Under Authority
“When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, ‘Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.’ And he said to him, ‘I will come and heal him.’ 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. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.’ When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, ‘Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.'” Matthew 8:5-10
The centurion said “under authority” because he truly believed it, but still to this day, not everyone recognizes the immense value of this statement. In fact, the centurion’s response was the only time in Scripture that identifies a moment when Jesus was “marveled” by someone.
Authority often has a negative connotation when it comes to Christianity and church life. Individuals view authority as “people trying to control people” and refute it, but in contrast, when it comes to the matter of “faith,” people embrace it. But as we can see in this passage, authority and faith are directly linked, to the point where you could not have one without the other. The centurion’s faith pointed him to Christ, but it was his embrace of authority that ignited the healing to come. The centurion did not speak of faith, but only of authority; for submitting to authority was his expression of faith.
I know some will say, “my faith is not in a ‘man,’ but will only be in Jesus. I will only submit under the authority of God and not a man.” This ideology is incorrect, for it is Jesus, Yahweh God, who places and sets men and women in positions of authority.
“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” Romans 13:1
Thus, to dismiss a person and their God-given authority is to deny the act of Yahweh God.
So, as you start your day, consider those who are in authority over you. Your boss, your minister, parent, etc., and check your heart. Do you trust the Father as He positions them over you? Are you expressing faith as the centurion did, with a heart to be under authority?