Josh Benner

Category: Church

  • Healing on the Sabbath. John 5:1-9

    John 5 begins with a miraculous healing from Jesus. 

    Jesus travels to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish feasts. In other words, it’s one of the Jewish holy days. We don’t know exactly which one. John talks a lot about the feasts in this gospel. He mentions three Passovers, mentions the feast of booths, among others. The fact that he does not specify in this instance might be that the specific feast is not theologically significant to this event. 

    Verse 2 begins to tell us about a specific place to which he travels within Jerusalem. 

    Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. 

    Verse 3 gives us the likely reason for why Jesus is there. 

     In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.

    So there are people who have various physical ailments and who regularly go to this pool. 

    From the context of the passage, it seems that they did this because they thought the pool itself was a place of physical healing. 

    The problem with this is that it is God alone who brings healing. 

    So that being said. I think it’s helpful to look at verse 3 and then continue it into verse 5. 

    3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. 5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 

    So lots of people who suffered from various disabilities would go to this pool. In verse 5, we’re introduced to a man who has been an “invalid,” as the text says, for 38 years. 

    Think about that for just a moment. 

    38 years, in a time that was before modern medicine. 

    We don’t know all of the ailments he might have had, but among them, as we will learn in this passage, he was unable to walk. 38 years of suffering. The average life expectancy in this period was about 35. 

    Verse 6, he encounters Jesus. 

    6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?

    Jesus sees the man lying by the pool. There are others there. He doesn’t seek Jesus out, but Jesus seeks this man out. 

    Why? 

    We’re never told. It’s the divine initiative. It’s providence. 

    The text says that Jesus knew he had been there a long time, which is reminding us of the supernatural knowledge Jesus has as God. 

    And then he asks the man “do you want to be healed?” 

    An interesting question

    It’s interesting to consider the first two sign Jesus has performed. When he turns water into wine, his mother comes to him. In John 4, it was the Roman official who came to Jesus and asked him to heal his son. But in this event, the man does not come to Jesus. 

    It is Jesus who comes to him. 

    That’s one of several reasons why this event is significant in this gospel and it’s making a theological point. 

    God heals whom he will. And it is not always because of great faith that he heals a person. Everyday there are people who God heals, God blesses in a multitude of different ways where they didn’t ask for it, they aren’t looking to God. It’s simply because of God’s own goodness, grace, and providence. 

    Verse 7, the man responds: 

    7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.”

    This guy thinks that being at this pool is his hope of healing. 

    He’s superstitious. 

    It’s not the pool that heals, it’s not being the first one in the pool that offers the promise of healing. It is ironic that he looks to the water as if it’s some mystical force of healing, when he’s in the presence of Jesus. 

    They’re in Jerusalem, the holy city. They’re near the temple, the sacred site which represented the presence of God on earth. And he’s focused on getting into a pool. 

    The point isn’t to fault this man for having the desire to be healed. Everyone who’s afflicted wants that. 

    But he’s looking to the wrong place.

    Illustration – faith healing

    It’s a point I made a few weeks ago, but our society and our world is drawn to people who claim to be faith healers and superstition. 

    In the early days of the Coronavirus epidemic, disgraced televangelist Jim Bakker was selling a silver substance which he claimed could cure a person of the virus. Peter Popoff who was another disgraced televangelist in the 80s continues to offer miracle spring water.

    There are people who pray to statues or believe that praying in a specific place will carry unique favor with God. 

    Those are not Christian values. 

    Christianity is not a faith of superstition. It’s a faith that’s rooted in the almighty God of creation. God knows all. He is sovereign. Praying in special ways, or special places, or with special objects is not the basis by which God suddenly will hear us. 

    It’s idolatry. 

    But Jesus shows him grace anyway. 

     8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” 9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. 

    As we’ve seen other times in this gospel, John is very matter of fact in his reporting of Jesus’ miracle. 

    Jesus tells him to pick up his bed. I’m sure the term “bed” is pretty generous here. It’s not like he had a sleep number mattress out by the lake. It was likely a very thin and dingy mat that he was using. 

    So that’s our first scene. The miracle which Jesus has performed for this man. 

    It’s another display of the power that Jesus has as God on earth, but it’s also important to this gospel because of what happens in the aftermath of this miracle.

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  • Evangelism as a way of life

    Evangelism as a way of life

    Jesus calls all of his followers to make disciples, to follow the Great Commission, to share the good news of the gospel. To those with whom we share the gospel, there will be some who will want nothing to do with it but there will also be those who are drawn to the message.

    We can’t assume that people know the gospel. And that’s always been true. There has always been the need for personal evangelism. 

    But our society used to have more of a church culture where it was easier to assume that a person was at least familiar with the gospel. That there was some common ground. That people were churched. 

    The struggle of evangelism

    I think that’s at least part of the reason why personal evangelism has become such a struggle. Because for a long time, people didn’t think it was necessary. It’s not that churches would overtly say that evangelism was unnecessary. 

    But when one perceives the society as largely already being Christian, then the need for personal evangelism seems less pressing. 

    Sure, it might be needed in other countries where they don’t have the gospel. Missions were important. But did we truly look at our own household, our own workplace, our own community as our own mission field?

    Undoubtedly, some did. I’m not saying no one shared the gospel. But what I’m saying is that America had become so saturated in Christendom that we lost a culture of evangelization. Perhaps we never had it. 

    Our society is becoming less religious. And Bible believing churches are now dealing with the fallout of a society where evangelism was not emphasized in the past and where evangelism skills were not taught. 

    Again, I’m speaking in broad generalities. It’s not like no one has practiced evangelism. And some churches did a better job than others with outreach. But overall, evangelistic efforts lagged. 

    The industry of evangelical Christianity

    Over the last 30 years as we’ve seen declines in the church in America, we were also seeing a greater industry of Christianity. 

    Entire TV networks dedicated to televangelists, an explosion in book publishing, popular Christian music, Christian movies, Christian conference, Chrisitan celebrities. There was a rising megachurch movement.

    The emphasis with these things was often in being “practical.” Tips on raising good kids, tips on dating and finding a good spouse, tips on marriage and having a good marriage, tips on finances. 

    Many churches became a place to hear a self-help message rather than the message of Jesus who calls his followers to die to self.

    Again, it’s not that all churches became this way but those churches became the popular churches and it influenced other churches. 

    Sermons that lost their theological weight. Music that was emotive, self-centered and shallow. Youth groups that were more concerned with entertaining kids than teaching them about Jesus. 

    In the Bible, Jesus calls us to count the cost before following him. Jesus also tells us to take up our cross and follow him, but this was replaced by a prosperity Jesus who asked little of us. 

    It took more of an inward focus rather than living in the world as a disciple and a herald of the gospel message. 

    The practical Christianity industry did not necessarily focus on preaching the gospel, let alone sharing it with others. 

    And so we have a command of Jesus and many well-meaning Christians aren’t equipped and don’t know how to follow it. 

    Why do people share the gospel? 

    Motivations to evangelize

    Two reasons comes to mind. And they’re not mutually exclusive. One is a sense of obligation. That’s a fine reason to share the gospel. It is, after all, a command of Christ. 

    But there’s a second reason that’s also important and that is because you have such a love for God and a knowledge of the grace of Christ and see such beauty in the gospel of his grace that you want to share that with others. 

    Obligation, you can force yourself to do. And that can work. I have no doubt many people have been led to Jesus by those who were faithful to share the message but who, in that moment, didn’t really want to. And we should praise the Lord for those who are faithful. 

    You can force yourself to do something from obligation. 

    You cannot force yourself to have a genuine love for the gospel and a passion for making Jesus known. That can only come as the result of a love for Jesus and a life that is centered around Jesus. 

    Walking with Jesus

    Towards the end of the Book of Galatians, Paul will talk of walking in step with the Spirit so that we will not gratify the desires of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). 

    Paul talks about the fruit that the Holy Spirit produces. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. 

    We don’t create that ourselves. It is a supernatural work of the Spirit. 

    In 2 Corinthians 3:18, Paul talks about the transformative effect of looking to God. 

    we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. 

    Looking to God, knowing the truth of God, serving God, praying to God, having a constant God-centered mind is transformational. 

    In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus talks of the person who is blessed by living as kingdom people in the world. I won’t read them all but among them, Jesus says; 

    6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 

    7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 

    8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 

    And on and on. The Psalmist says taste and see that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8). 

    As Christians, we need to live a life where you can be the kind of people who love Jesus so much that you want to share him with others. 

    If you look at evangelism as merely an obligation, then maybe you’ll talk to people about Jesus sometimes. But to evangelize out of love must come from living for Jesus as a way of life. 

    Is your faith something that you just sort of attach onto your life and ultimately doing what you want to do? Or is it what drives you? 

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  • An introduction to the Book of Galatians

    An introduction to the Book of Galatians

    Galatians is a letter that is addressed from the Apostle Paul. 

    Paul wrote at least 13 of the 27 books in the New Testament. All of them were written as letters either to churches or to individual people. I say at least 13 because there’s been a longstanding debate about whether or not he wrote the Book of Hebrews as that letter does not have an identified author. 

    Authorship

    Some scholars debate Paul’s authorship of certain letters, but interestingly, Galatians is almost universally agreed upon to be authentically Pauline. The theology of Galatians is thoroughly Pauline and this letter also includes a high degree of autobiographical material. No serious scholar questions that Galatians is from Paul. 

    Most of what we know about the Apostle Paul comes from his letters and from stories involving Paul in the Book of Acts. 

    Paul tends to not talk a ton about himself in his letters. Just little pieces of information here and there but Galatians is different. From the middle of chapter 1 through about the middle of chapter 2, Paul has a prolonged section where he does talk about himself. He’s talking about his status as an apostle and about his various  travels in the years after he came to faith. 

    Date of Galatians 

    Now if you’ve ever noticed the maps in many Bibles, there will be a map in the back that displays the travels of Paul’s three missionary journeys. 

    The first missionary journey is when Paul visited churches in the region known as Galataia, which is in modern day Turkey. We see these events recorded in Acts chapter 13 and 14, and those travels are Paul’s introduction to this Galatian region. 

    Most converstive Biblical scholars believe that the letter to the Galatians was authored after this first missionary journey which would make Galatians Paul’s earliest writing. In the late 40s to early 50s A.D. That would also make it the earliest writing in the entire New Testament.

    Think about that for a moment. Less than a generation after Jesus walked the earth. With most of the apostles still living and with many others who had personally interacted with Jesus still living, Paul wrote Galatians. Interestingly, Paul will have a prolonged section where he talks about living eyewitnesses to Jesus in 1 Corinthians 15. 

    Who was the Apostle Paul? 

    What do we know about Paul?

    We don’t know exactly when he was born but most scholars think it was shortly after Christ, maybe around the year 4 or 5 A.D. 

    Paul goes by two different names in the New Testament: Saul and Paul. 

    A common misconception is that Saul’s name changes to Paul after his conversion. There is no Biblical evidence to support that. In reality, the name Paul comes from the name Paulos which is a Greco-Roman name. Acts 13:9 says: 

    Saul, who was also called Paul

    And so it appears as though he went by two names. Saul was a Jewish name, likely named after King Saul, the first King of Israel. Like King Saul, Saul/Paul was also from the Tribe of Benjamin. 

    Paul was born in Tarsus, which was one of the most cultured and educated cities of the first century Roman world. It’s unclear how long he stayed there but we also know that part of his formative years were spent in Jerusalem. 

    He talks of this in Acts 22:3: 

    ​​3 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers

    Paul was famously a persecutor of the early church. The first time we see Paul in the New Testament is when he’s giving approval to the martyrdom of the Apostle Stephen in Acts 7. 

    Acts 7:58:

    they cast him out of the city and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. 

    There are other references to Paul’s authority. In Acts 26, Paul is reflecting back on his life before coming to faith when he says: 

    9 “I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10 And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them.

    Paul had been a pharisee: part of the group of religious teachers and experts in the law who we constantly see having conflicts with Jesus in the gospels. 

    He would have grown up celebrating the holy days of the Old Testament and reciting Biblical passages from the Torah. He would have also had his own beliefs about the Messiah of Israel. 

    He talks about his past life in Judaism in Philippians 3. 


    Philippians 3:4-7: 

    If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 

    Paul would have been extremely well versed in the Old Testament. It’s no surprise to consider the many connections and allusions he makes to the Old Testament in his writings. 

    Just considering Galatians, we see Paul connect the idea of justification by faith to Abraham. In Galatians 4, he talks of the sons born to Hagar and Sarah as being symbolic of the covenants of grace and works. He also talks extensively of the law of the Old Testament. 

    The Christian response to the law seems to be a major impetus for the writing of this letter. In Acts chapter 9, Paul has a dramatic conversion where Jesus appears to him on the Road to Damascus. This is probably around the year 34-35, a year or two after the resurrection of Jesus. 

    We see his call by Jesus. 

    Acts 9:1-6: 

     Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 Now as he went on his way, he approached Damascus, and suddenly a light from heaven shone around him. 4 And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” 

    5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do.”

    The great persecutor of Christians becomes a Christian. 

    And we know that Paul himself was heavily persecuted throughout his ministry. 

    Acts 16:20-23, just after Paul has arrived in Philippi, he’s attacked by an angry mob: 

    20 And when they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, “These men are Jews, and they are disturbing our city. 21 They advocate customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to accept or practice.” 22 The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates tore the garments off them and gave orders to beat them with rods. 23 And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into prison, ordering the jailer to keep them safely.

    Paul was imprisoned multiple times, beaten multiple times, his life was endangered multiple times. On his first visit to the Galatian region, he gets stoned by an angry crowd in Acts 14.

    Five of Paul’s letters were written while imprisoned: Philippians, Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, and 2 Timothy. 

    2 Timothy was his final letter, written shortly before he was martyred. From that letter, even after the various persecutions, beatings, and imprisonments, Paul seemed to know that he didn’t have much time left. 

    2 Timothy 4:6-8: 

    6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing. 

    Other information about Paul. 

    To supplement his ministerial earnings, he also worked as a tentmaker. He was likely never married. No wife is ever mentioned and Paul talks about the gift of singleness in 1 Corinthians 7. 

    Paul seemed to have been afflicted in his missionary journeys at different times by poor health. We see that in Galatians where Paul is thanking the Galatian Churches for their kindness to him. 

    Galatians 4:13-15: 

    it was because of a bodily ailment that I preached the gospel to you at first, 14 and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus. 15 What then has become of your blessedness? For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me.

    The fact that he refers to them being willing to gouge out their eyes has provoked many to suggest that Paul might have had poor eyesight. 

    In Galatians 6:11, Paul draws attention to his handwriting: 

    See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand.

    While Galatians is his letter, he most likely did not write in his own hand, but dictated the letter through a scribe. 

    Paul also refers to his thorn in the flesh in 2 Corinthians 12. 

    Occasion for writing

    Think of all of the many different Christian denominations today. Thousands of them. So many different schools of thought, different ways people read the Bible. 

    Well in the early church, they had a lot of theological disagreements too. Christianity was new. There were a lot of theological questions related to the connection of Christianity to Judaism. There were questions of if Christians still needed to follow laws in the Old Testament: did you still have to eat a kosher diet? Did you still have to observe Old Testament holy days and a weekly Sabbath? Did men still need to be circumcised? 

    In Galatians, Paul is addressing some of those very issues as people had sought to still enforce elements of the Old Testament law on new converts to Christianity. 

    Because of that, justification by faith is a major them of this book. 

    He states this most clearly in Galatians 2:16: 

     we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. 

    But there are numerous other references in this letter to justification by faith. 

    And so Paul is combatting these false teachings in the Galatian churches with the truth of the gospel. 

    Early in the letter, Paul expresses his concerns over people being led astray from the truth of the gospel. 

    Galatians 1:6-7: 

    6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.

    We see his frustrations with the fruit of these false teachings in chapter 3 when Paul says: 

    O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. 2 Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?

    Themes

    The last thing I’ll touch on as I introduce us to Galatians. The primary themes of this book. Some of them I’ve already covered.

    I would argue that justification by faith is the main theme of Galatians. Galatians is Paul’s love letter to the Doctrine of Justification by Faith. 

    Other significant themes in Galatians include the relationship of the gospel to the law, the gift of the Holy Spirit, and Paul’s apostolic authority. 

    I’ll close with this. 

    One of the key verses in the book. 

    Galatians 1:11-12: 

    11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. 12 For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ

    The gospel is God’s gospel. It is not invented or created by men. It is not up for a vote. It is not dependent upon popularity. 

    The message that we are sinners and that there is grace through Jesus Christ is a message offered to the whole world and it is the only message that points to eternal life. 

    Galatians points us to that gospel. And it points us to the life that we have in Christ in light of that gospel. 

    Galatians is a great book. We’re going to have a great study in this book. 

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  • Blessed are the persecuted. Matthew 5:10-12

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    10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
    -Matthew 5:10-12

    Almost 2,000 years ago when Jesus preached these words, they also would have been radical to his audience. Persecution is never looked at as a blessing.

    But in Matthew 5, Jesus says that it is.

    Part of what Jesus is saying in these verses is that there is blessedness for the person who’s life is so clearly devoted to God, who is so clearly living out their Christian faith, that they face opposition because of it.

    If a Christian goes through life and never faces opposition, you might be living too comfortably in the world.

    If you never face any heat because of your faith, you might not be associating with anyone who disagrees with what you believe.

    In 2 Timothy 3, the Apostle Paul talks about persecution.

    “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”

    ALL who live for Christ will be persecuted.

    Persecution is part of the Christian life. The Bible does not shy away from this fact.

    Shortly before the time of his crucifixion, Jesus said to his disciples in John 5:18-19:

     “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

    Something doesn’t have to be a matter of life and death to be persecution. In American society, we don’t generally hear stories of a person being killed just because they are a Christian. It’s not absolutely unheard of, but it’s rare.

    The persecution American Christians face is often times more social or legal. That can still put us in situations where it’s tempting to sin, where it’s tempting to respond a certain way that we shouldn’t. That still puts us in situations where it’s easier to just go along with what the world is doing than taking a stand for what you believe.

    I know a mechanic who’s a Christian. He was committed to being honest in his dealings with customers. He was so honest that his boss didn’t like him and eventually fired him.

    My wife told me a story about how when she was in high school, she was interviewing to be part of a local youth leadership program in her community. While she was at her interview, one of the people making the decision saw that she was a student at a Christian high school. He started berating her with questions about her faith, questioning how she could believe in Jesus. Asking nothing about this youth organization. Essentially just harassing her about her faith.

    Again, the gospel is a message that some find offensive. “To one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life (2 Corinthians 2:16).”

    There have been examples of groups trying to silence coaches of public school teams from praying with players before games, even when it’s voluntary. I read a story today about the Freedom from Religion Foundation suing a public school in Ohio. A local pastor was leading a Bible study with students at lunch. It was optional. But FFRF still needed to swoop in and sue. There have been legal pressures on Christian universities to cover abortions for staff.

    Those are just a few examples.

    But in living for Jesus, in a fallen world, it is inevitable that there will be times when a person’s faith comes under fire.

    Responding 

    When a person is being persecuted and has a choice of if they’re going to respond in a Christlike way or if they’re going to respond in a hostile way. You can be light to a dark world or you can just spread the darkness.

    The Apostle James talked about the various trials that Christians face:

    “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (James 1:2-4).”

    As evil as the persecution that Christians face can be, it’s an opportunity to respond with love. Jesus told us to pray for our enemies (Matthew 5:44).

    God can use those situations as a way to strengthen us in our own faith. To focus us on what we truly value.

    Another part of the reason why persecution is seen as a blessing is that the harsher the persecution, the more that is taken away from a person, the more someone is able to live in total dependence on God and reliance in his ability to preserve them. That’s not to say that the persecution is good in itself. It’s obviously not. That’s not to say that sin is good. It’s not. But through the evils that people commit, God can still use that for good.

    Again, if you’re not ever facing any pressure because of your faith, you might not be living in a way that is distinct from the world. I’m not saying we should go out of our way to be combative. The verse does not say that all persecution is good. It’s when a person is following Jesus and is persecuted for righteousness’ sake that blessed a person.

    It’s a radical idea. But let us remember that we have a savior who faced the ultimate persecution for righteousness’ sake.

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  • A long-distance healing. Studying John 4:49-54

    A long-distance healing. Studying John 4:49-54

    In John 4, a Roman official – whose son is seriously ill – comes to Jesus to see what the Lord can do. In the passage, we build up to a miraculous healing that Jesus does. In this sign, Jesus will point back to the Prophet Elijah in the Old Testament. 

    A divine intervention 

    John 4:49 

    The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.”

    The man is undeterred by the rebuke that Jesus has given.He’s not arguing with the Lord. He’s simply pleading with Jesus to intervene. 

    Keep in mind, that this man is an official of the Roman government. He’s prestigious. We see the humility that he shows to Christ. 

    “Sir, come down before my child dies.”

    Verse 50:

     Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.”

    That’s a very interesting direction that Jesus has given to the man. He’s not saying “Ok, let’s go.”Instead, he tells the man to go home and that his son will live. 

    And the official listens. 

    Second part of verse 50:

    The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way.

    A picture of faith

    He trusts in the promise of Christ. He has faith in the word that the Lord Jesus has told him. 

    We also don’t always get grand signs of what is to come. It is a matter of trusting the Lord is faithful to all that he has promised. That’s exactly what the Roman official does here. We need to take the Lord at his word. 

    Verse 51:

     As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering.

    John’s recording of the event is not hugely dramatic. What Jesus has said would happen happened. 

    Verse 52 into 53:

     So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” 53 The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.”

    We see the power in the promise and word of Christ. As he was telling the father this, 20 miles away, his son was being healed. 

    Continuing in verse 53:

    And he himself believed, and all his household. 

    The man believed. 

    Faith cannot be entirely rooted on the miraculous. But that’s not to say that God never uses a monumental moment to bring a person to himself. For this man, trusting in what Jesus had told him and then seeing the fulfillment of that promise led him to believe in Jesus. 

    Not only for the man, but him and his whole household believed. It was a transformative event in all of their lives to see what Jesus had done. 

    This story is reminiscent of another healing which occurred in the Old Testament, during the ministry of Elijah. 

    Elijah in 1 Kings 17  

    In 1 Kings 17, there’s another event when a child is very sick. The prophet Elijah takes the boy and pleads with the Lord to heal him. 

    Beginning in verse 21 into 22:

    O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” 22 And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah.

    In verse 23, after the boy had been revived, Elijah says to the mother “your son lives.” 

    A long-distance miracle

    In our passage in John, when the Roman officer comes to Jesus, Jesus says to him “your son will live.” Elijah has to be in physical contact with the child when he is healed. Jesus heals at a distance.

    Elijah asks God to heal the boy, Jesus doesn’t. In this sign, among other things, we see that Jesus is greater than Elijah and we again see that he provides something greater than the Old Testament. 

    We see the perfect knowledge of Jesus. He knew that the son would live. 

    We also see the sovereignty of Jesus. He could speak authoritatively to the man that his son would live. 

    The second sign of Jesus 

    The passage concludes by saying: 54 This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee. 

    Jesus had done other miracles, but this was the second one he had done in Judea. In the first sign, Jesus turned water into wine at a wedding feast. In that event, John said that Jesus had revealed his glory through that sign. 

    In this sign, Jesus had healed a sick child near death many miles away. We see that the signs are very different from each other. The first sign is at a public event, the second sign is within a home. 

    The first sign is at a time of great joy, at a wedding feast. The second is in a very sad time, when someone is ill to the point of death. 

    In that too, his power and glory are revealed. In that event, it was so powerful in the lives of the people who witnessed it that they believed in Jesus. 

    In the second sign, Jesus heals a father’s son. But in that, we should be reminded of the gospel because the ultimate sign that Jesus did which points to his glory and power was when he had the Son was not saved. 

    Jesus was able to save this man’s son because Jesus was the Son who was not saved. 

    Looking for Jesus

    There are lots of reasons why people are drawn to religion, drawn to Christianity, drawn to Jesus. Some people think that it’ll help them through a tough time. 

    Some people are lonely or insecure and need to feel a sense of belonging. That’s not inherently wrong, by the way. But that isn’t faith. Some people are miserable, and they believe that religion might help them become happier. Others are battling an addiction and they think it’ll help them find victory. Some people are unhappy with who they’ve become, and want better examples. 

    Now, certainly any of those areas can be a person’s entry point to Christianity. And God can work through those circumstances to bring a person to himself. 

    But genuine faith needs to move past that. It can’t just be about having a certain feeling or about having a certain area of life now under control. 

    Faith needs to be rooted in the character of the Lord. Sinful people recognizing their need for redemption and trusting in Jesus and the salvation he promises. 

    If faith over the long term does not mature into a love for Christ, a recognition of sin, a love for the things of God, then what is it that you’re believing? 

    Because new problems will arise. New difficulties will arise. You’re still you, which is to say you’re still sinful. Your life will still face difficulties and hardships. We still live in a fallen and sinful world where there is betrayal, and pain, and suffering, and death. 

    “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.”

    If faith is based on what we see, based on circumstances, that is flimsy. Our faith needs to be anchored in the good and sovereign Lord of creation. 

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