When the Lord God gives his servants
direction as to how to preach, how to minister to his people,
he opens the 40th chapter of Isaiah with these words, Comfort
ye, comfort ye my people. Gospel preaching, while it exposes
our sin, Paulette makes us to know our desperate need of Christ
is designed and intended of God to be the means by which his
people are comforted in this world. Well, how do you do that? He says, speak ye comfortably
to Jerusalem. That is, speak comfortably to
my elect, to my people. The word comfortably in that
prophecy is a word that declares plainly that the preacher can't
possibly do what he must do. God says, speak ye to the heart
of my people. I can't do it. I can't do it. Oh, but if God will speak through
me, he'll speak to your heart. Speak ye to the heart of Jerusalem. Cry to her. Declare incessantly
her warfare is accomplished. The Lord Jesus Christ put an
end to the warfare. The Lord God Almighty took up
the cause on behalf of his people in their warfare against him
and settled the issue for he has reconciled us to himself.
Tell her that her iniquity is pardoned. We come preaching the
gospel to sinners. You who are without Christ, I
come here tonight to declare to you not the possibility of
redemption, not the possibility of salvation, not the possibility
of grace, but to declare to you that every sinner who by God's
grace is given faith to look to Christ right now, his iniquity
is pardoned. It's already done. It's already
done. And she hath received the Lord's
hand. for all her sins. The Lord Jesus
Christ has not only satisfied the wrath and justice of God
for our sins and thoroughly purged away our sins so that we stand
before God pardoned, justified from all things, he has given
to us perfect righteousness before God. Now that's his word to all
who believe. I trust that God will be pleased
now to speak to our hearts by his word again tonight. Turn
with me, if you will, to Luke, the seventh chapter. Our text tonight will be verses
one through ten. Here the Holy Spirit gives us
the account of a certain centurion, his remarkable character, his
great faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. and the healing of his
sick servant by the mere will of Christ, because his master
believed God. This Roman soldier said to the
Lord Jesus, I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my
roof, neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee. But
say in a word, what remarkable faith. Say in a word, and my
servant shall be healed. I wonder if there's any here
with such faith tonight. If so, join me and pray that
the Lord Jesus will but say in a word that he may but speak
the word only and cause poor, sin-sick souls to be healed this
hour by the power of his grace. Now, we read this morning Matthew's
account of this same event in Matthew chapter 8. And if you
read the two together, you can't help but to notice that there
appears to be some discrepancies that the critics and the learned
scholars jump on like a duck on a June bug and think they
can refute the validity of the word of God. Because Matthew
speaks as though the centurion himself came to the master, had
an interview with the master, and the Lord Jesus spoke to the
centurion personally, and the centurion spoke to him personally. Now understand when you read
the scriptures, that especially with the gospel writers, you
have four different men who were eyewitnesses of things, giving
account of the same events. And if you were to go to a court
of law and listen to four witnesses describe exactly the same event,
you would hear them each speak truthfully and honestly, and
yet as you hear them, you hear them say different things. Not
conflicting things, but different things. If they saw the same
thing, if they are honest witnesses, their account is honest and true,
though their accounts may not exactly appear to be exactly
the same. Now certainly that's the case
with anyone writing any event he has seen and someone else
writing about the same event. In Matthew's account, it appears
that Matthew is describing an interview by the centurion with
the Lord Jesus and the Lord Jesus with him personally. Luke speaks
only of the centurion sending messengers. Now there are two
possible ways to account for that. Either of them is perfectly
acceptable. One, it's quite possible, and
I think probably this is the case, the centurion sent his
messengers to the master, him being a man under authority,
and they spoke for him exactly that which he had given them
to tell. I stand here as God's messenger
to you. And if God speaks through these
lips to your heart, it's not just me speaking, but God speaking.
The word spoken is not just my word, but God's word. And so
as I speak to you, as we have read earlier in that passage
in Isaiah, the Lord God spoke, but it was Isaiah who was doing
talking. He spoke and said, comfort you, comfort you, my people.
So when the centurion's servants came, or his messengers came
and spoke for him, it's the same as if he were himself speaking.
Or perhaps both the centurion sent his messengers to speak
to the master, and then when the master approached his home
and the messenger spoke again, the centurion himself also came
out and spoke. In either case, Matthew is simply
giving us an abbreviated account of exactly the same thing. And
so there's no discrepancy whatsoever. Tonight we'll focus our attention
on Luke's narrative, here in Luke chapter 7. Hold your Bibles
open and follow with me as we go through these 10 verses. Now when he had ended his sayings,
when the Lord Jesus had finished preaching, that message which
is recorded for us in Mark or in Luke chapter 6 verses 20 down
through the end of the chapter in verse 48, The Lord Jesus had
spoken this word on the mount, or rather, in the plain, and
this sermon preached in the plain contained three basic points. First, the Lord Jesus spoke to
us concerning the blessed privilege of suffering for the gospel sake. And he says, you count this to
be your honor, your privilege, when you, for Christ's sake,
are called upon to suffer. For the gospel sake, you're abused,
and you suffer loss on account of it. And then in verses 21
through 38, our Lord warns us sternly and strongly of the danger
of false faith and false religion. He says you've got to find a
way to deal with real issues, hard issues. The things of God
are inward spiritual things. We don't just deal with the outward
fruit, but with the root of the tree. And no matter how good
the fruit looks, if the tree's bad, the fruit's bad. So be sure
you know God in your heart. And then our Lord spoke plainly
as well concerning the matter of our proper foundation. He
tells us we must be built upon that rock, that foundation which
God Almighty has laid, which is Jesus Christ himself. After
the Lord had finished all his sayings then, in the audience
of the people, he entered into Capernaum. He had spoken as one
with authority. He didn't preach like the scribes
and Pharisees, but rather he spoke with authority. And now
he comes to Capernaum to demonstrate not only that he speaks with
authority, but that his word is the word of omnipotent power,
the word of God Almighty. He comes to Capernaum to show
the efficacy of his grace in the healing of this centurion
servant. Capernaum. What a blessed place
it was. In Matthew chapter 11, our Lord
says Capernaum is exalted to heaven. You see, it was in Capernaum
that our Lord performed more miracles, more wondrous works
than in any other place upon the earth. By virtue of the fact
that the Lord Jesus came there so often, by virtue of the fact
that he so often worked his wonders before the people of Capernaum,
he said Capernaum is exalted to heaven. He had already healed
the nobleman's son there. We read about it in the last
part of John chapter 4. In all probability, the centurion
had heard, hadn't the Lord Jesus had healed that nobleman's son?
Perhaps, perhaps he was very familiar with the nobleman himself.
Perhaps he had even witnessed the healing. Now then, look at
verse 2. And a certain centurion, I find
it interesting. that the gospel writers don't
record us his name, they simply tell us a certain centurion.
Always the objects of God's grace are certain people, chosen of
God, redeemed by his grace, by his blood, and called by his
grace. A certain centurion servant who
was dear unto him was sick and ready to die. Now try to grasp
what Luke is writing about. Here's a Roman soldier. Not just
a Roman soldier, but an experienced Roman officer. He's a centurion. That means he had at least a
hundred men under his command. A hundred men for whom he was
responsible, a hundred men who were under his direct orders.
This Roman soldier was a Gentile. He was a soldier, and yet he
was a believer. As old John Bunyan put it, a
Roman soldier was the first fruit of the Gentile world. And here
the Holy Spirit tells us three things concerning this centurion
servant. First, he says he was dear to
him. Now look that word dear up. It
means that this centurion, this master, this powerful man, this
man who has a hundred men under his command, it means that he
honored his servant. and counted him precious because
he loved him. What a master. What a master. His servant was dear to him.
I can never speak powerfully enough, as the experience of
this centurion servant certainly does speak, but I can never speak
powerfully enough of the great advantage and the blessed privilege
of dwelling in the home of one who believes God. walks with
God, worships God, and honors God. Oh, sons and daughters of God
Almighty, listen to me. In every decision you make in
life, in every choice you make in life, let nothing take you
away from the fellowship of God's people and the influence of God's
church and His family. Don't let it do it. Your mothers
and daughters, you raise your sons and you seek a good life
for them. We want to see our children,
our sons and daughters, we want to see them educated and well
settled and see them have a good, stable future. In all things you seek for your
children, seek first and foremost that which is good for their
souls. And you who are here tonight, worshiping God, listening to
the gospel, Some worldly advantage comes your way, some opportunity
comes your way by which you think, well I can move up, I can move
up the ladder a little bit here. Don't let anything take you away
from the influence of the gospel and the people of God. Here is
this servant in the house of this centurion and oh how blessed
he was because his master loved God. His master believed God. Because he was in this man's
house, Bob, rather than dying, he lived. Because he was in the
care of this man who believed God, rather than perishing with
his sickness, the Son of God came to him and touched him and
healed him. This man's servant was sick,
very, very sick. What a picture that is. of you
who are yet without Christ. Spiritually, you're like this
manservant. There's a plague of death in
your heart, a spiritual palsy in your soul. There's a tormenting
fever of guilt that causes you uneasiness constantly, day and
night. Oh, I don't mean that you're
not religious. But religion won't take away
the plague. I don't mean that you haven't had religious experiences,
but religious experiences won't heal the palsy. I don't mean
that you haven't had religious good feelings, but religious
good feelings won't remove the tormenting fever of guilt. That
takes the blood and righteousness of Christ. That takes life from
God Almighty. And then thirdly, this centurion
servant was ready to die at the very point of death. I worked on this this week and
I kept coming back to this passage. It was in our scripture reading
earlier in the week. I wonder which of you are where
this man was at the point of death. What an awesome, shocking thought.
It may be the farthest thing from your mind right now. As
I looked at the passage and thought concerning this, This past week I was in the company
of two dear friends that I fully expect to die before I do. Oh,
what a mistake. What a mistake. Our breath is
in our nostrils and God controls it. If you die without Christ, you'll
perish forever in hell. And then Holding on to a name,
a religious experience, holding on to a feeling, holding on to
a profession of faith will only add to the torments of your soul.
It will do you no good. You must have Christ. You must
have Christ. You must be washed in His blood,
robed in His righteousness, born of His Spirit. Oh, God help you
to take refuge in Him who alone is the refuge God has set for
guilty sinners, in whom alone is found wisdom, righteousness,
sanctification, and redemption. Alright, now look at verse 3. And when we heard of Jesus, we're not told how, but somehow
this centurion or soldier heard about the Lord Jesus. Perhaps
he had been present to hear the sermon in the plane that's recorded
in chapter 6. Maybe he had heard a report of
the gospel from someone else. Perhaps he had heard about the
Lord Jesus as a result of the healing of that nobleman's son
in John chapter 4 earlier in Capernaum. How he heard is unimportant. What is important is that he
heard of Jesus. That's what's really important.
You see, God sent his word to him. Oh, what a privilege. God the Holy Spirit had given
him a hearing ear, a seeing eye, and a believing heart. I have
no way of knowing how much knowledge he had. Again, that's unimportant. It's insignificant. But I do
know who he knew. He knew the Lord Jesus Christ,
and knowing the Lord Jesus Christ, He knew God Almighty as He has
made Himself known in the face of Jesus Christ. That's what
eternal life is. This is life eternal, that they
might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou
hast sent. Do you know God? How do you know about Him? Now
do you know His doctrine? You can't know Him without knowing
about Him. You can't know Him without knowing His doctrine.
But life is knowing Him. And the only way you'll ever
know Him is in the face of Jesus Christ. And the only way you'll
ever know His Son is if He sends His Word by the power of His
grace into your heart. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing
by the Word of God. Alright, read on, verse 3. When
he had heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews. I looked at that just a little
bit ago. I was reminded again of Martha and Mary. Oh, what
wisdom. When you have trouble and difficulty,
when you've got real needs, needs that really nobody else can take
care of, it won't do you any good sin for the preacher. It
won't do you any good to sin for the psychiatrist. It won't
do you any good to sin for some more medicine. If you've got
needs that only the master can heal, sin for him. Martha and
Mary sent word to the Lord Jesus when Lazarus was sick. They said,
Lord, heal whom thou lovest is sick. This centurion sends messengers
to the master. And this he sends with this word,
beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant. And
when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, earnestly,
saying that he was worthy for whom he should do this, for he
loves our nation and has built us a synagogue. Now this centurion
was a man of remarkable character. He was gracious and kind. He
was a generous man. His faith was the true faith
which only God can give, faith which works by love. He was a
man of blameless reputation. He was a man of such magnanimous
goodness in the eyes of men that the Jewish leaders, these elders,
these pious, self-righteous Pharisees, they didn't hesitate to say to
the Son of God, He's worthy for you to do whatever He wants you
to do. Now that betrayed their ignorance, but it also demonstrates
the character of the man himself. This man, they said, is worthy,
so that before the eyes of men, his life was such that men looked
at him and declared him by reputation to be blameless. We're told here
that he loved his servant. Many came to the Lord Jesus seeking
mercy for others. We read in the New Testament
that one came seeking mercy for his son. Another came seeking
mercy for her daughter. On one occasion, four men came
to the Lord Jesus with their sick friend, seeking mercy for
their friend. This is the only man recorded
in all the Word of God who came seeking mercy for a servant.
Oh, what a gracious man. He loved his neighbors. This
Roman soldier who was typically would be a man the Jews would
despise, typically would be a man the Jews would look at as being
an oppressor. But this Roman soldier who holds
a garrison of a hundred soldiers under him, he loves our nation,
they said. This man, he loves our nation,
the Jews. And then this man was devoted
to the worship and service of God. They said, he's built us
a house of worship. He built us a synagogue. Here
in Capernaum is a Roman soldier who so believes God and is so
devoted to the worship of God that he built a place of worship.
And really the word, he hath built for us, really means this. This man, at his own expense
alone, built us a church building. This man, because of his concern
for the things of God and the worship of God, at his own expense,
built right here a house of worship. The centurion's faith, you see,
was more than creeds, confessions, and rituals. He did not merely
say he believed God, he lived as one who believed God. His
love toward God and toward men was not lip love, but rather
was deed love. He acted accordingly. I pray
for the kind of grace this man exemplified. I want to deal with people in
kindness. God teach me to be kind, tenderly
caring for them. I pray that God will give me
a hand ready to help, a heart ready to feel, and a will ready
to do good wherever opportunity affords itself to others. I want
to learn to weep with those that weep. and rejoice with those
that rejoice. We place great value on insignificant things, usually. Kindness? Oh, now that's something
significant. Kindness is one thing everybody
who experiences it knows it. It's one thing that everybody
who needs it appreciates it. Kindness adorns and commends
the doctrine of God our Savior. I hear fellas, it's especially
true with young pups, you know, they're full of vehement vigor,
and you can't teach them anything, but they got it. They got it.
And they go about trying to witness to folks mean. I think, man, shut up. Don't
say anything. Just be kind. That's not a compromise
of the gospel. Kindness is not compromise. Kindness
is the way our Lord behaved. Kindness is the way the grace
of God teaches us to behave. Kindness reflects the character
of Christ. Kindness is the one way every
one of us can spread a little happiness in somebody's life
that's full of sorrow and woe. Just a little kindness. Just
a little kindness. Had this servant of this centurion
died of the sickness that possessed him, he would at least have enjoyed
the privilege of dying in the house of a man who dealt with
him kindly. Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, even as God, for Christ's sake, hath
forgiven you. And walk in love one toward another. Alright, look at verse 7. Then Jesus went with them. And
when he was not now far from the house, the centurion sent
friends to him, more messengers saying unto him, Lord, trouble
not yourself. What humility! He says, now Lord,
I wanted your grace. I wanted you to be merciful to
my servant. I wanted you to heal here. That's
what I want. I didn't mean to be a bother. I didn't mean to disturb you.
I didn't mean to trouble you. He says, trouble not yourself,
for I am not worthy. Now he speaks differently than
his friend spoke about him. They said, here's a man worthy
that God himself should do whatever he asks of him. But this centurion
knew God. They only knew him. He says,
I'm not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof. Wherefore
neither thought I myself worthy to come to you. I sent messengers
to you because I recognize I'm not worthy to come to you. But
say in a word, and my servant shall be healed." I'll be honest with you. I don't
know of a stronger confession of faith anywhere in the full
Gospels than that right there. This man says, Lord, I'm not
worthy that you should come here. I don't even think I'm worthy
to come to you and ask for anything. All I ask is for mercy for my
servant, not for me, for my servant. Just say the word and it will
be done. I know that. I know that. Here
is a display of genuine humility, yes. Believers you see know their
unworthiness before God and they confess it. All believers do. We don't stand around and put
on a pretentious show of piety and humility. We don't stand
around and talk about, you know, oh, I feel so unworthy. That's
not it. But West believers know their
unworthiness. They know it and confess it before
God. They know it. Others may look
at the child of God and applaud him for his good deeds, applaud
him for his faith, applaud him for his faithfulness. Others
are impressed with what they see, but the believer knows something
about what's inside. Let me give you an example. The believer sees himself in
the light of God's worthiness. He sees himself in the light
of God's righteousness. When the Lord came to Moses and
said, I'm going to send you down to Egypt. I'm going to take you
back down there, and you're going to bring my people out of bondage.
You, you will be that prophet of whom there shall be, or in
whom there is a type, representation, and picture of him who is prophet,
priest, and king in Israel, the Lord Jesus Christ. And Moses
knew that. He wrote about it himself. How
did Moses respond? Man, I'm ready, I've been waiting
on this all my life. This is what I've been waiting
for. Oh no. He said, God sent somebody besides
me. I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't talk. I'm tongue-tied. I have a stammering
tongue. David heard God's promise. He said, I'm going to raise up
out of your loins the King of Israel, the Lord Jesus Christ,
the Son of God to sit on the throne of glory forever in human
flesh. What a word! And David's immediate
response, My God, who am I? What is my house that you should
look so favorably upon me? Mephibosheth exemplified the
same spirit when David called him and told him he was going
to do him good for Jonathan's sake, that he was going to dwell
in his house all the days of his life, eat at the king's table,
have his broken legs covered. Mephibosheth said, why should you be so gracious
to such a dead dog as I am? That's the language here. Isaiah,
when he saw the Lord, he had for five chapters, I mean, Isaiah
1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, he had been sticking his finger in everybody's
face saying, Woe is you! Woe is you! Woe is you! Then
he saw God and he said, Woe is me. Woe is me. Peter heard the Lord speak, and
when he began to understand, he said, Depart from me, Lord,
for I am a sinful man. The Apostle Paul, he said, I'm
less than the least of all the saints. And before he got done,
he said, I'm chief of sinners. Remarkable, genuine humility.
He says, Lord, I'm not worthy. I'm not worthy. We recognize
in Christ our worthiness before God, but in ourselves, none at
all. Now, here's a remarkable expression
of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. say in a word and my servant
shall be healed." Here the centurion acknowledges what very few people
in his day realized and what very few people in our day realize
as well. He understood that the man standing
in front of him, that man Jesus of Nazareth is indeed God in
human flesh. What word, except the Word of
God, can give life where there's death? What word, except the
Word of God, can overcome sickness and give health? Not a touch,
not a handling, just a Word! Just speak the Word. Sing the
Word, and my servant will be healed. This centurion gives
much, much more than a bare acknowledgment of Christ's eternal deity. Look
at verse 8. For I also am a man set under
authority." He says, the king, Caesar, he's made me to be a
centurion. And he's put under my dominion
100 men. Now look at it. Having under
me soldiers. And I say to one, go, and he
doesn't stand around and argue. He goes. And I say to another,
come, and he doesn't raise any objection, he just comes. And
to my servant, do this, and he does it. Now let me tell you
what he said. He said, Lord, I recognize that
you're God Almighty, and I recognize that you're the sovereign of
the universe. that all things are just clay
in your hands and you can do with them what you will. I recognize
that every creature under heaven is your servant. All you have
to do is say to your servant, go and he'll go, come and he'll
come, do this and he'll do it. I understand that life and death
are at your command. I understand that sickness and
health are at your command. He here acknowledges that Jesus
Christ, the Lord Jesus Christ, is God omniscient, who knows
all things. God omnipresent, who is everywhere
present. So he says, there's no need for
you to come and ask me. You're there alright. And he
recognizes that he's God omnipotent. He has all power. He believed
that the man who stood on the sands of Capernaum is sovereign
Lord of heaven and earth. Now look at verse 9. And when
Jesus heard these things, he marveled. He marveled at him. And turned him about and said
unto the people that followed him, I say to you, I have not
found so great faith. No, not in Israel. Now only twice
in the word of God. Only twice. Do we read of the
Lord Jesus marveling? Only twice. In Mark chapter 6
and verse 6, we're told that our Lord Jesus marveled because
of the unbelief of his kinsmen. Here he marvels because of the
faith of a Roman centurion. What on earth could be more marvelous
than the fact that the Son of God marveled? He marveled. In Mark 6 the word marveled implies
an astonishing sorrow. He came unto his own and his
own received him not. He marveled at their unbelief.
Here the same word implies an astonishing admiration. God teach me to place admiration
where he does. He marveled. He marveled. Not upon the deities of the world
sought by men, but upon the grace of God in men. Our Lord Jesus was never impressed.
Now listen to me. He was never impressed with any
man's possessions, position, or power. He was never impressed
with any man's land, learning, or livery. He was never impressed
with any man's fortune, fame, or family. But he was flat out
impressed with faith. He marveled at this man's faith.
What grace! He gives the faith and then he
marvels at the exercise of it. He gives the faith and then he
treats the man who exercises the faith as though it was something
he himself had done. Now look at verse 10. And they
that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant
whole that had been sick. A greater miracle of healing
is not recorded in scripture. Without even seeing this centurion
servant, without so much as the touch of his hand or the look
of his eye, our Lord Jesus restores the full vigor of health to a
dying man. He speaks, and the disease departs. He didn't see this man, but Bob,
he never had his eye off of him. He saw him. He didn't speak to the servant.
He didn't speak to him, but he spoke to him. You understand what I'm talking
about? It doesn't take an audible voice. The centurion didn't ask
the Lord Jesus to show him some great sign or wonder. He just
said, speak! And the Lord Jesus spoke. Nobody
heard his word except the fellow who got up and walked out of
his sick room. He spoke. The Lord Jesus never laid his
hand on him. Never touched him. Ah, but he touched him, my man.
He touched him. He never came to this man. Never
came to him. The centurion came out and met
him. He said, I didn't know if you'd come in the house. But
he came to him. He came to him in the omnipotent
power of his grace and healed him. Now I send you home with
this prayer to the Son of God for you. Oh God, my Savior, speak and heal your people. If you
will but say a word, you'll cause dead sinners to live by your
omnipotent grace. If you will but say a word, your
people will be comforted by your word.