Only Speak A Word

And Jesus said to him, I will come and heal him. The Centurion answered 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.  

Matthew 8:7-9 

The centurion who appealed to Christ to heal his paralyzed servant had great faith in the power of Christ’s word. As a Roman soldier, he was used to giving orders and following them. He understood the power of the word of someone in authority. His estimation of Christ was such that he considered only a word to be necessary to heal his servant. Beyond that, he was uncharacteristically humble for an officer of Rome’s occupying army. His attitude was, ‘I am not worthy that you should come under my roof.’ Like the Canaanite woman whose faith in Christ was also great, this man approached Christ with true humility, and implicit faith in the power of His word. We can both admire the faith of this man and learn from it. Christ has made promises to us. He has given His word. What more do we need to do than to approach Him in humility, asking Him to fulfill His word to us? If this man had such faith in Christ, that he would depend upon His bare word, how much more can we, whom He has already redeemed by free and sovereign grace, depend on the word of Him, Who is the Living Word.  

O, Glorious, Living Word of God, 
we rejoice that You are truth, and speak truth. 
We praise You that we can utterly rely upon Your Word, 
and the power of it. 

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning