The following is from OBC’s daily devotional for today:
A Roman centurion had a terminally ill servant (vv. 1-10). The centurion heard of Jesus and believed he could heal his servant without coming to his house. Jesus did so, marveling at such faith in contrast to Israel who should have had such.
Jesus, moved with compassion, caused a widow’s dead son to come back to life (vv. 11-17). Jesus as God has the power to give life to the dead.
John the Baptist had been imprisoned (Matt 11:2), perhaps making him wonder if Jesus was the Christ after all (Luke 7:18-19) so his disciples came to Jesus regarding this (vv. 18-19). Jesus “answered” by doing indisputable miracles that only the Christ could do (vv. 20-23).
Jesus’ commended John the Baptist’s character and ministry (vv. 24-28a) but pointed out that the lowest citizen in the coming kingdom had a greater position than John did under the law (v. 28b).
Though many “sinners” believed God’s truth from John the Baptist and Jesus (v. 29), the religious leaders—who should have believed them—refused to (vv. 30-35). This was illustrated by Jesus’ supper with a self-righteous Pharisee when the Lord forgave the sins of a repentant woman (vv. 36-50).
Truths to Nail Down and Meditate On
- True faith in Jesus hears what has been said about him in the Scriptures and simply and fully believes and rests in that truth. Is your response to God’s truth in the Scriptures like the centurion’s (vv. 6-8) or like the fickle generation of unbelieving Jews who wouldn’t believe no matter what (vv. 31-35)?
- Only Jesus can forgive sin’s guilt (vv. 41-50). The evidence that one’s sins have been forgiven is a devoted love for Jesus. have your sins been forgiven? If so, how great is your love for Christ seen in what you’re willing to do for him?
- It is a sad fact that the more self-righteous and religious a person is, the less he sees his need for forgiveness. He believes he has done and is doing enough for God to accept him. What—who—are you relying on to be accepted by God?