John 4 (Part 4)

John 4:43-54 (Audio link of meeting)

Healing a son in Capernaum from Cana

• How do we understand the signs? Do they help us or hurt us?
• Interpreting correctly the intentions of the text Spiritual or Physical realities
• Stages of Belief (Surface, Rooted and fruit bearing)

John 4:43-46 

1-“Setting the Scene Geographically”

John 4:43, After two days he departed for Galilee. 

He departed from where? 

(Samaria the town of Sychar)

John 4:44, (A prophet has no honor in his own hometown)

Matt. 13:57, Matt. 13:53-58, 

Luke 4:24, Luke 4:16-30

John 4:45, Galileans welcomed Him because they had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. 

For they had gone to the feast. 

(Signs in Jerusalem) John 2:23, John 3:2, 

4 General Areas 

(Galilee, Samaria, Judea, Trans Jordon, Upper Bethany (John the Baptist baptizing) Lower Bethany (Rise Lazarus from the dead) (Area of travel to avoid Samaria)

John 4:46, Cana, where Jesus was and in Capernaum there was and officials son who was ill

(Two different graphical locations) 

John 4:47-49, 

2-“A Father’s plea for his son”

Jesus comments on how their belief was too dependent on physical signs. 

That they were missing the bigger picture of the spiritual signs or heavenly signs. 

They were fixating on the wrong things.

So consider these text, which should be interpreted as physical, literal and which ones should be considered rightly  as spiritual and heavenly?

• You must be born again? (John 3:3) 

• If you knew who was asking you for a drink you would ask Him for a drink? (John 4:10) 

• I have a food to eat that you do not know about? (John 4:32) 

• Did Jesus actually feed 5000 people from a boy’s lunch? (John 6:9-13) 

• Did Jesus actually walk on water? (John 6:19)

• Did Jesus actually want us to eat of His flesh and drink of His blood? (John 6:52-59) 

John 4:50-52  

3-“Go; your son will live” (Part 1)

(Surface Belief that produces questions)

The man believed the word the Jesus spoke to him and went on his way

• Jesus made a command

• The man quit pleading with Jesus because he believed

• He walked out that belief by leaving and return home, trusting the word of the Lord

John 4:53-54 

4-“Go your son will live” (Part 2)

(Rooted Belief that produces fruit)

The father knew that was the hour when Jesus has said to him, Your son will live. 

(He himself believed and all his household)

• The seed of  the father’s belief took root when he realized the Word of Jesus was able to produce the life it confessed

• The fruit of the father’s rooted belief produced fruit within His household. (Those who knew him were changed by the harvest they seen produced in him by belief in Christ)

-Like with the Samaritan woman this interaction with Jesus affected the person so much that the change in his perspective effected others. 

It says all his household believed because of his belief. 

In the John 4:39 text, it says many Samaritan’s from that town believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony

“Take Aways”

(Matt. 15:21-28)(Luke 7:1-10)(John 4:46-53)(John 11:43)  

• Jesus doesn’t have to physically be there to heal (John 4:51-52)(Luke 7:10) (Matt. 15:28)(John 11:14-15) 

• Jesus can seem rude to grieving parents (John 4:48)(Matt. 15:22-26)(John 11:20-27)  

• Him not being there can further one’s belief in Him (John 4:53)(Luke 7:6-10)John 11:39-40)

• At His word mighty things happen (John 4:50)(Luke 7:7)(John 11:43-44)

(Matt. 15:21, She was from the district of Tyre and Sidon, Matt. 11:21-22, This in relation to the importance of how we perceive the signs)

(The sign are important here, because the Jews request a sign for authenticity that a person is from God, they do not trust one who does not have a sign of verification of authority) John 2:18, they asked for a sign and He said you destroy this temple and I will raise it up again in 3 days. They considered 46 years to build and that would be impossible to do. )

1 Cor. 1:22-25, For Jews demand signs, Christ crucified is a stumbling block to the Jews, but to those who are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Geographical Locations

John 1:28, These things took place in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

John 1:43, The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, Follow me.

John 2:1, On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee

John 2:11, This is the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee

John 2:12, After this he went down to Capernaum with His mother and His brothers and His disciples and they stayed for a few days 

John 2:13, The Passover of the Jews was at hand and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 

John 2:23, Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs that he was doing. 

John 3:2, This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with Him.

John 3:22, After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judea countryside, (Rejoined with John and baptizing)

John 4:3-4, He left Judea and departed again for Galilee. And he pass through Samaria

John 4:43, After two days he departed for Galilee

John 4:46, So He came again to Cana in Galilee