A Strange Witness

## Authority

It's amazing what unfolds in a person's life when God becomes involved. A centurion is a Roman commander who is over 100 officers in the army of Rome. They were soldiers growing in experience and knowledge above the others, which gave them a higher rank. In Matthew 8:5-13, we see a centurion approaching Jesus. He tells Jesus “but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.” (Matthew 8:8) He understood the power of authority and recognized Jesus’ power of command, even over sickness. It's not just that the Roman’s authority was impressive, but also who they were as a nation. The people of Rome worshipped many deities or gods, so in thought, they understood the workings outside the material world. Within this framework, Jesus came promoting One God, which the Jews believed (but wanted nothing to do with Jesus’ claim as the Messiah). Back to Luke 23, I do not doubt that centurion witnessed the conversation between Jesus and the thieves, as his job was to make sure the criminals were put to death and the crowd wasn't creating a riot. It’s not too far off to wonder if the centurion from Matthew 8 and this one did not talk about what Jesus did that day. We have this commander that has authority. He’s part of the Roman army, which is the superpower of this day. He believes in gods, and understands there is more to what we see in this world. You have all these points, yet praises the One God above all.

## Change

Matthew and Mark record the centurion saying, "Truly this man was the Son of God!" (Mark 15:39; Matthew 27:54) Luke gives a little different perspective and writes, "Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying "Certainly this man was innocent." (Luke 23:47) The centurion acknowledged that Jesus is who He said He was and there really was no reason for the death. He witnessed a person dying, and yet came to the realization that Jesus was the Son of God. The enemy, so-to-speak, witnessed Jesus' actual death. He saw and heard the Lord's last breath. In other words, a Roman centurion became an affirmation that Jesus was who He said He was. He wasn't a follower trying to encourage others to accept this belief, but a man who worshipped many gods that saw the Son of God before his very eyes. We can learn that Jesus' claims were not just presented by His followers, but even the 'enemy.'

## Self-Check

No matter what your status is in the world, Jesus calls us all to His feet. We all must go through the sacrifice of God's Son to enter the gate of Heaven. There is One God. There is One Way. And that way wasn't said by one of the twelve or a Jewish man, but a Roman soldier. Before God, we are all made equal and His truth separates from the fake.

## The Positive among the Pessimists