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How to Impress God

Luke 7:1-10

Luke 7:1-10 1When Jesus had finished saying all this in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. 2There a centurion's servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. 3The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, "This man deserves to have you do this, 5because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue." 6So Jesus went with them.
He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: "Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."

9When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel." 10Then the men who had been sent returned to the hou se and found the servant well.

Missionaries Robert and Mary Moffat labored for ten years in a corner of the world we call Botswana without a single convert. That simple fact did not impress the board that was funding the project. It got to the point that the directors of their mission board began to question the wisdom of continuing the work. The thought of leaving their post, however, brought great grief to the Moffats. They were confident God would honor their labors and converts would come in due time. They stayed two more years and darkness reigned. Then one day a friend in England sent word to the Moffats that she wanted to mail them a gift and asked what they would like. Trusting that in time the Lord would bless their work, Mrs. Moffat replied, "Send us a communion set; I am sure it will soon be needed." God honored that dear woman's faith. The Holy Spirit moved upon the hearts of the villagers, and soon a little group of six converts were united to form the first Christian church in that land. Perhaps it was a coincidence or perhaps it was a God sighting but on the very day the church gathered for the first time, the mail service delivered the communion set. How many cups were in that communion set? Six! At the very heart of that story and the Gospel lesson is the complex issue of faith.

We find ourselves in the first ten verses in the seventh chapter of Luke. According to the text the Master has just entered Capernaum. There is a great crowd around Jesus, each one with a story. However, one story stands out. A Roman officer’s servant had grown ill so he sends some of the Elders of the people to Jesus to ask for help. Why doesn’t he go himself? He doesn’t go himself because he doesn’t feel worthy, he is not a Jew but a Gentile. Use your sanctified imagination and looking the scene with me. What does the text say. The Elders are pleading on behalf of the centurion, who is pleading on behalf of his servant. It is a story of community but it is also a story of faith. The story ends with the healing of the servant but the story also ends with Jesus being impressed by this Gentile’s faith. Verse nine quotes Jesus, the Master said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”

Martin Luther said it best, “The true, living faith, which the Holy Spirit instills into the heart, simply cannot be idle.” That is the story of the centurion. What he believed influenced how he lived, what is believed shaped how he lived. In other words, faith is a verb. Faith is not just what you believe in your mind, your collection of opinions. Your faith is how you lived your life. As your pastor let me say this clearly. Your faith should be moving you closer to Jesus everyday. Do the people in your life see your faith in the way you live? Or are your religious isolated?

This Labor Day weekend I want to talk about your faith. Your faith should be obvious to the people that know you best. That was the story of the centurion and I hope it is your story. The centurion’s story tells us our faith can be seen in four ways. The centurion’s faith made him kind. The centurion’s faith made him humble. The centurion’s faith made him generous. The centurion’s faith made him trusting. Do the people in your life see those qualities in you? I hope the answer is yes! On this holiday weekend I will look at each one of these qualities ever so briefly. So if you are ready to begin say, “Amen!“

His faith made him kind.

His faith made him kind. Do the people in your life consider you a kind person? It is not shocking to our ears but it was shocking to the centurion’s world, the centurion cared about his servant. He was not bound by law to care for his servant, the servant was a piece of property. He cared for the servant out of the goodness of his heart. In other words, the centurion was kind. His faith made him kind.

When American novelist Henry James would say good bye to his nephew, Willie, he always said used the same words. He said, “Willie in life only three things matter. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. The third is to be kind.

Why is being kind so important. Because when you are kind to someone, you are saying they are important to God. If you study the Gospel you will discover that Jesus used kindness as a measuring stick for faith. If your faith makes you kind and loving then your faith is genuine. On the other hand, if you are harsh with others your faith is not genuine. The centurion was a kind man. Do the people in your life find you to be a kind person? I hope so because it is one of the signs of genuine faith. And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”

His faith made him humble. Do the people in your life consider you a humble person? The story begins with Elders coming to Jesus and then the story continues with friends coming to Jesus. Those simple facts can not be overlooked or underappreciated. It is not just a story of the separation between Jews and Gentiles. Remember the valley between the Jews and the Gentiles was massive. It is really an issue of authority. The centurion is highly respected by his world, he is in charge of one hundred men. However, the centurion knew his authority was temporary and Jesus' authority was eternal. He knew that Jesus came from God and had the ability to heal. His faith made him humble.

On June 1, 1676 the Swedish Navy launched a new battleship. She was called The Kronan, which means “The Crown.” She was the pride of their Navy and was built to impress the world. They equipped her with 126 cannons and weighed 240 tons. History remembers The Kronan because she sank on her second outing. She capsized because of the weight of her own cannons. What was built to impress became a symbol of foolishness. I think there is a sermon in that story.

How many people do you know look like a fool because they are trying to impress? If the centurion would have come to Jesus full of self pride then Jesus would have dismissed him. But the centurion was full of humility and Jesus was impressed. Do the people in your life consider you a humble person? And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”

His faith made him generous. Do the people in your life consider you a generous person? When the Elders came to Jesus they pleaded earnestly on behalf of the centurion. They testified about his goodness. They tell Jesus this centurion loves our nation to the point that he built their synagogue. At the moment you stop talking and start spending, you start becoming sincere. Let us be honest. How we spend our money is important. How we spend our money reveals to the world what is really important to us. His faith made him generous.

I love this story about Henry Ford. Auto maker Henry Ford was vacationing in Ireland when he was asked to contribute toward a new orphanage. Ford wrote a check for two thousand pounds, which made headlines in the local newspaper. But the paper inadvertently reported the gift as twenty thousand pounds. The director of the orphanage apologized to Ford. “I’ll phone the editor straight away and tell him to correct the mistake,” he said. “There’s no need for that,” Ford replied, and promptly wrote a check for the additional eighteen thousand pounds. I do not know if Henry Ford was a man of faith but I do know he was a generous man.

I have never met a person of faith, who wasn’t generous. The centurion built a synagogue and he was a Gentile. No one could question his generosity. Do the people in your life consider you a generous person? And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”

His faith made him trusting. Do the people in your life consider you a trusting person? Look at the text with me one more time. The centurion sends friends to Jesus because he is not worthy to speak to Jesus himself. Then he goes one step farther. He tells the friends to tell Jesus not to come to his house because it is not necessary for the healing. He says just give the word and the servant will be healed. And Jesus is blown away, he is impressed by his faith. His faith made him trusting. Paranoid people, who think the world is after them, can’t trust because they have no faith.

It was one of those moments in the ministry that blew me away. One of the leaders of our church was lamenting the finances of our church. In an arrogant boastful way he proclaimed, “Faith doesn’t pay bills!” As a pastor I was cut to my knees. I really didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t mad at him but I was disappointed in myself. After all the preaching and teaching, he didn’t get it. I had failed!

If it wasn’t for faith we would not be able to pay a single bill. Faith and trust go and in hand. If you didn’t trust God then you wouldn’t be part of a church. If you didn’t believe that Jesus was your only hope for salvation then you wouldn’t care about him. If you didn’t trust me then you wouldn’t be here. If you didn’t trust the administrative structure of this church then you wouldn’t give a dime. If you didn’t trust the individuals that handle your money once it is given then you wouldn’t give. Faith and trust go hand in hand. Could the reason we struggle paying apportionments be we don’t trust the world of United Methodism? If your answer is “YES!“ then why are you a United Methodist? Do the people in your life consider you a trusting person? And all of God’s people said, “Amen!” Let me end with this story.

Several years ago Senator Mark Hatfield went to Calcutta. One of the people he visited was Mother Teresa. He wanted to learn about her ministry so she took him to so-called “House of Dying,” where sick children are cared for in their last days. The Senator was blown away by the ministry. He became emotional as he watched her care for the dying and the survivors. He asked the question I would have asked, “How can you bear the load without being crushed by it?” Mother Teresa replied, “My dear Senator, I am not called to be successful, I am called to be faithful.” Can anyone here question Mother Teresa’s faith? She will always be remembered as a woman who served humbly, gave generously and trusted completely. I believe there was little question about it. Mother Teresa must have impressed God.

I hate to ask this question on Labor Day weekend but if you were to die today, how would you be remembered? Do the people in your life consider you a humble person? Do the people in your life consider you a generous person? Do the people in your life consider you a trusting person? This is the most important question. Do the people in your life consider you a person of faith? I hope that they do. And all of God’s people said, “Amen!”