A Savior Who Heals Series

A Savior Who Heals 

John 4:46–54

Introduction

The first half of John’s Gospel offers seven signs to provoke belief. The first sign was when he turned water to wine at Cana. Today’s text takes us back to Cana for the second sign. John is careful to remind us: these are not just random miracles, they are signs—works that point beyond themselves to who Jesus is. Jesus is met by a man with a desperate need, a personal request.

John 4:46–50 (NLT)

As he traveled through Galilee, he came to Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. There was a government official in nearby Capernaum whose son was very sick. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die. Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?” The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.” Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home."

The second sign reveals a Savior who heals—not only over distance, but on a deeper level, healing our faith, our sin-sickness.

1. The Healing of the Official’s Son

Driving 20 miles is not a big deal for us - but for this official, a great effort went into his finding Jesus. But he has a pressing motivation: his son is ill.

Most agree this man was a royal official, a man of high standing, perhaps connected to Herod’s court. He would be used to giving orders and being obeyed, a man of influence, wealth, and privilege. In this story, he is simply a father with a sick son.

He had some qualities we would all do well to follow:

-He was humble (46-47). An important court official asks a favor of a village carpenter. Swindoll notes it well: he lays aside influence and rank and comes as a begging father.

-He Was Persistent (vv. 48–49). Jesus’ first response sounds bleak: “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” The “you” is plural—aimed not only at the man, but at the sign-seeking crowd. Jesus is pressing the issue: Will people only believe if they get a constant stream of miracles, or will they trust who He is? The official does not argue or debate, he simply pleads, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” He will not be put off. He is persistent.

-He Took Jesus at His Word. No journey back with the man. No dramatic laying on of hands. No visible proof. Just a word.

John 4:51-54

While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” And he and his entire household believed in Jesus. This was the second miraculous sign Jesus did in Galilee after coming from Judea.

2. Ten Truths from the Healing Power of Jesus

-Jesus knows our human frailty. He became human, tired, limited, and vulnerable. He knows what a racing heartbeat and a sweating brow feel like.

-Jesus is moved by our suffering. The Gospels repeatedly show Him moved with compassion by illness, grief, and pain. He is not indifferent to an official’s sick son or our struggling bodies and minds

-Jesus has the power to heal. He is not bound by the severity of illness. “At the point of death” is not too far gone for Him. He is not bound by the distance. Twenty miles are nothing to Him. He speaks here; healing happens there. This power is not limited by geography.

-Jesus has both wisdom and foresight in healing. He sees the whole story. Sometimes He heals immediately;

sometimes He delays. Think of Lazarus—He purposely waits and then says, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God.”

-Jesus healed as a sign, not only to bless one person, but to reveal who He is. John is selective with the signs he records, explicitly saying he chose them “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” The greatest miracle is not only the boy’s recovery but the whole household’s faith. The sign does what signs in John are meant to do: it leads to believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

-Jesus has called us to have faith in Him, not just in miracles. Jesus’ word in verse 48 calls out a faith that is not