Unearthing Biblical Onion Layers

What Podcast Preacher, this better be a message about delicious hamburgers. Ha but no really its going to be better than that at least insofar as a message, this message can be related to food:

John 4:34 - 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.

Where is this going; out to lunch real fast if we don’t hit it Mister. 

I got the idea for this message while I was reading a book titled, “The Miracles of Jesus Christ” written by Rick Rainer. I recommend the purchasing of this book as Rick has given us an eye-opening examination of every miracle healing and demonic encounter recorded in all four of the gospels and in the book of Acts. There may not be written, in all of history, another book like it.

Ok let’s almost open with the following scripture:

Matthew 8:5-13 - 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.

So we are going to peel back the onion layers of the bible in this scripture and talk about what is being inferred as knowledge and understanding to Jesus,, but to us who read this scripture centuries later we must search for her as for hidden treasure and fill in the blanks (Pro 2). 

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SPEAKER_00 0:15

This is King Podcast Preacher. Welcome back to my podcast. This podcast is about you by strength ministry. So we believe working together on strength. It is effective working out the will of following Christ and into our lives. Thanks for joining me. Let's open up in prayer. Bless you be the God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed you with every spiritual blessing and the heavenly places in Christ. Just as he shows you in him for the foundation of the world, that you should be holy and without blame before him in life, having predestined you to adopt and power Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, which he purposed in himself, for the praise and the glory of his grace, by which he made you accept it in the love. In him he had redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace which he made to abound for to you in all wisdom and trudence. Having made known to you the mystery of his will, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times, he might gather together, in one, all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth in him. As that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation and the knowledge of the mystery of him. Ah, and to the deepest knowledge of him that you are willing and able to receive, that the eyes of your understanding would be open wider, and that you would be enlightened to who he is, that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what are the riches of the glory of his inheritance in you, and what is the exceeding greatness of his power towards you who believe, according to the working of his mighty power which he worked in Christ and raised him from the dead, and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, that he would grant that you would be strengthened with mighty through his spirit in the inner man, into your spirit and heart, consistently walking in this spirit, so that you would be able to stand against the appetites of your flesh, the corrupted spirit of this world, the devil and his demons, and any and all fleshly desires and temptations. I pray that your love may abound more and more in all discernment, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be real about your Christianity, unoffendable until the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness, love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, which are by Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit to the glory and praise of God. I ask that ye may be filled with the knowledge of His will and all wisdom and spiritual understanding, that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing him, being fruitful in every good work, strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints who walk by the Spirit and in the light. I pray that your hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love and unity, and that you would attain to all the riches of the full assurance of understanding, both of the Father and of Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which have been given to each of my listeners by Christ Jesus, that you are enriched in everything by him, in all utterance and all knowledge, so that you do not come short in obtaining or operating in your calling and purpose, nor in using any spiritual gifts or talents to perform mighty miracle signs and wonders, and that we would do the greater works of Jesus yet to be accomplished, that we would be found eagerly waiting for the continued revelation of our Lord Jesus, who will confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the near coming of the day of our Lord. God is faithful by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son Jesus. Okay, so now therefore, my sisters and brothers, when things get tough, think about whatever things are true, noble, just, pure, lovely, and whatever things are of a good report. If there is any virtue, and if there is anything praiseworthy, meditate on these things alone. I pray that in these very end of end time days that you would let your love be without hypocrisy. Show people your faith by your works and service and love, hate and loath what is evil, cling to what is good and righteous, be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another, not lagging in diligence, fervent and fully engulfed in spiritual fire, serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope, walking in the peace of God, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer, distributing to the needs of the saints, that is each other, and that you would be given hospitality. May the God of peace and comfort grant you to be like minded towards one another, according to Christ Jesus, that we learn to be of one mind, in one accord, striving to get along no matter what disagreements we may encounter, operating completely and fully in love, always striving for the working out of God's specific will for each of our lives, while working in partnership with each other within the church and the Holy Spirit, as he manifests his miracle signs and wonders through the daily activities of our ministry and kingdom work, and while we also go out preaching the gospel in word and deed. Let us love and serve one another, our enemy, and those who wouldn't expect us to do so, considering each person better than ourselves. Bind up any words or thoughts that are contrary to the love of God, or which would set you back in your Christian walk. Guard your hearts from anything that would hinder the growth of your character. Never forget that you can do all things in Christ and never forget this means all things. Step out on faith today and walk with God and with each other, being assured that nothing will separate you from Him as long as you abide in Him. Call those things that don't exist as though they do. Remember the faith of God of which we have created the universe by the Rama and Logos Word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible. All that you need for this life is invisible until you apply your faith to receive it, but make sure you make your request known to God without fear, doubting, or unbelief. Always remember that he that is in you is greater than he that is in the world. Be more than a conqueror today, submitting to the will of God in everything. Never forget that you can do all things through Christ who will strengthen you this very today. Let each of us express uncompromising love towards one another in humility, while maintaining a teachable spirit, seeking to grow no matter how much it challenges our current thinking. I pray that God will give you the revelation within this message that He intends you to receive with the understanding. Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone be wise. Be glory in majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. The title of this message is Unearthing Biblical Onion Layers. What podcast preacher? This better be a message about delicious hamburgers. No, really it's going to be better than that, at least insofar as the message. However, this message can be related to food. John four thirty four. Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Where is it going? Out to lunch real fast if we don't hit it, mister. I got the idea for this message while I was reading a book titled The Miracles of Jesus Christ written by Rick Raynor. I recommend the purchasing of this book, as Rick has given us an eye opening examination of every miracle healing and demonic encounter recorded in all four of the gospels and in the book of Acts. There may not be written in all of history another book like it. Okay, so let's almost open with the following scripture Matthew eight, five through thirteen. Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him pleading with him, saying, Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented. And Jesus said to him, I will come and heal him. 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, for I also am a man under authority, having soldiers unto 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. When Jesus heard it, he marvelled and said to those who followed, Assuredly I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel. And I say to you that manual come from the east and west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then Jesus said to the centurion, Go your way, as you have believed, so let it be done for you, and a servant was healed that same hour. Okay, so we're gonna peel back the onion layers of the Bible in this scripture and talk about what is being inferred as knowledge and understanding to Jesus. But to us who read the scriptures centuries later, we must search for her as for hidden treasure and fill in the blanks, Proverbs chapter two. In verse five, we are gonna look at the words my servant and see what they meant back in the days when Jesus heard the plea from the centurion guard. Then we're gonna take a look at the statement I am not worthy that you should come under my roof in verse eight, as it too has a deeper level meaning than what way too many of us first assumed, including me. Lastly we will look at the following statement in verse ten which states I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel, but first a history lesson, which will begin in Rome. So the first thing that is important to understand is that back when the centurion made his request to Jesus, there was a whole hidden side to his current condition as it relates to back then, in that culture. The first thing to grasp is that the Roman soldiers had to remain single for twenty five years, so that they do not marry and start a family and become distracted in battle. And if they already had a family, well, let's find out how that was handled in the following historical account. The prohibition against Roman soldiers marrying is recorded in Roman legal and historical sources from the imperial period, originating around the reign of Emperor Augustus in the late first century BC and lasting for over two centuries until it was lifted by Septimus Severus in AD one hundred ninety seven. The digest and legal commentaries, specific mention of the ban, soldiers do not have the right to legal marriage, is preserved in fragments of classical Roman jurists compiled centuries later in the Corpus Luris Sevilis under Justian I jurist, like Olpian Paulus and Macer, discuss how active duty soldiers lack the right to contract a legal civil marriage. The Augustan legislation ancient context points to Augustus establishing these restrictions as part of a sweeping moral and military reforms to keep the professional standing army focused and unencumbered. Evidence of the rule comes in reverse from military diplomata, bronze discharge certificates given to auxiliary troops, which frequently granted citizenship and legal recognition of marriage to veterans upon their honorable discharge after twenty five years of service. Reality versus the law, while the law explicitly forbade a recognized legal marriage during active service, meaning any prior marriage was treated as dissolved or void, and children born during service were legally illegitimate. Archaeological excavations at frontier forts show that soldiers widely kept de facto wives and families in the extramural settlements outside their bases. We also want to take a look at how the term servant child intertwined and may have had been used interchangeably. In Roman law and classical Latin, a child seven years old and under was actually called an infins, literally translating to one who cannot speak. They were not officially or legally categorized as servants. The confusion likely stems from a crossover between ancient language and biblical translation rather than actual Roman legal codes. Where the servant connection comes from, and this is what we want to pay attention to. In the ancient Greco Roman world, the Greek word peis was completely ambiguous. It meant both child based on age, usually seven and under, and slave slash servant, based on social status. Master slave relationships in Roman households often use this term familiarly. So we know the term was used in spite of legal categorization or officially stated as such. The New Testament context. The most famous intersection of this happens in the Gospels written during the Roman Empire, the story of Jesus healing the Roman centurion servant. The centurion calls a sick individual his paius. Depending on the Bible translation, it is rendered as either servant, slave, or boy slash child. For this story, because it fits in with the rest of the scripture narrative, we will assume that the centurion was referring to his child. Additionally, there is enough historical support to take this position. Now it knitts our defining and results thereof regarding the servant language and the fact that the soldiers were not to marry for at least twenty five years so that they could serve out their time without distraction. Now the Hing scripture, which is in verse eight stating, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. We of course want to know why the centurion would say this, considering he may very well have been an unbeliever. Let's unpack that right here. Now so when I asked AI if the centurion soldier was a Christian, it came up with the following. Ah but first let me say that when I asked AI if he was a believer, it came up with a totally different answer. Hint when you use AI, keep in mind the most important thing is asking the correct question. You see it in James it states in James two nineteen, you believe that there is one God, you do well, even the demons believe and tremble. Note the word believe. Now you can see how AI may get confused as to how the term believer is used and in what context. Even though the term or the language of a Christian had not existed at the time of the centurion's interaction with Jesus, it is the closest method to use to ensure accuracy of the AI feedback. I know, blah blah blah. But it's important to know just in case you use a magnifying glass on any one of my messages. So the AI question was was the centurion soldier a Christian? That was discussed in Matthew eight, five hundred thirteen. At the risk of being redundant, I replaced the word believer with Christian, and I got the following response. No, the Roman centurion in Matthew eight, five through thirteen was not a Christian, but rather a pagan Gentile who showed extraordinary faith in Jesus. The background he was a Roman military officer stationed in Capernaum, meaning he worshipped Roman gods and held allegiance to Caesar. Faith. When he asked Jesus to heal his paralyzed servant, Jesus marveled at his profound trust, noting that he had not found such great faith even in Israel. In some context, Christianity as an established religion or identity did not yet exist during this encounter, which happened during Jesus' earthly ministry before his death and resurrection. While the centurion believed in Jesus' authority to heal, he is categorized in the narrative as a believing Gentile rather than a baptized Christian of the later church. So now what are we going to do with all this information? And no, I haven't dropped the hinge scripture discussion, which is in verse eight stating I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. We will get to why the centurion may have used that language in a minute. So I asked AI also well before I presented a deep waters opinion on this discussion between Jesus and the centurion soldier in the following question. If the centurion soldier understood authority, why did he tell Jesus in Matthew eight, five through thirteen, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof? AI came up with what I believe is a surface level of the Bible onion. The centurion called himself unworthy because he recognized his own low position and moral shortcoming compared to the supreme holy authority of Jesus. A chain of command. The centurion knew how military authority worked. A superior officer did not need to be physically present to issue a command. His word carried power across the distance. Because the centurion understood true authority, he recognized that Jesus possessed a higher divine authority over sickness and the physical world. He viewed Jesus as a heavenly commander, and he himself as a simple, flawed human. He felt his house was not clean or holy enough to host such a great figure, and we're going to find out why that is in just a minute. His statement was not a lack of confidence, but ultimately respect. He trusted that a single word from Jesus was enough to heal a servant from afar. Now but if we peel back a layer, we might discover another reason why the centurion soldier made the statement in Matthew eight, five through thirteen, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. We of course will tie this in with the servant child terminology as well as the no marriage land that a soldier had to endure for twenty five years. To come up with our assessment of this conversation, I'm not saying that AI was incorrect, but this to me represents the milk layer of knowledge, whereas we want the meat layer of knowledge. Now I am not a proponent of layered meat, so imagine a filet mignon with burnt ends. I think that image is better. Now we break down or embellish with historical facts some of the specifics discussed in Matthew eight, five through thirteen. I believe it will provide spiritual emphasis regarding the centurion's plea and deepen your understanding regarding the possible overlooked love that Jesus has for his people. It might be best if we just rewrote the scripture as like the amplified Bible does, but not so much as to amplify it as it is to add historical context. Matthew eight five thirteen. Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, pleading with him, saying, Lord, my child, remember he probably chose not to use my child language originally, least he called out his sin. My child is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented. And Jesus said to him, I will come and heal him. The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that you should come under my roof. The Roman centurion to have a child, it had to be illegitimate by Roman law or illegitimate, because the centurion had a child with a woman in whom he may not have been married to. Yes, according to the law which abolished marriages, if you enlisted after you were married, the centurion may just have kept his marriage a secret and intact. Regardless, he had a child from a woman in which the Roman law did not recognize as a legal marriage. It is here that we can take some liberty and assume that this is why the centurion did not want Jesus to come under his roof. Remember he understood authority, so a house visit wouldn't have been prevented unless of course sin was actively present. This can also be supported by the fact that the centurion wasn't a Christian. A believer yes, a Christian no. Let's continue with what the centurion says. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed, for I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. I say to this one go and he goes, to another come and he comes, and to my servant do this, and he does it. You see, the centurion told Jesus he understood authority, and it is this reason that he told Jesus to make the proclamation of healing, again so he could keep his marriage or sin from being found out. Remember, his marriage was nullified by Rome once he joined the military, and with Jesus the crowds were always following him. So if Jesus went to the centurion's home, there would have been a lot of witnesses who may have discovered this guy was married, or sleeping with a woman in whom he wasn't married to. 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. So why did Jesus say this instead of calling him out on a sin? He didn't even say, Okay, but go and sin no more John eight eleven and John five fourteen. This man's faith was in that although he was in sin and not converted, he knew that because Jesus walked in authority, he could bring healing to his son. It is for this reason that Jesus made the statement I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel. Now we can understand the entire conversation once we have some traditional Roman background, right? Now did Jesus make such a statement and leave the man to himself? No, he healed the child without so much as laying a single hand on him. Listen, verse eleven, and I say to you that many will come from the east and west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, but the sons of the kingdom will be cast into outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then Jesus said to the centurion, Go your way, and as you have believed, so let it be done for you, and the servant was healed that same hour. Okay, so let's tap the brakes and throw this onion into reverse for a minute. Look at the difference between a sinner who believes, but as of yet at that time wasn't converted, and those who attend church fasted, prayed, tithe, and gave offerings in the same time period. In Matthew eight twelve, Jesus used the phrase sons of the kingdom to refer to ethnic Israelites who assumed they had an automatic place in God's kingdom simply because of their physical heritage, while outer darkness symbolizes final separation from God and judgment. The context of the passage in Matthew eight five through thirteen. A Roman centurion, a Gentile, non Jew, and a military officer asked Jesus to heal his paralyzed servant. The centurion showed extraordinary humility and trust, something the Pharisees didn't do, stating that Jesus did not even need to come to his house. A single spoken word from Jesus would be enough. Jesus was amazed by this. He stated that he had not found such great faith even in Israel, leading into his warning about who will and will not enter the kingdom of heaven. The sons of the kingdom, this refers to the people of Israel who felt secure in their salvation based on their bloodline and national heritage as descendants of Abraham. They believed physical lineage guaranteed them a seat at the Messianic banquet, regardless of their personal response to God. Now I would say that when the narrative states regardless of their personal response to God, they actually didn't believe Jesus was God, so that statement doesn't necessarily apply. The outsiders, east and west, Jesus stated that many people from foreign nations, Gentiles, would come from all directions and recline at the table with the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, cast out into outer darkness. The shocking reversal meant that ethnic privilege cannot replace personal trust in God. Israelites who rejected Jesus would find themselves excluded from God's presence, experiencing the weeping and gnashing of teeth associated with eternal judgment, while outsiders with true faith would take their place inside. The core lesson, Jesus taught that faith, not ethnicity or religious background, determines a place in God's kingdom. Belonging to a religious family or community does not save someone if they lack genuine faith in Christ. Does this message imply that Jesus approved of sin in people? No, the entire Bible taught. us that, but in this story, Jesus is showing us a depth of his love that is beyond looking at the man's weakness, but more about responding to faith. And this is the point of the message, which is that God will respond to faith even if you are in sin. Now as a Christian we are told to repent, and I would add quickly, so that we can stay in favor with our God. But for those who are not Christians, is it necessary that they deal with their sins first before they can get a blessing from God? I believe this is stated best by King David who when he said, You know my makeup, I'm just dirt. Psalm 103 14, for he knows our frame, he remembers that we are just dust. So Jesus used this as a teaching point to clearly point out that those who thought that they had faith or who were being religious in verse eleven through twelve were not at the same level as the centurion. Jesus responded to the man's faith and told him in verse thirteen, Go your way, and as you have believed, so let it be done for you. Is it possible to be religious and not to believe, therefore not to receive the answers to our prayers? Yes, and but even more shocking is that someone who is not religious or even a believer in Jesus Christ can access him through faith if they are simply being saved by God. Remember in the book of Acts it says that God was adding to the church daily those that were being saved. But what I am not saying is that if they are openly being rebellious against God that they can receive blessing, although the Bible does say his reign falls on the just and the unjust Matthew five forty five that you may be sons of your Father in heaven for he makes his son rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. You can also read the book of Ecclesiastes in which King Solomon was wrestling with the fact that good things happen to both believer and unbeliever. So why this story is so interesting to me is that we can never read the Bible enough and I believe the more we pursue searching for the hidden meanings that we discover something about God that is just beautiful and sometimes even beyond our words to describe. The Roman centurion was concerned about his son who was conceived inside or outside of wedlock and yet he found the courage and faith to go to the one he knew could bring about his son's healing without outing him. If Jesus said you have had five wives and the one in whom you are now with is not your wife this story would have turned out much different. Why bring that up podcast preacher? Because I want you to know how relational Jesus is and that he wants to have a very personal relationship with us. So there's no need in hiding sin, but simply confessing it and asking God to break the chains that might be binding you to it. But I tell you from my personal experience if the change still exists for a season, God will still respond to your prayers in faith. Maybe the moral of the story is if an unsaved centurion can access Jesus miracles while in the midst of sin and receive it, what more can we accomplish if we ask God as true believers for whatever it is that he intended on giving us just as soon as we asked without fear or concern that we might not be good enough. Let's close in prayer. May the Lord make you increase in abound in love to one another and to all, so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before your God and Father at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and all his saints. Now may the God of peace, the one in whom we call wonderful Counselor, mighty God, everlasting Father, the Prince of peace, may he himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. To our Lord of Lords and our King of Kings, to our high and lifted up great high priest who has, once and for all, paid the price, that you might see and hear God, may he hear and respond to our prayers. To our God we stand and pray, as he too always lives to make intercession for you while seated at the right hand of the Father. May the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, the great shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant make you complete in every good work to do his will, working in you what is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ to whom we glory forever and ever. Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us. To him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations. Forever and ever Amen. Well that's it for today. Remember it's not what you find wrong or disagree with regarding these messages, but what you can take away from it. Together we can do more to impact the kingdom and if we work alone, let's flip the script and still kill and destroy the works of the enemy and create space for the light of life to shine through in people's lives. Mannest even click on the like and subscribe button, repost on your social media platform and help us to make disciples, link this message out or teach from it in your Bible study or life or cell group, and yes even in your church, you can be sure to come someone called a teaching, and though imperfect, you have the word of God to use to test everything I say. Let's build this ministry together thanks to see you next time before