November 3, 2024

Luke 7:1-17

Just Say the Word

Sunday Sermons

Luke 7 opens with two remarkable encounters that reveal Jesus as both mighty and merciful. The first account features a Roman centurion whose servant is near death. He sends a request for Jesus to come and heal his servant. In the second encounter, Jesus meets a grieving widow who has just lost her only son and is walking along with the funeral procession. How does Jesus respond in these two situations? And what do these moments reveal about His authority and compassion?

Join Pastor Jim as he guides us through these two astonishing accounts, carefully researched and recorded by the good Dr. Luke.

Speaker

Jim Thomas

Series

The Gospel According to Luke

Go to Series

Scripture

Luke 7:1-17

Topics
Suffering

Sermon Notes

The Miracles of Jesus

  • Arouse curiosity
  • Display His power
  • Reveal His compassion
  • Affirm His identity
  • Inspire worship

 

What kind of faith causes Jesus to marvel?

This Centurion was

  • Compassionate towards his servant (v2)
  • Humble enough to cross national-social-religious-racial lines to ask vs demand so (v3)
  • Loving towards God’s people (v4)
  • Generous with his resources (v5)
  • Confident in what he believed about Jesus (v7)
  • Resolved to trust Jesus with the outcome (v8)

 

What does this text teach us about Jesus?

  • The compassion of Jesus responding with selfless love in motion (v6, Matthew 8:7)
  • This amazing instance when Jesus marveled at something! (v9, Mark 6:6)
  • The absolute authority of Jesus over disease and death, and beyond all boundaries – (v10, Matthew 8:13)

Power without compassion is dangerous, while compassion without power is helpless. The good news about Jesus Christ is that He perfectly combines absolute power with perfect compassion.

“Behind every word is the person who speaks it, and the authority he possesses or lacks. God’s word has power for the sole reason that it is God who speaks it.”
John Stott, Christ the Cornerstone

Luke 7:11-17: A Divine Disruption

Two kinds of need. Two kinds of approach. Two only sons. Two kinds of crowds. Two outcomes. One Savior. Countless lives changed.

“We must be ready to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God. God will be constantly crossing our paths and canceling our plans by sending people with claims and petitions.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together

There is no person in the world, no place in the world, and no condition in the world that is beyond the reach of the gracious compassion and redemptive power of Jesus.

“The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all.”
Psalm 34:18-19

“There are many sorts of broken hearts, and Christ is good at healing them all.”
Charles Spurgeon

“Without the Bible there would be no narrative of redemption, no clear gospel message, no knowledge of the attributes and plan of God, and no knowledge of sin and God’s offer of forgiveness.”
Paul David Tripp, Do You Believe?

Discussion Questions

  1. What have you asked God for and received?
  2. Conversely, have you ever asked God for something without receiving your desired answer?
  3. Why do you think God answers some prayers with a yes and others with a no? Why did Jesus heal some He encountered but not every one of them?
  4. Is there anything you want to ask God for today? 

Songs, Readings & Prayer

Songs:

“How Great Thou Art“ by Stuart Wesley Keene Hine
“Revive Us Again“ John Jenkins Husband and William Paton MacKay
“He Is“ by David Crowder, Hank Bentley, and Jeff Pardo
“Jesus Strong And Kind“ by Colin Buchanan, Jonny Robinson, Michael Farren, and Rich Thompson
“Christus Victor (Amen)“ by Keith Getty, Kristyn Getty. Matt Boswell, Matt Papa, Bryan Fowler
“Doxology” by Thomas Ken and Louis Bourgeois

All songs are used by Permission. CCLI License #200369

Call To Worship: Steady Dependence

Compose our spirits to a quiet and steady dependence on your good providence, that we may not be anxious for anything, but by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, still make known our requests to you, our God. Help us to pray always and not faint; in everything to give thanks, and offer up the sacrifice of praise continually; to rejoice in hope of your glory; to possess our souls in patience; and to learn in whatsoever state we are, there to be content. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen!

Source: John Wesley (edited)

Confession:

Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against You this day, in thought, word, and deed; by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved You with our whole hearts; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of Your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us, that we may delight in Your will, and walk in Your ways, to the glory of Your Name. Grant to Your people pardon and peace, that in Your great mercy, we may be forgiven all our sins, and serve You with a quiet and contrite heart. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, amen.

Classic Prayer: Ulrich Zwingli, 1484-1531

Almighty, eternal and merciful God, whose Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path, open and illuminate our minds, that we may purely and perfectly understand your Word and that our lives may be conformed to what we have rightly understood, and in nothing may we be displeasing to your majesty, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Click here to receive TVC’s weekly prayer email.