What Is True Faith?
John 4:43-54,
43 After the two days he departed for Galilee. 44 (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honor in his own hometown.) 45 So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.
46 So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. 48 So Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” 49 The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50 Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. 51 As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering. 52 So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” 53 The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” And he himself believed, and all his household. 54 This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.
To get started this morning I want to tell you the first thing I told our middle school baseball team this past week: it’s that the most important thing in your life is your faith in Jesus Christ.
Now there’s a lot of important things in life — there’s big things, critical things — but the most important thing is your continued, abiding, daily faith in Jesus, and that’s what I want to talk about this morning, because that’s the main theme in our passage.
We’ve already said (and we’re gonna keep saying) that John’s purpose in this Gospel is that we believe in Jesus. John cares a lot about our faith and the nature of true faith — and that comes through in this story, verses 43–54.
So for today’s sermon, we’re gonna look at these verses and I want to show you three aspects about the nature of true faith. And these are aspects that, as we look at them, we should evaluate our own faith in their light.
Here’s the first:
1. True faith goes deeper than gawking at signs and wonders.
This is the broader message coming through in this whole section and I know it’s gonna make sense to you, but I need you to track with me, okay? There’s a lot of details here, so get ready. We’re gonna start by looking at verse 43.
“After the two days he [Jesus] left for Galilee.”
Now where did he leave from? Where has Jesus been (that we’ve seen) over the last couple of Sundays? Samaria.
So Jesus has now left Samaria to go to Galilee, which means we need to do a little geography check-in for a minute. In ancient Israel there were three regions stacked on top of one another: Galilee in the north, then Samaria, then Judea. Let’s try to follow where Jesus has been: Remember Chapter 2 starts and Jesus is in Galilee, at the wedding at Cana; then, in 2:13, he goes to Jerusalem to go to the temple, which is in Judea (south); then in Chapter 4, verse 3, “[Jesus] left Judea and departed again for Galilee” (going north, and what’s in the middle of Judea and Galilee? Samaria) …
So Chapter 4, verse 4: “[Jesus] had to pass through Samaria” (that’s what we’ve seen in Chapter 4) — Jesus spent two days in Samaria, but now he’s back on the road to Galilee.
And Galilee is where he’s from. Nazareth is in Galilee, and Jesus grew up in Nazareth, but notice what John includes for us in verse 44. This is a little note in the text just for us, verse 44. Everybody look at verse 44:
“Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.”
That phrase “own country” is literally the word “fatherland” — it’s another way to say “hometown,” and in this case, it’s not talking about Galilee specifically, but it’s talking about the land of Jewish people — which includes both Galilee and Judea. Basically, this means not Samaria. The land of the Samaritans is not Jesus’s “own country” — but the land of Jewish people is. That’s the point.
And so we’re set up here to see a contrast between the way Jesus is treated by his own people in his own country and the way he was just received in Samaria (not his country). And verse 44 would suggest that the difference is going to be a negative response in Galilee. “No honor,” verse 44 says.
Why the Welcome?
Now look at verse 45. It’s just the next verse. You’re right there. Verse 45:
“So [or therefore] when he came to Galilee [his own country], the Galileans welcomed him …”
Now wait a minute! Verse 44 just said no honor in his own country. Verse 45 says his own country welcomed him. How does that make sense?
Well, it has to do with why they welcomed him. We gotta keep reading, verse 45:
“the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.”
Which means they had seen Jesus bring the mayhem. Remember that in Chapter 2? They saw him pushing over tables and cracking a whip — it was a scene! He turned some heads. He got their attention. They wanna see more of that!
Now, skip down to verse 48. In verse 48, Jesus is speaking to this official who’s son was sick — we’re about to get there — but first I want you to see this part.
Jesus is talking to this official, but when he says “you” in verse 48, it’s plural. Jesus is actually talking about the Galileans overall. He’s speaking to the official in verse 48, but he’s saying: “Unless y’all [unless all you Galileans, Jewish people, my people] — Unless y’all see signs and wonders y’all will not believe.” That’s their problem. Now how is that different from Samaria?
Samaria Was Different
Remember there’s supposed to be a contrast between Jesus’s own country and where he’s just been in Samaria. So then, what was it like in Samaria? Fruitful! People believed!
It started with the Samaritan woman who believed in Jesus and then by verse 41 a whole crowd of Samaritans believed in Jesus, but the details here are really important. We gotta pay attention to this. I want you to see this in verse 41. Look back up, Chapter 4, verse 41:
“And many more [Samaritans] believed [in Jesus] because of his word.”
So they believed in Jesus because of his what? Word.
That’s the contrast. Jesus’s own country, his own people, they just wanna see a spectacle. They wanna light show. Give me that head-turnin’ buzz-worthy drama! Their faith is as true as a roller-coaster ride is eternal.
But the Samaritans … there was nothing flashy there at all. It started with a conversation at a well at noon. Yet the Samaritans believed Jesus because of his word.
And we’re supposed to see here: that is true faith!
It goes much deeper than gawking at signs and wonders Jesus can do, but it’s about Jesus himself. Because what he gives us in his word is himself.
Look, I don’t know what all of you think faith in Jesus is, but it might be much simpler and deeper than you imagined — most basically, faith in Jesus is taking Jesus at his word. What he says is … because of who he is. So what you do with his word is what you do with him.
Here’s the second aspect we see about true faith …
2. True faith often emerges among real-life needs.
Now we’re gonna talk about this official in verse 46. Jesus is back in Cana, in Galilee, and verse 46 says,
46 … And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked [or begged] him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death.
We don’t know too much about this official — just they that he was a royal official (that’s what that word means — most likely he worked under Herod); so we know that, and we know he was a man; and we know he was a father who lived in Capernaum where his son was sick.
Capernaum was around 25 miles east of Cana, by the Sea of Galilee, and so this official’s travel from Capernaum to Cana would not have been easy. It would have been 25 miles uphill. And that helps us understand more his request. It was not a mere “Hey, Jesus, if you got a minute, would you consider helping me?”
That word translated “ask” in verse 47 has already been used twice in John Chapter 4. First, in verse 31, when the disciples urged Jesus to eat, that word for “urge” is the same word translated “ask” here in verse 47. It shows up again in verse 40, when the Samaritans “asked” Jesus to stay with them for a couple more days. They really wanted Jesus to stay.
So this word means an earnest petition. Like begging. Which means we should imagine this official, wearied from his journey, finally seeing Jesus, and he pleads with him to heal his son who is on his deathbed.
And what does Jesus do?
He takes this moment as an opportunity to address the problem of shallow faith. This official is desperate, and it’s almost like Jesus looks over him, for the sake of everyone else, all of Galilee, and he says, “Y’all are all about the signs and wonders, and that’s not truth faith.”
The Locked-In Dad
It’s like Jesus starts going all “rabbi” on this guy (and whoever else is listening) — Jesus is teaching about the nature of true faith. This is important! Listen up!
And notice how this guy replies in verse 49. He’s ‘super intrigued’ by what Jesus says! He’s been ‘waiting his whole life for this theological conversation’ — is that what we see? No.
Jesus says what he says about faith, and the man says back to him:
“Sir, come down before my child dies.”
This official is locked in on one thing. His child is sick. And the word for “child” in verse 49 is different from the word “son” used in verse 47. A son can be any age — every man in this room is a son — but that word “child” means little child. It’s an affectionate term.
So here’s what’s going on: This man comes to Jesus because he wants his son to be healed; Jesus teaches about true faith; the man replies: Sir, if you don’t come now my little child will die.
And that is a clue for us that this official is not really after signs and wonders. He’s not looking for a show. He’s not motivated by the thrill of entertainment. He just loves his little boy, that’s all.
That Desperate Energy
I think all the parents in here could put ourselves in this official’s shoes. We get this — we love our children, don’t we?
But as I worked on this passage, I thought especially about parents whose children have been terribly sick. And there are more than a few parents in our church who have been there. We pray often for them. And I thought of Logan and Stacy Brennecke.
The Brenneckes have five children, and they’ve experienced suffering as parents. In 2014 they lost their daughter at six days old, and today their youngest son, Theo, who is three, has been on our prayer list his whole life so far. He was born with some complications — He’s had four surgeries, including a kidney transplant. He’s had countless procedures, worked with 12 different specialists, and in the last two years he’s been in the hospital about 100 days.
And praise God, today he’s doing well! But I was able to connect with Logan and Stacy this week because I wanted just to hear more about their experience in light of this passage.
In hearing from them, Stacy talked about one of the hardest parts in their experience is being told there’s nothing you can do to make your child well. She called the feeling a “desperate energy.” She’s been there more than once, but about one experience, Stacy said,
I felt claustrophobic — I was stuck in a tight space, unable to get out but frantically trying to. I would’ve done anything, gone anywhere, acted the fool in front of anybody, if it would just help my child.
See, that’s where this official was in this story. He was at home, in Capernaum, a father by his little son’s bedside, stuck with that desperate energy. And then someone told him, “Sir, Jesus of Nazareth has come back.”
In verse 47 of this story we don’t know anything about this official’s faith, just that he heard Jesus was back — this Jesus who was different, this Jesus who had caused that scene in Jerusalem, who claimed to be the Messiah.
For this father, it’s only hearsay, but what if there’s a chance?! So he goes. He goes to Jesus. He meets Jesus. He pleads with Jesus, and in verse 50 Jesus replies:
“Go; your son will live.”
And what does it say at the end of verse 50? You gotta see this.
Verse 50, after Jesus says “Your son will live,” we read: “The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way.”
So for this Galilean, he has faith like the Samaritans did. Because he believed Jesus’s word.
Where We Live
And we might think, wait a minute. He didn’t come to Jesus because he wanted Jesus, he came to Jesus because he wanted his son to live.
And that’s right, but, the initial reason why he came to Jesus should not make us continue to question the sincerity of this man’s faith. The fact that he wanted his child to live just means he’s a real person. He lives where we do. He lives in real life, with real needs and longings and love for his children. Get this: true faith emerges from this, from real life.
Understand that a lot of times what comes first is not “standing amazed in the presence of Jesus the Nazarene,” but it’s falling desperate before him because you need help. Often it’s real-life stuff that leads us to Jesus. We know this in our stories.
For a lot of us, we were living our lives, doing our own thing, and then something went sideways. Living got hard. We were leveled by a need and we found ourselves in a mess, and somewhere in that mess we heard about Jesus — or we remembered Jesus — and we thought, “Maybe he can help.”
And guess what? He can.
See, a lot of us started by looking for answers over here, and we ended up finding Jesus, and that’s okay. This gets to something super important when it comes to faith: listen, it’s not how you start; it’s how you finish.
Which means two things:
One, if you’re here this morning and you’re currently in a mess, if you’re in a desperate situation and you’re not really seeking Jesus but you find yourselves here, I want you to know that’s not strange. That’s how it goes. You don’t have to have your life all figured out first. You don’t have to have your “theological Ps and Qs” in order. Most of the time, true faith emerges among real-life needs. You’re in real life, and then you meet Jesus, and then you take Jesus at his word.
And this is his word to you this morning — listen, this is the gospel word of Jesus to you — he says:
“Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
I love you. I died for you, if you come to me. I will forgive you all of your sins and I will make you a child of God.
Wherever it is you’re coming from this morning, right now you can take Jesus at his word.
Second, if you’ve trusted in Jesus in the past, which is a lot of us, the question today is, Do you trust him now? Believe him now. Keep taking him at his word!
And if at times it seems like your faith is failing, if your trust dwindles, you can pray what another desperate father once prayed, Mark 9:24,
“I believe; help my unbelief!”
And Jesus will.
True faith often emerges among real-life needs.
3. True faith rests in Jesus who is powerful and kind.
This man believed Jesus’s word and went on his way back to Capernaum, and on his way back his servants met him on the road. They had good news. They told him that his son was alive. He’s recovering. And the man asked them what time his son started to recover. (Which is fascinating. This is dramatic irony. As readers, we know why he’s asking this question, but his servants don’t know). They tell him, His fever broke yesterday at 1pm. And the father knew! That’s when Jesus said the words “Your son will live.”
So verse 53 says,
“And he himself believed, and all his household.”
So this man’s initial, simple faith is now followed by an abiding faith that spreads. His whole household believed. Like with the Samaritan woman, true faith gets shared.
Who Our Faith Rests In
But I want to end here by saying more about who our faith rests in. I want you to notice the power and kindness of Jesus in this passage.
First, his power. All he had to do was say the word. The very moment Jesus said “Your son will live,” 25 miles away the fever broke. Look, he who commands the wind and the waves also has power over sickness. Jesus has power over fevers and kidneys and MCLs and you name it. Jesus is powerful.
And also Jesus is kind. Notice a change that happens in this story. This official, who is a father, is not actually called a father until verse 53.
First, it’s formal. He’s an official from Capernaum. He’s a Galilean. Then he’s called a man. But by the end of the story, in verse 53, for the first time he’s called “the father.”
And I think this shows us the kindness of Jesus to meet all of us where we are.
We come to him in our need and he meets us as those who are needy. Which does not mean, listen, this does not mean he always gives us the healing we want. Sometimes he doesn’t give us the Yes we want in that moment, but, he always gives us himself. And he helps us.
Sometimes that means he just has to carry us. Be near to us. If he doesn’t make the pain go away, he will bring you through the pain. He’s kind. He’s kind. Jesus is kind.
And I can’t help but think that Jesus’s kindness to this father shows that Jesus must know something about a father’s love for his son. Jesus doesn’t know this because Jesus was a father — he wasn’t — but he was a son — he is a Son, the beloved Son of God the Father. And the Father’s love for Jesus is so glorious that Jesus wants us to know what it’s like (see John 17:24). That’s why he went to the cross.
And that’s what brings us to the Table.
The Table
At the cross, Jesus game himself for us to make us the children of God, and at this table we remember that. And we come here to rest in him. We come here to remember his death for us, and his word to us: We are loved. In him we are forgiven. We are children of God.
That’s why this Table is for Christians. This table is for everyone who has put their faith in Jesus. And if that’s not you yet, you can just pass the elements down the row, but don’t let the moment pass. As we’re hearing and singing this song, I invite you to believe in Jesus. Put your faith in him. And if you’d like, I’d love to talk to you more about that after the service.
Now, to those who trust in Jesus, let’s rest in him and give him thanks…
