In his work, Mere Christianity, author C.S. Lewis presents the readers with three options regarding the identity of Jesus Christ. These three options are often paraphrased as: Liar, Lunatic, or Lord. Jesus was either a liar in that he knew what he was saying was false, he was a lunatic in that what he was saying was false but he believe it to be true, or he was who he claimed to be: God. If the first two are true, we need to run far away from Jesus: listen to nothing that he said. If the last is true, then we should fall on our knees and believe.
In today’s Gospel we read about the Centurion with an ill slave. He seeks out Jesus knowing that Jesus could heal his servant. It is clear that this Centurion believed that Jesus is Lord. Out of that believe flowed great faith. It is the faith of the Centurion that allowed his slave to be healed. If we too believe that Jesus is Lord, then the faith of the Centurion is the faith we all should strive to have.
Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant – Luke 7 : 1-10
After he had ended all his sayings in the hearing of the people he entered Caper′na-um. Now a centurion had a slave who was dear to him, who was sick and at the point of death. When he heard of Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his slave. And when they came to Jesus, they besought him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he built us our synagogue.” And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying to him, “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. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. For I am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this he marveled at him, and turned and said to the multitude that followed him, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave well.
Scriptural Analysis
Centurions were important men during the time of Jesus. They commanded a garrison of troops and had to be great leaders: steady and reliable. They were men who were well respected. In particular, in Luke’s writings, they are portrayed in a positive light. This particular Centurion encountered in this story was likely not a Roman Centurion instead serving under Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee who ruled that region as a client of Rome. Regardless., the Centurion is definitely a Gentile which makes this encounter all the more intriguing.
The Centurion had a very unusual attitude towards his slave. According to Roman law, slaves were property. Owners could do whatever they wanted to their salves including killing them. Slaves had no more rights than a piece of farm equipment. In fact, a Roman guide on estate management recommended that one should examine their equipment each year and discarding the broken equipment, including salves. When slaves were no longer of use, the common practice was to throw them out to die. The fact that this Centurion cared for this slave enough to seek out Jesus was extraordinary.
The Centurion was clearly religious. One has to have more than a passing interest in a religion to go through the effort of constructing a Synagogue. Additionally, he has as unusual attitude towards the Jewish people. At the time of Christ, the Gentiles hated the Jewish people. In fact, the Romans considered the Jewish people to be a filthy race of people. However, in this story we see none of that. In face, we see the Jewish elders approaching Jesus on the behalf of this man. Clearly, there was a respect between this Centurion and the Jewish people in Capernaum.
This Centurion was also a humble man. The Jewish people were permitted from entering the house of a Gentile and likewise could not allow a Gentile to enter their home. This Centurion respected this prohibition even though in his position he could have done whatever he wanted to do.
Lastly this Centurion was a man of faith. He believed that Jesus could heal his servant. Seeking out Jesus wasn’t the equivalent of playing the lottery: taking a chance that he might get lucky and something good would happen. His faith was so strong that he believed that Jesus could heal his slave. In fact, his confidence was so high that he had faith that Jesus could heal his salve without even seeing him.
Do We Have Faith?
The question that enters my mind as I hear about this encounter with the Centurion is wether or not I have the same kind of faith that he does. To really understand that question, we must consider what faith is. In the Letter to the Hebrews, faith is defined as: “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Hope is that which we desire to happen in life. Faith is that which we trust will actually happen. For example, if I were to purchase a lottery ticket, I am hoping that I win. If I went out after purchasing the ticket and agreed to buy a new Ferrari because I had confidence that I would win, that is faith.
The Centurion had faith. He knew that Jesus could save his slave if he so desired. There was no doubt in his mind. That is why Jesus comments on the faith of this Gentile in comparison to the Jewish people he had been preaching to. This Centurion had the assurance that what he hoped for would be.
Many of us struggle to have the kind of faith that the Centurion has. We want to have the assurance that what we hoped for will be but doubt clouds our minds. I think part of the problem is how we approach the Lord in prayer. We often approach with the solution in mind: “Lord, do this for me.” The this, is often very specific in nature as well. God does answer all prayers but he answers them in the time and in the way that he knows is best for us. If we approach the Lord with the solution in mind, when things don’t transpire according to what we think is best, that can begin to erode that assurance that the things hoped for will be.
To have the faith of the Centurion we must first change how we pray to God. For example, “God I am ill. If you so desire please heal me of this affliction. Not my will be done but yours.” In this prayer, I am not presupposing what God will do. I am asking for what I would like, but in the end, desiring first and foremost that God’s will be done. Having to face the illness may in fact be what is best for me. Note, we should not purposefully seek out suffering but willingly accepting suffering that comes my way can lead to growth in the virtues. Therefore, by not granting a miraculous physical healing, God does indeed heal me spiritually. My prayer was answered not according to my design but his.
Once we shift how we pray from demanding a solution to a problem, to asking that the will of God to be done, we will begin to notice on a more frequent basis just how our prayers are being answered. This happens because we are no longer blinded looking for a specific answer: the one we wanted. Rather, it frees us to recognize the answer he provides. The more that happens, the greater our assurance that what we hoped for will be. This will lead to an increase in faith. Overtime, our faith will grow to be like the Centurions. Then, we will truly experience the assurance that what we hoped for will actually be.
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