Take Him at His Word

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

TAKE HIM AT HIS WORD

John 4:43-54

43 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. 48 "Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe."  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.

NIV

First, we should remember that John does not record what happened for the reason he tells us what Jesus had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country. We would have to go to Matthew to get that account. However, what we want to see here is in the narrative regarding this royal official. We are not certain as to exactly who he was, nor does our scholars, however, it is most likely someone who served in the court of Herod Antipus and had a permanent residence in Capernaum. What we do not know for certain is where was this royal official when he heard Jesus was back in Cana. We do know that Herod Antipus built the city of Tiberias and perhaps this is where the royal official worked. Tiberias is about ten miles from Capernaum as was Cana. Still, the point is this royal official made the effort to go to Jesus asking him to come to Capernaum to heal his son. This is asking Jesus to make a ten-mile hike from Cana to Capernaum to touch his son. Jesus makes this astonishing statement and it is interesting he uses the plural, people, and not just addressing this royal official, about not believing unless seeing miraculous signs and wonders. He does tell the official that he can just go, as his son has been healed. It is interesting the royal official took Jesus at his word, he believed without seeing any signs of wonders. Yet John also makes the point that after the man found out his son was healed the same moment that Jesus spoke to him, he and his whole household believed. Did he not believe before? Then why did he go that distance to beg Jesus to come down to Capernaum to heal his son? What does it take to believe? What does it take to get healing? Surely we cannot go find Jesus in some town and beg him to come to heal us, or our relative. Jesus is no longer on earth, but he is still available as he sits at the right hand of the Father. Jesus told us that if we ask anything in his name, it will be given. That has to include healing. So then why are we still in pain? Why do we still have sicknesses, or have some physical problem? Do we enjoy complaining to others that much, that we don’t want to be healed? Does Jesus heal or doesn’t he? Do we believe or don’t we? Have we put more faith in modern medicine, in doctors, then in Jesus? Have we justified using doctors as a method of Jesus healing us? All that is needed is for Jesus to say the word and we will be healed, just as he did for that royal official. Do we take Jesus at his word or do we really want to see some miraculous sign and wonder before we will truly believe he would or could heal us? Do we need to perform some special ritual or fervent prayer in order to summons Jesus' healing? Do we have to beg him for healing? Why can’t we just ask and believe? That is what we are going to do and we only have to believe. We say we believe, so then let us simply believe. We have to take him at his word.