“Under Authority, With Authority” – Sermon on June 2, 2013
June 2, 2013
Scripture: Luke 7: 1-10
After Jesus had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. A centurion there had a slave whom he valued highly, and who was ill and close to death. When he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, asking him to come and heal his slave. When they came to Jesus, they appealed to him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy of having you do this for him, for he loves our people, and it is he who built our synagogue for us.” And Jesus went with them, but when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to say to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; therefore I did not presume to come to you. But only speak the word, and let my servant be healed. For I also am a man set 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 slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.”
When Jesus heard this he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, he said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.
Sermon: Under Authority, With Authority
by Rev. Doreen Oughton
This is a week in which I was very grateful to have a bible study meeting, and very grateful for the research opportunities that the internet provides – because I didn’t know what to do with this story! Sure, on the one hand, it is easy to spot the good news. Jesus heals. He heals the beloved servant, or slave, of a Roman Centurion. The Jewish elders approach Jesus on behalf of the centurion. The Centurion is a Roman military leader, commanding 100 men. The Romans are occupiers of Israel. They have conquered the nation and imposed their rule. Military presence remained to keep the peace – quelling any uprisings, and ensuring that the hefty taxes were paid. Taxation was the means by which the Roman elite were able to provide gifts for its citizens and build up the Mother City. Now some of the tax money funded construction projects outside of Rome, and even in occupied territories. So the synagogue that the Jewish elders speak of to Jesus was probably paid for by Jewish taxes. The heavy taxation of Rome, along with the Temple taxes, placed a terrible burden on the Israelites under Roman rule. After decades of multiple demands from multiple layers of rulers families fell increasingly into debt , and lost their land. Village communities disintegrated. These are just the things that Jesus talks about in the Gospels: impoverishment and debt.
People dealt the occupation in different ways. One way was to go along to get along. Was this what the Jewish elders were doing? They speak well of the Centurion, but did they feel free to do otherwise? Were they afraid of displeasing him? As the Centurion himself says, when he wants something to happen, it happens. If he wanted the Jewish elders to speak on his behalf, they would do so. So can you hear my bias here? I have an anti-empire heart. I don’t like this Centurion. He built a synagogue? That’s his recommendation? Again, with money taken from these people who are being taxed to death! They don’t need a building, they need food and justice. So I am pretty blown away that Jesus praises him, as surprised, I am sure, as the disciples following him when he turns and basically tells them their faith falls short of this foreign occupier’s. The faith of them that have given up everything to follow him.
I wonder why Jesus went with the elders to see the Centurion. I don’t think it was because the Jewish elders made such a great case for him. I don’t think it was out of any fear of the Centurion. Perhaps Jesus just didn’t say no to requests for help, no matter who they came from. Perhaps he was curious. So Jesus heads out, and when he’d gotten fairly close to the man’s home, some of his friends came out to give a new message from the Centurion. He understands, no matter what the Jewish elders said about him, that he is not worthy of receiving Jesus into his home. But he still wishes his boy to be healed. The friends let Jesus know that the Centurion knew for certain that Jesus could do this without debasing himself by coming into his household, for the Centurion understood about authority. And it is this message that amazes Jesus. And again, I struggle. Jesus is amazed that the Centurion understands authority!? Or is he amazed that the Centurion likens Jesus’ authority to his own? The Centurion gives examples of instant obedience, so is Jesus saying, “Finally, someone who understands that I am to be obeyed!”? That doesn’t make sense as Jesus is not out there issuing commands to people, only to demons, who do obey. No, he heals people, teaches them through parables, invites them to follow, but he doesn’t command. So what is he so excited about? What is it about the Centurion’s thoughts on authority that has so impressed Jesus?
I kept reading the passage, working to push my bias aside. I noticed that the Centurion says he is a man under authority, rather than a man with authority. He gives examples of exercising authority, so it is interesting to me that he says he is under authority. Doesn’t that imply more that you know how to take orders than that you know how to give them? So I think there is something important in that. The Centurion understands that he has authority over others, but that the authority is not of him or within him. It is part of something larger, it is in cooperation with a system. He is not a mere mouthpiece without agency. Once ordained into his authority, he is trusted to exercise it appropriately. And that may be something Jesus can identify with. Jesus is of God. Jesus is God, part of the Triune Being we talked about last week. Jesus is a separate and distinct person, yet his authority comes from the One. He cannot be who he is or do what he does without the Being that is his source, and which depends upon him. And this may well be different from the way Jesus’ followers understand him. They may be overly focused on HIM, and see him, not as part of the Godhead, but as part of the world in which they live – come to save them from Roman rule, come to restore the kingdom of Israel. The Centurion understood that whatever works Jesus did in this world, they originated in a different system, from a different place. So perhaps it is the Centurion’s appreciation of a bigger picture than what the disciples can see that Jesus is lifting up.
I wonder if, paradoxically, it is his appreciation of a very small picture that Jesus also appreciates. For this Centurion is not asking for help for himself. He is not using his power and influence, his authority, to increase his own comfort, health or wealth. He is concerned about a slave boy. He seeks help for the healing of another, a person with no importance in the world. And he does it out of love. That was something else I missed my first go-round. The Jewish elders say that this is a man who loves the people of Israel. Perhaps the building of the synagogue was what they came up with, but perhaps there were countless mercies and kindnesses he showed them. Perhaps that wowed Jesus also, that he understood how to wear his authority, how to use his power for true good. Because, really, isn’t that a tremendous thing – to use power to actually benefit others, especially the less powerful, rather than yourself or those who have even more power?
Jesus probably didn’t see much of that in Israel. Many that he ministered to did not have power. They were the hungry, indebted and oppressed. And those that did have power – Temple leaders, landowners, tax collectors, governors and kings, they seemed to be about keeping things well for themselves, and pleasing those in authority over them. There are not many stories of people calling on Jesus to heal another, except their own kin – children especially. And he is amazed at where he does see self-giving, humble love – in a Centurion, as am I, as am I.
I went to see the movie 42 the other night. I had read a blog relating this week’s reading to that story, and had to check it out. You see Branch Rickey was a man with authority. He was a team executive for the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1940’s. He made things happen. He also knew himself to be a man under authority, the same authority that Jesus was under. He was, like the Centurion, a man who appreciated a bigger picture, and a man who cared about the small picture, the people who were hurting, who were oppressed. 42 is the movie about Jackie Robinson and the integration of baseball, and the role of Branch Rickey in breaking the codes that he knew to be evil. Like the Centurion, Rickey’s sense of humility did not keep him from using his power to help someone else, and like the Centurion, he knew the issue was not him, but a people who were suffering.
Sometimes I minimize it, but this story of the Centurion reminds me that I am a woman with authority. It is granted to me in this world by virtue of my education, my race, my nationality, my economic level. I hope that I earn some of my authority by being trustworthy and kind, by acting with integrity. But I also need to remember that I am a woman under authority, under God’s authority – that all that I am and all that I do has its source in the One God. I pray that this remembering will guide me in setting myself aside in the use of my authority and power, and to use it instead to better the lives of others. In what ways do you have authority, in what ways are you under authority, and who’s? Is there a message in this story for you? May you find it and may it open you to increased faith and joy. Amen.
