"And when Jesus heard this, He was amazed" (Luke 7:9). Do you remember that statement from the Gospel of Luke?
A Roman centurion and friend of the Jews in Capernaum had sent to Jesus to ask Him to heal his beloved servant. But when Jesus was on the way to his house, the centurion sent friends to tell Him, "Sir, do not trouble Yourself to come further, for I am not worthy to come to You or to have You under my roof. But just say the word and my servant will be healed. I trust Your authority to do this, because I am also one in authority and under authority, and I know that whatever You command will be done." When this was reported to Jesus, " He was amazed, and said, 'I have never seen such great faith, even in Israel.'"
How amazing is your faith? How would you like to be the person who went down in history for shocking Jesus with your amazing faith? This centurion, who had used his own money to build a place of worship for the Jews of his town, had probably not met Jesus, but had heard many stories about Him. He had heard enough about Jesus to fully believe that He was the real deal. He believed that Jesus had the compassion and the power to heal a sick servant, even from a distance. And Jesus did it, not because of the servant's faith, but because of the faithful request made by a Roman soldier.
Are you a person of faith? How would you describe your faith? It is an important question. Some of us are still searching for faith . . . keep asking and seeking and Jesus will respond. Some of us signed on to religion, but actually missed the whole faith piece. Jesus doesn't want us to be religious, He wants us to have faith in Him. Seek Him and hunger for Him, and He will guide you to faith . . . It may be a decision or it may be a journey for you. Some of us have been people of faith for many years . . . we have seen a lot, trusted a lot, risked a lot, seen life-changing beauty and power and renewal, seen great darkness, felt great pain and loss, and wrestled with doubt and failure. How is your faith?
There is one other time in the Scripture where Jesus was amazed. In Mark 6:6 it says that, "He was amazed by their lack of faith". That is a sad story of people who are so locked in to their view of the world and of God, that they have no room for faith.
I see those two situations as bookends . . . . Deep Faith on one end and No Faith on the other end. Where are you between the two positions that amazed Jesus? I don't think we want to move in the direction of No Faith, so what are you doing about growing your faith? What are you doing to strengthen and focus your faith?
Do you want to grow your faith? Then exercise it. Pray for wisdom and help for the journey, read the Scriptures, communicate with God about everything, experience Jesus as your companion and friend. Walk in fellowship with the Spirit of God and with other followers of Jesus. Come to Jesus with a hunger to know Him and to grow in faith. You may be amazed!
Stan