The
Passage
John
4:46-54
46So Jesus came again
to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a certain
nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. 47 When he heard that
Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to
come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 48 Then
Jesus said to him, “Unless you people
see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.”
49The nobleman said to
Him, “Sir, come down before my child dies!”
50Jesus said to him,
“Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to
him, and he went his way. 51And as he was now going down, his
servants met him and told him,
saying, “Your son lives!”
52Then he inquired of
them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, “Yesterday at the
seventh hour the fever left him.” 53So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which
Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And he himself believed, and his whole
household.
54This again is the second sign Jesus did when He
had come out of Judea into Galilee.
A
Little Background
Jesus
went back to Cana, the sight of His first miracle where He turned the water
into wine. That miracle was described as the first of seven signs of Jesus Messianic
identity in John’s Gospel. This event is the second sign.
The
nobleman was from Capernaum which is about 20 miles from Cana. He was very
likely an official in Herod’s palace. Those who aligned with Herod were known
as Herodians.
Some
Explanation
“And there was a certain nobleman...” The Greek indicates that his
position was related to royalty in some way.
That he was a certain nobleman
suggests that there was something notable about him. We read in Matthew 4:23 that Jesus had been going all
around Galilee teaching and preaching the Kingdom, and healing all kinds of sicknesses
and diseases. The nobleman would have heard about Jesus’ healing and quickly ran to him for the sake of his son who was close to death.
“...signs and wonders...” Greek: semeion is a miracle that authenticates and teras is a wonder or miracle. They are very similar in meaning and
are usually used together in the New Testament. Jesus was performing various
signs, wonders and miracles to authenticate, or confirm His deity.
Observations
and Insights
Jesus’
response to the nobleman seems odd to us; He rebuked the nobleman, “Unless
you people see signs and
wonders, you will by no means believe.” We will see as we read on in
the Gospels that Jesus continues to do many miracles, but also at times expresses
rebuke to those who require miracles to believe. Apparently, this is what is in
the nobleman’s heart. This is in contrast to the Samaritans. Before coming to Galilee, Jesus had passed
through Samaria where He met the woman at the well who spread the news of Jesus
to the men of Sychar. Notice what John 4:40, 41 says about the Samaritans, “So when the Samaritans had come to Him, they
urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word.” There is no
record of any signs, miracles or wonders done in Samaria. Only that the
Samaritans believed Jesus simply because of His words, or His teaching.
There
is no question of the urgency and desperation of the nobleman. His son was sick
and close to death. But because he was a certain
nobleman, perhaps there was something in his request that demanded that this
Galilean carpenter come and prove Himself to him. He expected Jesus to come to
the son, “Sir, come down before my child dies!” Although Jesus rebuked
him, he also had compassion on him and his son. This miracle was a sign that proved
Jesus’ power over distance. Jesus did not need to be present with the son to
heal him; he healed the boy from 20 miles away. The nobleman believed that they
boy was healed and went on his way. When he arrived back home, his servants met
him with the good news. The timing of the healing confirmed that Jesus did
indeed perform the miracle. Then both the nobleman and his entire household
believed in Jesus. The first “belief” (v. 50) was regarding the healing. But the second
“belief” (v.53) was regarding Jesus’ identity.
A
leading trend in church growth today tells us to target key leaders and
infiltrate echelons of government, education, entertainment, economics, etc. to
leverage the gospel. Doing so will, we are told, will significantly impact
potential influence for the kingdom of God. We delight in celebrity pastors who
are “on the inside” with powerful influential politicians and entertainers. The nobleman had status. But we don’t read
anything in the text that his status was significant to Jesus. For one thing,
Jesus rebuked him. Secondly, Jesus did not even go to his house with him, but
sent him on his way.
If
Jesus had gone to the nobleman’s house, He might have made many contacts for
moving in governmental circles. If Jesus had favored the nobleman to get on the
“inside” with Herod, He might have used that to His advantage. After all, John
the Baptizer was in prison in Herod’s palace during this time. And if Jesus had
pandered to the nobleman, He might have had a wealthy, influential sponsor for
His ministry. And maybe, just maybe, his influence might have paid off later
when things got dicey. But Jesus wasn’t dazzled by celebrity. The nobleman was
just a father with a sick son, and Jesus simply met his need.
Jesus
didn’t respond as the nobleman expected Him to. The nobleman could have
demanded personal attention, but he didn’t. He just believed. Jesus went beyond
his expectations and healed his son immediately.
God
is no respecter of persons—he does not show favoritism or partiality (Acts
10:34, James 2:1). We are all just simple sheep in His sight who need a Savior.
We think that we can orchestrate fabulous scenarios to spread the Gospel. And
we are sure that we know what is good and best for our situation—especially when
it’s Biblically based. But God chooses the foolish and base things of this
world to confound the wise. His ways are higher than ours. Whatever our need,
we can trust His absolute sovereignty. He is able to work all things together
according to the perfect counsel of His will.
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