“When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” – Matthew 8:5-10

Most often, those who Jesus healed came to him with Jesus physically touching them in some way. There are three accounts when Jesus healed from a distance. This account was not the first for Jesus but the Centurion’s faith amazed Him. The Greek word here for amazed, Thaumazo, has elements of wonder and surprise to it. What was Jesus surprised by? Certainly he was surprised that a Roman leader would show such great certainty in Jesus’ ability to exercise the power to heal. Is it possible that there was an element of surprise by the Centurion’s understanding of the model of authority as it relates to the spiritual realm? Was this a lesson for Jesus?

Just asking.

My Brother-in-Christ, Chris Bruno was similarly Amazed and Surprised.

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Guest Post by Chris Bruno

There is a husband and wife team I hire to do my annual pellet stove cleaning. Recently, I called to set up an appointment for cleaning and spoke with the wife. While we spoke she complained about having serious back pain. Being the good Christian who believes in the power of prayer, I asked, “Can I pray for you?”

Initially, she didn’t respond and we continued to talk pleasantries and sidetracked by “business” talk. But, as we were talking one of Pastor Dan’s testimonies flashed through my mind:

Dan was sitting in a diner with a leader from the Symposium he was attending. They got into a conversation with the waiter who said that his wife was dealing with serious back pain. The leader asked if he could speak with the wife on the phone. The man agreed and gave the phone to the leader who prayed for the woman’s healing. Dan could then hear her excitement over the phone as she was instantaneously relieved of her pain.

But, this woman had ignored my first offer and I found it tempting to take the opportunity as an “out” – to just finish the conversation and say goodbye. However, with the memory of Dan’s testimony fresh in my mind I mustered the boldness to press in. I gently asked again, “Before you go I’d really like to pray for you.” She agreed.

I prayed a simple prayer that God would heal her and then asked, “How are you feeling?” She politely responded, “Okay.” I pressed further, “Let’s pray again.” She agreed.

When I finished praying the second time, the woman declared, “Oh my God! I feel warm all over! I feel so much better!” She blurted out, “You have a gift!”

Whoa! I humbly redirected her to the one we just prayed to – Jesus and God’s power to heal. We said our goodbyes.

The next time she came in to do a cleaning she was perfectly fine though there wasn’t much said about the healing prayer.

Who was this healing for? What struck me was that while I was completely convinced of God’s power to heal, I just could not imagine that healing could occur praying over the phone. It was not in my realm of belief. With this experience, God broke out of the limiting box I had put God in. Before that encounter I would have said, “No, way does God work that way – particularly not through me.”

I’m always amazed at the multi-tasking work God does. Regardless of what God was doing to move in this woman’s life, this episode increased my faith and has empowered my walk. Jesus was teaching me of the Centurion’s faith – our authority in the spiritual realm. A lesson about increasing my level of belief in the power of God.

“Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour” – Matthew 8:13

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Our own Pastor G, who oversees our Church’s Care and Prayer ministries has seen enough to repeatedly testify that he is no longer surprised when God shows up in powerful ways.

This Christmas season I pray that we Christ-Followers might stretch ourselves with that same gift of Centurion Faith – recognizing our authority in Christ to believe in the powerful works of God that would become so commonplace we would no longer be amazed and surprised.

I recently read the book Raising The Dead by Cardiologist, Dr. Chauncey Crandall practicing in Palm Beach, Florida. Of our authority in Christ he says,

“I have learned to walk in the authority Christ gives his followers, and I feel now that when I see someone suffering from spiritual depression-someone who is captive to the enemy-I have the authority, like a general in an army, to command the forces of heaven to go into action so that the Kingdom of God will come to reign in the person’s life.”

“Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases.” – Luke 9:1

Have Merry Christmas in His power!