The Miracles We Can’t See
No doubt about it: Jesus performed some amazing miracles. You can’t go far in any of the Gospels before you encounter Jesus doing what only Jesus can do: restoring sight to the blind, calming a storm, feeding thousands with a single lunch, curing a chronic illness, and on and on it goes. Simply miraculous.
But one of Jesus’s miracles may not have come across as a miracle to others.
A centurion’s servant, who was highly valued by him, was sick and about to die. When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him, requesting him to come and save the life of his servant. When they reached Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy for you to grant this, because he loves our nation and has built us a synagogue.”
Jesus went with them, and when he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to tell him, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, since I am not worthy to have you come under my roof. That is why I didn’t even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under my command. 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.”
Jesus heard this and was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found so great a faith even in Israel.” When those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant in good health” (Luke 7:2-10).
As we read this, we see the big picture. We see it from the perspective of the centurion. We know what Jesus did: He miraculously healed the servant from a distance. But consider this from the viewpoint of those in the house or those attending the sick servant. They didn’t hear the centurion’s request to Jesus. They didn’t Jesus’s response to the centurion’s faith. For them it was just, “Hey, look. I think he’s feeling better!”
By outward appearances, it just seemed the servant got better; there was no obvious manifestation of a healing. It could be that, when the centurion told them how Jesus healed, many of them doubted anything miraculous happened. Yet those in the house saw a miracle without realizing they had seen a miracle.
We love it when miracles happen. We’re drawn to stories of miraculous, out-of-the-ordinary events. But God works through the ordinary too, and in one sense, that is no less miraculous.
Jesus commended the centurion for his faith, and that’s the same faith we must exhibit. Jesus isn’t physically present, but we pray. Whether God works through some supernatural, out-of-the-ordinary manner, the medicines He created, or the medical wisdom He imparts, it’s still God at work!
Let’s place our faith in the authority of Jesus. Jesus healed in the first century, and He heals today. With whatever you’re praying for, God may choose to answer in a “non-miraculous” way, but it is still God at work.
Pray. And thank Him for His incredible response—regardless of how ordinary it may appear.
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This 
post supports the study “Yielded Faith” in Bible Studies for Life and YOU.
Join Lynn Pryor and Chris Johnson as they discuss this topic.
