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! ¹¹ And I tell you this, that many Gentiles will come from all over the world—from east and west—and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of Heaven. ¹² But many Israelites—those for whom the Kingdom was prepared—will be thrown into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

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 8:5-13

Dear God, I was reading something from Tony Campolo yesterday out of Red Letter Revolution: What if Jesus Really Meant what He Said? about Jesus being your presences among us. You are the God of the Old Testament, triaging the continual mistakes of the Israelites, but when Jesus showed up, he showed us who you really are. You are loving and compassionate, but you also do not suffer hypocrisy. This story is an example. When this powerful human approached you, he found a God who respected and appreciated his humility and faith. You also, I think, liked the fact that he was there out of compassion for his servant (slave?) and not for himself.

My wife and I were talking while we drove to family for Thanksgiving, and while we were talking about you I mentioned to her that I know you are good and loving because the closer I get to you the more loving and compassionate, without judgment, I find myself being. You put on skin. You didn’t only show up to live and be a sacrifice, but you shared through our own paradigm of life through a human life lived what your nature is. You are amazing. You are good. I’m so grateful for a God who loves and forgives.

Father, thank you that you have as much compassion on me this morning as you had through Jesus’s earthly body on that centurion 2,000 years ago. I am grateful for your love. Help me to share that love with others.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen