Word to the Wise
Monday, March 23, 2020 - 4th Week of Lent - Mon
[Isa 65:17-21 and John 4:43-54]Jesus said to him [royal official], "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe." The royal official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies." Jesus said to him, "You may go; your son will live." The man believed what Jesus said to him and left. [John]
The father in this scene has a sick son and is afraid of losing his child. Anyone in my Beloved Congregation who has ever had a seriously sick child can identify with this parent. He will do whatever it takes to heal his son. However, he test in this encounter is not about whether or not Jesus can heal the child but whether or not the father will believe in Jesus' word. Since the normal expectation is for the healer to come to the bedside, it took considerable trust to do what Jesus said and head for home. He learns on the way that his son will live. His trust in the healer becomes belief in Jesus and then his whole household comes to belief.
This is not the only time in Jesus' ministry that he challenges the necessity for the miraculous before there will be any trust, let alone belief. This kind of belief is only as good as the most recent miracle and needs "signs and wonders" to survive. When the father puts his trust in Jesus' word without any "sign or wonder" to see, he is rewarded. He does not make a miracle as the price of his faith.
Lent can be a period of testing. Jesus' own test in the desert began this Lent for us on the first Sunday. Indeed, it was the devil himself who was demanding miracles! Can we believe in Jesus on his own terms and not according to our demand for miraculous credentials? Great things can happen when we do! AMEN