John 4:46-49
46 Then He went again to Cana of Galilee, where He had turned the water into wine. There was a certain royal official whose son was ill at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and pleaded with Him to come down and heal his son, for he was about to die. 48 Jesus told him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.” 49 ”Sir,” the official said to Him, “come down before my boy dies!”
March 15, 2007 at 6:19 pm
Jesus was telling him unless u c the mericle u will not believe and he still says jesus come.. throughout the story jesus came and healed the boy,
March 15, 2007 at 9:13 pm
Some people like to use this story to say that the Bible is inconsistent and therefore not true because in one of the other Gospels it says that it was a servant or slave that was ill. Here is what is neat about learning cultural context…. In that culture it was very common for slave to become like a family member because they chose to be a slave. It is what Paul is reffering to when he says he’s a bond servant of Christ. He chooses to be a slave to Christ. Anyway, these servants/slaves become like family another common situation is for the children of slaves can often be raised right along side of the owner’s own childeren. In either case it would be appropriate to call the boy a slave or his son. The Bible is not inconsistent. Cool huh?!
March 15, 2007 at 9:32 pm
Has anyone seen the movie Fools Rush In? Okay….the chick in the movie tells the man there are signs every where. God gives us signs all the time reassuring us that He is there, we are not alone, He is the creator. Sometimes we refuse to see the signs but that does not discount the fact that they are not there. The sun, the moon, the wind, the stars, the people we meet, the words of our Pastor, the wisdom God sends in our prayers in our worship.
March 15, 2007 at 10:18 pm
I like Ron’s comment about John 20:29-Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” I mean we’ve all heard the stories and the miracles that Christ did. If we had just heard of Him down the street doing these strange things, would we feel the same? Would we have the faith of this man, who having heard Jesus’s reputation, kind of lays his credibility and coolness on the line to grasp at the hope that Jesus could save someone he cared about. However, we know through all the many stories in the Bible that Jesus is capable of anything, and still we do not bring Jesus to our hurting, dying friends. I think that the biggest thing I got from this scripture is not to bring our friends to Jesus, but that it can be more effective to bring Jesus to our friends.
March 15, 2007 at 11:47 pm
throughout the Bible Jesus used signs and wonders and these gifts were deposited into His believers…Signs and Wonders are an authentic part of proclaiming God’s kingdom, however our faith and relationship with Christ should not be centered around these signs and wonders…Christ is not like a quarter machine you see in the mall, at grocery stores or at restaurants where you put your quarter in and see what special prize you get, a bouncy ball, a tattoo, a piece of candy, etc…
We need to believe in Jesus Christ for who He is, not what he can do for us…Its time we go after the giver not the gift, the healer not the healing, the forgiver not the forgiveness!!!!!!!!
March 15, 2007 at 11:53 pm
I wonder if this verse is more involved than it appears on the surface. Remember that this is the city where Jesus turned the water into wine. Since that was a large, important wedding, isn’t it possible that this important oficial in this verse was at the wedding? Could it be that Jesus is saying to him, “You never believed when you heard the prophets or read the word, but now when you see the wine turned to water you believe that I can heal your son”? If so, than what the man says in the next verse is so much more important. He is saying, despite my unbelief, despite that fact that it took me a miracle for me to believe, if you don’t come to my son, he will die. This absolute and utter dependence on Christ was what healed the boy.