John 4:46-54 - Faith in the Word, Not the Wonder

Please turn to John 4:46-54.

What we'll find in these verses is that Jesus and his disciples have arrived back in Galilee. They had left Jerusalem a few days earlier. On the way, they stopped in Samaria for a brief rest. However, that rest turned into two-days. As we saw last week, many Samaritans believed. It started with the testimony of the woman at the well, but then spread to many in her town. Some believed her testimony, but many more believed in Jesus' word. And do you remember how they came to meet Jesus? She invited them. She's a great example for us.

They finished their journey to Galilee and were welcomed.

That brings us to verse 46.

Reading of John 4:46-54

Prayer

There are moments in life when you would do absolutely anything to save someone you loved. Especially if it was your child. You would break down walls. You would run into burning buildings. You would stand in the way of someone attacking them. You would do whatever it took. In fact, there are some documented cases of mothers displaying a supernatural like strength to save their children…

One such case happened in 1982 up in Lawrenceville. A teenage boy named Tony Cavallo, was working under his car. Unfortunately, the jack slipped and the car fell on him. It didn't crush him, but he passed out because of it. Well, his mom, Angela, saw it happen. She ran over and literally lifted up the side of the car. She yelled for help. A neighbor heard and ran and was able to replace the jacks and pull her son to safety.

There's a name for it. They call it "hysterical strength." You know, in the hysteria of the moment, someone will have unnatural strength. And that's just one example of dozens.

Well, our passage this morning is not about adrenaline-induced strength, but it is about a father willing to do anything to save his dying son.

If you look at verse 47, you'll read that when this man heard that Jesus was in Cana, it says, "he went to him." That sounds simple enough, except, it was anything but simple. You see, Capernaum, where he and his family lived was about 15-20 miles from Cana. And not only was it a day's journey on foot, but when you travelled from Capernaum to Cana, you were travelling up. Capernaum was right on the Sea of Galilee and Cana was up in the hill country. You would be walking uphill about 1500 feet as you travelled those 15-20 miles. It was arduous and I suspect that this man would have travelled much further. After all, his son was gravely ill.

Now, before we get into the specifics… let me remind you of two background things.

First, at the very end of chapter 2, the apostle John wrote that Jesus knew all people. It says there that Jesus himself knew the heart of man. That statement introduces a series of conversations that Jesus had with different people. So far, we've met Nicodemus, a Jewish teacher and judge. Then, we met someone very different - the Samaritan woman, who had been living in sin. Today is the third person, a royal official - very different than the other two. And then next week, we'll meet a poor, paralyzed man in Jerusalem. Do you see how the apostle John is conveying the full extent of Jesus' ministry? He knows the heart of all men - all mankind, and he knows our needs, including and especially our need for him.

So that is one reminder.

The second reminder relates to verse 54. It says that this was now the second sign that Jesus did in Galilee. The first was back in chapter 2. Jesus turned water into wine. But remember, no one knew about that miracle except Jesus' mother and the servants. I bring that up because in verse 48, people were looking for signs and wonders. Word had gotten out that Jesus could perform miracles and could heal.

The question is when and where would people have heard about or seen these signs? Well, the answer goes back to chapter 2 verse 23. After Jesus cleansed the temple area, it says that he stayed in Jerusalem for the Passover and then it says, "many believed in his name after seeing the signs that he was doing." In other words, Jesus had been performing other signs, not just the ones mentioned so far. We're also told that many Galileans had actually been in Jerusalem for the Passover. Look at chapter 4 verse 45. It says, "So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast." So, there were many in Galilee who had heard about or seen Jesus perform signs in Jerusalem. And because of that, there was a buzz. Word had gotten around that Jesus was back in Galilee. He was in Cana, and they wanted to see more.

Well, that word also reached this official. And so he made his way to Cana.

But who was this man? Well, we're not exactly sure, but the Greek word for official indicates that he was more than just an officer in the Roman guard. The same word could be translated "royal" as a noun. He had some official royal capacity in the Roman hierarchy. We don't know exactly what and we're also not given his nationality, but he served the government in some kind of authoritative position. Perhaps he was over the region or over the city of Capernaum or over some aspect of civil life. Furthermore, he was either wealthy enough or had a high enough status to have multiple servants.

Well, this man's son lay dying in bed at home. He had heard about Jesus, who performed signs and wonders. Could it be that this Jesus could heal my son? Would he be willing to come down to Capernaum before he dies?

I mean, what parent in that situation would not make the same journey?

He didn’t send his servants. He went himself.

And he pleaded with Jesus to come down and heal his son. That phrase "come down," by the way, simply refers to coming down from the hills of Cana down to Capernaum.

Jesus, would you make the day's journey and come down and heal my son?

As you and I know, this official misunderstood Jesus divine nature in two ways. First, he thought that Jesus had to be there in person - that's why he asked him to come to Capernaum. And second, he thought that Jesus had to heal his son before he died - the official didn’t know that Jesus could raise the dead. All he knew was that Jesus had these powers and so he went to him hoping to save his son from death.

In response, what did Jesus say? Verse 48: "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe."

Jesus, what did you say? All I asked is that you come to Capernaum …

I think you would agree… Jesus' response is interesting. He didn't really answer the request. No, instead, he addressed a different problem. This is yet another example of Jesus disrupting the natural flow of the conversation to make a point.

Back in college, I worked as a camp counsellor for a couple of summers. In our training, the camp director talked about "teachable moments." He said that when something out of the ordinary happens, that was the exact moment when you could speak into the hearts and minds of your campers. Like when a fight broke out or when the camp store ran out of candy or when a kid got hurt at an activity. In those moments, the kids would be more likely to hear spiritual truths… more so than regular cabin devotions. Teachable moments are very effective. By the way, parents, take note of that concept.

Well, imagine the scene in Cana. A crowd of some size was there when this royal official approached Jesus. We know this is because the word "you" in verse 48 is plural. Jesus said, "unless you (meaning you all) see signs and wonders, you all will not believe." So, multiple people were there. Why were they there? Remember, word had gotten out. Jesus was no longer just the son of Mary and Joseph. No, this was the man who had been in Jerusalem performing signs and wonders, and people wanted to witness it. So, a crowd had gathered. Then, this nobleman approached Jesus. Perhaps the people knew him. They were, after all, from the region. But even if they didn't know him personally, they would have known his royal capacity. And then he asked Jesus to do exactly what they wanted to see. He asked Jesus to heal his son.

It was a teachable moment. And so, Jesus took the opportunity to address their misunderstanding about his signs and wonders. Again, "Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe." Jesus was saying, "You've got it backwards! You are focused on the wrong thing. You care not about the one who is performing the signs and wonders. No, all you care to see are signs and wonders themselves."

Jesus was not performing the signs as if it was a magic show, yet that is how the Galileans saw it. They didn’t care that these signs signified who Jesus was. No, they only cared about the wonders.

Ok, let's take a little tangent, here.

As some of you noticed, Amy is not here this weekend. When I'm preparing my sermon, sometimes I'll ask her for input. Specifically, I ask her about something controversial that I want to say. And usually she'll say, "you may not want to include that." Well, she wasn't around for me to ask. I'm going to say something controversial.

Today in the church, we do a similar thing as the Galileans. We look for signs and wonders instead of looking to Jesus. I think we do. Sometimes we search for experiences and emotional highs to somehow legitimate our faith… or we want to hear feel-good stories. Some in the church take the latest innovations and seek to merge them with ministries or merge them with worship practices. Worship in the church can easily become man centered and not God glorifying. It often becomes a show and not worship. Our ministries can be filled with strategies that manipulate rather than calling people to faith and repentance. Much of it, t...