What Child Is This? Series

Chico Alliance Church

“What Child Is this?”

John affirms the power of Christ over the curse of disease, sickness and death in the last part of chapter 4 and the first part of chapter 5. Since Jesus came to earth to set in motion the necessary elements to reverse the curse of sin, it is not surprising to find Him demonstrating His power to do so by supernaturally dealing with the effects of curse like none before Him.

Nobleman’s Son

Returning to Cana, Jesus encounters a “nobleman” whose young child was dying. At his desperate request for help, Jesus needs only speak the words and the devastating effects of living in a cursed and fallen world release their brutal grip on this helpless child. John show us how this government official took Jesus at his word and went home fully expecting that something had been done. When he met his servants on the way home and learned that total healing had transpired at the very hour of Jesus’ statement, it not only solidified his trust in Jesus all the more, but also inspired the whole family to trust Christ as well.

Lame Man

From Cana up north, we traveled with Jesus back to Jerusalem to celebrate a feast. Here Jesus encountered a man far beyond the hope of ever living differently. This man had been crippled and unable to walk for 38 years and lays by a special pool along with probably hundreds of other desperate people hoping to find healing. Tradition indicated that an angel would stir up the waters and the first one in would be healed of their infirmity. From the context it appears that he had no family or friends to take care of him for he laments to Jesus that there is no one to put him in the water should it stir. We learn from a subsequent conversation that this man’s condition was because of personal sin. Seeing beyond this man’s sin, Jesus issued a command to take up his mat and walk. This is something the man could only dream about. Yet with an obedient faith, the man does as this stranger by the pool tells him, stands up for the first time in 38 years, rolls up his sleeping mat and walks away. The marvel of this healing should not go unnoticed. By the way, we have no record here of any other healing of all the sick around the pool. Jesus specifically picked out this man. The man did not even approach Jesus. Jesus always operated with design and purpose.

What about supernatural healing? What about healing today?

The Issues surrounding Healing

I. The possibility of Healing

The prophet Isaiah prophesied that Messiah would address the consequences of sin upon a fallen humanity. Isaiah 53:4-6

The Bible is the best interpreter of the Bible. This passage is quoted twice in relation to healing in the New Testament.

One quote is found in 1 Peter 2:21-25. The obvious context here points to the healing of our sin. Matthew also draws from this prophecy in regard to both the healing of our body from illness and demonic influence as well. Matthew 8:16-17

II. Source of Suffering

Healing is possible because to the sacrifice of the coming Messiah. Why is there pain and suffering in our world in the first place? Sin and sickness comes from two sources.

1. Natural consequences of sin in a fallen world.

2. Supernatural influences of Satan and his army of evil angels.

The curse of sin has fallen on the entire human race. Sin, disease, sickness, pain, is the result of man’s drive to live apart from God and His way of doing things. Because we are all born into this world we suffer the effects of centuries of rebellion and independent living. Sin is the source of suffering, whether personal or earthly, sin for the present maintains its death grip on the earth following the directives of the prince of the power of the air who continues to try to energize the sons of disobedience. Whole countries choose to ignore God’s ways and suffer horribly because of it. Hunger, disease, violence, mental illness (See Deuteronomy 28)

It is only because Jesus chose to become a man and take the penalty for our sin that we may expect to find any relief either here or hereafter from the consequences of our rebellion against God. Apart from His work on our behalf, we would be doomed to suffer any and all of the well-deserved consequences of sin against God. Even though sometimes it is hard to see, the trials and suffering of a fallen world do serve an eternal purpose. Both their elimination and their continuation serve eternal purposes. Only God knows which will best bring about His glory and our good. What are some of those purposes?