Lord, heal my servant, right here, right now. The Roman Centurion pleaded with Jesus.
“Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith." (Matthew 8: 10 NABRE)
Why does Jesus praise so lavishly the faith of the Centurion? Faith is a rare commodity and one of the greatest gifts of God. The opposite of faith is Unbelief and Doubt.
How does faith work? Jesus said to the Centurion: “I will come and cure him.” The Centurion heard this and believed. The faith of the Centurion is much deeper. He said to Jesus: No need to come to my house. Just heal my servant with a word from here. Right here, right now.
I had been a Christian for many years before I understood what faith means. I remember that the first time I came to realize that faith means believing or trusting in what God says to us, I was surprised. It sounded so simple. My immediate reaction to this definition of faith was: “Would anybody doubt what God says?” In fact, this is what we do most of the time.
What gave the Centurion such an elevated faith? He applied his experiences as a senior Roman officer to understand how God's power works.
Faith comes from hearing and believing the promises of God. As you exercise your faith every day, it grows.
Happy Advent!
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