Do We Need Signs                                 John 4:43-54

A man went into the drug store and asked the pharmacist if he could give him something for the hiccups. The pharmacist reached out across the counter and slapped the man ‘s face. The man yelled, “Why did you do that?!” The pharmacist replied, “See, you don’t have the hiccups anymore.” The man replied, “I never did, my wife in the car has them.”

There are times in our lives when we need something, and it seems we get just the opposite. There are times in our lives that we need to be rescued, only to feel like we’ve been given an anchor. There are people drowning in their sorrow because those things they want, are the very things that drag them down.

Today, as we continue to examine the life of Jesus as described in John’s gospel, we come across a man in a precarious situation, his son is sick and near death. It doesn’t specify but I can imagine this man already tried having doctors treat his son. He most likely tried folk remedies, maybe even the priests came to look at the boy. And as we’ve seen in scripture before, here is another who turns to Jesus only after all else has failed.

Verse 45, “When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover festival, for they had also been there.”

This man is among those who have seen Jesus perform miracles. He was among those who knew Jesus is a man of God and that he stood with God’s grace upon him. This man knew, though he may not have fully understood it, he knew of faith and God’s presence in their lives. And still he waited. Why? He was putting all his trust in others without even the smallest reliance on God.

We’ve seen this elsewhere in scripture, and we live it out in our own lives; we try all avenues except God. We trust others before we trust God. Those with faith will usually and eventually come to God, but we sure let our lives get overloaded with anguish and fear before we look to God.

So now after he let things spiral out of control, this man turns to Jesus; verses 46-47, “And there was a certain royal official …he went to Jesus and begged him to come and heal his son.”

Royal official: this man was a leader in his life and in others’ lives. He was used to the perks in life. He was used to others doing his bidding. He was used to being in control. And now, he is anything but in control of the situation.

We can feel we are masters of our own lives and fate, and it can be very unsettling to be faced with the fact that we are not. Like this man, we want to be the originator of the solution. And like this man, we all must come to the conclusion that there are things in life we can’t affect. There are things in our lives that only coming to Jesus can affect change. Each of us is like this royal official. We feel we can create a solution to our circumstances. And it takes us exhausting all possibilities before we accept our need, and accept Jesus is the only one who can help.

This works for problems in our lives, and it works with salvation. Each individual must come to the conclusion that all our efforts cannot affect the way God sees our sinful nature. We must each come to the understanding that only Jesus can transform our circumstances, and then come before him to ask him to intervene on our behalf.

This man finally came to Jesus for help. Again verse 47, “…he went to (Jesus) and begged him to come and heal his son…” This man wanted Jesus to come with him and stand before his son. He had a preconceived idea about what Jesus needed to do to heal his son.

Again, as we’ve seen before, this man had his own idea about what would happen, and how it would happen. And again, we can all be like this. When we finally exhaust all possibilities and come to Jesus, we still want to exert our authority and dictate how Jesus is going to fix our problem. Why do we continue to think we know more than God? Why do we continue to think we have a better solution than God does?

Verse 48, “’Unless you people see signs and wonders,’ Jesus told him, ‘you will never believe.”

This man’s faith was weak. He wanted to see Jesus work. Is our faith weak? Do we want to see God’s work in an immediate resolution to our problem? When it doesn’t happen that way, do we say, “God’s not helping.” Do we try to take control back from him?

1 Kings has the account of Elijah and his servant Ahab in the desert waiting for rain. Elijah told his servant to go and look for rain clouds. 1 Kings 18, verses 43-45, “’There is nothing there,’ he said. Seven times Elijah said, ‘Go back.’ The seventh time the servant reported, ‘A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.’  So, Elijah said, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’ Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds…a heavy rain started falling…”

Elijah believed God was sending rain, even when there were no clouds. I wonder what would have happened if Elijah said the first time, “Well, I guess God’s not going to do it.” God doesn’t work on our timetable. He doesn’t necessarily work the way we want. Many times we may not even see what God is doing for us. Faith is the key, Verse 50, “’Go,’ Jesus replied, ‘your son will live.’ The man took Jesus at his word and departed.” This man is all of us. If we were in the same situation, would we just walk away with total trust in our hearts?

Our story continues as this man is making his way home. His servants came to him to tell him his son was well. And upon contemplation, the man realized Jesus had indeed his son. When he left Jesus and started home, there were no signs nor indications Jesus actually did anything; but when faced with the changing situation of his son’s health, the man realized Jesus did what he asked.

Verse 58, “So he and his whole household believed.”

In the beginning I said this man knew who Jesus was, if he didn’t have a clue, he wouldn’t have sought Jesus out. But now we’re told he believed. The difference is now this man knows in his heart that he needs Jesus in his life. No more is it, I heard Jesus can help. No more is it, I tried everything else, so let’s give God a try. Now he knows God. He knows God is working in his life. And now, his life is God’s. And by his faith, and his witness at what Jesus did in his life, others came to believe. Our greatest testimony for Christ is how we live and rely solely on him during our worst moments.

Today Jesus heals a royal official’s son. This man’s name is not given, and we know this means he represents all of us. We are him, and he is us. Through his communication with Jesus he shows us several things.

When we have a problem in life, don’t wait until all possibilities are depleted, recognize your need for Jesus. Accept Jesus is the solution.

When you do turn to Jesus for help, concede that God may not necessarily work the way you want him to. Don’t expect God to do things your way. Bring your problem to him but remember, trust and faith are the key.

And our greatest testimony to others about God, is how we trust him and rely on him during the worst trials in our lives.

Psalm 31:7, “I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.”

God bless.