“SUCH GREAT FAITH”
Second Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 4)
May 29, 2016
Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church
Glenshaw, Pennsylvania
TEXT:
Jesus . . . marveled at [the centurion], and turning to the crowd that
followed Him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such
faith”
Luke 7:9 (ESV)
One of my professors at the seminary once told us how, every year
around Thanksgiving, a number of first-year students would begin
having second thoughts about studying for the ministry. (I don’t
think it was any coincidence that he said this to a group of
first-year students shortly before Thanksgiving.) The reason given by
those having these second thoughts, he said, was that they didn’t
think that they had enough faith to be pastors. The professor was
quick to point out to us that there is a strange irony that we see in
the Gospels: Jesus repeatedly addresses His chosen disciples as “you
of little faith” (Matthew 6:30; Matthew 8:26; Matthew 14:31; Matthew
16:8; Luke 12:28) while He says of certain Gentiles and outcasts who
He never called to be disciples: “Not even in Israel have I found
such faith.” It is often surprising to see who has great faith and
who has little faith, just as it is often surprising that the Lord
Jesus chooses the people who He does to be His ambassadors and
representatives in the world.
What is it that makes a person’s faith great anyway? That’s a
question that could no doubt be debated until the end of time. Who is
more faithful, the person who is so sure that Jesus will come back at
any time that he just sits around waiting for Him or the person who is
so sure that Jesus will come back at any time that he busies himself
with the work that the Lord has given His people to do? Who has more
faith, the person who prays for healing and is sure that he will get
it or the person who prays for healing and knows that whatever he will
get is what will ultimately be best for him? These are not always
very easy questions to answer. They delve into the very essence of
faith. Rejoicing in the many examples of faith that the Word of God
shows us, let’s take a look this morning at the example of the
centurion in today’s Gospel to see what constitutes great faith in
Jesus’ eyes.
We can see the greatness of the centurion’s faith, first of all, in
the fact that he sought the aid of Jesus when he was in need. People
don’t ask someone for help unless they believe that the person who
they are asking is able and willing to help them. Not only did the
centurion seek the aid of Jesus; he approached the Lord through some
“elders of the Jews” (Luke 7:3). This must have been a very difficult
thing for this man to do. After all, he was a Roman and they were
Jews. He was their enemy. He was the victor and they were the
vanquished. They were his subjects, as a matter of fact. What’s
more, the “elders of the Jews” (Luke 7:3) represented the strongest
opposition to Roman rule that existed at that time and place. For
this centurion--this Roman military leader--to ask the “elders of the
Jews” (Luke 7:3) to contact Jesus for him and enlist His help in a
time of need required the swallowing of an awful lot of pride.
We can have that same kind of faith in Jesus, and in fact we do--the
kind of faith that swallows all pride and looks to the Lord in times
of need. We can especially have that kind of faith in regard to our
greatest need of all: our need for the forgiveness of our sins and
reconciliation with the righteous God whom we have offended. We can
have this kind of faith--and do have it--because the Holy Spirit has
given it to us through the means of grace: the Word of God
(specifically the Gospel) and the Sacraments (specifically Baptism).
It is in this faith that we humbly kneel before the Lord (as we did
this morning) and beg His forgiveness for the sake of our Savior’s
suffering and death. It is a humbling experience, to be sure--one in
which we describe ourselves as being “by nature sinful and unclean”
and admit that we “have sinned against [God] in thought, word, and
deed” and thereby “justly deserve [His] present and eternal
punishment” (Lutheran Service Book, page 151). But we dare to
approach Him nevertheless, because we know that the blood of His Son
is more powerful than our sin. We ask His forgiveness because we
believe that He will forgive us for the sake of His Son. That’s
faith.
The great faith of the centurion can be seen also in the fact that he
trusted so strongly in the Lord Jesus that he didn’t have to
personally see a miracle himself. “Lord, do not trouble Yourself,” he
says, “for I am not worthy to have You come under my roof” (Luke 7:6).
He then goes on to say that he understands authority, being a person
who is in authority and also under authority. He knows how authority
works. He doesn’t have to see Jesus heal his servant. He doesn’t
even have to understand how it is done, like people today might insist
on knowing the secret of a card trick. He knows that the authority of
Jesus over sickness and suffering--indeed over life and death
itself--is absolute. He has confidence that the authority of Jesus is
so absolute that the Lord can give him what he needs without even
coming into his home, where his servant lies ill. “Say the word,” he
says, “and let my servant be healed” (Luke 7:7). So strong is this
man’s faith in Christ that he doesn’t need to see any visible proof.
That’s the way it is with our faith in Jesus too. We don’t fully
understand all that He accomplished for us on the cross--and we can’t,
because it exceeds all human understanding. Indeed, from a human
perspective the sacrificial death of Jesus is “a stumbling block” and
“folly,” as the apostle says (1 Corinthians 1:23). A number of years
ago I read a book in which the author tried to explain the atonement
even as he honestly admitted that it couldn’t really be explained. He
presented a number of facets of it--satisfaction, substitution,
reconciliation--but in the end he acknowledged that what Christ did
for sinners is all of these things--and more--more than we can even
begin to fathom. Be that as it may, we can still believe in Christ
and trust that what He did for us on the cross delivers us from our
sin and its consequences--especially from the judgment of God that we
have earned by our sin. We can have this faith and confidence even if
others insist that it’s ridiculous--even if we ourselves still feel
guilty--even if it makes no sense to the human mind.
It was no accident or coincidence that Jesus pointed out the faith of
the centurion to the crowd of people standing by. Your faith is not
strictly your own. Neither is mine. It may be a personal thing but
it’s certainly not a private thing, no matter what the secularists of
our day might say. There is always a corporate dimension to faith.
Faith is not just for the benefit of the person who has it; it is also
to encourage others who share it. That’s why we come together for
public worship. That’s why we confess creeds together. True--we are
stating to the world (and perhaps especially to the enemies of the
Gospel) the faith into which we have been baptized, but we--the
baptized--are also speaking to one another the faith that unites us.
Whenever and wherever the Christian faith is confessed we are
encouraged, because it helps us to realize that we are not alone--that
we are not a bunch of individuals but rather the body of Christ.
Thank God for that--that He has surrounded us with “so great a cloud
of witnesses” (Hebrews 12:1), including the centurion of our text, for
our encouragement in the faith and our joy in the fellowship of the
saints.
Amen.
May the Lord bless your hearing of His Word, using it to accomplish in
you those things for which He gave it. May you be enriched and
strengthened in faith that you may leave here today to go out into our
world armed with the whole armor of God, prepared to be able
ambassadors of your Savior Jesus Christ. He who calls you is
faithful, and He will do it. Amen.