The immediate context is following the completion of the Sermon on the Mount, which included topics covering the kingdom of God and love. Afterward, Jesus went to Capernaum, which is located in northern Galilee. This city was the home base of his ministry for about two and half years. It was here Jesus when he was met with Jewish elders and friends a centurion had sent after hearing about Jesus and all that he was teaching. The centurion’s faith caused Jesus to marvel at it.
Why did Jesus marvel at this man’s faith? First, we need to look more into the centurion’s background as a Gentile is related to the overall them of the Gospel of Luke as it pertains to reaching the Gentiles. The one thing we know for sure is this man’s title as a centurion. “Centurion connects to the word century which connects to the number 100. Technically they had a hundred men under them, although that number was flexible and many had more and some had less… Not only could they lead by command, they could lead by example because that’s really how you lead in life and death situations. Not only that, they could follow orders. They were the soldier’s soldier” (John MacArthur).
And another person to consider is the centurion’s slave that was dying, whom the centurion highly regarded. According to the historian, Josephus, oftentimes slaves were hired and mentored by the master. This slave was about to die and the centurion heard about Jesus and sent the Jewish elders to ask him to save him (v 3). Just as everyone comes to faith by hearing the word of God and the gospel, the centurion also demonstrates living by faith after hearing about Jesus. And it was this act of obedience through faith brought on by hearing Jesus is stunned.
What does it mean by hearing? There’s a key difference between hearing the voice of God that leads to obedience vs merely listening without understanding (1 Cor. 2:14; Matt. 13:23; Jn. 10:3). Thus, when Jesus often spoke in parables to the crowd, only those that had true saving faith were able to hear and obey, whereas the rest heard and remained in their unbelief. In other words, what hearing truly means is to hear by faith and obey. Elisabeth Elliot once said, “we must quit bending the word to suit our situation. It is we who must be bent to the word.”
People whose hearts are dull cannot hear (Matt. 13:15). They cannot see or understand the pure spiritual principles of the gospel (Albert Barnes). Sin is what ultimately makes the heart dull. The kind of man God looks for is the opposite – the contrite in spirit (Is. 66:2).
How can we hear and improve our hearing?
- Read and meditate on the Bible every day. Christians know it is not most important to fill our stomachs, but rather to fill out spiritual hungry first and foremost.
- Pray throughout the week. We pray for ourselves and others (esp. pastors/leaders).
- Confession of sins daily
- Reduce media intake
- Not forsaking assembling together. Prioritizing the church is vital.
- Worship God with all our hearts. Passion and Scripture go hand in hand in worship.
Why is it so important to hear the word of God? Judas Iscariot heard so many words of Jesus, but he often disobeyed because of his sin and unbelief. In contrast, the Apostle Peter remembered the word of Christ and wept in repentance (Matt. 26:34, 75). As a result, he regained strength as he lived a life of repentance and faithful obedience to the Lord. This is what it means by hearing. Similarly, the centurion heard by faith and also applied it in his life through obedience.
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