[0:00] Thanks, Sam, and welcome and good to see you all this morning and look forward to chatting with you over something to eat and something to drink. And I do commend to you our gathering next Sunday. It'll be a great event as we all come together, so yeah, do plan to be there, and if you need lifts, we can organise all of that. Let's turn in our Bibles, please, to John's Gospel, chapter 4, and today we're going to look at two healings that take place in different places, different situations, but I think John has put these two healings side by side to teach us.
[1:16] We learn something different from each one. So we're going to pick up our reading from John, chapter 4, starting at verse 46.
[1:32] Once more, Jesus visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine, and there was a certain royal official whose son lay ill at Capernaum. 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.
[1:59] Unless you people see signs and wonders, Jesus told him, you will never believe. The royal official said, Sir, come down before my child dies.
[2:17] Go, Jesus replied. Your son will live. The man took Jesus at his word and departed.
[2:30] While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that the boy was still living. 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.
[2:45] Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, Your son will live.
[2:56] So he and his whole household believed. This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee.
[3:10] Sometime later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. Now there is in Jerusalem near the sheep gate, a pool which in Aramaic is called Bethsaida, and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades.
[3:27] Here a great number of disabled people used to lie, the blind and the lame and the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for 38 years.
[3:38] When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, Do you want to get well? Sir, the invalid replied, I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred.
[3:56] While I'm trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me. Then Jesus said to him, Get up, pick up your mat and walk.
[4:08] At once the man was cured. He picked up his mat and walked. The day in which this took place was the Sabbath.
[4:20] We're going to leave the reading there. Well, let's pray and ask for the Lord's help. Father, your word is true.
[4:35] Amen. And it does what it says. And so we pray that you would speak into our lives today and bring a healing about in each one of us.
[4:51] A healing that will last for all eternity. Amen. A friend and colleague I was chatting to recently shared with me about their son, William.
[5:13] Every day, he says, has to be planned. There's no spontaneity. Wherever they go, they must gently carry him or push him in his wheelchair.
[5:27] Despite coping quite well, they know tougher days lie ahead. The rare syndrome he carries is progressive. Consultants have been clear.
[5:41] There is no cure. Mum and dad long for their son's healing. Well, all of us long for healing, don't we?
[5:54] A bad dose of flu or a twisted ankle, we can put up with that. But a life-threatening, debilitating illness?
[6:06] Well, we long that that will end. As loved ones suffer, as perhaps you may be suffering today, we desperately long for healing.
[6:21] Which brings us to our text this morning, where we meet two men who were longing for healing. And as we follow their encounter with Jesus, we're going to learn a number of things.
[6:37] That Jesus has power to heal. That Jesus has a purpose in healing. And Jesus promises a greater healing.
[6:49] So a power of Jesus, his purpose, and a promise. So first, let's look at this together. Jesus has the power to heal.
[7:03] First, we were introduced in chapter 4, verse 46, a royal official, a man of some standing and wealth and influence, but his son is about to die.
[7:19] Then we were introduced in chapter 5 and verse 5, to a disabled man who's weak and poor. He can't walk.
[7:30] But an encounter with Jesus changes all of that. Jesus heals both of them. The official son lives, and the poor paralytic walks.
[7:48] It's an amazing display of extraordinary power. But did you notice how they were each healed? They were both healed by the power of Jesus's word.
[8:04] Follow with me, chapter 4, verse 50. The man had come and brought his desire to Jesus, and Jesus says, verse 50, go, Jesus replied, your son will live.
[8:22] And then in chapter 5 and verse 8, Jesus said to the paralytic, get up, pick up your mat and walk. And at once, the man was cured.
[8:36] Jesus simply spoke words, and there was an immediate effect. They were instantly healed. Their suffering completely reversed.
[8:51] Here was a boy on death's door with a fever that nothing and no one could cure, and yet by the word of Jesus, even from a distance, death was overcome by life.
[9:06] And this paralysed man, who had no use of his legs for 38 years, just bone, wrapped in skin.
[9:18] But yet at the very word of Jesus, he just gets up and walks. Tendons and muscles all developed and working.
[9:31] Jesus' word is powerful. It can change and transform lives in an instance. Jesus can. And he does heal.
[9:48] So does that mean that Jesus is going to heal my loved one today? Maybe you're here today and you're suffering with an illness.
[10:00] Maybe no one knows about it. And it's a struggle. And you're wondering, will Jesus heal me?
[10:15] Well, Jesus does have the power to heal. Which brings us to number two. Jesus has a purpose for healing.
[10:26] You see, Jesus can heal. But these accounts that are written in John's Gospel are not promises or guarantees to us that he is going to heal me or you right now, today, or while we live in this life.
[10:46] The purpose of these healings, you can read this on the screen, the purpose of these healings is not a guaranteed healing for us.
[10:58] Rather, they are signs to who Jesus is and of a greater healing to come. We need to understand that. I'm going to read it again. The purpose of these healings is not to guarantee healing for us.
[11:15] Rather, they are signs to who Jesus is and of a greater healing to come. Look how the text opened. Go back to chapter 4, verse 46.
[11:31] Once more, it says, Jesus visited Cana in Galilee. Do you remember that was the occasion where he was at the wedding where he turned the water into wine.
[11:45] Extraordinary, all these great big pots filled with water and just again at a word, they turned into wine. And remember how John recorded that event, what he said about it.
[11:59] Go back to chapter 2, verse 11. Chapter 2, verse 11. This is the turning the water into wine and it says, verse 11, what Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory and his disciples believed in him.
[12:30] Now look at how John records the healing of the official son. Chapter 4, verse 54. verse 54.
[12:46] This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee. You see, the expectation is that as we read through this gospel, we're going to come across other signs that Jesus did.
[13:04] So while they're not numbered, as we read along, the third sign would be the healing of the paralytic. You see, John doesn't call them healings of miracles, though they are miraculous.
[13:18] He refers to them as signs. The healings are a signpost pointing beyond themselves to something else. And we're to look at these signs and follow them to Jesus.
[13:33] You see, when Jesus performed these healings, he wasn't saying, I'm going to heal every one of you of every sickness, I mean, did you notice that at the pool, there were loads of people who were disabled, but yet he just healed one.
[13:52] No, Jesus is saying, I have healed this dying boy and this disabled man so that you might know me.
[14:03] So let's have a look at this first healing a little bit more in detail. And we're going to see that it's going to teach us three things. First, it teaches us that Jesus is God.
[14:17] We could imagine the father's desperation as he comes to Jesus, verse 47, chapter 4. When the man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him, come, heal my son.
[14:35] He's about to die. And look at Jesus' response. It almost seems cold and uncaring. He turns and says, verse 48, unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe.
[14:57] You see, people had heard what Jesus had done at the wedding of Cana and they're all following him to see what he's going to do next. It's as if Jesus has gained some kind of celebrity status.
[15:09] Come on, Jesus, do your stuff. Do one of your signs again. But Jesus is rebuking the crowd.
[15:22] Unless you see signs, you will never believe. Now, maybe that's how you think about Jesus. All you want is the spectacular, the miracles, the wonders, the exciting stuff.
[15:40] You're chasing the miracle worker, wanting Jesus to do the extraordinary. Well, it's not about me and it's not what I want.
[15:54] It's about Jesus and who he says he is. Instead, we are to look to where the signs are pointing. These signs reveal and authenticate who Jesus is.
[16:06] It tells us his true identity, that he is the God man come in human form and can do what only God can do. These signs, says Jesus, are so that you might believe who I am.
[16:21] I am no ordinary person. I am the eternal God. So first, it teaches us that Jesus is God.
[16:35] Second, that we should accept Jesus' word. The royal official appears to be very different from the crowd. This desperate father, well, he isn't looking for any old sign.
[16:49] He had heard what Jesus had done, word had been spread, and he had followed the sign to Jesus and he knows that Jesus has the power to heal.
[17:00] Verse 49, the royal official said, Sir, come down before my child dies. But Jesus isn't going to go with him.
[17:13] Instead, verse 50, Jesus replied, Go, your son will live. The man took Jesus at his word and departed.
[17:28] You see, he accepted Jesus' word. What Jesus said was enough. It was sufficient. If Jesus said his son was going to live, he knew that his son would live.
[17:41] You see, the word of Jesus is powerful, and when accepted and believed, it has an immediate effect in someone's life. It can change and transform. It can overcome death with life.
[17:57] No, don't go running after signs and wonders. Don't be the miracle chaser. Instead, verse 50, Jesus is saying, take me at my word.
[18:13] Listen to what I have to say about who I am and what I have come to do for you. Accept my word.
[18:28] Well, we see that Jesus is God. We're to accept his word. And we are to believe in Jesus. You see, with Jesus' words ringing in his ears, the father makes his way to Capernaum, where his son was.
[18:45] It was a distance of about 15 or so miles. Let's pick it up in verse 51. While the father was still on the way, his servant met him with the news that the boy was living.
[18:59] What joy must have greeted the father. 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.
[19:14] the father realized, he did his calculations, and, well, that was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, your son will live.
[19:30] So he and his whole household believed. The father had accepted Jesus' word, but that has been built upon because now he has become to believe in Jesus.
[19:45] His belief is much more than, well, I believe it was Jesus who healed my son. That was blatantly obvious. Rather, it's a belief that now says, I trust you, Jesus, in who you say you are.
[20:01] You are God, and I'm dependent on you for life now and for life to come. Jesus is saying, believe in me.
[20:12] place your confidence in me. So, each one of us, do you believe in Jesus?
[20:25] Have you entrusted your life into his hands and into his care? Well, perhaps you're thinking, well, if I had a son who was dying and he was miraculously healed, well, then of course I would believe.
[20:44] If Jesus came and healed me right now, of course I would believe. I would do anything and follow him completely. Well, the signs Jesus has done are evidence enough that each one of us here in this room can believe.
[21:04] Do you remember the purpose of John's gospel? Jump forward to John chapter 20. John chapter 20 and verse 30.
[21:22] This is a summary statement of the whole gospel and the purpose. John 20 verse 30. John 20 Jesus performed many other signs, so he did a whole lot more in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.
[21:48] But these are written. The one about the official son and the paralytic who got up and walked, these were written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
[22:13] Let's go back to chapter 4 and 5. You see, Jesus can and does heal sometimes, but these signs are recorded.
[22:28] They have been written down for us today not to guarantee healing for us, rather that we might believe in Jesus and have eternal life.
[22:40] You see, what Jesus is offering us here is a healing that is better and greater than any physical healing. In fact, it's a healing that is guaranteed on acceptance of Jesus' word.
[22:59] healing. So, Jesus promises a greater and better healing. Let's turn to the second healing sign and see what that teaches us.
[23:15] Jesus is travelling back to Jerusalem. There's some time has gone. We'll pick it up in verse 2, chapter 5, verse 2. Now, there is in Jerusalem near the sheep gate, I presume it was called the sheep gate because that's where the sheep went, and there was a pool there, which in Aramaic is called Bethsaida, and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades.
[23:41] Here, a great number of disabled people used to lie, the blind, the lame, and the paralysed. It seems that people thought that the water had some kind of special healing powers, so all the disabled people waited there longing that the water would stir, that something would happen, and if you got into the water first, you were healed.
[24:08] And then Jesus comes along. But unlike the royal official who asks Jesus for healing, in this instance, Jesus takes the initiative and asks the man.
[24:26] Do you see that at the end of verse six? Do you want to get well? Well, instead of responding with a big huge yes, he just explains why he's not healed.
[24:41] Verse seven, sir, the invalid replied, I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred, while I'm trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.
[24:55] Well, Jesus just graciously intervenes and decides to heal him anyway. He never asked for it, it's just something that Jesus wonderfully does for him.
[25:06] Verse eight, then Jesus said to him, get up, pick up your mat and walk. and at once the man was cured. He picked up his mat and walked.
[25:20] Oh, thank you, Jesus. Thank you so much. I'm glad what you've done for me. How did you do it? Is there any, what can I do?
[25:35] No, he just takes off, doesn't he? As quick as his legs can carry him. No thank yous, no asking or inquiring, who are you?
[25:45] He's gone. But Jesus isn't finished with him. You see, this healing sign is there to teach us.
[26:00] Let's look at these two things that we can learn. First, there is an eternal suffering, that is far worse than any physical suffering.
[26:14] Look at verse 14. Chapter 5, verse 14. Later, Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, see you are well again.
[26:28] Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you. Now, I don't think Jesus is saying, look, the reason why you're unable to walk was because of some particular sin.
[26:41] Now, I think he's making a more general and serious point. Jesus is saying, unless you believe in me, unless I come and heal you internally, you will suffer eternally.
[26:57] Unless you come to me for the forgiveness of your sins, you will face an eternity separated from God and all that is good. Remember what Jesus has been teaching along the way.
[27:12] Have a look back to chapter 3, verse 36. Chapter 3, verse 36. Jesus says, whoever believes in the Son, that's Jesus, has eternal life.
[27:37] But whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on them.
[27:47] you see, this man was only wanting a Jesus who could make his life better. A Jesus who will heal me when I'm sick, whenever there's anything wrong.
[27:59] Jesus, heal me. A Jesus who will kind of respond when we want a better job or we want something to work out in our life. Jesus, change this, do that.
[28:11] A Jesus who will make my children successful. But he doesn't want Jesus for Jesus' sake. I wonder if that's how we think of Jesus.
[28:27] Is that how I treat Jesus? That I'm willing to take all of his gifts, but I don't really want the giver.
[28:41] Now, this is serious. Reject Jesus now. And a day will come when Jesus will reject you. An eternity of being separated from Jesus forever.
[28:57] And that will be a living death with no possibility of change. It will be, as the Bible says, hell. You see, there is something more important than our physical healing.
[29:14] And it's the healing of our sinful broken hearts. But Jesus teaches us that there is also an eternal healing.
[29:32] An eternal healing that is far greater and better than you could ever imagine or ask for. Did you notice when this physical healing took place?
[29:45] Look at verse 9. At once the man got up and was picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath.
[29:58] No, Jesus doesn't just do things just for the sake of it. There's always intention. You see, Sabbath simply means rest.
[30:08] And it was a reminder of God's creation rest. Listen to what it says. Just listen to me.
[30:20] This comes from Genesis chapter 2 verse 2. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing. And so on the seventh day he rested from all his work.
[30:34] Literally, he entered into a Sabbath. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
[30:49] At the beginning of creation, God rested. Creation was done. It was finished. It was complete. The world and the universe was just as God intended.
[31:00] humanity living in harmony with God and with one another. Oh, what a world that was so beautiful and so good.
[31:13] And you know what? There was no death and there was no disability and there was no suffering and there was no sickness.
[31:25] but the accounts that we read in John about the official son and the paralyzed man remind us that the world is not like it.
[31:41] There's brokenness. There's sadness all around us because of our own sin, because of the sin of others that has come upon us, because of the rebellion against Christ.
[31:55] our world and our lives are under a curse. And Jesus comes, the God man.
[32:07] He walks onto this planet and he begins to heal. A sign of who he is and what he has come to do. And by healing on the Sabbath, Jesus is saying, I am the one who has come to bring a truer and better and greater Sabbath rest.
[32:27] Because I've come to make all things new. I've come to restore your disordered lives and renew this suffering of this broken world.
[32:41] And Jesus proved it all by the greatest sign of all, by his death on the cross for our sins and his resurrection from the grave to give life.
[32:52] come to me, says Jesus. Can you accept my word? Believe in me and you can have new and eternal life today.
[33:10] At the word of Jesus, all your sins can be forgiven immediately. It will be a complete reversal of your life.
[33:20] it will be like moving from death into life. And you will receive the promise of a guaranteed and better healing, eternal life with Jesus in his kingdom.
[33:40] William, who I mentioned at the beginning, believes in Jesus. His dad writes, William knows the joy of God working for him.
[33:57] when he broke his leg last year. He was really struck by the fact that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that is to come.
[34:10] He knows his ultimate future is brilliant because Jesus died for him, has taken his sin, and he knows God loves him.
[34:24] I don't know your life, your sickness, your suffering, but accept Jesus' word.
[34:42] Believe what he says. I have come to give you a better rest, a rest that will last for all eternity. And one day the risen Jesus is going to come, and he will speak his word, and he will say to you, get up, welcome into my eternal kingdom.
[35:07] Welcome. Let's pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[35:19] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.
[35:29] Amen. Amen. Amen. Lord, we hear many, many words. Many people will say to us many things.
[35:47] But your word, your word is hope. Your word is eternal. Your word is true.
[35:59] Help us to accept your word and to believe your promise and know life today and life for all eternity. Thank you, Jesus, that you have come to give us life.
[36:19] We praise you and we thank you. Amen. Well, we're going to sing together I hope a song that will help us to express our thanks, our faith, our hope and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.
[36:48] Let's