16th February 2023

16th February 2023


Pray (ACts)


Read (Matthew 8v1-17)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


As Jesus came down from the mountain He was followed by great crowds and they would soon witness extraordinary deeds (v1). The Lord was approached by a leper who sought healing from his awful condition (v2). What is a leper? A leper is someone who suffers from the illness of leprosy. Leprosy is a disease which impacts the skin and nervous system of the sufferer. It can cause deformity and damage the nerves so much that the leper loses feeling in the affected area which can lead to further problems. Leprosy is still an issue in over 120 countries but is curable thanks to modern medicine.


In Christ's day it had no cure and the leper was treated as a social outcast. Leprosy is passed by contact and so for Jesus to be anywhere near such a man was a scandal. But the leper was a man of faith and Christ had no fear of leprosy. He touched the leper and healed him and urged the man to show himself to the priest so that he could keep the law of Moses and be reintegrated back into society (v3-4).


Later Jesus was met by a Roman Centurion (v5). This man may not have been a leper but Christ's interaction with him was yet another scandal. The Romans were seen as an occupying force and so Christ was consorting with a Gentile representative of the hated Roman Empire. Remarkably the centurion was a man of faith. He had a servant at home who was paralysed and suffering greatly (v6) but instead of allowing Jesus to come to his house the centurion knew that he was unworthy to receive such an honour (v8). All this man wanted was a word from Christ which he was sure would heal his servant.


We don't know how or when the Roman heard about Christ but nevertheless he had a correct opinion of the Lord. He said "I too am a man 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.” (v9) What was the centurion saying? The centurion's ultimate boss was the Roman Emperor and in his role as a centurion he had the Emperor's authority. If the centurion commanded one of his soldiers he was essentially speaking on behalf of the Emperor. The centurion was to be obeyed because of the authority invested in him by his ruler.


The centurion had understood that just as he had authority from the Emperor, Christ was sent by God and had authority like no other. This acknowledgement caused Jesus to marvel. He healed the centurion's servant (v13) and explained about the utter necessity of saving faith. Many Gentiles like the centurion would come to trust in Christ and recline at the heavenly table of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (v11). But others like a great many Jews would rely on their ethnic background and refuse to believe in Christ (v12) thus securing a place in hell.


Later Jesus healed Peter's mother-in-law (v14), cast out countless demons and healed everyone who came to him suffering from sickness (v16). All of this was to fulfil Isaiah's prophecy which said "He took our illnesses and bore our diseases" (Isaiah 53v4).


I suspect that all of us reading this devotion are more than familiar with illness. We have visited sick loved ones, held the hand of friends at countless hospital beds and we have wept in graveyards as we have said farewell to family and neighbours. These verses don't teach that Christ will always visit us with healing. Sadly some have claimed that as long as your faith is strong then you will be healed - I humbly reject those who preach such a message.


Christians will certainly suffer from illness and sometimes they will know healing and sometimes they will not. Christ's interaction with the leper, the centurion and the rest show us that He is the suffering servant of Isaiah 53. Jesus takes our weakness, our infirmity, our sickness and our sin and He makes an end to it all at Calvary.


Dear brothers and sisters, may the Lord visit you with comfort in your struggle with illness. May He ease your pain and may He lift your fears. I long for the day that I will never have to stand at another grave or pray at another hospital bed. But this I know, such a day is coming and has been secured at the place called Calvary where Christ was pierced for our transgressions and was crushed for our iniquities. We may not see healing on this side of heaven but truly and eternally our faith in Christ has made us well.


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q78 What is forbidden in the ninth commandment? The ninth commandment forbiddeth whatsoever is prejudicial to truth, or injurious to our own or our neighbor’s good name.
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