The chain of authority (Matthew 8:1-13; Luke 7)

The centurion whose servant was deathly ill understood the concept of authority perhaps more than anyone else in the Gospels aside from Jesus himself.  This man worked under authority because he was given a level of authority.  As a centurion, he would have commanded approximately 60-80 soldiers and been responsible for their discipline.  His authority was given to him by the Roman government, and he realized that Jesus' authority must have come from God.  Who else has the authority to cast out demons and to heal the sick?  While others we accusing Jesus of acting under the power of Satan, the centurion recognized that Jesus' authority came from the Father.  All authority ultimately ends with the Father.  God gives authority to government, and governments give authority to people.  Rebelling against authority is the same as rebelling against God because He is the one who allowed the authority to be set into place to begin with.  The centurion pleaded with Jesus because he realized that Jesus was given an incredible authority by God, and Jesus honored the man's request as a result of his understanding and faith.