Devotional Email for Sep
17
Matthew 8:5-10, 13 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
5 And when Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, imploring Him,
6 and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, fearfully tormented."
7 Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him."
8 But the centurion said, "Lord, I am not worthy for You to come under my roof, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.
9 "For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, 'Go!' and he goes, and to another, 'Come!' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it."
10 Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who were following, "Truly I say to you, I have not found such great faith with anyone in Israel.
13 And Jesus said to the centurion, "Go; it shall be done for you as you have believed." And the servant was healed that very moment.
Faith moves God. Faith moves mountains. Faith can do the impossible. It did for the Centurion. Tell me, if God will do a miracle for the Roman Centurion will God do one for you? Of course! God loves you just as much as God loved the Centurion. All we need is faith like the Centurion had.
Luke 17:5-10 New International Version (NIV)
5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!"
6 He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you.
7 "Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? 8 Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? 9 Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? 10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' "
In verse 5 the apostles asked Jesus to increase their faith. Now I want you to notice this very carefully because in these verses Jesus teaches them how to increase their faith. Jesus starts by talking about a mustard seed. In Matthew 4:30-32 Jesus talks about how a mustard seed starts out as one of the smallest seeds but becomes a great plant. Well even if your faith starts out small, it can grow into something great. Your faith can grow powerful enough to do the impossible. Your faith can grow large enough to work miracles.
Then Jesus starts talking about a servant. At first, I thought myself "Ok Jesus has changed subjects". Then I stopped and looked at it again. Obedience is critical to the working of faith. Notice the attitude of this servant. He did as the Master bid him and when he was done with his work his attitude was "We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty".
Do what God has asked you to do. Do it with a willing and obedient heart. When God shows up and the miracles happen keep the attitude "I am only a servant doing his duty". As you faithfully serve God, your faith will grow. As your faith grows you will experience the power of God in greater measure. Never, become proud or conceited. If you do, the power will stop, because faith works by love.
Speak the Word: Father, I am your willing and obedient servant. Speak to me and I will do as you have asked. As I serve you my faith is growing.
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