“When Jesus heard this, He marveled and said to those who followed Him, ‘Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.’” (Matthew 8:10)
In Matthew 8:5-13, a Roman commander of a group of soldiers begged Jesus to heal one of his servants. This Gentile commander recognized Jesus as his superior. He did not even consider himself good enough to receive Jesus into his home. Nor did this Roman feel too proud or too distant from Jesus to ask Jesus for help. In Mark 6:6 we read how Jesus marveled at the unbelief of His Jewish peers. In Matthew 8:10, Jesus joyfully marveled at the faith of a Roman. The prophet Isaiah had spoken, centuries earlier, of people outside Israel coming to Jerusalem to honor God and enquiring about Jesus. (Matthew 8:11; Isaiah 2:2 and 11:10) Jesus’ words of salvation, healing and forgiveness are available to anyone who recognizes Him as the Son of God and asks for help. Do you too have the courage to present your needs to Him, with the confidence that Jesus will do what is right? The faith of the Roman commander was a joy to Jesus. He’s looking forward to your trusting Him with the desires of your heart. What would you like to ask Jesus for today, for yourself or for others? Submit it to Him in faith.