In the name of Christ Jesus, dear fellow redeemed people of God,

Jesus often said that his disciples had "little faith." Only twice did he say that someone had "great faith" and both of them were Gentiles. One was this centurion. Jesus said {9} "I have not found such great faith even in Israel." This Gentile soldier had great faith! Let us consider what was so great about this man's God-given faith, and let us also pray:

1. UNSELFISH (v.2-5)

This centurion was unselfish. A centurion was a commander of about 100 soldiers in the Roman army. He was an important man in the military. We would not expect him to be kind and gentle. We would expect him to have a nickname like, "Old blood and guts" or something like that. But this centurion was unselfish and kind. When he learned that his servant was sick and about to die, he cared. He probably saw men die all the time on the battlefield, yet he cared enough to try to help this servant. He had heard of Jesus, and he believed. So, he sent some Jewish elders to Jesus. His prayer was simply this: "Lord, heal my servant." He didn't have to do this. But faith moved him to be unselfish.

That's not all. The Jewish elders said, "He loves our nation." They didn't say that about every centurion! He loved the Jews because he loved the LORD who gave them such great promises in his Word. He didn't just say it or claim it. He put his money where his mouth was. He built the local Jewish synagogue. Apparently, he provided everything: the money, the material, the labor, and so on. He built their place of worship, their Bible Class center. He didn't have to. He could have looked at his position and his income and said, "This is mine!" But he was unselfish. He gave it so people could hear God's Word! That's faith. Faith is when you lay it at the Lord's feet and say, "Here, I want to worship you. I want to thank you for saving me."

It seems that the synagogue he built still stands as a testimony to his faith! Archaeologists excavated a site in the 1970's which is believed to be the very synagogue built by this centurion. Isn't that something? That synagogue remains as a constant testimony to this man's great faith. It was buried under dirt and sand for many years, but is now revealed as a memorial to God's work in this centurion's heart. Now, I ask you to consider this question: What will remain long after you are gone as a testament to your faith in Jesus?

Many people leave buildings behind that simply give glory to themselves. These are motivated by pride and selfishness. That's not what this centurion did. I'm not sure that this centurion was even allowed inside the synagogue he built! He was a Gentile. Yet, he believed in the Savior from sin, Jesus Christ. And Jesus said that he had great faith. This great faith moved him to be unselfish, humble and...

2. REPENTANT (v. 4,6-7)

The Jewish elders came to Jesus on the centurion's behalf and said, {4-5} "This man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue." Others said that he deserved this. But that's not what he said. He did not say, "Lord, I deserve it. Remember that big offering I gave." He did not even mention what he had done. Instead, he said, {6} "Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you." Wow! That's humility. That's repentance. He said, "I do not deserve to have you come under my roof." He knew his sins. He did not consider himself worthy to have Jesus enter his home. Great faith is humble and repentant.

Do we deserve God's blessings? Do we deserve what we have? Have you ever considered what we really deserve from God? What we really deserve is God's wrath and punishment. We deserve to be condemned for our sins. We do not deserve to go to heaven. Yet, it is not my life or your life, which wins God's favor and forgiveness. It is the perfect life of Jesus Christ. It is not my death or your death which atones for sin and wins our forgiveness. It is the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross. He lived a perfect life for us. He died on the cross to pay for all of our sins. He rose from death because he had won our forgiveness. Whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved, but whoever does not believe shall be condemned. May we have faith in Christ, and then, we will be saved in the final judgment and we will live forever in heaven! We pray: Lord, give us great faith, faith that is...

3. TRUSTING (v. 3,7-8)

That's what faith really is: trust. It is trusting in someone or something. We trust that our chairs will hold us up. If you get in a plane, you are trusting that it will carry you safely. But the only kind of trust that saves is trust in Jesus Christ. That's what this centurion had. Somehow, he had heard of Jesus. Someone must have told him about Jesus. Maybe it was someone just like you! He heard of Jesus and believed in Jesus. He believed that Jesus could do miracles. He believed that Jesus could help his dying servant. He trusted Jesus enough to seek his help. But that's not all.

Most people would have expected Jesus to come to the servant and wave his arms around. Not this centurion. His faith was great. He believed Jesus had the power to work through his Word. He said, {7b-8} Say the word, and my servant will be healed. {8} For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." He believed that Jesus had the power and authority to just say the word and heal his servant. He believed that Jesus could heal from a distance. He believed that Jesus could simply say a word, or give a command, and heal his servant. He was right. This showed great faith.

"Say the word," is much different from what one other man said. In Mark chapter nine we find a man who had a son who was possessed. The man did seek Jesus' help. But he said, "If you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." This might sound like a good prayer, but it was a very poor one. Jesus replied, "If you can?" If you can? This was an insult, as if Jesus lacked the power to do a miracle. The centurion was not saying, "Lord, help my servant, IF YOU CAN." Instead he said, "Lord, just say the word." He knew Jesus could do it. When we pray, we should not say, "Lord, if you can," but "if it is your will." God said the word, and created the whole universe. He commanded a storm to stop, and it stopped. He raised the dead. He healed the sick. He had the power then, and he has the power now. Do not doubt that God can answer your prayers! He can do anything he wants to do!

Do you believe this? How great is your faith? Too often, we doubt. In meetings, the talk turns to the financial deficit, and soon people doubt that this or that can be done. Look, if it's the Lord's will, it can be done! When we pray, we should believe, and not doubt! God can do anything he wants to do. If we all pray that the Lord would bring us 100 students for our school, who's to say it can't be done? If we all pray that the Lord would bring us 50 people to take the next Bible Information Class, who will say it can't be done? But, have we even been praying about this?! It takes faith to notice. It takes faith to care. It takes faith to even think to pray about it. It takes faith to act in love. How great is your faith?!

The centurion had great faith. He believed that if Jesus just said the word, it would be done. And the Lord healed the servant, without even going there. Jesus had the power! He still has the power! But, do we have the faith. Too often, our Lord would say to us, "Oh, you of little faith." Are you satisfied with little faith? Hear God's powerful Word. And pray: "Lord, give us great faith too!" Amen.