A Military Officer’s Example

When I think of Roman soldiers, I often think of treacherous villains who used their power to suppress and abuse those under them. I think of their role in the crucifixion of Christ and of how they were portrayed in the popular movie “Spartacus.”
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As I read the Bible, however, I do not necessarily see a group of people that are any worse than others. Just as we have good cops and bad cops today, there were godly and ungodly Roman soldiers in Christ’s day. In fact, Roman soldiers are portrayed in a positive manner in the Bible. For example, in Luke 3:14, we find soldiers asking John the Baptist for spiritual guidance.
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Not only do we read of common soldiers in the Scripture, but we also read of military officers. They are most commonly referred to as Centurions and may have been leaders over 100 men, but that number could have been lower or even as high as 1000. Regardless, they were men of rank, with power and authority.
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When Christ was crucified, a Centurion who was there, testified that Jesus was righteous and that He was the Son of God. In Acts 10, we read of the first non Jewish convert to Christianity and he is a Centurion named Cornelius. Later as the Apostle Paul is facing persecution for his Christian faith, he appeals to a Centurion for defense.
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Even before the cross, during Christ’s ministry in Capernaum, we find another Centurion. It appears that this man had financial means in addition to his military authority, since we find out that he had built a synagogue in Capernaum for the Jewish people to worship God (Luke 7:5). It was likely that this was the very same synagogue where Jesus had earlier cast our a demon (Luke 4:35).
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This Centurion also has a servant and this servant is sick. He cares about the servant and the servant is about to die, so he sends a message to Christ asking for help (Luke 7:2-3). As the Centurion communicates with Jesus Christ through his messengers, he explains that he understands what it is like to have authority over others and to be able to tell people what to do and to expect that it will get done. Remember this Centurion is a Roman military officer who has soldiers at his disposal to make sure that his commands are obeyed.
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Jesus had no visible military here on earth, yet this Centurion recognized that Christ had even more power and authority than he had. He also understands that Jesus even has the power over the sickness of the servant. "Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. "For I also am a man placed under authority, having 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." (Luke 7:7-8 NKJV).
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The Centurion recognizes that others are under his authority, but he also sees that there are those who also have authority over him. He understands that not only does the Roman emperor have authority over him, but so does Jesus Christ.
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Jesus commends him for his faith and heals his servant, but I also want us to notice that in understanding Jesus’ authority, the Centurion- who would often be able to demand what he wanted from others- asks Jesus for help rather than demanding it.
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As we go to Jesus for help, let us follow the Centurion’s example of believing Jesus can do whatever we ask, but still praying that God’s will be done, rather than demanding that our will be done. We must recognize that God has the authority, not us. Just as the Centurion would not tell Caesar what to do, we should not tell God what to do.