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Harvest Christian Fellowship, NYC Devotional
October 17, 2007
by Pastor Jon Courson
The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die. Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth.
John 4:49-50
I want you to note something I find very interesting. In Matthew 8, another Gentile nobleman - a Roman centurion - faced sickness in his house. He too was a man of prominence and political power. He too lived in the region of Capernaum. He too came to Jesus. But there the similarities end.
'My son is dying,' said the Roman centurion.
'I'll come to your house and heal him,' said Jesus.
'Oh, I'm not worthy to have you come into my house,' protested the centurion. 'Just speak the word.'
And Jesus marveled at the centurion's faith.
Contrast this with the account here in John 4, wherein the nobleman directed Jesus to go to his house. Although Jesus did indeed heal his son, He didn't comply with the nobleman's order to go to his house. I wonder how often we are guilty of the nobleman's error - of giving directions to Jesus.
'OK, Lord, here's the bills and here's the need, and here's what You gotta do to make it happen.'
'There he is. I'm single and so is he. Let's get this going, Lord.'
'Lord, here's the business, and I can see this is a great opportunity, so bless it by next Monday.'
We have a tendency to give instructions and directions. But that is not the finest and highest way to approach our Lord. The centurion in Matthew 8 was a much wiser, deeper fellow. He simply said, 'Lord, here's the situation.' Period. No directions. No instructions. No advice.
Both noblemen experienced the healing power of Jesus. But only one caused Him to marvel.
October 17, 2007
by Pastor Jon Courson
The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die. Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth.
John 4:49-50
I want you to note something I find very interesting. In Matthew 8, another Gentile nobleman - a Roman centurion - faced sickness in his house. He too was a man of prominence and political power. He too lived in the region of Capernaum. He too came to Jesus. But there the similarities end.
'My son is dying,' said the Roman centurion.
'I'll come to your house and heal him,' said Jesus.
'Oh, I'm not worthy to have you come into my house,' protested the centurion. 'Just speak the word.'
And Jesus marveled at the centurion's faith.
Contrast this with the account here in John 4, wherein the nobleman directed Jesus to go to his house. Although Jesus did indeed heal his son, He didn't comply with the nobleman's order to go to his house. I wonder how often we are guilty of the nobleman's error - of giving directions to Jesus.
'OK, Lord, here's the bills and here's the need, and here's what You gotta do to make it happen.'
'There he is. I'm single and so is he. Let's get this going, Lord.'
'Lord, here's the business, and I can see this is a great opportunity, so bless it by next Monday.'
We have a tendency to give instructions and directions. But that is not the finest and highest way to approach our Lord. The centurion in Matthew 8 was a much wiser, deeper fellow. He simply said, 'Lord, here's the situation.' Period. No directions. No instructions. No advice.
Both noblemen experienced the healing power of Jesus. But only one caused Him to marvel.
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