Luke 7:2 And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die.
We all know of the incident of the centurion whose faith surprised Jesus. Jesus went on to say that his faith was the greatest in the land, including those amongst the Israelites.
Today I am not going in that direction, but what got my attention is the words ‘ready to die’, which in other translations is given as ‘to the point of death’. Both try to convey the same message, but the words ‘ready to die’ are hard-hitting and impactful, causing us to understand death more deeply.
We all die a natural death when our spirit leaves our natural body. When this happens, our natural body engine shuts down and starts to decay. The words ‘ready to die’ show us that there is a force that holds our spirit to our natural body, and this force is reduced when we are naturally sick or mentally weak. This force is more mental than physical.
Just working on building our natural body does not assure good natural life; we also need to be mentally healthy. The term psychosomatic disorders speaks of physical illnesses that originate from mental health and emotional distress. While the physical symptoms are absolutely real, their root cause lies in how the mind processes stress, trauma, or emotional struggles. Sicknesses like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) or stomach ulcers are highly responsive to emotional tension. Also, unresolved mental stress can naturally lead to palpitations, racing heart, and elevated blood pressure. The list goes on…
The fact that the rich have lots of resources to take care of the natural body yet are highly prone to death because they lack mental health. On the other hand, a poor man may not be physically top-notch but will live longer because of better mental health.
The comforts of this world do not guarantee a better life, but only when we balance them with our spiritual life do we see a better, longer life.
Let us be mindful when we seek riches, we also seek death; thus, to have a better life, we need to feed only our needs and not our wants. We need to grow from tithing to giving (letting our cups overflow instead of enlarging our cups).
[Prayer Starter]
Lord, You are Almighty God. Lord, You are Spirit, You are Awesome. You, Lord, made us spirits and put us in this natural body in the wombs of our mothers. You made us mighty, but we do not seek the things of the spirit, but more things of the flesh; thus are we little in the Kingdom. We pray, Lord, we discern that which is needed and which is not. We pray we learn to be sober…
This prayer we make in Jesus’ Name, Amen.
[Reference Scriptures]
Luke 7:3-10
3 And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant.
4 And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this:
5 For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue.
6 Then Jesus went with them. And when he was now not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to him, saying unto him, Lord, trouble not thyself: for I am not worthy that thou shouldest enter under my roof:
7 Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: but say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.
8 For I also am a man set under authority, having under me soldiers, and I say unto one, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth [it].
9 When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.
10 And they that were sent, returning to the house, found the servant whole that had been sick.
Dated 15 May 2026
Bro Rollwyn