God, This is Way Out of My League Scripture Reading: Luke 7:1-10 Following Jesus doesn’t mean you have to become a mushy man who sings “Jesus, I’m so in love with you.” Loving Jesus requires action; it takes guts to say ‘yes’ to Jesus anytime and anywhere because we have to let go of our do-it-myself attitude and let Him lead. The centurion in Luke 7 learned this well. When I picture a roman centurion, I think of a 1st century man’s man: captain to a hundred soldiers, authoritative, commanding respect, a guy who gets the job done. Surprisingly, the centurion Jesus met wasn’t proud and overly confident, but humble and willing to totally depend on Jesus. He was at the end of his rope. His beloved servant had been sick for quite some time. I’m sure he’d tried all the known remedies of his day, but nothing had worked. He was used to having a hundred soldiers jump at his command, but he couldn’t command healing. That was way out of his league. But then Jesus came to town, and He was the miracle worker everyone had been raving about, so the centurion humbled himself and pleaded with Jesus for a miracle. Jesus compassionately healed the servant from a distance and the centurion’s faith gained legendary status. Why was his faith so exemplary? The passage indicates three reasons. 1. He had come to the end of himself. The situation drove him to utter dependence on Jesus. He surrendered himself to Jesus’ greater authority without reservation. 2. He took Jesus at his word: “…But say the word, and let my servant be healed.” (Luke 7:7b, ESV) Hearing Jesus give the order was all the assurance he needed. 3. He felt completely unworthy to be blessed by Jesus: “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. Therefore I did not presume to come to you. ” (Luke 7:6b-7a, ESV) The synagogue leaders praised his philanthropy to Jesus, but he knew he was a gentile with no entitlement to a blessing. As a centurion, he was tasked with enforcing Israel’s subservience to Rome, so he felt a miracle would be an undeserved gift to him as an outsider. So what does this story teach us about being a man of faith? 1. It means we’re humble enough to totally depend on His power; the do-it-myself attitude must die. 2. It means we’re brave enough to take Jesus at His word; there’s no room for second guessing His orders. 3. It means we live by grace; entitlement and self-righteousness have no place. We deserve nothing good from God and our accomplishments don’t make us worthy. Jesus showed up in our lives free of charge; He’s prepaid our entire journey with Him. All He asks is that we “follow and obey Him.” “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” (Psalm 20:7, ESV) Father, living this Christian life is really beyond me. I desperately need your strength and power. I chose today to take you at your word and to follow you bravely. It’s such an honor to serve you; I don’t even deserve to, but you’ve called and equipped me to lead others to you. I’m all in. Questions: What are you facing right now that is beyond your ability to figure out? How can you demonstrate that you are choosing to bravely trust God for the solution?
Posted on: Mon, 05 Aug 2013 03:07:26 +0000
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