Jesus To The Rescue Series

INTRODUCTION

 A man went into a drug store and asked the pharmacist if he could give him something for the hiccups. The pharmacist promptly reached across the counter and slapped the man’s face. The man said, "What in the world did you do that for? The pharmacist said, "See, you don’t have the hiccups anymore!" And the man replied, "No, but my wife in the car still does!"

 A man went to a lawyer he knew and said, "I need some legal advice. How much would it cost me to ask you three questions?" The lawyer said, "$1,000." The man asked, "Isn’t that kind of high?" The lawyer replied, "It sure is. What’s your third question?"

 How many times in our lives have we needed to be rescued only to be thrown anchor to help drown us.

 How many people do you know who need something more out of life?

 Many people are drowning in their own sorrows and successes. Sometimes the very things in life that we think will keep us afloat and happy are the very things that drag us down.

 Today as we continue on our Journey with Jesus, we are going to look at a man who knew that he needed something from Jesus. Through this experience, this man and his whole household will be impacted for eternity.

 Today we are going to see a man who by all accounts would be a man with a lot of pride because of his position.

 This man needed to be rescued by Jesus and it was going to take something very drastic to bring him to place where he would allow Jesus to rescue him.

SERMON

If you want Jesus to come to the rescue

I. YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF THE NEED 46-49

1. Introduction

 Jesus had just finished His visit with the woman at the well and with the Samaritans. He was traveling back into Galilee. Verse 45 tells us that the Galileans received Him because of the things He had done at the feast in Jerusalem (cleansing of the temple and the miracles that He performed John 2:23).

 Jesus comes into Galilee and He is addressing the crowd when something interesting was about to happen.

 Let’s read John 4:46-49

2. The man

 Jesus has a man come and interrupt while He is teaching.

 This man is described in John as a man who was a Royal official. This could mean that he is a part of the royal court, that he is of royal blood or that he is a commanding officer of the military attached to the royal court.

 Which ever one he was, this was a man that commanded respect.

 If you think out political officials get out of hand with pride and perks and out of touch with the people, what we deal with is nothing like was going on in Jesus day.

 Here is a man who when people spoke, they did what he told them.

 This is a man who “had it all together”. Many people when they saw this man probably envied him because of his wealth and position. IF this man was a military officer, he was a mans man that by his uniform would command the respect and fear of those around him.

 Up until this time this royal official was a man who probably did not know what it meant to be in need.

 How many of us are just that way. We had a good job, we are respected and on the outside we seem to have it all together.

3. The problem

 Look at verse 46. This mans world is about to come crashing down around him.

 Verse 46 says that this man’s son was sick back in Capernaum. This boy must have been terribly sick for this royal official to make the 22-mile trip to through the mountains to Cana of Galilee.

 Here is a man who seems to have it all, wealth, respect and all that goes with it, coming to Jesus a carpenter for help.

 What is it that brought this man to come to a carpenter to do something to stop the death of his son? Verse 47 says that he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee. He either had witnessed Jesus perform some signs (According to Matthew 4:13 Jesus was at Capernaum before he went to Cana) or heard of what Jesus had been doing.

 This man is facing something that his money, power or respect could do nothing about. This man probably sat next to his son and was watching him die. What a helpless feeling.

 Can you understand what is going through the mind of this royal official as he taking this 20-25 mile journey on foot to come to Jesus?