In this story, a Gentile Roman Centurion had approached Jesus asking Him to heal his servant. This commanding officer not only knew who Jesus was, but had witnessed and then understood the authority by which Jesus taught and healed the sick. For it was by this powerful authority he saw in Jesus that he related. It says that Jesus was astonished and commended him for his great faith and understanding of authority…and his servant was healed that day.
Tag: bedrock of jesus
I Corinthians 1:25 “For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength.”
II Corinthians 13:4 tells us that Christ was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by God’s power. Man looks at the cross and see humiliation, shame, and scorn. They see Jesus powerless as He hangs there dying, seemingly unable to change His situation. But the world can’t comprehend that it was Jesus’ decision to be there. Just as the world can’t comprehend how three days later He rose from the dead. What the world sees as stupid…Believers see as salvation.
Psalm 18:30 ” As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is flawless.”
Deuteronomy 32:4 tells us, ” He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.” So let’s ponder the word “perfect” in both these Scriptures for a moment. Everything the Lord does is complete, truthful, and faultless. His manner and means will always be sincere and pure, for there is no deception found in Him. In a very imperfect world, He is our shield and refuge and the Rock we can run to in times of fear and confusion.
Psalm 118:22-23 ” The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.”
The story comes out of Matthew 21:42 where Jesus is quoting this Scripture to the chief priests and elders of the Temple…whom were not too happy about Him accusing them of rejecting the Messiah…namely Himself, Jesus. Continuing in the next verse, Jesus countered with, “Therefore, I tell you that the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit.” Jesus was offering the gift of salvation to Gentiles…building His Church from those willing to accept Him as Savior. And as Believers in Christ, we are the Church. To paraphrase Ephesians 2:20, We the Church, are God’s people, built on the foundation of all martyred apostles and prophets, with Jesus being the chief cornerstone.
I John 5:12 “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
This scripture doesn’t mince words…you either have eternal life, or you don’t. You either claim Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, or you don’t. In this wishy-washy world where no one wants to commit or take a stand, it’s pretty black and white…you either believe in Jesus and have eternal life, or reject Him and have God’s wrath on you.
Luke 24:18 ” They stood still, their faces downcast, one of them, named Cleopas, asked Him, ‘Are You only a vistor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?’ “
It was still on the third day that these two followers of Christ were trudging on the road to Emmaus. Disheartened and disillusioned , they had put their hope in this man named Jesus only to see Him die on a Cross. Yes, some crazy women had tried to convince them that He had risen from the dead, but they weren’t believing any of it. Suddenly, a man was walking along side them, asking what they were talking about. Cleopas was incredulous that this stranger didn’t know the events of the last few days. In more modern language, Cleopas might have exclaimed to Him – “Have you been living under a rock?!” And Jesus could have replied, “As a matter of fact, Yes, I have.”
Mark 7: 20-23 ” He went on: ‘What comes out of a man is what makes him unclean. For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance, and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man unclean.’ “
This all started when the Pharisees saw the Disciples eating food with unwashed hands and were offended. Jesus gave the crowd a quick Anatomy/Physiology lesson when He concluded that all food (whether clean or unclean) goes into a man’s stomach, not his heart. He then instructed the crowd by saying, “Nothing outside a man can make him unclean by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him unclean.” (Mark 7:15) I’ve heard it said, if you shake a man, you’ll see what’s in his heart. For it’s deep within our heart that all wickedness abides.
Matthew 8:20 ” Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head. “
Yes, in a sense, Jesus was homeless. He and the Disciples traveled unhindered by the obligation and responsibilities of traditional homes. But Jesus pointed out in this scripture… He was to be in the world, but not of it. And like Jesus, we too are aliens and strangers on this earth. (I Peter 2:11) We are ever looking forward to our eternal home…our everlasting dwelling place with the Lord in heaven.
Mark 10:32 ” They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way…”
Jesus had been predicting His death to His Disciples… and they were fearful of traveling to Jerusalem for what they saw as imminent death of their beloved Leader. Jesus didn’t shrink back or go into hiding…rather He had set off resolutely on the road to Jerusalem knowing full well what awaited Him. Isaiah prophesied of this in 50:7, “…therefore I have set My face like flint…” Jesus lead the way, going before the twelve Disciples…completely in control of the situation…not controlled by it.
Matthew 8:1-3 ” When He came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed Him. A man with leprosy came and knelt before Him and said, ‘ Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.’ Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man, ‘I am willing,’ He said. ‘Be clean!’ Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.”
“If You are willing.” The man had been watching Jesus heal others. His faith in the Messiah had grown with each person he saw walk away cured and whole. He had faith, but would Jesus be ready and able to heal him? Jesus went beyond what He had to do to heal this man…He could of just spoken the word and he’d been healed. But instead, Jesus stretched out His hand and touched the unclean man, and in doing so showed that he was a valued and loved human being.
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