Healing Broken Bodies
Remember / Share a time when a loved one’s life was hanging by a thread?
What questions do we ask ourselves?
Where is God? Is God listening? Why does God heal some and not others? Is my faith too weak? Why is God letting this happen (to me)?
Today’s message hits home for all who have had these kinds of questions, because the key person in the story has a son on his deathbed. The man has done well for himself, he has climbed the ladder of success, earned a great deal of respect - but I know he would trade it all for just one favor - God will you heal my son?
Read John 4:43-47
After the two days he left for Galilee. 44 (Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.) 45 When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, for they also had been there.
46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.
(This is about a year later than first Miracle)
Water to wine story got around - maybe Jesus can heal? Who knows?
He was a Nobleman - yet humbled himself to beg. What does it take to be humbled?
Ask a Jew, travel to another town, be willing to obey?
He walked 17 miles (two days) from his home in Capernaum to Cana where Jesus was
My kid isn't sick, he's dying!
(show images of sick kids)
Ever been frantic because your kid was sick
This isn't about not dying, its about not dying yet - how many of our doubts are about timing?
Keep this always in mind, when Jesus heals, it is for a time, not for all time, because death is your ticket into His presence. Don’t keep death at bay forever. Jesus didn‘t heal every sick person, no sick person avoided death. While power of life over death is a sign of the Messiah, it is not our heritage on this earth. Every sick person Jesus healed - later died.
Next we are about to hear Jesus rebuke someone, listen carefully - who? Why?
John 4:48 "Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe."
What’s the point of the rebuke
Who is getting the rebuke? The Galileans who welcomed Him, they had an agenda.
The Galileans were the zealots, the terrorists of the Jews. They wanted to stir things up. It really excited them to see Jesus upset things in the Temple courts.
Worse than that - people were willing to settle for God to be a side show, performing signs and wonders. Jesus wanted to give them God Almighty, but they wanted David Blaine.
His rebuke is interrupted - we don’t have time for this sermon... Read John 4:49-54
49 The royal official said, "Sir, come down before my child dies."
50 Jesus replied, "You may go. Your son will live."
The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. 52 When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, "The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour."
53 Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he and all his household believed.
54 This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus performed, having come from Judea to Galilee.
Jesus just got done reaming out sign seekers, and Undeterred, the official makes his request
Even rich powerful people come to the end of their rope - in fact,
Most good things happen at the end of the rope, not at the top - at the bottom of the pile, not the top of the heap
The rich nobleman had a problem and a plan - solution. I will get Jesus to come to my house.
Sounds reasonable. I notice in my own life that many of my sound, reasonable plans fall flat.
But Jesus had other ideas
Jesus said - go back home - your son will live
When you come to Jesus with a problem, What do you do?
Don't just believe if you like the answer
The man took Jesus at his word and departed.
Was he a Christian? No he was a Roman - Not even a Jew
Why did this man believe Jesus - even when local people may not have?
What was that 17 mile return trip like?
Did the official get attacked with doubt on the way home, wondering if his wife would say, where is the teacher?
When did the nobleman know that the prayer was answered?
This story teaches us is that if we are going to have faith - We have to overcome the obstacles. The biggest obstacle is obedience. To obey what we know as partial, incomplete, that is Faith.
What is faith - obstinate, bull doggedness - hope, persistence, and is borne out in obedience
Faith is hope in invisible things. It is obedience to commands that may seem wacky
Jesus says “if you love me - Obey me!” How is that working in your life?
Stop right here and think of some things you know full well you are being disobedient about
It could have to do with your sexual life, your finances, your thought life, gossip, you name it
How does it prove that you don’t trust God? It isn’t a matter of knowing WWJD - even a child knows that. It is a matter of trust. I obviously think Jesus doesn't know what He’s talking about.
What does it look like to take Jesus at His word?
“Go sell all you have - give it to the poor...” BUT
If you love me - obey me - BUT
Here is how people will know you are my disciple - You will love one another! - BUT
What if the royal official had responded with BUT - what if he could convince Jesus to travel the two days back to his home and check out his son? What if by the time Jesus got there the son was dead? What then...?
NO BUTs - Obey, don't delay - don't suggest a more reasonable option. OBEY!
The next time you find yourself praying for wisdom and God lays a thought in your mind, something that you would never have come up with in a million years, a thought that makes you squirm, yet it seems exactly like something Jesus would do - DO IT!
The next time you hear that still small voice in the back of your mind - convicting you that the words you are about to say are gossip, or at least, unkind, or selfish, self-serving, what if you just SHUT UP!
What if you just came home to Jesus - let His will be your will, whatever he says goes. Period. End of story.
What was the effect of the healing? - household believed.
There are always Questions that we don't have the answers for:
What was the father’s role in the healing - faith, persistence, merely asking for help?
Why aren't all healed? - what does healing mean?
This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus performed, Jesus is the power of life!
Healing is a sign, signs point somewhere - Don't stop and camp out at the sign
Time for Communion - Next Step - Taking Jesus at his word- another big question is this, am I willing to pray, God not what I will, but what you will be done?
