In both the Jewish and pagan cultures of Jesus’ time, exorcising demons was a strict ritual, fraught with risks. Magical incantations (preserved for us today in some ancient texts) were used in many attempts at exorcism. Other efforts to expel demons included supposedly magical objects, special word formulas, and even invoking the name of a…

When Jesus healed the centurion’s servant, he did more than a miracle. He demonstrated for everyone something that the centurion had already recognized: Authority. More specifically, Jesus demonstrated that he possessed the absolute authority of God incarnate, the authority that only a Creator has over his creation. Theologian Lawrence Richards explains this concept of God’s…

Jesus was in Capernaum when the centurion approached to request a miracle for his ailing servant (Matthew 8:5-13). Here’s what we know about that ancient village: Capernaum was the primary headquarters for Jesus’ ministry in Israel. After his baptism, Jesus moved to this village and likely lived with Simon Peter’s family while teaching, healing, and…

In the days when Jesus walked the earth, the Roman army ruled the land where he walked. Rome’s fighting forces were generally organized into legions, or the equivalent of about 6,000 soldiers. Within each legion, the troops were again organized into 60 groups (“cohorts”) of 100 soldiers each, and each cohort was commanded by a…

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