An Amazing Faith
August 20, 2023
5 When Jesus returned to Capernaum, a Roman officer came and pleaded with him, 6 “Lord, my young servant lies in bed, paralyzed and in terrible pain.” 7 Jesus said, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the officer said, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come into my home. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. 9 I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.” 10 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to those who were following him, he said, “I tell you the truth, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel! 13 Then Jesus said to the Roman officer, “Go back home. Because you believed it has happened.” And the young servant was healed that same hour. —Matthew 8:5-10 & 13 (NLT)
The Achievements of Faith
The centurion
He humbled
True faith is
The Thieves of Faith
18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he instructed his disciples to cross to the other side of the lake. 19 Then one of the teachers of religious law said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.” 21 Another of his disciples said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me now. Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead.” —Matthew 8:18-22 (NLT)
The first man represents the
The wise man in the storm prays God not for safety from danger but for deliverance from fear.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson
The second man represents the
The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. —1 Corinthians 1:18 (NLT)
“You don’t think your way into a new kind of living. You live your way into a new kind of thinking.” —Henri Nouwen