Monday, February 19, 2018
Not my house
Matthew 8:8
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.
Jesus has a very interesting encounter with a centurion in Matthew 8:5-13. The first thing that strikes us is that this man is not a Jew. If he was not a Jew, how come he got into contact with Jesus to make a request of him. Doctor Luke helps us out there with his record of the encounter in Luke 7:1-10.
Centurions, those mentioned in the New Testament, were very interesting characters. These Roman military officers were the hubs around which the Italian Regiment in Palestine functioned during the New Testament times. Research shows that in a Roman legion there were 6,000 soldiers; the legion was divided into sixty centuries (100 soldiers each), and in command of each century there was a centurion, hence the name.
Barclay notes that “every centurion mentioned in the New Testament is mentioned with honour. There was the centurion who recognized Jesus on the Cross as the Son of God, Matthew 27:54; there was Cornelius, the first Gentile convert to the Christian Church, Acts 10:22; there was the centurion who suddenly discovered that Paul was a Roman citizen, and who rescued him from the fury of the rioting mob Acts 23:17; there was the centurion who was informed that the Jews had planned to murder Paul between Jerusalem and Caesarea, and who took steps to foil their plans, Acts 23:23; there was the centurion whom Felix ordered to look after Paul, Acts 24:23; there was the centurion accompanying Paul on his last journey to Rome, who treated him with every courtesy, and accepted him as leader when the storm struck the ship, Acts 27:43.
According to Luke record, the centurion who is our focus today was a man, though responsible for the discipline and conduct of his century of soldiers in charge of law and order in the occupied territory, was not as tough on the Jews as others. In fact, the Jews had figured out that good relations with the centurions were necessary for them to have the ‘freedom’ to maintain their religious authority and culture. The Romans didn’t mind at all because religion kept the Jews in check.
But this centurion also seemed to have had more than just tolerance for the Jews, he seemed to have been captivated by the Jewish faith and had become a worshipper of God. What is technically called a proselyte, a non-Jew who converted to Judaism. It should also be noted that these centurions were well off. Many of the ones mentioned in the New Testament were seen doing many benevolent things especially after they had come into contact with the faith of the Jews. This centurion was described by the Jewish elders as “most deserving” and then gave the reason saying, ““for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue.”
On another occasion, it would be interesting to note how the Jewish attitude to this gentile man was conditioned by his benevolence to them and their faith. Gentiles were considered dogs, but if the gentile is powerful, rich, and donating, then he becomes most deserving.
That attitude to money and big donors is still very popular today. Many ministries and ministers accept all kinds of donations and contributions from tainted donors in efforts to build the church. Many governments of the world today make a better effort at weeding out dirty money, through anti-money laundering laws and mechanisms, than churches do. The church excuses dirty money by misapplying the passage that says that “the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.” Proverbs 13:22.
Jews were not to go to the homes of Gentiles, but the Jewish elders asked Jesus to go to the home of this centurion. Jesus agreed and was on the way there. The centurion was made aware of Jesus’ impending arrival and too bizarre action that led Jesus to declare him to be a man of greater faith than many in Israel, Matthew 8:10.
We could argue whether the centurion was knowledgeable of Jewish law and knew that if Jesus came to his house there would be real problems for Him, or whether the man was just conscious of his own sin and unworthiness before God. It doesn’t matter which. The centurion sent others now, to tell Jesus not to come to his house. The same centurion who, after hearing about Jesus, “sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant,” Luke 7:3, is the same centurion who said, “I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof,” Luke 7:6.
This centurion was going to be satisfied with a word from Jesus. Here is a man who cherished and valued the life of his servant so much that he was going to cross, cultural and religious lines to get healing. He was going to exercise faith at a level that was difficult even for the people of faith, yet he was telling essentially – not my house. The need was in his house, but he kept Jesus out of his house.
Many of us want Jesus in our houses today, but we are often not like the centurion. We are not recognising that there are things in our lives and houses that need to be dealt with if we want the King of glory to come in.
Think on these things:
- Does your church or ministry accept money from donors regardless of background?
- Do you know of any person who, despite not being a Christian, you would appeal to Jesus on their behalf?
- Based on what is going on in your life and house, would you have to stop Jesus from making a ‘visit’?
Prayer focus:
Let us pray today that we would watch over our homes and lives that we’d be worth of Jesus coming to our house.
In His Grace
Pastor Alex