兩個信心的典範
馬太福音八章1至13節
1耶穌下了山，有許多人跟著他。
2有一個長大痲瘋的來拜他，說：“主若肯，必能叫我潔淨了。”
3耶穌伸手摸他說：“我肯，你潔淨了吧！”他的大痲瘋立刻就潔淨了。
4耶穌對他說：“你切不可告訴人，只要去把身體給祭司察看，獻上摩西所吩咐的禮物，對眾人作證據。”
5耶穌進了迦百農，有一個百夫長進前來，求他說：
6“主啊，我的僕人害癱瘓病，躺在家裡，甚是痛苦。”
7耶穌說：“我去醫治他。”
8百夫長回答說：“主啊，你到我舍下，我不敢當；只要你說一句話，我的僕人就必好了。
9因為我在人的權下，也有兵在我以下；對這個說，‘去’，他就去； 對那個說，‘來’，他就來；對我的僕人說，‘你做這事’，他就去做。”
10耶穌聽見就希奇，對跟從的人說：“我實在告訴你們：這麼大的信心，就是在以色列中，我也沒有遇見過。
11我又告訴你們，從東從西，將有許多人來，在天國裡與亞伯拉罕、以撒、雅各一同坐席；
12惟有本國的子民竟被趕到外邊黑暗裡去，在那裡必要哀哭切齒了。
13耶穌對百夫長說：你回去罷！照你的信心，給你成全了。那時，他的僕人就好了。
信息分享
這個痳瘋病人顯然聽過耶穌所行的奇妙神蹟，唯一令他躊躇的是怕基督不肯幫他。他的話充滿了信心和懇求：「主若肯，必能叫我得潔淨。」我們幾乎能聽見他就近耶穌時，打從心底發出的哀求和盼望。
基督怎樣回答呢？祂伸手去摸他。自從他患病以來，沒有人這樣做過！接著，基督還說了一句最令他感動的話：「我肯，你潔淨了！」基督看見這個不幸的猶太人滿有信心和盼望，便立即醫治了他。
基督那天後來遇見的另一個人，不是猶太人，而是一個羅馬長官，從離耶穌講道地點頗遠的迦百農來。他也是為了一個緊急需要來找耶穌──不過，不是他本人的需要，而是他的僕人。猶太人大都憎恨羅馬人，但根據路加福音的記載，連猶太人的領袖都稱許這個羅馬長官，因為他為他們建造了一個會堂。這人也許有點像使徒行傳十章的那個長官哥尼流，認識猶太人的神，卻還未遇見基督。
兩人在第8至10節的對答，對我們來說可能有點希奇。但作為一位羅馬長官，那人知道他只要命令一下，就會被立即執行；所以，他說「我知道你也能下命令，不管離你多遠，都會立即成就。」基督看見痲瘋病人和羅馬長官兩人的信心，便立即應允了他們的請求。我們來到主面前禱告時，有沒有帶著信心呢？若沒有，也許正是我們某些禱告不蒙應允的原因了。讓我們今天好好反思這點吧！
TWO EXAMPLES OF FAITH
Matthew 8: 1-13
1 When He had come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed Him.
2 And behold, a leper came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean.”
3 Then Jesus put out His hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing; be cleansed.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
4 And Jesus said to him, “See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them. ”Jesus Heals a Centurion’s Servant.
5 Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him,
6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented.”
7 And Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”
8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed.
9 For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!
11 And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.
12 But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
13 Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you.” And his servant was healed that same hour.
Message
This man somehow learned of the remarkable miracles Jesus had performed. His only hesitation was whether Christ would be willing to help him. There was faith and petition in his words, “Lord, if you want to, you can make me well again.” You can almost hear the sadness and the longing in his heart as he approached Christ.
Christ’s answer? He reached out and touched the sick man. No one had done that since the day he discovered his illness. Then came the wonderful words, “I want to. Be healed!” Christ recognized both the faith and the desire of this unfortunate Jewish man and immediately helped him.
The other man Christ met later that day was not a Jew but a Roman, officer from Capernaum some distance away from the site of Christ’s sermon. He also came with a serious need, not for himself but for his servant. Most Romans were hated by the Jews but in Luke’s account of this incident, the Jewish leaders spoke warmly of this man. For some reason or another he had built them a synagogue. It would seem he may have been like Cornelius, a man who knew the God of the Jews but had not yet met Christ.
The interchange of words in verses 8-10 may seem a little strange to us. As a Roman officer he knew what instant obedience meant. He was saying in effect, “I recognize that you too can give orders which are instantly obeyed, even at a distance from where you are.” Christ saw faith in both these men - the leper and the soldier - and the requests of both were granted. As we come to Christ in prayer, is our faith what it should be? If not, perhaps that is why some of our prayers are not answered. Let’s think about that today.