Lesson 11

I.       Observation

A.     Outline

The Centurion’s Faith (7:1-10)

Raising the Widow’s Son (7:11-17)

Jesus and John the Baptist (7:18-35)

Anointed by A Sinful Woman (7:36-50)

B.     Key Words/Phrases

“I am not worthy,” authority, marveled, great faith, compassion, touched, “I say to you,” glorified God, things seen and heard, “blessed is he who is not offended because of Me,” prophet, justified God, wisdom justified by all her children, sinner/sins, debtors, love, much/little, forgiven, “your faith has saved you.”

II.    Segment Analysis

1a. See verse 4.

1b. While the elders believed that the centurion was deserving, the centurion himself did not think that he was worthy (6).

3. Just as the words of a superior carries authority, the Lord’s words must also have authority. In other words, Jesus could surely heal the servant by issuing a command without going to the centurion’s house.

4. Being Himself the Almighty God, the Lord Jesus is able to do the impossible just by His word, and the power of His words goes beyond spatial confines.

5. The grace of God also goes to Gentiles who have faith in the Lord Jesus.

6. Note the pitiful condition of the woman and the Lord’s compassionate heart, words, and action.

7. This is the first recorded miracle in Luke of raising the dead to life. It demonstrates Jesus’ power over death. It will also serve to bear witness to Jesus (22).

8. See 16-17.

10. John might have expected the Messiah to bring about immediate judgment (cf. 3:17). In such case, seeing his own condition in prison and that deliverance was nowhere in sight might have led to his question about who Jesus really was.

11. The healing and preaching ministry of Jesus spoke for Him and testified that He was the fulfillment of the Messianic prophecies.

12. Those who have false expectations of Christ’s work may be “offended” (also translated as “fall away”) when He doesn’t meet these expectations.  For example, some may come to Christ only expecting Him to provide material abundance or physical well-being, and they become disappointed and fall away when their expectations are not met. Jesus reminded the people that the evidence had clearly demonstrated that He was the Messiah. Blessed are those who accept Him based on God’s testimony rather than their own expectations.

13. Recall the work of God in your life and how He has always been faithful in keeping His promises (just as John was asked to consider the works of Jesus and restore his faith). With this renewed conviction in Christ’s love and power, wait patiently for God, who will carry out His good will in His time.

14. Those who accept the gospel of Jesus Christ and come into God’s kingdom are more blessed than even the prophets of the past, for they are able to see and hear what the prophets could not (cf. Mt 13:16-17; 1Pet 1:10-12). Jesus’ statement, however, does not mean that John or the other prophets are excluded from God’s kingdom (cf. 13:28). Rather, it is a reference to the new age ushered in by Jesus’ ministry.

15. The people, even the tax collectors, “acknowledged that God’s way was right” (NIV). In other words, they glorified God, having accepted the ministries of John and Jesus. The Pharisees and lawyers, on the contrary, refused to comply with the messengers of God and thereby reject the way of God.

16. The men of that generation did not accept John’s preaching or repentance. Neither did they accept the good news of the kingdom. Instead, they charged Jesus with gluttony and winebibbing. Whether it was John’s call to repentance or Jesus’ grace of forgiveness, the people remained indifferent and unresponsive.

17. The children of wisdom are those who accept God’s will, such as the people mentioned in 29. Their acknowledgment of the ministries of John and Jesus is an evidence that John and Jesus are messengers of God sent to preach the way of wisdom.

18a. Her great love, which came from a sense of being indebted to the Lord (41-43, 47).

18b. His judgmental attitude shows that he was self-righteous. He did not think that he needed much forgiveness, and as a result, he showed little love.

20. Giving Him our best; drawing close to Him; serving Him with utmost humility.

21. While in 47 Jesus attributed His great forgiveness to the woman’s love, this does not suggest that she earned the Lord’s forgiveness with her actions. Rather, it was her faith that saved her (50). Her love was simply an act of faith in the Lord’s mercy. The apostle John reminds us, “We love Him because He first loved us” (1Jn 4:19). Therefore, the sole basis of forgiveness is the Lord’s love, and faith, not actions, is the means by which we receive this love.

22. Faith means knowing our need for forgiveness and coming to Christ humbly to receive His mercy, realizing that we are not worthy of the Lord’s love.