The Royal Official
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
RECAP OF JOHN 2! (What happened- a wedding and Jesus turns water into wine! This happens IN FRONT OF JOHN AND THE OTHER DISCIPLES! THIS SHOWS THEM WHO JESUS IS and they respond)- John 2:11
11 Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee. He revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.
This is not the only thing that takes place in Cana- our passage today takes place there also.
Recap of John 3 and John 4 (Jesus goes to Judea, He preaches, teaches, his disciples baptize people, the pharisees find out and Jesus goes back to Galilee, by way of Samaria- where He interacts with a samaritan woman).
Main Point: Faith is not a blind leap into the unknown. The miracles help us know who Jesus is, including His mercy.
Main Point: Faith is not a blind leap into the unknown. The miracles help us know who Jesus is, including His mercy.
Body
Body
As we look together at John 4:46-54, look at verses 46 and 47 with me.
46 He went again to Cana of Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. There was a certain royal official whose son was ill at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea into Galilee, he went to him and pleaded with him to come down and heal his son, since he was about to die.
John starts off the second sign of Jesus by giving us the setting again. John tells us that Jesus goes BACK TO CANA OF GALILEE WHERE HE DID HIS FIRST MIRACLE!
John lists a lot of places in these two verses and I know that it can be tempting for us to skim over these details and to just skip to the next part, but let me challenge you not to!
These details show us that these events truly happened, because it shows us that JOHN SAW WHAT HE WRITES ABOUT!
I know it’s a lot to keep track of- here John lists 5 different locations or regions, but don’t skip over these verses!
This level of detail is absolutely CRUCIAL FOR SHOWING US THAT JESUS ACTUALLY DID WHAT WE ARE ABOUT TO READ!
Let me give you an example.
This week I went to a place in Central Illinois and I spoke with a few people.
When I say that, it’s so broad that it’s probably true, but who can be sure! I could have gone anywhere! Maybe I went to Decatur, or Springfield, or maybe I went to Bloomington or Jacksonville, or Beardstown or Mt. Sterling, or Rushville! Who knows!
But what if I said this- On Thursday I went to Springfield, Illinois to meet with Kevin Jones, Michael Awbrey, saw JOSH’S NEW OFFICE, and met with a few other IBSA staff members to talk about youth and campus ministry!
Now all of a sudden it’s a lot more understandable and also more believable!
If someone read that first statement in 100 years they would have no idea what I did. If they read the second statement they could start to piece together what was going on!
The same is the case here- John shows us Jesus’s travel not to bore us but to make sure that we understand what is going on and as a reminder that we can RELY ON HIS ACCOUNT!
So Jesus goes with His disciples to Cana of Galilee and at the same time, a man from Capernaum comes to see Him.
The man- specifically a royal official- comes AFTER he hears that Jesus has RETURNED to Cana.
We know WHERE this sign occurs- it occurs in Cana, but what about the WHO.
John introduces us to a “certain royal official.” It’s probably a Jewish royal official who worked for Herod Antipas.
John doesn’t say who it is directly and let me tell you why.
There’s two reasons- first, it isn’t essential for what John is recording.
And second, because if this is a minor official- like it probably is- then what does the name even mean to us.
Let me give an example of this- If I was to ask a group of current University of Illinois students who the last four football coaches before Brett were WITHOUT LOOKING, how many students would get that right?
I’d bet not many! Some may recognize the name Ron Zook, or Tim Beckman, or maybe Lovie but how many remember Bill Cubit?
What if I made it harder though?
What if I asked a group of randomly selected non-football players the names of the first 4 coaches in the history of the University of Illinois?
No one is going to say, “Oh yeah! Robert Lackey! I sure loved the way his offense worked!”
The name is somewhat meaningless!
Here’s the honest thing- those are all head coaches! Imagine if I asked you to tell me the name of the Assistant Offensive Line Coach in 1978! There’s no way that you would remember that person UNLESS you had met them!
And it’s the same thing with this official. Instead of giving a name enhancing our understanding of what happens, it DRAWS OUR ATTENTION AWAY FROM WHAT JESUS IS DOING!
So John tells us that there is a certain royal official who lives in Capernaum which is about 20 miles- one full day of walking- away from Cana.
The man comes to Jesus because his son is sick!
So there’s a few people involved in this passage- Jesus, the official and the son!
The son is extremely sick- in fact, the son is about to die!
The man PLEADS WITH JESUS TO come to Capernaum to HEAL HIS SON- the word here is “ἠρώτα” (eroota), meaning that the man URGED JESUS!
This man is saying to Jesus- “PLEASE COME HEAL MY SON! DON’T LET MY SON DIE! CAN YOU PLEASE HELP ME!”
There’s something different about this Dad. Have you seen it?
This man recognizes that Jesus is DIFFERENT! This man recognizes that Jesus isn’t like ANY OTHER RABBI! Jesus can teach and can HEAL!
In fact, ONLY JESUS COULD HEAL HIS SON!
He doesn’t go to Gamaliel- the leading Jewish scholar of the day- and say, “Mr. Gamaliel, please save my son!”
He doesn’t go to another doctor, or try to find another treatment. Instead, this man has spent ALL DAY GOING TO CANA TO GO FIND JESUS!
This man is showing something that is DIFFERENT than so much of Israel at this point in time- this man is showing that HE HAS FAITH! HE HAS REAL, GENUINE FAITH IN JESUS!
It isn’t blind belief! Jesus has healed other people and has done other miracles- it’s FAITH that KNOWS WHO JESUS IS!
So, let’s see WHAT is about to happen.
John 4:48-49
John 4:48-49
48 Jesus told him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.”
49 “Sir,” the official said to him, “come down before my boy dies.”
How does Jesus respond to the official?
He hears the father’s pleading and then gives a rebuke of a lack of faith
On the surface, it can look like Jesus is rebuking the father. And He is warning the Father, but His statement has a larger audience.
See, Jesus says you as a plural here- Jesus is saying, “Y’all.” It’s like Jesus says, “You” while pointing at a crowd!
He knows the hearts of the crowd and their typical view was, “Do another miracle and THEN I’LL BELIEVE JESUS!” John 2:23 shows us that people BELIEVED WHEN THEY SAW SIGNS!
They didn’t believe with HIS TEACHING; their hearts were still too hard.
23 While he was in Jerusalem during the Passover Festival, many believed in his name when they saw the signs he was doing.
There’s a lot of great examples of Jesus rebuking this hardness of heart, but one that struck me as I was reading the Bible this week is in Mark 8.
11 The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, demanding of him a sign from heaven to test him. 12 Sighing deeply in his spirit, he said, “Why does this generation demand a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation.” 13 Then he left them, got back into the boat, and went to the other side.
So Jesus addresses the crowd and tells them that they will only have faith because of signs that they see.
But look at the response of this royal official again!
His response is to continue asking Jesus! HIS FAITH IS SEEN BEFORE THERE IS EVER A SIGN!
HE TRULY BELIEVES! So again he asks Jesus, “Come down before my boy dies.”
He’s saying, “Jesus, this is the ONLY WAY THAT MY SON WILL BE SAVED! THIS IS THE ONLY CHANCE! MY FAITH IS COMPLETELY IN YOU!”
To use some 21st century language, this man is BROKEN BEFORE JESUS AND HE DESPERATELY NEEDS JESUS!
HE KNOWS THAT THE ONLY SOLUTION IS JESUS! HE NEEDS JESUS TO BE MERCIFUL!
So let’s see how Jesus meets this father where he was as He addresses him in verse 50.
John 4:50
John 4:50
50 “Go,” Jesus told him, “your son will live.” The man believed what Jesus said to him and departed.
Jesus responds by giving this man an instruction- the man is to GO!
Why? BECAUSE YOUR SON WILL LIVE!
Now, before we get to the second half of the verse, let me unpack something about Jesus here- Cana is 20 miles from Capernaum. Jesus is 20 miles from the boy!
TALK ABOUT POWER! JESUS CAN HEAL THE CHILD FROM 20 miles away!
JESUS’S POWER IS SO BIG THAT HE DOESN’T HAVE TO EVEN BE WITH THE BOY!
THAT IS TRUE POWER!
Cornerstone, this is unlike anything else! I had shoulder surgery in 2018. I can assure you, I had to go TO LARAMIE to have the shoulder surgery done over summer break. I didn’t just sit at home while the surgeon healed me from Laramie!
Jesus though? JESUS CAN DO THAT! JESUS DOESN’T NEED TO BE WITH THE BOY! HE JUST HEALS THE BOY!
But even in this there’s a TEST of the father’s faith- look again at the first part of this verse.
THE MAN NEEDS TO GO!
He needs faith to go!
Like think with me, what if this doesn’t work? If the man goes home and his son isn’t better then the entire trip is in vain! The man has just WASTED HIS TIME and his son will die!
But instead, he TRUSTS IN JESUS!
And we see that the man BELIEVES AND OBEYS!
The man’s faith CARRIES HIM FORWARD!
He hears Jesus and He GOES IN BELIEF!
And I want to take a minute to APPLY THIS TO OUR LIVES!
HEAR JESUS (Hear what Jesus tells us- this man hears Jesus! We hear Jesus in scripture and we go to Jesus in prayer!)
TRUST IN JESUS (In this moment of facing a hard situation, make that DECISION THAT YOU WILL TRUST JESUS! Example of this man deciding that HE TRUSTS JESUS ENOUGH TO LEAVE!)
OBEY JESUS! (GO IN FAITH! DO WHAT GOD’S WORD CALLS YOU TO DO! THIS MAN IS TOLD TO GO HOME AND GO TO HIS SON AND HE DOES! WHAT ABOUT YOU? LET ME GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE OF THIS ENTIRE PROCESS- We HEAR JESUS’S WORDS in Matthew 28. We TRUST IN JESUS as we talk to our NEIGHBOR THAT JESUS IS GOING TO BE WITH US ALWAYS! And then we OBEY BY BRINGING THE GOSPEL TO THEM!)
Here’s a second example.
You are struggling with health that you just can’t seem to beat.
You go to God with this PRAYER- GOD, HEAL ME!
You go to God’s Word and you read Psalm 103:3 and you are reminded that GOD HEALS YOU!
3 He forgives all your iniquity;
he heals all your diseases.
And from there, you TRUST JESUS! You say, “Listen, I’m going to trust Jesus that WILL HEAL ME AND WILL GIVE THE DOCTORS WISDOM!”
Then, you OBEY GOD! YOU GO TO THE DOCTOR, YOU TAKE CARE OF WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL AND INSTEAD OF RUMINATING ON THIS OR STAYING UP LATE BEING ANXIOUS, YOU TRULY RELEASE THIS TO JESUS!
6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you at the proper time, 7 casting all your cares on him, because he cares about you.
In essence what you just did is HUMBLING YOURSELF BEFORE GOD and then CASTING ALL YOUR ANXIETIES ON HIM!
And we do this DAY AFTER DAY, HOUR AFTER HOUR!
Having seen how the father responds to Jesus- going in FAITH, let’s see what happens in John 4:51-53
John 4:51-53
John 4:51-53
51 While he was still going down, his servants met him saying that his boy was alive. 52 He asked them at what time he got better. “Yesterday at one in the afternoon the fever left him,” they answered. 53 The father realized this was the very hour at which Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” So he himself believed, along with his whole household.
The father goes on his way back to Capernaum and has to stop overnight. The next day, he RUNS INTO HIS SERVANTS!
And his servants tell him great news- HIS SON IS BETTER!
Understandably, the father asks WHEN THIS HAPPENED and then it hits him!
IT HAPPENED AT 1 PM the day before- RIGHT WHEN JESUS TOLD HIM THAT HIS SON WOULD LIVE!
I can’t help but just STOP AND SEE THE POWER OF JESUS!
JUST STOP AND BEHOLD THE POWER OF JESUS!
But beyond the power of Jesus, I can’t help but see the MERCY OF JESUS!
Jesus sees this man hurting and HE HAS MERCY ON HIM AND HEALS HIS SON!
The man is hurting, scared, and struggling and instead of mocking him, or ignoring him, JESUS MEETS HIM WHERE HE IS AND HEALS HIS SON!
And look at verse 53!
The man BELIEVES AND SO DOES HIS HOUSEHOLD! That includes the servants!
When they hear WHAT JESUS DID, they BELIEVE!
They believe that Jesus isn’t just powerful, or good, they believe that JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD!
John so often shows this progression of faith because faith IS a progression!
We can hear the Gospel and know that Jesus was good, or was nice, but that’s only half the picture!
We need to BELIEVE THE WHOLE THING- including that JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD!
And that’s what happens for this man and His family!
They HEAR WHAT JESUS DID, they SEE what Jesus did and they BELIEVE!
Last week I made the comment that every miracle has a specific audience- this is the audience of this miracle! It is THIS MAN AND HIS FAMILY!
And when they are confronted with JESUS and WHO HE IS, their response is simple- THEY BELIEVE!
Understand Cornerstone- when you meet Jesus, your life will NEVER BE THE SAME!
John 4:54
John 4:54
John ends this passage with a summary statement in John 4:54
54 Now this was also the second sign Jesus performed after he came from Judea to Galilee.
This was the second sign that Jesus does in Cana. But why does John make such a strong point about this?
John is showing us something- John is helping us see WHO JESUS IS by recounting these miracles!
First in John 2 we saw Jesus’s POWER AND AUTHORITY!
Here, we see Jesus’s power- healing someone from 20 miles away is INCREDIBLE- but more importantly, we saw Jesus’s MERCY highlighted!
Each of the 7 signs we are going to see shows us something else about Jesus and our relationship with Jesus!
So, John’s summary statement is designed to remind us of what we have learned ABOUT JESUS!
John’s summary statement pricks our heart by reminding us how we are seeing Jesus revealed to us ONE PASSAGE AT A TIME!
And it’s the perfect transition point into our applications this morning.
Application
Application
Your Faith (GET SAVED!)
Your Faith (GET SAVED!)
GOSPEL! (Brokenness- it’s a broken and fallen world- you live in BROKENNESS! And why? SIN! Sin causes brokenenness because it SEPARATES US FROM GOD! But there’s HOPE! How? THE HOPE IS FOUND IN JESUS! Romans 6:23 PUT YOUR FAITH IN JESUS AND BE SAVED TODAY! (Once saved, you are a NEW CREATION WHO NOW LIVES IN RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS! NOW YOU TAKE GOOD NEWS TO PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN BROKENNESS!)
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
ENTER THAT NEW RELATIONSHIP WITH JESUS TODAY!
Hear Jesus (GET IN GOD’S WORD!)
Hear Jesus (GET IN GOD’S WORD!)
YOU NEED TO BE IN GOD’S WORD!
YOU NEED TO TAKE THE TIME TO HEAR FROM GOD!
1 Samuel 3 (Samuel’s example of HEARING FROM GOD! HE SLOWED DOWN AND LISTENED TO WHAT GOD TOLD HIM! SLOW DOWN AND HEAR FROM JESUS THIS WEEK!)
This is where the practice of being in God’s Word is so important
John challenge (Read John 1-5 this week! That’s not quite a chapter a day this week! AND it will prepare you for NEXT SUNDAY, as we look at John 5!)
Trust Jesus (WHERE DO YOU GO IN HARD AND SCARY TIMES?)
Trust Jesus (WHERE DO YOU GO IN HARD AND SCARY TIMES?)
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO TRUST JESUS WITH THIS WEEK?
The father in this passage has a situation on his mind- his son is about to die.
Listen, you may not have that going on in your life, but I can promise you this- there’s something in your life where you need to TRUST JESUS!
Let me give you 7 potential thoughts:
Your family member is not saved
Your job is not going well- you are feeling financially insecure
Your health is not in great shape
You’re about to/ are going through a life transition
You are weary and life feels a little overwhelming day after day because of a million little things
You are overjoyed because things have been going really well!
You’re finding yourself in a season of answered prayer.
Regardless of where you are- whether you’re in one of these 7 situations or something else, you need to trust God!
Here’s the truth- whether everything is great, or everything is awful, we MUST TRUST GOD!
There’s no option for anything else.
Everything’s been great? AWESOME! TRUST GOD IN THAT!
Everything is awful and your life feels like it’s on fire and melting down around you? TRUST GOD IN THAT!
Life is just up and down right now (and let’s be real- that’s most of the time for us)- don’t ride that wave; TRUST IN GOD!
Life isn’t about surfing; instead we need to TRUST IN GOD WHO KEEPS US SECURE!
And this miracle shows us what our trust should actually look like.
OUR TRUST IS COMPLETE AND IT IS ACTIVE!
It isn’t just an emotion- it’s a WAY OF LIVING- it’s something that frees us! The father LEAVES JESUS BECAUSE HE HAS TOTAL TRUST!
TRUST IN JESUS IS FREEING!
IT WILL LOWER YOUR STRESS, your anxiety, it will set you free from those struggles!
And how? (Prayer- we have a relationship with JESUS, SO TALK WITH JESUS! BRING THOSE THINGS TO JESUS! YOU WOULDN’T STOP TALKING TO YOUR CLOSEST FRIEND BECAUSE YOU HAD A HARD DAY! DON’T STOP TALKING TO JESUS!)
So let me ask you- WHERE DO YOU NEED TO TRUST GOD!
Obey Jesus (MEET PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE- IMITATE JESUS!)
Obey Jesus (MEET PEOPLE WHERE THEY ARE- IMITATE JESUS!)
WHERE IS JESUS CALLING YOU TO OBEY HIM?
The father actually OBEYS JESUS!
See, it is one thing to trust and it’s another to hear, but then at some point we have to put it into action.
As a coach, I could tell my players how to run a play and they could trust me to call the right plays with all their hearts. BUT, IF THEY NEVER ACTUALLY DID IT IN A GAME, WHAT WAS THE POINT?
IT WAS POINTLESS!
And it’s similar for us- we can hear Jesus talk to us and we can even say, “Great, I believe that is real” but at some point we have to OBEY JESUS AND DO WHAT JESUS IS TELLING YOU TO DO!
So what is Jesus telling you to do?
MEET THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU JUST LIKE JESUS DID!
35 Jesus continued going around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. 38 Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”
13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt should lose its taste, how can it be made salty? It’s no longer good for anything but to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city situated on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and puts it under a basket, but rather on a lampstand, and it gives light for all who are in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
BE DIFFERENT! THAT IS WHAT JESUS IS TELLING YOU TO DO!
So let me challenge you, what is ONE WAY that you can LIVE DIFFERENT FROM THE PEOPLE AROUND YOU?
WHAT IS ONE WAY THAT YOU CAN LIVE DIFFERENTLY THAN YOUR COWORKERS AND YOUR NEIGHBORS?
(What if you got them ice cream when you did? What if you helped them with that project when you see them struggling on saturday, what if you took them to lunch on a tuesday afternoon? WHAT IF YOU MET THEM IN THAT HARD SEASON WHERE THEIR KID IS SICK? LET’S PUT OUR TRUST INTO ACTION AND LIVE DIFFERENTLY!- and that starts with us having a RELATIONSHIP with the people around us!)
