“He is worthy for You to grant this (healing) to him; for he loves our nation and it was he who built us our synagogue.”
… “Lord, do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not worthy for You to come under my roof; for this reason I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed.
… “I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.” – Luke 7:4-9
Patrick Swayze’s wife was on TV recently saying some pancreatic cancer sufferers “deserve” a cure. More than once someone told me I “deserved” to get healed from Stage IV metastatic melanoma because I was in a position to help people. Does anyone deserve God’s healing touch?
Though the leaders of the Jews vouched for his good works, the centurion insisted he was unworthy for his servant to be healed. But wait, He loved Israel and had built a synagogue and he wasn’t even Jewish! Yet he refused to approach Jesus in person and would not even allow Him to enter his home. Wow – now that is humility. No wonder Jesus said He had not seen such faith in all of Israel.
If we grasp both the heights of God’s holiness and the depths of our own sin, we will not approach God with a sense of entitlement. Instead we will humbly approach Him on the basis of grace – His unmerited favor.
Yet ironically, there is a boldness that comes from knowing how to properly approach Him:
Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. – Hebrews 4:16.
The word confidence in this verse means “outspoken fearlessness.” You might call it a “sanctified pushiness.”
We can boldly pray for healing with all of our hearts, yet our prayers must be tempered by the sincerity of humility. Amen?
Lord, we want to boldly approach You with our needs because of Your abundant grace and mercy, not our goodness.
