Sermon - Amazing Faith (Luke 7.1-10)

Amazing Faith ~ Luke 7:1-10 October 27, 2013 ~ New City Church of Calgary ~ Pastor John Ferguson Intro:
What do you think of when you hear the word faith? For some, it is a positive energy: speak words and you can create your own reality. For some, it is a means of encouragement: You just gotta have faith! For some, it is a form of denial: believing what you know aint true. Richard Dawkins, Faith is the great cop-out, the great excuse to evade the need to think and evaluate evidence. Biblically speaking, faith is none of these. Were going to learn something vitally important about faith in our lesson today, and it has to do with a time in the life of Christ when he is returning to his base of operations in Capernaum, and his return provokes a captain of an army to make a request of Jesus. And Jesus commends him for his faith. This passage will be of great help if you are here today exploring Christianity because it will teach you something vital to your understanding of what we mean and dont when we use words like believe or faith. If you are a follower of Jesus, it will help you in your understanding of your own faith, and why its important, and how you communicate your faith to others. Amazing Faith ~ Luke 7:1-10. Chapter 7 deals with the topic of faith. Context: Jesus has just asked those who are following him, Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do what I tell you?
7:1 After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.
7:2
Capernaum was a small fishing village on the northwest side of the Sea of Galilee and was Jesus base of ministry. Full of poor, blue collar workers.
Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him.
1. A centurion was the equivalent rank of a captain. He was a soldier of Herod Antipass army, and a commander of 100 soldiers. 2. His highly valued servant was near death. Servants had no rights, considered mere property. The centurion highly valued = highly honored His servant is near death.
o Ryken, The servants plight is a reminder of our own mortality. Death is the great intruder and vandalizer of our world. Its sting is always felt, and its presence is never far away from each one of us. o Sickness, disease, suffering, and death are common, but not normal.
7:3 When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant.
7:4
The fact that the leading men among the Jews would plead for this Gentile commander shows the high regard that they had for him.
And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, He is worthy to have you do this for him, 7:5 for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.
1. It is obvious that the Jews regarded this man highly, and rightly so From a human point of view there was every reason for the appeal to Jesus for help.
2. But they made a fundamental mistake: they argued from his inherent worthiness 7:6 And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am unworthy to have you come under my roof 1. The centurion sees himself accurately: unworthy of Christs favor. Contrary to what everyone else thought of him, the centurion saw only his unworthiness, and the thing that made him unworthy was the worthiness of Jesus. The more you get to know Jesus, the more you see how gloriously worthy he is.
2. The centurion calls him, Lord. This is a confident assertion that Jesus was the promised one, the heir of David and the coming King of Israel. To confess Jesus is Lord is to say that Caesar Augustus is not and such a confession is treasonous. 3. There is a connection between how we see Jesus and how we see ourselves. Ryken, How do you see Jesus, and how do you see yourself? The two questions are connected, because when we see Jesus as he really isin all his splendorwe also see our true spiritual need This is not poisonous pessimism, but a healthy realism that helps us breath the fresh air of the gospel.
7:7
Therefore I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed. 7:8 For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to
one, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my servant, Do this, and he does it.
1. Just say the word the centurion believed that Jesus has power of life and death and can heal a person and save them from death by his mere words. 2. Luke subtly shifts our attention from the request for healing to the person of Jesus.
7:9
Who is this man that the centurion would make such a bold request? Is such confidence in Jesus warranted? Does he really have this kind of authority?
When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.
1. Jesus is amazed. How do you know when someone is amazed? Countenance & words. Only twice in Scripture was Jesus said to be amazed. Here and in Mark 6:6 when his hometown rejected him, he was amazed at their lack of faith. Why was Jesus so amazed? o The mans background. He was an uncircumcised Gentile. o The mans occupation. A solder of an oppressive pagan government. o The mans wealth. How hard it is for the rich to enter the K of God (18:24 -25) o The mans certainty. Just say the word.
2. Jesus response is at once a rebuke (of our small opinions of him) and a challenge to put our complete trust in him.
7:10 And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.
JC Ryle, A greater miracle of healing than this is nowhere recorded in the Gospels. Without even seeing the sufferer, without touch of hand or look of eye, our Lord restores health to a dying man by a single word. He speaks, and the sick man is cured. He commands, and the disease departs.
So, why did Luke record these stories in his historical biography of Jesus? He wants to teach us (1) about the authority of Jesus as revealed in his miracles: he can just say the word and death flees; (2) about challenge us to put our trust in him. Main Idea: To have great faith in Jesus is to place our complete trust in Jesus. Its not the sincerity of your faith that makes it great, but the object of your faith. Faith trusts. Faith takes Jesus at his word. Thats what makes faith amazing.
Application: 1. Take the sure step of trusting boldly in Jesus. 3
(1) The invitation of the gospel of Jesus Christ is not to stick your head in the sand, but to take a step of boldly trusting in the person and work of Jesus Christ. (2) CS Lewis, On Obstinancy in Belief, You are no longer faced with an argument which demands your assent, but with a Person who demands your confidence. Note: to reject Jesus is a step of faith as well. You have to trust in something: your own worthiness? Your own wealth? Your own confidence?
2. Grow your faith by getting to know Jesus more. (1) Spurgeon, The more you know about Christ the less will you be satisfied with superficial views of him; and the more deeply you study his transactions in the eternal covenant, his engagements on your behalf as the eternal Surety, and the fullness of his grace which shines in all his offices, the more truly will you see the King in his beauty. Be much in such outlooks. Long more and more to see Jesus. Those who know him will trust him more, and take greater risks for him.
(2) Jesus, Jesus, how I trust him, how I proved him oer and oer. Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus. O for grace, to trust him more!

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Amazing Faith ~ Luke 7:1-10 October 27, 2013 ~ New City Church of Calgary ~ Pastor John Ferguson Intro:

Application: 1. Take the sure step of trusting boldly in Jesus. 3

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