7: 1-10 After Jesus taught the people about loving others, not judging, bearing good fruit and the importance of building on a solid foundation, he returned to Capernaum, right at a time where a highly valued slave of a Roman officer was sick and near death. When the officer heard that Jesus was traveling to his city, he sent some well respected Jewish elders to ask him to come and heal his slave. They begged Jesus to help the man saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him, for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.”
Jesus went with them, but just before they got there, the officer sent some friends saying that Jesus did not have to go out of his way to come to their house, for he did not feel that he was worthy of Jesus physically going out of his way to come and see him and his slave. He added that he was not even worthy to come to where Jesus was to meet him, but said, “Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. 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.”
The Jewish elders were willing to go to get Jesus and ask for his help because they considered the Roman officer to be a good, genuine and worthy man. The officer was a Gentile (not a Jew); however, he loved Israel and spent his time and money constructing a synagogue in Capernaum. The officer did not consider himself worthy to be in the presence of Jesus; however, he had faith that Jesus could heal his servant, even at a distance. He understood the spiritual authority Jesus had and related it to the authority he had as a military commander.
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. He turned to the crowd who was following him and said, “I tell you, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!” Jesus was amazed that the faith of a Gentile, someone who was not a Jew at the time, was greater than the faith of anyone he had found in Israel up to that point. Jesus rewarded the Officer’s faith. When they returned to his house, they found the slave completely healed.
It is amazing to me that someone at that time, who was not Jewish, built a synagogue and spread love to the point where others recognized and appreciated him for who he was and what was in his heart. This act of love towards others who were different from him resulted in support, determination, and a great deal of amazing faith for the healing of his slave when he was sick.