Luke 7:1-10

About a month ago, I was driving home one night after babysitting; it was only around 7:30 pm, but it was pitch black outside. I crossed over a small bridge and noticed two people sitting there, one of them obviously in some sort of distress, and the other with their arm wrapped around the hurting one. I could not stop, but the situation was tugging at my heart, so I shut the music off and prayed. 

I asked God to give that person peace and to bless the person comforting them to be able to say the right words. Again I asked God that, if it be His will, I somehow be able to know if the person was simply okay. I acknowledged that God has the ultimate authority and that even if I never knew anything about this person, He did, and He held them in His hands. 

I turned onto my gravel road and looked into the dark sky, where I saw for the first time in my life a beautiful shooting star. I asked if the star was a sign that the person was okay, that I could see the shooting star again, and 30 seconds later, another star raced across the sky.

The centurion in this week’s passage had earthly authority (vs. 8), and to some extent, we all do too. It could be the power to do the smallest thing or make a small decision (I had the authority to turn my music off and ask God to work in that situation). The centurion realized that his authority in Rome was insufficient for the healing of his servant (vs. 6-7). He did, however, recognize that he had the opportunity to ask Jesus for something that Rome could never supply.

The centurion’s faith in asking Jesus for healing saved his servant. It is true that Jesus is the one who had the ultimate authority to heal the servant, but the centurion had to have the spiritual authority to ask Jesus. The same holds true for us. All of our human authority stems from God’s power and authority, and all we have to do is ask.

When we ask for His power and presence in our lives, we may begin to see things come to fruition in our lives or the lives of those around us. I asked for God’s peace about the person on the bridge, and even though I don’t have physical proof that the person is okay, I can feel pretty confident that He has worked in their life. We could ask for joy, health, safety, or so many other things; these things aren’t guaranteed, but we will never know unless we just ask God. 

I saw God’s authority once I asked to see it at work, and our spiritual authority is at its best when we simply ask God. How can you use your spiritual authority to ask God to move in your life? How could acknowledging God’s ultimate authority elevate your spiritual authority in your everyday life?