Thursday, February 19

Scripture: Matthew 8:8
But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.

I AM NOT WORTHY

God’s grace is always around us, always eager to come to our aid – it is unconditional; that is, it does not depend on me or you but only on the unmerited goodness of God. Yet, I should be positioned rightly in relationship to God and disposed to his graciousness in order to allow God’s grace to rain down upon me. It can and will change me for it is the answer to all of life’s problems, especially the problem of sin.

In this season of Lent it is tempting to only see the darkness of sin but Lent is not meant to bring and keep us in darkness but rather to bring us into the light of God’s grace, for he is the healer of our souls. But an important step in this journey of Lent is to recognize our unworthiness; that though we were created in the image and likeness of God we are now stained by sin. The centurion of Matthew 8 realized this well when he cried out to Jesus, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.” This word was a word of repentance, a word born from God’s grace. Jesus’ reply was a word of forgiveness uttered by the God who forgives and whose blood would ultimately purchase forgiveness for the humble centurion and his ill servant.

In Paolo Veronese’s rendering of this moment the centurion throws his sword to the ground, kneels and pleads with the Son of God to heal his servant because one word from the mouth of God can heal the sick. Notice how in Veronese’s painting other soldiers try to hinder the centurion from performing such an act of humility. Jesus, on the other hand, gestures towards him, perhaps capturing the moment of Matthew 8:13 when Jesus says, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” Jesus extends his merciful grace to the centurion and to the sick servant. Others witness the event but the centurion receives the grace of God.

We too, each day, need to confess that we are not worthy to have Jesus come under our roof. Yet, we also need to confess that the grace of God makes me worthy to come into the house of God and be healed. With John Michael Talbot we confess that we are tired of straying and stumbling and ask God to heal our soul from the snare of sin; not only this day but all the days of our lives. God’s grace is available to us and God is eager to heal us and restore us to himself.

PRAYER
Lord God, almighty and everlasting Father, you have brought us in safety to this new day: preserve us with your mighty power, that we may not fall into sin, nor be overcome by adversity; and in all we do, direct us to the fulfilling of your purpose; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Greg Peters, Professor of Theology, Torrey Honors Institute