MONDAY 22 March 2021 “Deserving”

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Hello my “Walking with Jesus” friends as we begin a new week together.

In the past few years one of the greatest challenges facing America and many European countries has been huge migrations of people fleeing everything from poverty to war to drug cartels to child slavery to ethnic cleansing and more. Temporary camps holding thousands of people have grown up at borders and politicians wrestle with very real social inequities and problems.

“Deserving” is a common concern. Who is deserving of acceptance into the countries where they seek asylum and who isn’t? And what about the children… those coming with adults, those sent unaccompanied, those born at the borders and even those born in their new countries awaiting processing? Oh these are complex issues aren’t they my friends?

‘Deserving’ is an attitude which shows up in classrooms and on athletic fields and even in beauty pageants and political elections. As we follow Jesus toward Easter suddenly one day even Jesus was confronted with the expectations about someone deserving His help!

Luke chapter 7 says “Jesus entered Capernaum and there a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to Jesus asking Him to come and heal his servant. When they came to Jesus they pleaded earnestly with Him, ‘This man deserves to have You do this because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.’ So Jesus went with them.” (Luke 7:1-5)

Now isn’t this interesting? A Roman army officer, a centurion, had a heart for the people of Capernaum and even invested heavily in assisting the construction of their Jewish Synagogue, the ruins of which are still there if you visit Capernaum today. Because of his generosity, Jewish leaders in that city urged Jesus to do whatever He could to help the man whose servant was very sick. Honestly now, do we sometimes find ourselves thinking the same way with God?

Do you find people assume God will bless them, protect them, favor them because they have given generously of their time or treasure or even talents to advance the work of the church or some special ministry project? Is that how it works with God?

While it’s true Jesus responded by going with these leaders we don’t know why nor what His plan was. We know Jesus was always anxious to see the true condition of people’s hearts and suddenly other friends of the centurion met Jesus on the road with a new message: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word and my servant will be healed...” Jesus was amazed! The Jewish leaders felt the centurion was deserving of Jesus’ help, but the centurion himself felt so unworthy that he didn’t want to trouble Jesus, yet a very sick man’s life hung in the balance!

We don’t know what led this Roman centurion to have such faith that he was confident if Jesus even simply spoke the word from a distance that his servant would be healed? Had he seen Jesus perform miracles, had he heard Jesus speak? Perhaps he was like another Roman centurion named Cornelius who was a man of great faith in God, lived in Caesarea, and received the Apostle Peter into his home on one occasion and many Gentiles became Holy Spirit filled followers of Jesus. You’ll find that amazing story in Acts 10.

Regardless of how these two Roman centurion’s came into the story of Jesus, it seems clear God was delighted with their hearts, how much they cared for those under their authority and that God was moved to do great things in their lives. “Jesus said to the crowd following Him, I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.’ Then the men who had been sent returned to the centurion’s house and found the servant well.” (Luke 7:9.10)

And suddenly the story ends! We don’t know if Jesus went on to the home, met the centurion and the servant or not! It seems to me Jesus wants us to reflect on the conditions of the hearts of the people in the story. The Jewish leaders wanted Jesus to help the centurion because he’d been generous in helping them build their synagogue. He was deserving, they felt. But Jesus responded to a humble heart of great faith of a Roman soldier, and a very sick man who may never have personally met Jesus but was healed from a distance!

So what does God see today in your heart and mine? Who are the people and the complex situations we are bringing to God requesting that He pour out His great power through His unlimited understanding of the situations that we are concerned about? What level of confidence do you have that the issues you are bringing to God matter to Him because they matter to you?

As far as we know the healed servant never saw Jesus, but for the rest of his life, he knew he’d been healed by Jesus in response to the care and concern of his boss, the Roman centurion who had contacted Jesus on his behalf! That’s very powerful to me! How many times has Jesus touched my life because someone was concerned and praying for me and I didn’t even know it!?

If you allow the power of this event in Luke 7 to really grab your heart it could change your life my friends! Could it be GOD is burdening your heart for someone or some need and the Holy Spirit is leading you to intercede for that person or need because God wants to do something significant and He wanted you to experience being involved from a distance!

Now here’s a song that may help you consider how what matters to you matters to the Master!

Today’s Scripture is Luke 7:1-7.

Choose below to read or listen.

Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.

Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.

Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)

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