John 4B (2014) What is the proper response to becoming a disciple of the Messiah? She was a woman who lacked access to truth of God

Transcription

1 Jhn 4B (2014) What is the prper respnse t becming a disciple f the Messiah? That s the questin Jhn explres in the secnd half f chapter 4 The chapter starts with the Samaritan wman at the well She was a wman wh lacked access t truth f Gd She was trapped in a false religius system But n this day, she came t understand that Jesus was the Messiah And thrugh this encunter, the Lrd gave her the gift f faith And by her faith, she has been transfrmed Her spiritual transfrmatin was similar t that f Nicdemus and the disciples f Jesus Just as with this wman, thse Jewish men were living in darkness until the mment the Light f the Wrld enlightened their hearts Nw being Jews, we might expect that thse cnverts wuld have set the standard fr hw t be a disciple f the Lrd Surely a Pharisee wuld be a strng witness fr Christ amng his peers in the Sanhedrin Surely the disciples f Jesus wuld be the first t reach ut t the lst with a testimny f the Messiah And the last persn we might expect t set the standard as a fllwer f a Jewish Messiah wuld be a Samaritan wman But as we saw in v.27 last week the disciples didn t react prperly t finding Jesus speaking t the Samaritan wman at the well They refused even t address her Of curse, they had n idea that the wman had accepted Jesus as Messiah They re weren t privy t their cnversatin 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

2 Jhn 4B 2 f 21 S if they didn t knw she had learned that Jesus was the Messiah, is it t much t expect that they might have cnsidered this wman a likely candidate t fllw Christ Instead, they cntinued the Jewish practice f shunning Samaritans, including this wman Seems they haven t gt the idea yet Irnically, the Jews had every advantage with respect t the truth f Messiah They had the prphets, the cvenants, the Temple service They had the full cunsel f Gd s wrd And mst f all, they had the Messiah brn in their midst Yet they have n sense f mercy and charity t their fellw man S Jesus has His wrk cut ut fr Him with these guys Meanwhile, the Samaritan wman ignres these men and their prejudice She might have wndered why the Messiah was bthering with such pr disciples But regardless she has mre pressing things t attend t... Jhn 4:28 S the wman left her waterpt, and went int the city and said t the men, Jhn 4:29 Cme, see a man wh tld me all the things that I have dne; this is nt the Christ, is it? Jhn 4:30 They went ut f the city, and were cming t Him. The wman says nthing t the disciples and simply leaves But she is s excited t leave, that she frgets her waterpt at the well Jhn includes this detail t demnstrate her urgency and excitement But there is als a great symbl in her absentmindedness A mment earlier she had been defending this well and chastising Jesus fr ffering a better surce f water 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

3 Jhn 4B 3 f 21 And she had even mcked Him fr nt having a bucket t draw water But when Jesus ffered her the living water He prmised, she fund it s exciting that she had n need fr the ther water Just as Jesus had prmised She leaves t enter int the city f Sychar and immediately fund the leading men f the city Cnsider the curage that this required The men f the city wuld have been sitting in the city gate n a nrmal day f business This wman wuld have had brught her tattered reputatin int that public place with prbably few if any friends t supprt her Just entering the city gates wuld have prvked stares and perhaps mcking cmments Nevertheless, she desn t let these things stp her This is quite a cntrast t the disciples That grup f Jewish men culdn t bear the thught t talk t a single Samaritan wman abut the Messiah standing next t them This shamed wman is willing t run right t the leaders f the city and declare the arrival f a Christ that n ne had yet even seen Faith leads us t d crazy things Frmulaic religin just leads us t cnfrm t human expectatins The mst cmical part f the wman s testimny is the way she highlights her wn srdid past as prf f her claims She pints t the fact that this stranger culd name her sins s specifically as her prf that Jesus was Messiah As we said last week, this was the turning pint fr this wman s heart 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

4 Jhn 4B 4 f 21 Her deeds were brught int the Light, but there was n cndemnatin! S nw she neither wrries abut them being a matter f public discurse What a relief it must have been fr a wman living the kind f life she was living That s the impact f Christ in ur hearts...he remves the guilt fr ur past sins and takes away the burdens In the past, this wman may have entertained thughts frm time t time f the Messiah s arrival But I assume that pssibility didn t leave her feeling very ptimistic Mre likely, she was terribly wrried at the prspect f what His arrival wuld mean fr her Given her sinful past, she might have assumed it wuld be a bad day And that cncern was the surce f her guilt But nw that she has encuntered grace, she can cnfidently and jyfully annunce the gd news t thers, despite her shameful past Such is the pwer f the Gspel Perhaps it s her insistence, r her bravery r just her lack f shame, but smething caused the leaders t take her claims seriusly...seriusly enugh t fllw her t the well The leaders f the city g ut f the city t investigate the wman s claims And as the Samaritans make their way t Jesus, the Lrd is still sitting at the well with the disciples They had brught Him fd as He requested 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

5 Jhn 4B 5 f 21 Jhn 4:31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging Him, saying, Rabbi, eat. Jhn 4:32 But He said t them, I have fd t eat that yu d nt knw abut. Jhn 4:33 S the disciples were saying t ne anther, N ne brught Him anything t eat, did he? Jhn 4:34 Jesus said t them, My fd is t d the will f Him wh sent Me and t accmplish His wrk. Jhn 4:35 D yu nt say, There are yet fur mnths, and then cmes the harvest? Behld, I say t yu, lift up yur eyes and lk n the fields, that they are white fr harvest. Jhn 4:36 Already he wh reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit fr life eternal; s that he wh sws and he wh reaps may rejice tgether. Jhn 4:37 Fr in this case the saying is true, One sws and anther reaps. Jhn 4:38 I sent yu t reap that fr which yu have nt labred; thers have labred and yu have entered int their labr. I like t imagine Jesus seated by the well, perhaps in the shade f small tree nearby And the disciples have brught Him bread, maybe a piece f fruit, perhaps sme salted fish But Jesus isn t interested in eating He s disappinted in them and it shws n His face And the disciples are cncerned nt understanding what s bthering Christ S they urge Jesus t have sme f the fd Jesus respnds by teaching them a lessn using fd as an example He says he has fd they dn t knw abut Immediately, we re made aware that Jesus is talking abut smething spiritual again We knw this because we knw Jesus hadn t received any fd while He s been at the well But naturally, the disciples assume He s talking abut physical fd Here s anther f thse passing in the night cnversatins 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

6 Jhn 4B 6 f 21 They asking ne anther if ne f them gave Jesus fd earlier, and f curse n ne did These guys are missing Jesus pint, f curse, just as the Samaritan wman did a mment earlier Funny hw the Samaritan wman was t busy lking dwn her nse at Jesus t understand His cnversatin And nw the disciples, wh were t gd t talk t a Samaritan wman, are equally clueless The Jesus takes pity n them and explains the meaning f His cmment Jesus says that His fd is t d the will f the One Wh sent Him Obviusly, we knw Jesus is speaking f ding the will f the Father in Heaven Hw is beying the Father a fd fr Jesus? Well, cnsider that this cnversatin was cming n the heels f the earlier ne with the wman In that cnversatin, Jesus redirected the wman s thughts away frm satisfying her flesh s need fr water And tward her spirit s need fr living water Jesus wasn t denying that the bdy needs t drink water But He did want the wman t put satisfying her spiritual needs ahead f satisfying her physical needs It shuld have been mre imprtant fr the wman t find a surce f eternal life than t spend time keeping her physical bdy alive Likewise, Jesus isn t denying the need t feed His physical bdy with fd He s asking the disciples t think abut spiritual pririties ahead f physical pririties They had been s fcused n eating that they hadn t even cnsidered the pssibility f reaching this Samaritan wman with the message f the Kingdm 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

7 Jhn 4B 7 f 21 S Jesus is teaching them a lessn abut pririties in life The first pririties f life must be spiritual pririties And specifically, pleasing the One Wh calls us int service must be ur first pririty Fr Jesus, the highest pririty was accmplishing the wrk f the Father, and this was all the satisfactin Jesus needed He wasn t even willing t delay bedience fr the sake f a single meal He hadn t stpped at this well t get a drink r t get fd He stpped here t reach a Samaritan wman And thrugh that cntact, Jesus anticipated reaching an entire cmmunity with the Gspel This was the wrk the Father sent Jesus t d, and He wasn t ging t get distracted But the disciples have their pririties backward, it wuld seem Jesus tells them nt t say that the harvest is still fur mnths away Instead, they needed t serve Gd with a mindset that the harvest is cntinually ready, speaking f a harvest f men and wmen Interestingly, the Samaritan peple custmarily wre slid white rbes as a sign f their spiritual purity S as Jesus spke these wrds, the disciples might have been able t lk up and see a field f white walking tward them As the men f Sychar made their way ut frm the city t meet Jesus In v.36 Jesus says the harvest has already begun, that is the message f salvatin is already ging ut int the wrld The reaping f this harvest is the respnsibility f Jesus disciples These men and all believers wh cme after them are respnsible t assisting in the harvest We receive thse the Lrd is saving 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

8 Jhn 4B 8 f 21 We prclaim the Gspel We baptize thse wh believe We disciples all wh cnfess s they may return t the field and harvest still mre That is the labr f a disciple in the wrld, but these disciples haven t internalized that respnsibility as yet That s a shame, because a disciple that fails t serve in the field is sacrifices wages, Jesus says Ntice in v.36 that Jesus says a reaper will receive wages fr their service We knw these wages t be eternal rewards fr serving We re like wrkers picking up fruit in the field, except that this is eternal fruit Jesus says there are thse wh sw and thse wh reap, and in this cntext bth refer t disciples It s similar t the analgy Paul uses in 1Crinthians when he said that He planted and Aplls watered The idea is that we each take part in the prcess f reaping in different ways But in the end we will all have a chance t rejice tgether ver the resulting rewards Jesus sums up the Lrd s expectatin by saying that He expects that ur cycle f swing and reaping is t cntinue in a selfless fashin Jesus qutes a saying that ne sws and anther reaps, meaning that bth rles are required fr either party t benefit frm the labr It was easy fr the ne harvesting t be mtivated by their wrk, since they were anticipating eating the harvest But thse wh reaped the harvest shuld share it with thse wh earlier planted the seeds It was harder fr the ne swing t be as mtivated since the harvest is fur mnths away 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

9 Jhn 4B 9 f 21 But if bth the planter knw they will share in the harvest, than neither has excuse t wrk hard S it is in serving as a disciple and ambassadr in the wrld We might think that since we have secured ur salvatin, there s n reasn t wrk hard fr Christ But n Christian is free t take a pass in the wrk f the Gspel Jesus reminds us that we were all brught int faith thrugh the wrk f anther wh wrked selflessly t ensure a gd harvest In fact, all disciples reap a harvest they didn t plant, including the nes seated arund Jesus at the well Others had labred befre them as Gd called and equipped Thse thers were the OT prphets including Jhn the Baptist They were als the faithful men and wmen in Israel wh guarded the wrd f Gd and taught it t their children They were priests and rabbis with true hearts t teach the peple abut the cming Lrd Clearly, Jesus is chastising the disciples fr their apathy fr sharing what they knw abut the Messiah with the wrld We might be tempted t cut these guys sme slack, since they haven t been fllwing Jesus very lng Just hw much experience wuld Jesus expect these men t have by this pint? Well hwever little time these disciples have spent with Jesus, it s still an eternity cmpared t the brief encunter the Samaritan wman had And yet we see what she s accmplishing as a disciple f Jesus 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

10 Jhn 4B 10 f 21 Jhn 4:39 Frm that city many f the Samaritans believed in Him because f the wrd f the wman wh testified, He tld me all the things that I have dne. Jhn 4:40 S when the Samaritans came t Jesus, they were asking Him t stay with them; and He stayed there tw days. Jhn 4:41 Many mre believed because f His wrd; Jhn 4:42 and they were saying t the wman, It is n lnger because f what yu said that we believe, fr we have heard fr urselves and knw that this One is indeed the Savir f the wrld. Jhn 4:43 After the tw days He went frth frm there int Galilee. Jhn 4:44 Fr Jesus Himself testified that a prphet has n hnr in his wn cuntry. Just the simple testimny f this wman was enugh t draw ut a large crwd frm the city All she tld them was that Jesus had the ability t knw her innermst secrets Nt the mst cmpelling testimny, at least nt in earthly terms Nevertheless, it was enugh t bring ut this crwd Of curse, their interest in cming as a result f the prmpting f the Hly Spirit Which is the whle pint t why Jesus can say the harvest is white Even when we dn t knw exactly what t say r hw t say, it matters nt because the Lrd is capable f taking even the mst meager testimny and using it t change a heart Ntice that the peple wh came ut t meet Jesus believe in what they hear And they tell the wman that their faith in Messiah is n lnger based slely in her testimny Instead, they nw see fr themselves that the wrd f Christ testify t His claims They are cnvinced by Jesus Himself The wman played an imprtant rle as Gd chse t use her But in the end, the truth f Jesus claims dn t rest in the credibility f His disciples 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

11 Jhn 4B 11 f 21 He is self-evidently true, and He is mre than capable f making Himself knwn t anyne wh seeks Him These details remve any bjectins we might ffer fr refusing t serve as an bedient disciple We knw frm chapter 3 that saving faith is a prduct f new birth accmplished by Gd in the heart f man And yet the Lrd calls disciples t fllw His example f living t serve and please the Master Wh called them That wrk invlves sharing a testimny f Jesus with the wrld But in the end ur testimny merely brings smene t an encunter with Christ, and in that encunter Christ makes Himself knwn Even thugh the result lies in Gd s pwer, it still hld ut the ptential fr an eternal reward fr us S we have n reasn nt t place the Lrd s pririties abve ur wn That s why Jesus tells His disciples nt t wrry abut earthly things Fcus n a heavenly fd Dn t feed yur flesh, serve the Lrd I imagine the disciples wuld have been amazed t see a friendly crwd f Samaritans appraching Jesus at the well It was beynd their cmprehensin t think that their rabbi culd unite Jew and Samaritan in this way Remember, tw years later in Jesus ministry the disciples ffer t call dwn fire frm Heaven t destry Samaritans wh refused Jesus accmmdatin S as dramatic as this mment must have been, it didn t settle the issue in their hearts In fact, in the bk f Acts we still see evidence f that prejudice in chapter 8 as Peter and Jhn travel int Samaria t verify Philip s ministry 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

12 Jhn 4B 12 f 21 The apstles were surprised t see Samaritans accepting the truth f Jesus as Messiah, even thugh this scene had happened already Interestingly, the peple remark that Jesus is the Savir f the wrld Only Jhn uses this phrase, and it reflects his desire t expand n what had already been written in the earlier Gspels By the time Jhn wrte his Gspel, the wrld had cme t realize that the gd news f the Messiah s arrival was intended t reach far beynd the natin f Israel It was intended t reach int Samaria And mre than that, it was t reach Gentiles as far away as Rme and Tarsus But when the earlier Gspels were written, that truth was still emerging Nw by the end f the first century, it was clearly evident S Jhn makes a pint t emphasize that Jesus wasn t just a Jewish Savir He was the Savir fr all natins, fr the whle wrld Jesus ends up staying in the area tw days at the request f the Samaritans And as a result f being there, even mre believe Jhn says Nrmally, Samaritans wuldn t even allw a Jew t stay in the area vernight But nw, these peple are encuraging Jesus t stay with them The pwer f the Gspel t change hearts is n full display These peple, inspired by their leaders, are nw wrshipping in Spirit and Truth And these Samaritans std in marked cntrast t the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem wh discunted Jesus in favr f their wn dead, religius system S after tw days Jesus sets ut t return t the Galilee The Galilee was the nrthern mst part f Judea 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

13 Jhn 4B 13 f 21 It was largely cnsidered a backwater regin Jews in Jerusalem held it lw regard Later in Jhn s Gspel we ll here the Pharisees dismiss Jesus as Messiah by saying that n prphet ever arises ut f the Galilee - Which was actually untrue Nevertheless, the Jews in Jerusalem were self-imprtant, elitist and privileged Which is exactly why Jesus spent mst f His time ministering in the sft hearts f the Galileans In v.44, Jhn qutes Jesus testifying that He had n hnr in his wn cuntry The Greek wrd fr cuntry can als mean hme city And by the cntext, we knw Jesus was referring t Jerusalem Jerusalem is the hme city f the Messiah in the sense that the thrne f David was in that city Jerusalem is the place the Messiah is rule and reign ver the peple f Israel And ne day, He will But fr nw, Jesus is mving back t the Galilee where He will find a very different receptin Jhn 4:45 S when He came t Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast; fr they themselves als went t the feast. The Galileans received Jesus warmly back int their regin And they did s because they had likewise traveled int Jerusalem fr the feast f Passver As we said in an earlier lessn, all make Jews were required t travel t Jerusalem fr the feast f Passver S like the Jews in Jerusalem, these Galilean Jews saw the miracles Jesus perfrmed in the city ver the week f Passver 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

14 Jhn 4B 14 f 21 And they haven t frgtten hw impressive His teaching and miracles were In fact, they have prbably been waiting fr Jesus t make His way back hme This explains why Jesus spent s much time in this regin early in His ministry He went where He saw the Spirit wrking, fr that was His missin And cnversely, He went t Jerusalem t die, fr that is where the prphets were killed And nw that Jesus has returned, He returns t His healing ministry Jhn 4:46 Therefre He came again t Cana f Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a ryal fficial whse sn was sick at Capernaum. Jhn 4:47 When he heard that Jesus had cme ut f Judea int Galilee, he went t Him and was implring Him t cme dwn and heal his sn; fr he was at the pint f death. Jhn 4:48 S Jesus said t him, Unless yu peple see signs and wnders, yu simply will nt believe. Jhn 4:49 The ryal fficial said t Him, Sir, cme dwn befre my child dies. Jhn 4:50 Jesus said t him, G; yur sn lives. The man believed the wrd that Jesus spke t him and started ff. Jesus returns t Cana, fr as we said, Cana seems t be the city Jesus mves Himself and His earthly family as He began His ministry Jhn s mentin f Cana serves as a bkend t the start f Chapter 2 Between these tw mentins f Cana, we find Jhn s s nly descriptin f Jesus early ministry S what did Jhn want his readers t understand abut Jesus early ministry? The tw cnversatins Jhn highlights between Jesus and Nicdemus and the Samaritan Wman neatly sum up thse early mnths Amng the Jews f Jerusalem, there was suspicin, dismissal, and ignrance f Jesus identity Later this wuld turn t utright hstility 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

15 Jhn 4B 15 f 21 And while a few like Nicdemus cme t faith in the Messiah Fr the mst part, Jesus is nt well received amng the Jews in Jerusalem But amng the utcasts, the Samaritans, the pr, the Gentiles...Jesus finds a ready and receptive audience And they return time and again t Him seeking His wrd and His healing pwer This in a nutshell explains why Jesus spent mst f His years in earthly ministry in the nrthern regin rather than Jerusalem As He returns, He is met by a ryal fficial in need f healing fr his dying sn A ryal fficial wuld mean sme smene wh is in service t a king And in this time and place, that wuld have t mean smene wh served Herd Antipas, the self-appinted King f Judea It s unclear whether this man was Gentile r Jewish, thugh Jesus cmments in v.48 seem t suggest He was talking t a fellw Jew The fficial says his sn lives in Capernaum Capernaum was the seat f Rman rule in Judea, s it wuld make sense that the fficial lived there It s als a cnsiderable distance frm Cana, abut 17 miles This man is clearly desperate fr anything that might save his sn S he traveled the distance t see Jesus when he hears that Jesus has returned As he makes his request, Jesus remarks that the peple f Galilee are cnsistently requesting signs and wnders befre they can believe in Jesus Nw why des Jesus chse this mment t make this declaratin? Jesus is remarking n this man s willingness t travel s far t make His request And n his insistence that Jesus return with him t Capernaum t heal his sn 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

16 Jhn 4B 16 f 21 If the man truly were perating in faith in Jesus as the Messiah, then he wuldn t need Jesus t return physically In fact, he wuldn t have needed t make the trip himself He culd have just prayed fr healing frm his child s bedside If Jesus is capable f healing the human bdy, then He is clearly capable f perating in supernatural ways And therefre, time and space wuld nt be an bstacle S faith in Jesus as Lrd wuldn t require that a man travel and insist that Jesus travel as well S, if yu feel the need t make the trip and bring Jesus back with yu, then it suggests yu need t see physical prf, a sign f Jesus pwer That s what Jesus means when he says these peple are cnsistently seeking physical signs t blster their faith It s ne thing t believe that Jesus culd heal, but it s anther t believe that Jesus was the Gd Wh culd heal withut barriers When Gd wrks thrugh a man r wman, naturally that wrk will be as limited by the physical nature f the persn A man with the gift f healing must be in the presence f the ne He heals Gd is the One perfrming the healing But still He is wrking thrugh a persn, and that cnstrains the healing t space and time We can acknwledge that Gd did the wrk But we als understand that the persn perfrming the healing is just a vessel the Lrd is using On the ther hand, when Gd Himself perfrms a miraculus wrk n His wn, He is nt bund by space r time He desn t suffer the limitatins that a created being must wrk within Such was Jesus, even in His incarnate frm 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

17 Jhn 4B 17 f 21 Jesus culd direct supernatural utcmes thrugh the Spirit f Gd S, belief in Christ s healing pwer frm a distance became a distinguishing characteristic f true faith Believing that Jesus culd heal frm anywhere meant acknwledging Him as Gd Jesus chastises this man s incmplete faith, but the man is s desperate He isn t put ff by Jesus cmments and pressing his request S Jesus grants the man his request fr healing Jesus declares that the man s sn is healed frm 17 miles away Nw the questin is whether the man wuld believe Jesus wrd Jesus hasn t given him the sign he required, that is Jesus didn t travel and heal the sn in the man s presence Instead, Jesus made a declaratin t test the man s faith At this pint, in v. 50 we re tld that the man believed Jesus wrd This is the biblical definitin f saving faith thrughut the Bible Just as when Abraham believed the wrd f Gd and was declared righteus, s has this man believed in the wrd f Jesus He truly believes his sns has been healed by the wrd f Christ If he had any dubt at all, he wuldn t have left Jesus t walk 17 miles back t Capernaum - He wuldn t have wanted t risk the pssibility that his sn hadn t been healed Saving faith is always a cnfidence in things hped fr, and a cnvictin in things unseen This man is cnvinced that what he hpes fr has cme t pass based slely n Jesus wrd Saving faith is always this way Tday, we hpe fr the resurrectin that fllws ur death 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

18 Jhn 4B 18 f 21 And we are cnvinced that Jesus is Lrd and will return fr us ne day And thugh we haven t seen these things cme t pass as yet, we still maintain that cnfidence because he have faith in the wrd f Gd Just as this ryal fficial did Jhn 4:51 As he was nw ging dwn, his slaves met him, saying that his sn was living. Jhn 4:52 S he inquired f them the hur when he began t get better. Then they said t him, Yesterday at the seventh hur the fever left him. Jhn 4:53 S the father knew that it was at that hur in which Jesus said t him, Yur sn lives ; and he himself believed and his whle husehld. Jhn 4:54 This is again a secnd sign that Jesus perfrmed when He had cme ut f Judea int Galilee. The fficial leaves t return t Capernaum, and n the rad he encunters his wn servants cming t infrm him that his sn was well The distance f 17 miles represents abut 2 days travel by ft, s it s in the secnd day that the fficial and the servants meet When the man hears the news, he immediately asks when the sn was healed The purpse f his questin is t test Jesus wrds And in that sense, he cntinues t seek fr a sign He s tld that the fever left at the seventh hur This is a specific mment and a specific event The suddenness f the healing was remarkable, such that the servants knew the exact mment it ccurred This cnfirmatin was a sign t this man that Jesus did as He prmised In this case, his desire fr a sign fllws his faith, rather than preceding faith This is an imprtant distinctin 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

19 Jhn 4B 19 f 21 A sign can be a useful and healthy supprt t faith when it fllws faith The Lrd grants us such a cnfirming sign in the way we receive the Hly Spirit after faith The wrk f the Spirit in us gives us a cnfirmatin that we have received what the scriptures prmises But when we seek signs in advance f faith, it s prf that we lack faith altgether And ur request fr signs becmes a barrier t faith, nt a means t it As the fficial learns that his sn was healed at exactly the time when Jesus spke, it says that he believed and all his husehld We need t understand these statements with a full appreciatin f the cntext f these events and the natural prcess f faith in the heart First, the man believed in Jesus prmise during a mment f crisis He appealed t Jesus, and Jesus declared the sn healed The man left believing in Jesus ptential t save and hpeful that the healing wuld happen as Jesus prmised This is the faith f a new believer: a fragile hpe that needs signs t strengthen Then the fficial hears the news f his sn s healing, and his faith is strengthened This mved him frm faith fund in a crisis t a faith frmed in cnfidence The sign f the instant healing caused the man s faith t grw strng and assured Frm this pint frward, he wuld never have dubted in Jesus wrd r claims And when yu have a faith that is strng and cnfident, yu are in a psitin t share that faith with thers in a cnvincing manner 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

20 Jhn 4B 20 f 21 Yu mve t a cntagius faith, ne that leads thers t fllw thrugh the supernatural blessing f the Spirit That s why we hear that the man s husehld believed The Bible isn t declaring that because ne member f the family believes, then autmatically all members will believe We can find many examples f families where ne member cmes t faith but n ne else fllws Instead, Jhn is simply emphasizing the strength f this man s faith He is s cnvinced and s enthusiastic ver Jesus miracle that he has cme hme and preached the truth t his whle family And f curse, they saw the healing as well, which n dubt blstered their faith as well And they all believed Jhn ends with by saying this was this was the secnd sign that Jesus perfrmed when He came ut f Galilee Jhn is calling it the secnd, because f the earlier miracle dne in Cana The first was turning water int wine The secnd is healing the fficial s sn frm a distance These are signs that reflect Jesus as Creatr and Gd Indisputably, if smene can turn ne physical substance int anther r heal with just a wrd, they are demnstrating themselves t be the Creatr Tgether these tw miracles frm a cmplete cycle in Jesus early ministry The ministry began smewhat prematurely with his mther seeking a miracle t save a wedding hst frm embarrassment And it ends with a father seeking Jesus t heal his sn The first sign is dne in private but causes the disciples t believe And the secnd sign is dne in private and causes the fficial s family t believe 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.

21 Jhn 4B 21 f 21 But tgether they shw the deity f Jesus In fact, the entire narrative between these tw miracles highlights the pwer f Gd in Jesus His creative pwer is n display in the water and wine His authrity ver the temple and in teaching were evident in Jerusalem and with Nicdemus His mniscience was evident with the Samaritan wman And His healing pwer ver time and space was evident with the fficial s sn And they sum up Jesus time in Galilee prir t gaining the unhelpful attentin f the Pharisees Jesus shwing mercy n peple f all kinds Jesus teaching His disciples that they are t seek the lst as well And Jesus displaying Himself t be Gd thrugh miracles that culd mean nthing else Lking ahead, chapters 5-10 chrnicle Jesus antagnizing the leaders f Israel Jesus mves int Judea and Jerusalem rutinely and as He des, He begins t explain Himself mre frcefully Jhn s Gspel is best knwn fr the lng mnlgues Jesus speaks The first f thse cmes in Jhn 5, as Jesus explains His wrk n behalf f the Father 2014 Verse By Verse Ministry Internatinal ( May be cpied and distributed prvided the dcument is reprduced in its entirety, including this cpyright statement, and n fee is cllected fr its distributin.