The Gospel of Saint Matthew relates that after giving the Sermon on the Mount and setting forth the foundations of the morality and ethics of the Kingdom of God, Jesus performed one of his first miracles with the healing of a centurion's servant.
The gospel relates that Jesus was impressed by the faith of the centurion: "I tell you the truth, I haven't seen faith like this in all Israel!" Matthew 8:10. It is important to remember that the centurions were officers of the Roman army, and therefore this miracle that Jesus performed, he did not do with a son of Abraham according to the flesh but with a God-fearing pagan. At first glance, this seems to have nothing extraordinary because many prophets before him had already performed miracles with the Gentiles or the non-believers, for example, the prophet Elisha, as recounted in the Second Book of Kings, cured a Syrian general named Naaman of leprosy.
But this miracle with the centurion's servant hid a special message, because with this sign Jesus prophesied that it would be the pagans who would receive his spiritual message, and not the children of Abraham according to the flesh. Jesus explained that because of the hardness of hearts, the Kingdom of God would be accepted only by people who came from far away and from all corners of the world, and that these would ultimately be the truly blessed, and with these words, Jesus anticipated what would happen after his death and resurrection: "I assure you that many will come from the east and the west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of heaven. But those who should be in the Kingdom will be thrown out into the darkness, where they will cry and gnash their teeth." Matthew 8:11-12.
The Kingdom of God, the empire or dominion of divine excellencies, as Jesus with spiritual love taught, is ultimately the choice of a path, the righteousness through faith, and for this choice, men are rewarded. But as Jesus with wisdom taught, despite grace, freedom to choose is always there and people are responsible for this choice.
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"Wow, what a powerful post! 🙏 I love how you break down the significance of Jesus' first miracle in Matthew 8. It's amazing to see how this story speaks directly to our faith and choice in the Kingdom of God. 😊 The message is clear: it's not about where we come from, but about our heart and willingness to follow His teachings.
I couldn't agree more with your conclusion that freedom to choose is always there, and people are responsible for their choices. 💡 It's a timely reminder that we all have the power to make a positive impact in our lives and the lives of others.
Thank you for sharing this insightful post! I'd love to hear your thoughts on how we can apply these teachings to our daily lives. 🤔 Please share your reflections, and let's discuss!
And don't forget to check out the author's profile for more inspiring content, including a free ebook! 📚
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