The Healing of the Centurion's Servant
Introduction.
Matthew 8:5-13 records a
remarkable healing which Jesus performed for a most unlikely person. This
morning we are going to consider the lessons that we can learn from the healing
of the centurion’s servant.
I. “Now when Jesus had
entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him” (8:5, NKJV).
A.
A Roman centurion,
lit. “an archos of one hundred,” was a position of great military
authority.
1.
“They were the
representatives of Roman law and order and were men of force of character” (A.
T. Robertson, Commentary, 121).
B.
We are not told how
this man learned about Jesus, but it is clear that he had a good relationship
with the Jews of Capernaum.
1.
Luke records that he built
their synagogue and loved their “nation” (Luke 7:5).
2.
Perhaps the centurion
had heard from the Jews things that Jesus had done.
3.
However he came to
learn about Jesus, this non-Israelite would demonstrate greater faith than many
of the Jews had up to that point in Jesus’ ministry.
C. Matthew records that the centurion “came
to him” and was “pleading with Him.”Ê
1. Luke informs us that this inquiry
actually came through the elders of the Jews whom the man had approached after
hearing about Jesus.
2. The elders came to Jesus and, “begged Him
earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving” (Luke
7:4b-5).
3. At this word Jesus went with them (Luke
7:6).
D. Modern critics have argued that this
difference between Matthew and Luke is a contradiction, but we contend that
both accounts are given by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (2 Tim. 3:16) and
contain no elements that cannot be harmonized with one another.
1. The message which the centurion brought
was simple...
II. “Lord, my servant is
lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented” (8:6).
A.
Matthew uses a word
for “servant” (pais) that can mean either child or servant.
1.
The parallel account
in Luke uses a word for “servant” (doulos) which would not be
applied to one’s child (Luke 7:2).
2.
The affection and
concern for the servant as one “dear to him” (Luke 7:2) may explain Matthew’s
use of the more familial term.
B.
Luke adds the fact
that the servant “was sick and ready to die” (Luke 7:2).
1.
Our English word
“paralytic” is derived from the word Matthew uses here which the KJV rendered
“palsy.” 2. Most translations of this century and the last transliterate the
word or refer to the servant as “paralyzed.”
2.
The centurion’s
servant in our text was not only paralyzed but was also “suffering great pain”
(NASB).
3.
In response to the
request from the centurion, Jesus replied...
III.
“I will come and heal him” (8:7).
A.
After the Jewish
elders relayed the message, Jesus “went with them” (Luke 7:6a).
1.
As He approached the
house...
IV. “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’” (8:8).
A.
This discourse is
also relayed to Jesus, but by friends of the Centurion.
1.
Luke records, “when
he was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him” (Luke
7:6b).
2.
The words the
centurion relayed to Jesus represent some of the most humble and moving words
ever spoken.
3.
It is striking that
this powerful Gentile officer speaks to a simple Jewish carpenter’s son,
calling him “Lord.”
B.
Most commentators see
in his reluctance for Jesus to come to him a demonstration of respect for
Jewish separatism from Gentiles.
1.
Yet the centurion’s
declaration “I am not worthy” addresses more than ceremonial cleanliness.
2.
In Luke’s account he
relays to Jesus, “I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you” (Luke
7:7).
3.
The fact that the
centurion immediately turns to issues of authority and rank make it more likely
that the centurion, recognizing Jesus’ miraculous authority, acknowledges his
own deficiency in such matters.ÊÊ
C.
He then declares,
“only speak a word, and my servant will be healed” (8:8b).
1.
The centurion’s
statement reflects both faith and a respect for authority.
2.
As was true of his
own rank he knew that one in a position of authority could command others and
carry out his wishes through subordinates.
a.
Did the man expect
Jesus’ disciples to carry out the healing in His place, or did he understand
that Jesus’ authority extended beyond the material world?
b.
In either case he
treats Jesus, not as an inferior in a conquered land, but one worthy of
respect, with authority greater than his own.
D.
In our day, how badly
we need more souls like this noble man—souls who recognize that the power
Christ possessed to “speak the word only” and accomplish His will, still
resides in that word which has been revealed.
1.
We are “not worthy”
to go beyond what has been spoken, so we must respect the authority of God
which rests in His word.
2.
The centurion
continued...
V. “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” (8:9).
A.
Jack Russell Shaffer
thinks that part of this message may have been delivered by the centurion
directly. He reasons, “Seeing Jesus near his house and having already sent the
second delegation, the centurion came personally to meet Jesus and restates the
problem in more detail” (“A Harmonization of Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10.” The
Master’s Seminary Journal 17.1 (2006): 48).
1.
Whether Jesus
personally spoke with the man or not, his faith and respect for authority
impressed Jesus.
B.
He identifies
himself as a man “under authority.”
1.
As a Gentile, this
man may have known only a little about the God of Israel but he understood well
the nature of authority.
2.
Since the centurion
had come to believe that Jesus had power to heal disease, he reasoned that
Jesus’ authority would function as his own authority did.
3.
He had power to
command, and his word alone accomplished his will.
C.
Brother Kenneth
Chumbley, in his commentary on Matthew offers the insightful analysis that “the
centurion reasoned inductively that they were both under authority. He
understood that only those who can take orders are allowed to give orders”
(153).
1.
What a wonderful
demonstration of faith that this man understood that Jesus could simply speak
and his servant would be healed.
D.
Those who would
follow Jesus today must recognize that as servants of God we are “under His
authority.”
1.
No, we do not hear
the voice of Jesus commanding us directly, but as His servants we are given
instruction through His revealed word in Scripture.
2.
This word guides us
through all that it contains, in its direct statements, its descriptions of
what pleases God, and in the truths it infers.
3.
To presume to direct
our own steps in matters of worship, teaching, or lifestyle is to reject the
authority of God.
4.
To respect God’s word
is not “legalism” but a gesture of humble obedience and faith in the One who
authored that word.
VI. Jesus praised the
man’s faith and went on to foreshadow the inclusion of the Gentiles in the
gospel message
(8:10-12).
A.
But what happened to
the servant?
1.
The text records that
Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it
be done for you” (8:13a).Ê
B.
Matthew tells us,
“his servant was healed that same hour” (8:13b).
1.
Jack P. Lewis notes
that the phrase “that same hour”—“is for the Gospels a phrase unique to Matthew
(8:13; 9:22; 15:28; 17:18)” (Commentary on Matthew 1.123).
2.
Jesus’ healings were
immediate.
3.
Luke records, “those
who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been
sick” (Luke 7:10, NKJV).
C.
When Jesus spoke, the
servant was healed.
1.
If this Roman
centurion showed such great faith in and respect for the word of Jesus, should
we show any less?