Beyond the Church Doors

Matthew 8:5-13

8/26/07

I have been watching the CNN series called “Holy Warriors” over the past few days. It depicts the rift between Christians, Muslims and Jews. It has pointed how deep the cultural and religious differences are and how strong emotions are driving events. Despite the fact the show has some commentators suggesting the possibility of peaceful outcomes,  I come away with the overwhelming feeling that there is no hope for any solution.  When people allow emotions and insecurities to replace rational reasoning, one wonders how we can back away from the abyss. What power could make the senseless fighting and killing end if people do not respond to logical thoughts and compromise?

  In some ways, we are seeing the same type of divisiveness being played out in our own country. Questions about who belongs in the “homeland.” Who is welcome and who is not, just like in the Holy Land.  I would like to suggest that it is acts of healing and grace that will bring about a resolution to all the struggles -- not force or might. Healing that goes beyond the doors and barriers that normally separate people will bring about a new community and a world of peace. We can participate in acts of healing that make a difference as we look beyond ourselves.

In today’s Gospel passage we find an interaction between Jesus and a Roman centurion. In the Roman army, legions were groups of 6,000 men, and the 6,000 men were organized into 60 centuries of 100 men, and each century had a leader who was known as the centurion.  During the time of Jesus, Israel was under occupation by the Romans.  The Jews hated the Romans since they had destroyed their temple and taken away their freedom and self-rule. The Jews also had no dealings with most Romans,  because they were considered pagan and unclean. To go into a Roman person’s home would cause a Jewish person to become unclean and face restrictions relating to Jewish religious practices for a period of time. The centurion has a slave who has become sick and he asks Jesus to help.

Right away, flags go up!  Jesus understands His ministry to the Jews, God’s chosen people. This Roman centurion doesn’t meet the criteria of Jesus’ clientele.  Another flag goes up; slaves were considered to be like animals or even inanimate tools. If you had a slave that got sick, you would try to sell him quickly or let him die. You would not spend money on medicine or make any effort to help him, because that would be a waste of resources.  Matthew presents a story with two people who do not fit correctly. A Roman Gentile was not welcome in the Jewish world, and a slave was not shown concern by a master. Yet here we are with both of these strangers knocking on the door, needing Jesus’s attention. The centurion did not expect to be welcomed by Jesus -- he even said that he didn’t expect him to come into his home; he knew that doing so would make Jesus unclean.  Jesus was hesitant about helping, just like the time the Canaanite woman asked Jesus to cast the demon from her child and Jesus said his work was for the children … the Jews, not the outsiders. Yet the passage makes it clear that it was the centurion’s great faith that made Jesus respond. The centurion affirmed that Jesus had the power to heal the slave, even through the air without even touching him or being close to him. This affirmation clearly indicated that the centurion knew Jesus was not just some kind of regular, everyday healer but that He had God’s authority to act; therefore, the centurion was making the same statement Peter would later make, that Jesus was the Christ, God’s Messiah.

 At this moment, we see the wall and barriers between Jew and Gentile start to come down. The centurion moved beyond his own people and sought help from a Jewish rabbi.  His eyes are opened to Jesus. Not only is the slaved healed, but new community comes about. We see that masters don’t have to relate to slaves as inanimate tools. We see that Jews can be open to Gentiles. We see that God cares for all people.

This happy event contains a warning, though. Jesus uses this experience to warn the chosen few that they might find themselves out in the cold, or down in the heat, if you hold that view, if they do not respond to God’s call through the Messiah. Jesus warns that simply having the birthmark of Abraham doesn’t guarantee a seat at the banquet table but that those seats are reserved for those who act upon God’s call.

Today’s Gospel message is part of three miracle stories. Each one deals with someone who cannot fully participate in the Jewish religion for one reason or another. The story before today’s passage is about a leper, who could not enter the temple or others homes because he was unclean; then we have today’s passage about a Roman who is unclean since he is a Gentile, and the final story involves Jesus healing Peter’s mother-in-law who because she was a woman had limited access to the Jewish ceremonies and religion. In each case, Jesus steps beyond the boundaries, and God’s grace reaches the outsider and brings him or her into the kingdom.

 God calls us to be about the same work. We should have the faith of the centurion knowing that God’s healing power can be extended far beyond where we sit or stand and that we can be agents of healing beyond the doors of the church.  There are needs outside the door, people are hurting, and by simply sharing what we have, healing can happen even on the other side of the world. In this moment, I think of the woman’s shelter, in the Palestinian territories that is run by Sabeel but supported by our denomination, which helps hurting women find a place of peace. I think of the Tokyo women’s shelter that  rescues women from the awful places men force them to work; the shelter is supported once again by our gifts. And I think of the Wesley Community Center in Portsmouth, which helps the elderly poor with a hot meal and a place to exercise during the day while also offering after-school tutoring and a preschool for children, one of our missions in this conference. As we stand in faith and share, God acts in healing ways beyond our doors healing people and breaking down walls of separation and bringing forth a new world.