John 4:46-54 (NLT)
46 As he traveled through Galilee, he came to Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. There was a government official in nearby Capernaum whose son was very sick. 47 When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die.
48 Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”
49 The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.”
50 Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home.
51 While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. 52 He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” 53 Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will live.” And he and his entire household believed in Jesus. 54 This was the second miraculous sign Jesus did in Galilee after coming from Judea.
Dear God,
This is a father with whom I want to spend time because he was a government official. We do not know what his government job was. But that fact alone was important enough that John called it out. We are only given a father’s job title in these stories if the father was a leader in the church or a government official.
This is a big guess, and it could be all wrong because I do not know my history well enough, but I would guess that Jewish locals were not allowed to be government officials. I would think that this man was a Roman who got stationed over here. He might not have been Jewish—a Gentile at the least and a Roman at most. I think that by identifying this man’s occupation, John is intimating that this father was swallowing an extra measure of pride and disbelief to come to Jesus and ask him for help. This was not just some dude. This was a man in an important position who likely had it made from a financial security standpoint. But he had a son that was sick, and, at that point, nothing else mattered.
I have been there. I have had times when I was worried about my children and absolutely nothing else mattered. I would have quit my job, sold my house, and lived in a tent if I thought it would have made a difference. You get to a point where you will do anything for your children.
This is the point when I start adding a layer of fiction to this story. I try to imagine how this man’s day went. First, I am sure it was a sleepless night. He and his wife were probably caring for their son. Someone who knew his son was sick mentioned to him that they heard that the guy healing people was nearby. Maybe he could get Jesus to come and heal his son. He tells his wife he is going (maybe she begs him to go) and he sets out to find Jesus. He finally finds him and begs, “Please, please, please come with me to heal my son. I am begging you to please come!”
Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”
The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.”
Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!”
I can almost see a reassuring smile and twinkle in Jesus’s eyes as he says it to him. “Go back home. Your son will live!” What a beautiful moment.
So the government official heads home, hopeful that his son will be healed. Otherwise, his wife will be angry that he did not bring Jesus back. But before he is even home, he finds out the good news: The boy was healed in the very hour he spoke with Jesus!
Father, I need more faith. I believe, but help my unbelief. This man made a bunch of decisions, one after another. He just did what was next in front of him. He did everything he knew to do. Help me to know what to do as well. Help me to do the next thing that is in front of me and trust you for the rest.
I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,
Amen
