Liz’s Morning Devotional: Scripture selected from Upper Room
December 29, 2022
Read Luke 7:1-10
1 After Jesus finished presenting all his words among the people, he entered Capernaum. 2 A centurion had a servant who was very important to him, but the servant was ill and about to die. 3 When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to Jesus to ask him to come and heal his servant. 4 When they came to Jesus, they earnestly pleaded with Jesus. “He deserves to have you do this for him,” they said. 5 “He loves our people and he built our synagogue for us.” 6 Jesus went with them. He had almost reached the house when the centurion sent friends to say to Jesus, “Lord, don’t be bothered. I don’t deserve to have you come under my roof. 7 In fact, I didn’t even consider myself worthy to come to you. Just say the word and my servant will be healed. 8 I’m also a man appointed under authority, with soldiers under me. I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and the servant does it.” 9 When Jesus heard these words, he was impressed with the centurion. He turned to the crowd following him and said, “I tell you, even in Israel I haven’t found faith like this.” 10 When the centurion’s friends returned to his house, they found the servant restored to health.
Good Morning, Jesus meets us where we are to save us.
This passage is an amazing story of faith. The Centurion is a representative of the Roman army that occupies this region. We do not know his religious background, but it is unlikely that he is Jewish. Because of his actions, we can determine that he is a leader who cares about his people and that he has heard stories about Jesus.
It is interesting that he is attuned to local customs and sends Jewish elders to approach Jesus. He doesn’t simply use his position of leadership to push his way to meet Jesus. First, he recognizes and admits his lack of worthiness when he sends friends to Jesus asking him not to come to his dwelling. Next, he shows tremendous faith in Jesus when he asks him to merely speak the words of healing and he knows that his servant will be healed.
In the passage following these verses, Jesus is called to the home of a Jewish leader to heal his daughter. Even though the two men are in different places in their own faith journeys, both the daughter and the servant are healed.
Most of us have had to prepare a resumé at some point in our lives. In this single document, we list all of the credentials that qualify us for the position that we are seeking. Potential employers want us to have certain skills and experiences before even applying for the job. Sometimes this means that we need to take special classes or work in a lower-level job that will allow us to garner the skills that we need.
Jesus does not put restrictions on those who are ready to come and follow him. Think of the disciples he called! Not one of them seemed to have that “Ivy League” resume. He didn’t say, go do this and then you may follow me. He called them from where they were, dirt, warts, and all. Come with me!
Jesus calls us in this way as well. We don’t have to be great Bible scholars to answer his call. We must simply admit our sinful ways and make the choice to follow him. When we claim Christ as our Lord and Savior, the Holy Spirit will enter our souls and begin to transform us into the ones we were created to be.
Both the Centurion and the Jewish leader believed in the healing power of Jesus and asked Jesus to heal their loved ones. The fact that one believed Jesus could heal with the speaking of a word and the other believed that by the laying on of hands Jesus could heal is not the important part of this story. The important part is a great faith that each man showed.
Gracious God, Thank You for loving us. We need You! Help us to trust and believe! Thank you! In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen
Thought for the day: Jesus will show compassion to me no matter what.
God accepts all who answer the call! Pastor Liz