“13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, ‘Go! It will be done just as you believed it would.” (Matthew 8:13, NKJV, Pp. 1481).
Is it true that anything is possible for the Lord? Is it possible that we all have this magical healing power deep within us that when Jesus conveniences us to just believe in him we are miraculously healed? Is there anything he cannot do, anyone he cannot heal? Well, according to the Bible, and certainly this Roman centurion would exclaim that this man, his enemy, is indeed the Lord, and that there is nothing he cannot do for you if you have enough faith in Him.
“5 When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help, 6 ‘Lord’, he said, ‘my servant lies at home paralyzed and in terrible suffering.’ 7 Jesus said to him, ‘I will go heal him.’ 8 The centurion replied, ‘Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 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 ”(Matthew 8:5-9, NKJV, Pp.1480- 1481).
This Roman, commander of many, did not have to find Jesus in order to have his servant healed. He could have just as easily sent one of his many soldiers to find Jesus and bring him to his house. But instead we see that this Roman Centurion found the Lord himself, on behalf of his servant. This act stands out because it was an act done out of deep love for his servant. How many of us would have sent someone else to go fetch the doctor? This centurion makes a point in telling Jesus that he is undeserving to have him in his house, but instead he tells Jesus to say the words for his servant to be healed, and with just that proclamation he would believe it. How many of us today would be strong enough to have such faith? The miraculous thing is that this centurion was a believer first, roman second. He was a gentile and in many ways the enemy of the Jewish people at that time, and for him to exhibit such faith makes anyone one of his time, let alone of our time pale in comparison. But from this centurion, he exhibits the qualities needed to accept Jesus, and to believe that Jesus is the master of the impossible, for he demonstrated unshakable faith and love which is the prerequisite for miracles.
“10 When Jesus heard this, he was astonished and said to those following him, ‘I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith. 11 I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing teeth. 13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, ‘Go! It will be done just as you believed it would.’ And his servant was healed at that very hour” (Matthew 8:13, NKJV, Pp. 1481).
However, it was not just this servant, not just this one centurion, but countless people who found Jesus and asked for his healing touch, each and every one of them healed. Each and every one of them exhibited faith first, and found Gods love second being poured out over them in a healing embrace of agape love and nurturing grace. The list is very extensive ranging from Lepers, paraplegics, blind, demonically possessed, adults and children alike consumed in fevers, and all who were on their death bed, stretching across all four gospels, and on into Acts. The impact of faith as it is connected to healing is undisputable, but amazingly people today find ways not to believe. They hear that their disease is insurmountable, or that they have to take drugs that will alter their looks, hiding behind the shame of whatever ails them instead of openly accepting it, and then having faith in God, in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who can heal them.
In retrospect the greatest example I can find in the bible is the death of Jesus himself. His body beaten and broken, the life sucked out of him, and his blood spilled all over Israel and still he rose the third day, his body renewed. Jesus’s faith in his father was the miracle, because Jesus knew what was to happen and it was on faith he would rise again, as God did not reveal all the mysteries to his son. Much like God doesn’t reveal all the mysteries to us. It is often times in our deepest, darkest, depression, and sickness is it then we have the strength to find God, because everything else has been stripped away. God is love, therefore he wants your healing, and he wants your faith in him. It is the most logical act we can do, but it is the hardest to master. We can be healed if we allow ourselves to believe in God, and let his hand touch our hearts, and make us whole. There is nothing too big for God, nothing to complicated, nothing to crooked that God cannot make it straight again. There is no wound, no emotional hurt that He does not have the cure for. Simply put, there is nothing he cannot do if only you believe.
I want to dedicate this special posting to two people who I know and who are currently fighting two different but equally devastation and life threatening diseases. Both of these people are members of our larger faith community and I just wanted to reach out to them today with this message of hope, and to let them know we all here are praying for them each and every day for thier speedy recovery. Normally I would mention their names, but their families have asked that I do not reveal their names, at least for now. I also promise to keep everyone here at Listening Faithfully posted to their recovery.
Amen
If you have been moved by this blog I humbly invite you to leave a message telling me your thoughts and how this reflection has touched you. May peace and love be with you all the days of your life. May God keep you and bless you.
You’re the greatset! JMHO