THE FAITH OF THE CENTURION

From the moment I was first assigned to Jesus, and told to keep an eye on the Hebrew Rabi, I knew this man was cut from a different cloth than the rest of the self promoting Hebrew teachers. Day after day, whenever this man came to Capernaum, I would gladly fulfill my assignment and watch everything He did.

Over time I began to observe something almost magical happened as this Jesus would walk the streets. He was humble and soft spoken yet he carried a radiance about Him. At first, I wondered if everybody saw the light or was it just my own imagination responding to a deeper magic than I had been familiar with? Like me, Jesus carried an authority. However, this authority reached far beyond my own. It encompassed not only the known world but moved and shuffled an invisible world that, until now, I had no clue existed. Moreover, the authority Jesus carried seemed to disrupt everything the other Hebrew leaders thought.

After some months of watching this man I recognized there were two types of people who were affected by His presence - the proud, who became angry, and the sick who became whole. The proud, as if driven by some invisible entity, would become agitated and angry when Jesus came around. Funny, but I could actually see that spiritual being in their eyes. In a strange way, it was their heightened repulsion to the Hebrew that actually attracted me to Him.

The other type of people I observed being affected by Jesus were the sick. They had a very different reaction to the Hebrew than the Scribes and priests had. I saw the response of the sick in their eyes as well, but what I saw was not anger, it was hope. Hope that this man, with just a touch, would change their life.

As I took it all in, I had the distinct impression that something far more important was happening. There was an invisible fortress being forged. Perhaps even a Kingdom was being established. I easily saw that Jesus didn’t try to capture the heart of the leaders, but He certainly captured the hearts of the people.

I was keenly aware that invisible forces always seemed to react when this man came near and there was often a conflict between the hope of the person and the presence of the dark invisible spirit. Without fail, when this man would simply come near to someone afflicted by these spirit forces their eyes would light up and hope within that person would cry out. I watched as each time Jesus reached out His hand to touch each one, the spiritual entity left and the person was healed.

I was amazed, I had never seen or even heard of anything like it. This invisible world was not my imagination, it is very, very real and so tangible I saw it transpire right before my eyes. In some way or to some extent, I came to understand that this invisible world must be responsible for the entire affliction that I was seeing in my friends and others.

I had just finished wiping the dust from my armor when I received the message that my trusted servant had an accident. My heart stood still and then broke as I was told my servant was paralyzed and in unbearable pain. My heart was so heavy, I could hardly follow the Hebrew. This was not just any servant, this servant had been with me for years. He even saved my life when I was young. Over time, we formed a bond and I did not want to lose my friend.

Immediately I knew the only hope for my servant was to ask the Hebrew if He would heal him! But, how could a Roman citizen, let alone a Centurion ask a Hebrew to help him do anything. What would my peers think of me if I stooped so low? Just as quickly as the thought came, it just as quickly left. My love for my friend overcame every argument I had. But, now as time had raced by, I had to act quickly, my servant was dying.

I ran toward Jesus and shouted, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.” It was then that what I hoped would happen actually did happen. Jesus simply looked up at me and said, “I will come and heal him.” But time was of the essence. I knew there was little time before my friend died. I was concerned that if Jesus took the time to walk there my servant might not be alive when He arrived.

It was then that another strange moment happened.  It was as if an invisible force caused me to remember the reality of the invisible world and all the wonders I had seen take place. I absolutely knew that if Jesus would use His authority He could just speak to that world and my friend would be instantly healed. Time would no longer be an issue.

So I answered Jesus and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, “Go,’ and he goes; and to another, “Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

I’ll admit I was startled at what transpired next, the Hebrew marveled at what I said. He actually turned to those who were following Him and spoke to them saying, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel! The next words the I heard were beyond the scope of my hope - they were life transforming.

In one statement, in an electrifying moment of time, all my questions about the Hebrew Rabi were answered. I will never forget the love in the Hebrew’s eyes as He said to me, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.”

Tears flooded my eyes, my legs were no longer heavy, my heart was alive again. I immediately ran for home.  Just as I expected, while I was approaching my house, my servant, my friend came running to meet me. In the wonder of that moment we both discovered that he was healed the very moment Jesus spoke it. We are both forever changed. Nothing can ever change the truth that this Hebrew man called Jesus rules a Kingdom far superior to any earthly Kingdom, my servant and I experienced it

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