of great stuff about Jesus of Nazareth, but I’m not someone that He would want to help. I don’t think He would even be interested in. I’m not part of the target demographic. I don’t think He’s right for me.”

Those are exactly the sort of excuses that people make instead of coming to Christ when they need help. Of course, there are all manner of excuses that seem to arise when someone does not want to come to the Saviour. We’re good at excuses, at finding reasons to not act, not believe, and not trust. How much of this is internal, from our own minds, and how much is as a result of outside influence, the noise of the world and the interference of the enemy, well, I’m sure there’s a mixture there. But we do make excuses, all the time, instead of making wise decisions and doing the right thing.

Excuses can hold us back from so many things. They hold us back from health, from friendship, from success and prosperity in this life, and they hold us back from being prepared and equipped for the next life. Sometimes there are legitimate reasons why we cannot or should not do a thing, or why we failed in trying to do so, but so often it’s one sad excuse or another that keeps us from better things. That’s no way to live here and now, and it’s certainly no way to look forward to eternity.

That’s another thing we know about this centurion, we can see from the passage that he was not a man for excuses. We don’t know how many other things this he had tried before he reached out to Jesus of Nazareth. Maybe he had called the best doctors, tried all the medicines, to no avail, or maybe he received word that the teacher and healer who had been doing miracles in the area had arrived in Capernaum and he acted immediately. That part doesn’t matter so much as the fact that he did act when the opportunity presented itself.

After all, he had every excuse anyone could want available to him, but that did not hold him back. After all, for a gentile, a Roman, to look to Jews for help was not an everyday occurrence. But he saw that there was a way to obtain healing for his servant, and he acted on it. And this is a very important aspect of the centurion, because he did not act in an aggressive, bullying, or pushy manner, but in a humble one. And this is the next thing we see about him, his humility.

It is the act of a humble man, someone who is not willing to overstep, to send others to ask a favour of a stranger. And what’s more, when help has been offered, it is a humble man who says “You don’t need to come to my house, I’m not worthy that you come under my roof. I’m not even worthy that I should come to you myself.”

This would have taken great humility. It certainly would not allow any place for pride. For the centurion to set aside his prestige, the privilege of rank and authority, of wealth, of prominence, and to seek help from a travelling teacher, that was the act of a humble man, not a prideful one. He could have been pushy, and made demands, and you know what, people often did that with the Lord. In the very next chapter would could read about Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, whose daughter was dying and he came to where Jesus was and implored Him to come with urgency and heal her. That was not unusual, for those who are desperate will at times push to the front and try to grab whatever help they can.

We see the same thing in those who may not be desperate, but have power, whether that power is great or small, and they use it to get what they want, and to manipulate and bully others into doing their will. The proud often act in this manner, for they think themselves better, they think themselves worthy, when in fact they are often the farthest from it. There is a reason that pride is listed first among the seven deadly sins. Pride was the core of Lucifer’s fall. Pride is the exact opposite of what Christ represents, of who He is.

This centurion was not like that. He was not pushy and demanding, he was not proud. In fact, this centurion was so humble that he did not even ask for Jesus to come to his home. He sent friends to meet the Lord before He could arrive and say that he was unworthy that the master should be under his roof.

He was humble. But he was not a doormat, either. He did expect results, and this is the next thing we learn about him, his discipline. That’s an attribute that many people lack, but it is important for so many reasons. This soldier was clearly all about discipline. We see from the passage that he understood authority, duty and responsibility. In verse 8 we read (8)  For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.

The centurion knew his place in the chain of command. He had authority over those who were under him in the hierarchy, and likewise he had responsibility towards them as well. When he told one of his direct reports to do something, he expected that it would be done. That is the discipline of a good soldier, one who is reliable and effective, not lazy and slack. That is the discipline that we see so little of today.

And it wasn’t simply that he was a man who required service of others, he was set under authority.  As I mentioned earlier, a centurion was a field officer, in command of a company of soldiers, but above him there was the legate, who commanded the entire legion, and his tribunes, who were his senior officers. The legate of course did not act on his own initiative; he took orders from the consul, who was in turn elected by the senate. And of course the ultimate authority came from the emperor in Rome. The centurion was a small piece in a much larger puzzle, a link in a long chain, and he understood how that worked. He did his part, what was required of him, and he made sure that those under him did their part as well.

The fact that he had discipline and understood authority meant that he expected and discerned that in others. Otherwise how would he have recognized that Jesus of Nazareth had authority, had the power to heal his sick servant? If you don’t believe in or accept authority, then you will have a hard time recognizing it in others. And what’s more, you will find it even more challenging when it comes to submitting yourself to a higher authority.

We have so much trouble today with authority and lack of discipline. People resist and resent authority, and they lack discipline on many levels. Of course, I say today, but this is nothing new. These are problems that our old nature, our rebellious, sinful nature, bring to the table, and if we follow our natural tendencies, then that’s the way we will go.

From the centurion’s humility, we see that he had no issue with submission to authority. He considered himself unworthy to come directly to the Saviour, but he accepted that Christ’s authority was such that a simple word would be sufficient. Look at verse (7) Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.

This brings us to the final key thing we learn of this centurion, his faith. In fact, the faith displayed by this Roman officer is without equal among all the encounters we see in the gospels, and the Lord comments on this specifically. In verse 9 we read (9)  When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.

It takes faith to reach out to someone you have never met, but only heard of from others, and ask for help. It takes faith to look at your own situation, your own challenges, and realize that despite your best efforts, you can’t fix everything. You can’t even fix one thing that is of vital importance to you. For the centurion, it was his dying servant. He knew that saving his servant was beyond his power, but that someone with divine power could certainly do the job. It takes faith to look beyond yourself to someone greater and say “I can’t do it, but he can. If I ask him, then he might help.”

That’s where the centurion was, and that is what he did. He did not have a promise that Jesus of Nazareth would help him, a Roman solider, with his request. He did not know for certain what the answer would be. But he had faith to ask, knowing that Jesus had helped many others, that He was able to help, and that this was the last and best option available.

We’ve considered how this centurion had position and prestige. How he had compassion and generosity, and how he had humility and discipline and was not a man for excuses. We have seen how he understood authority and responsibility. We might look at him and think that all seems like a tall order, that we are not going to measure up to someone like that, and you know what, that’s probably correct. We might hit one or two of three of those attributes, but none of us are likely to reach them all. That might seem a bit discouraging, like this is a standard that is going to be too high to attain. But here’s the thing, it doesn’t actually matter.

The centurion had all these things going for him, he was as good and honourable and capable and generous as anyone living in the Galilee at that time. He had faith far beyond the norm. But he still did not consider himself good enough. He still didn’t think that he was worthy. As far as he was concerned, he had not earned a reward from the Messiah. He had not accrued enough points with the Almighty that he could cash them in for a favour.

Sometimes we get the idea in our heads, that if we’re good enough, if we do enough, if we serve enough, that somehow we can secure God’s approval. But that’s not the case. As I said early on referring to Romans chapter 3, there is none righteous, there is none that does good, no not one.

If it was our own worth that mattered, we’re all going to be forever short of the goal. If someone with as many redeeming qualities as that centurion isn’t worthy, then how do we expect to measure up?

We look at the extensive list of how this unnamed soldier could claim personal merit, but we need to know that none of those were why Christ chose to help him. Not because of his generosity, his compassion, his humility, and not because of his position or his prestige. The only one that really matters was his faith.

And it’s not so much the faith itself, but where that faith was placed. There are plenty of people with plenty of faith, misdirected faith. People put their faith in promises, programs, preachers, professionals, and politicians, and you know what? They all disappoint. They all fail. They all fall short.

The centurion found the answer he sought, his servant got the healing he needed, because he directed his faith toward the Son of God. His own merits may have been great, but ultimately, they didn’t matter. Where he put his faith, that is what made the difference.

It’s good to be humble, compassionate, disciplined, and capable. It’s good to know your place and to do your duty. Those are all recommended and we should all aim for those in our lives. But how well we are doing will not make us worthy. It will not give us reward points with God.

Today, maybe you feel that you’re doing well, that you are in a good place mentally, physically, and spiritually. Or maybe you feel that things could be better, some stuff is not so hot, that you have a changes to make, ground to cover. Or maybe you feel like your life is a dumpster fire, that everything is awful and keeps going wrong, and you will never be good enough.

No matter where along that continuum you find yourself today, you need to look to Christ. Things are going well? Keep your eyes on Him, don’t start thinking you can make it on your own. Things are going badly? Look to the Lord, He wants you to cast your cares on Him, because you can’t handle it on your own. The chaos of the wider world has you stressed out? Christ is above it all, trust in Him, and keep your eyes on Him, not on the storm.

The centurion was not worthy. I’m not worthy. You’re not worthy. On our own, none of us are, nor can we ever be worthy. But Christ is worthy, He loves you, and He paid the price for you. Your worth is in Him, and that is more than sufficient.