Tuesday's Devotion: Trusting in the Word or the Signs?
John 4:46-54
March 3, 2015
Today we read the story of a desperate father, seeking help for his dying child. We are reading this story in John's Gospel, although there are similar stories in Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10.
The father, a governmental official, comes to Jesus pleading for Jesus to come back to Capernaum and heal his dying son. It seems as though Jesus shrugs off the father's plea; Jesus says something about "unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe" (verse 48). Was Jesus directing his statement to the father or to others who might have been listening? The text doesn't mention others; but it seems fair to assume that others were present.
Jesus' words puzzle me for a different reason. We have no reason from the text to assume that the father was "looking for a sign." The father doesn't come to Jesus offering to trade faith in exchange for healing; he doesn't say, "heal my son and I will believe in you." Implicit in his request is the underlying assumption that Jesus could heal. Perhaps the father already had placed his trust in Jesus before coming to see him. Or maybe the father was so desperate that he figured that it couldn't hurt to try any "experimental treatment" to see if it would work.
The father does not respond to Jesus' comment about signs and wonders by engaging in a philosophical conversation about the theology of healing. He does not engage in speculation about who Jesus is or the source of His amazing powers. His request is quite simple. "Sir, come down before my little boy dies." (v. 49). Jesus' second response is quite different from the first: "Go; your son will live." (v. 50).
This places the father in a dilemma. On the one hand, if he returns home without Jesus, people may question why the father has let a lowly prophet embarrass him by disregarding his request. To the world, it could be seen as disrespect, if not insubordination. On the other hand, if the father continues to insist that Jesus come with him, some might conclude that Jesus' word was not good enough for the father. In that case, the father really would be insisting on seeing signs and wonders before he would believe.
Happily for the father and the boy, the father chooses to trust in Jesus' word. The father does not go home empty handed; the father goes home with the assurance that his son would live. His trust enabled him to find his son healthy and whole.
Should we conclude from this story that by trusting in Jesus we always will receive what we desire? I don't think so--the Gospel is not about how we can get what we want; the Gospel is about who Jesus. This miracle is referred to as a sign--"the second sign that Jesus did after coming from Judea to Galilee." (John 4:54). It is a sign that the father did not ask for, and it is an affirmation of the power of the Living Word of God (John 1:1) to bring us the gift of eternal life (John 3:16), the gift of abundant life (John 10:10), the gift of the very Spirit of God living within us (John 20:22).
Can you trust in the Word of Jesus today?
Prayer: Jesus, I trust in you! Amen.
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