Day 11 Mon March 1 2010

Day 11 Mon March 1, 2010

TODAY’S INTRO
March 1. Spring is around the corner. We are now one quarter of the way through Luke. On Saturday, we read about Jesus’ Sermon on the plain- profound yet difficult teaching. Today, Jesus heads back into Capernaum- which served as his home base during his ministry.

TODAY’S TEXT- Luke 7:1-23
7 After Jesusa had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. 2A centurion there had a slave whom he valued highly, and who was ill and close to death. 3When he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, asking him to come and heal his slave. 4When they came to Jesus, they appealed to him earnestly, saying, "He is worthy of having you do this for him, 5for he loves our people, and it is he who built our synagogue for us." 6And Jesus went with them, but when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to say to him, "Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; 7therefore I did not presume to come to you. But only speak the word, and let my servant be healed. 8For I also am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and the slave does it." 9When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, he said, "I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith." 10When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.
Jesus Raises the Widow's Son at Nain
11 Soon afterwardsb he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. 12As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother's only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town. 13When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, "Do not weep." 14Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to you, rise!" 15The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesusc gave him to his mother. 16Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen among us!" and "God has looked favorably on his people!" 17This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.
Messengers from John the Baptist
18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. So John summoned two of his disciples 19and sent them to the Lord to ask, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" 20When the men had come to him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, 'Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?' " 21Jesusd had just then cured many people of diseases, plagues, and evil spirits, and had given sight to many who were blind. 22And he answered them, "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the leperse are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have good news brought to them. 23And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me."


TODAY’S STATUS UPDATES
One of the things we see in today’s story is a person outside the traditional religious institutions painted as a model of the faith. The Centurion is sympathetic to Jesus and his ways, supportive of his work, but not an “insider”. What I remember is that Jesus pays little attention to the distinctions of “insider” v. “outsider”. Jesus pays attention to questions like- “who needs my care?” and “who’s sympathetic to my cause?”.

The Centurion is someone who never physically appears in the story yet he reaches out to Jesus. He conveys his appreciation for Jesus’ ministry, his teaching, and his authority. He yearns to see if he might provide help for his servant, who is very ill.

In some ways, the centurion is a catalyst in helping bring God’s goodness to another. He helps set things in motion. He reaches out. He is an active force yet he can only help so much. He needs Jesus to be involved. Faith often works that way. Faith is not a “sit still and do nothing” life. Faith is about doing what we can and then, at the same time, putting it in the hands of Jesus. As we see time and time again, when we get things into Jesus’ hands, our burdens are a bit lighter, we have his support, and we realize we are not alone.






FRIENDS ADDED
Centurion
Centurion’s Servant (one would hope)
Widow and Widows Son
Various onlookers


CAUSES
Openness to the Gentiles---
Concern for the other
Walking with the sick