❖ Video
❖ Audio (Message)
Believing Without Seeing
(John 4:43-54)
Mari Ikeda
Today we will read John 4:43-45 as we continue reading John’s Gospel. Today’s passage teaches us that when we believe in God, we don’t believe because God has done something for us. Faith is trusting that God will lead us in the right direction at all times, whether the reality we see is good or bad. Let’s start reading. I’d like to read it in two parts. First, verses 43-45.
A. People seek what they can see (43-45, 2:23-25)
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 Festival, for they also had been there.
This is the part where scholars have different interpretations. It is said that the Galileans, that is, the people of Jesus’ own country, welcomed Jesus, immediately after Jesus’s words were introduced, “A prophet has no honor in his own country.” There are three main opinions on how this should be interpreted. One interpretation is that it means that the welcome of the Galileans was not what Jesus expected. Another interpretation is that the prophet was not honored in his hometown to mean that Jesus was not welcomed in Jerusalem. I think these two interpretations are unreasonable considering the context. So I agree with the third interpretation. The third interpretation is that the Galileans’ welcome to Jesus was superficial and temporary, and that Jesus saw through their hearts. It is said that the Galileans welcomed Jesus because they had seen what Jesus had done in Jerusalem, and this is believed to be the record of John 2:23-25. Let’s read it.
Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person. (2:23-25)
Even though many people believed in Jesus, Jesus knew that it was not true faith. Also, as we will read it shortly, in 4:48, Jesus says, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe.” It means that Jesus knew that the people of Galilee welcomed him only because they expected him to use supernatural powers to heal the sick and cast out demons.
Here is a mistake that all humans make. We ask God to cure our illnesses and solve our problems. There is nothing wrong with that, but God does not exist only to fulfill our wishes. Even if our wishes don’t come true, God is God and He is trustworthy. If we forget that, we will only use God to our advantage, and that is not faith. God will tell right away whether we are genuinely happy about Him or whether we are only pretending to be happy about Him in order to get a reward from Him.
However, even so, I think today’s passage teaches us that God will never abandon us. I would like to read all the remaining verses 46-54.
B. Faith is believing without seeing (46-54)
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 signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.” 49 The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50 “Go,” Jesus replied, “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, “Yesterday, at one in the afternoon, the fever left him.” 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 his whole household believed. 54 This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee.
1. Jesus asks us, “Do you believe without seeing?”
This part can be read as Jesus once rejecting the father’s request to heal his son’s illness, because “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe.” Certainly, Jesus may have been testing this father. “You just want me to heal your son, and you don’t trust me.” But after that, when his father did not give up and appealed, Jesus said, “Go. Your son will live.” This is a little out of line with what this father wanted, because while he had asked Jesus to come with him to his home and heal his son, Jesus only have him the word, “Your son will live.” I think this means that Jesus was asking him, “Do you believe my words? Do you believe without seeing?”
I think this is also a question We are asked by Jesus. It’s about trusting Jesus in situations where we are asking Him for help, but nothing changes.
2. Jesus never ignores us when we ask for help
However, at the same time, our trust in Jesus is something that increases by accumulating experiences that Jesus really helped us. Furthermore, it is only natural to doubt Jesus or lose faith in Jesus in difficult situations, and it can be said that it is precisely in such disbelief that trust is strengthened. Therefore, trust and doubt in Jesus always live together in our hearts, and Jesus knows it. Jesus is pleased with our desire to believe Him even though we still doubt Him, and He will hear our prayers.
In verse 49, this father says to Jesus, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” In the original language, the word “child” used here is more informal than the word “son” used before and after it, and is a term of fatherly affection. Instead of politely saying, “Can you heal my son from his illness?”, I think he put his desperateness and said, “If you don’t heal him, that child of mine will die! So please come down with me.” But can we say that this father really trusted Jesus? Rather, perhaps we should consider that he was only seeking the supernatural healing power of Jesus. Yet Jesus did not ignore him and answered his cry.
Jesus never ignores someone’s cry for help, even if that person doesn’t completely trust Him. Whether we believe in Jesus or not, Jesus has mercy on us and loves us.
3. Even if our wishes don’t come true, Jesus’ love for us remains the same
Today’s passage concludes with the father’s wish being fulfilled and the son’s illness being cured according to Jesus’ words, and the whole family came to believe in Jesus because of this. Miracles like this still happen today. God can work miracles to heal even illnesses that are considered difficult to treat with modern medicine. And He brings joy not only to the healed person, but to all those who love that person. With that in mind, we can continue to pray for the healing of illnesses, both within this church, among our families and friends, for ourselves and loved ones.
But we must not forget that even if such a miracle does not happen, God’s love will never change. Whether the child healed in today’s story or the others healed by Jesus, everyone eventually died. Jesus’ supernatural healing of sickness is only part of the love that Jesus gives us.
The love of Jesus is the love that Jesus showed on the cross, which is a love that suffers for us and a love that suffers with us. Those who follow Jesus only for supernatural powers will be disillusioned when Jesus is arrested as a sinner and makes a miserable appearance on the cross. However, if we see there God Himself, who suffers in our place and with us, we can understand that Jesus on the miserable cross is our salvation. Jesus experienced the despair and fear of being abandoned by God instead of us, and gave us hope and joy to live with God forever. Therefore, even if we are not cured of our illness, even if we are forced to live in a situation that is beyond our control, we are never abandoned by God. Because Jesus on the cross is with us in such a situation.
Finally, I would like to conclude by reading part of chapter 11 of Hebrews. Hebrews 11:1 and 13.
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. (Hebrew 11:1)
All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. (Hebrew 11:13)
We are all given life by God, spend a limited amount of time in this world, and eventually return to God. Let’s not be captivated by the reality that we can see, but instead, let’s believe that God’s good plan, which is invisible to our eyes, guides us at all times.
(Prayer) Lord Jesus, please give strength and healing to the minds and bodies of our loved ones who are currently battling illness. Use medical care to cure their illness. We ask you to work miracles even if it is medically difficult. Please help them feel You by their sides during the painful treatment and fight against the disease. Please respond to what they have in their mind, anxiety about life, anxieties about the future, worries about their family, doubts in you, and others, please respond concretely one by one. And not just illness, but please speak to our hearts which have various problems. Guide each person in what to think, what to do, and what is expected of you. Dear our Lord Jesus, we pray this in Your name. Amen.
Summary
We often expect that God solve our problems in a supernatural way, and end up doubting Him just because nothing supernatural happens. However, faith is believing without seeing. It is to believe that God will surely guide us in the right direction, even if the situation in front of us does not change. God’s love for us remains the same, whether or not something supernatural happens, whether or not it turns out the way we wished it would.
For Discussion
1. Share your experience when God answered your prayer.
2. What should we do when God doesn’t answer our prayers and it’s hard?