John 4:46-47 Therefore He came again to Cana of Galilee, where He had made the water wine. And there was a royal official whose son was sick at Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and was imploring Him to come down and heal his son; for he was at the point of death.
Let’s begin today with a few facts. The journey to Cana from Sychar was about 40 miles, or probably 2–3 days. The royal official was probably a Gentile, an official in Herod Antipas’ administration, who was the Tetrarch of Galilee. The distance from Cana to Capernaum was about 20 miles over hill country, a long day’s journey by foot. These facts help us keep things in perspective. Nothing is going to happen fast if everything goes at the normal pace.
The situation given by the Father to Jesus was dire. The official’s son was probably at the point of death before the father left for Cana to meet Jesus, so you can imagine the urgency of the official once they met. Having heard that Jesus was in Cana, he believed Jesus was the boy’s only hope of healing. He believed it enough to undertake a 40-mile round trip. Under the circumstances, I think he would have taken the fastest means possible, which would have been horseback. That’s simply conjecture. The apostle John didn’t give us that information.
There are a few encouragements I get from these verses. First, God may allow sickness in order to reveal His glory through His Son. The condition of the official’s son was totally in God’s hands. For this story to be in the Bible, the son had to be sick to the point of death. In fact, that had to be true of everyone Jesus healed. So, my takeaway is that regardless of how dire the circumstances are, don’t panic, the situation is necessary for the glory of God. Since my purpose is to live to love with Jesus for the glory of God, it seems wise and faithful to ask, “How does God want to glorify Himself through His Son in this situation that He has given to Him and to me? Then pray, listen, receive, and release into the situation what I’m given.
A second encouragement is that God reveals His will by giving faith where He plans to work. Jesus knew where the Father was working by the attitudes and responses of the people God put in His path. I think of 2 Chronicles 16:9 “For the eyes of the Lord move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.” Where Jesus saw faith at work, He knew His Father was working, so then He worked with His Father. He was living to love with His Father.
In this case, the official demonstrated faith. He heard Jesus was in Cana. His son was desperately ill, and there was no other hope. He knew Jesus was a healer and miracle worker. He made the trip to find Jesus to beg Him to come and heal his son because he believed Jesus was capable of healing his son.
As we walk with Jesus, there will be times when we face dire circumstances and people with an urgent need. May we be so filled with the Spirit of Christ that we can discern where the Father is working and trust in Him to give us what we need to glorify His name at that time.
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