2-Dec-19

Gospel MT 8:5-11

When Jesus entered Capernaum,
a centurion approached him and appealed to him, saying,
"Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully."
He said to him, "I will come and cure him."
The centurion said in reply,
"Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof;
only say the word and my servant will be healed.
For I too am a man subject to authority,
with soldiers subject to me.
And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes;
and to another, 'Come here,' and he comes;
and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him,
"Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.
I say to you, many will come from the east and the west,
and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven."

Reflection

When Jesus entered Capernaum,
a centurion approached him and appealed to him, saying,
"Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully."

He said to him, "I will come and cure him."

Jesus shows no partiality. It was of no concern whether the sick person was a Jew, a Gentile, a pagan, or one of His own followers; His immediate reaction was to heal.

There’s a beautiful child’s drawing that speaks of the sad state of the world. The drawing is a globe with the various countries separated by colored lines. The little girl who drew the picture asks a question; “Dear Lord, who drew the lines around your family?”

Oh that we should be as quick as Jesus to heal the broken hearted and the sick and suffering without regard for where they come from.

The centurion said in reply,
"Lord, I am not worthy to have you enter under my roof;
only say the word and my servant will be healed.
For I too am a man subject to authority,
with soldiers subject to me.
And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes;
and to another, 'Come here,' and he comes;
and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it."

The centurion was not a Jew, but being a man of “authority”, he recognized power and authority and immediately saw Jesus as a person who had the power and compassion to heal.

When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him,
"Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.
I say to you, many will come from the east and the west,
and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven."

The “paralyzed” servant who was “suffering dreadfully” would have been a Jew serving a centurion, a Gentile.

Most likely the servant would have prayed to Yahweh, the God of his people. As he suddenly found himself miraculously cured, perhaps the words of Psalm 30 escaped his lips as he prayed.
“O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me.”

“Under the sky, under the heavens there is but one family.” Bruce Lee