WEBVTT 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:06.200 Well, good morning. My name's Archie, if that wasn't obvious. I'm the pastor in training here, 00:00:06.540 --> 00:00:12.439 and it's my privilege to be opening God's Word for us this morning. Do keep that passage open 00:00:12.439 --> 00:00:16.719 in front of you if you can. If you don't have it open in front of you, do get it open. 00:00:17.620 --> 00:00:23.100 I was watching the news earlier this week, and there was this guy on the news who had been there 00:00:23.100 --> 00:00:29.980 at the Manchester Arena terror attack. I don't know if you remember that happening. It was a 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:37.119 and his partner had died in the attack, and he himself had been badly injured, so badly that 00:00:37.119 --> 00:00:42.359 it was going to affect him for the rest of his life. And he was on the news to talk about his 00:00:42.359 --> 00:00:47.539 experience of that, and especially his experience of the help that he had received since that had 00:00:47.539 --> 00:00:54.920 happened. And as he reflected on that, he said something really revealing, because his experiences 00:00:54.920 --> 00:01:02.320 of that, of the help that he had received, had not been positive at all. As a result, 00:01:02.440 --> 00:01:06.879 and wanting to ensure that other people didn't face the same sorts of things that he had faced, 00:01:06.960 --> 00:01:12.020 he'd got involved in various charities, he'd been lobbying the government to try and get things 00:01:12.040 --> 00:01:18.099 changed from the top. But, and I guess this was why he was on the news, lots of people had made him 00:01:18.099 --> 00:01:24.699 all sorts of promises, promises of change, and nothing, as far as he could tell, seemed to have 00:01:24.699 --> 00:01:34.439 happened. And so here's what he said, I've given up believing in people's words. It's their actions 00:01:34.439 --> 00:01:41.659 that matter. I've given up believing in people's words. It's their actions that matter. Isn't that 00:01:41.659 --> 00:01:47.640 revealing? I have a huge amount of sympathy for this guy. Everything that he's been through, he's 00:01:47.640 --> 00:01:53.979 obviously been let down. And so isn't that just such a sad position that he's in, when you can no 00:01:53.979 --> 00:01:59.479 longer take someone at their word? It's a point of great respect, isn't it, to be able to take someone 00:01:59.479 --> 00:02:03.939 at their word. It says something about their character. But we are naturally skeptical, I think, 00:02:04.000 --> 00:02:08.939 aren't we? We probably think what he's saying is actually quite a sensible thing to say, because we 00:02:08.939 --> 00:02:14.919 don't like to take people at their word. We want to see evidence that they're trustworthy. We want to 00:02:14.919 --> 00:02:21.359 see their word in action. And I guess the bigger the promise, the more important that is. If you gave me 00:02:21.359 --> 00:02:25.819 your word that you were going to give me a pound, I'd probably take you at your word and believe you. 00:02:26.240 --> 00:02:29.319 But if you told me that you were going to give me a thousand pounds, I'd have a pretty hard time 00:02:29.319 --> 00:02:35.460 believing that that was going to happen. And in our passage this morning, Jesus makes an absolutely 00:02:35.460 --> 00:02:41.200 humongous promise. Come to chapter four with me. We're actually going to spend the next few minutes 00:02:41.200 --> 00:02:45.100 jumping around this section that we've been in for the last few months, from chapter two to chapter 00:02:45.100 --> 00:02:50.780 four. Some of the key verses will come on the screen, but it will be unusually helpful to have it. It's 00:02:50.780 --> 00:02:55.819 always helpful, but even more so just now to have it open in front of you. Even easier probably in a 00:02:55.819 --> 00:02:59.860 paper Bible. Nothing wrong with having it on your phone ordinarily, but I really think that you'll benefit 00:02:59.860 --> 00:03:05.740 from having it in paper and before you this morning. But to set the scene in chapter four, have a look at 00:03:05.740 --> 00:03:15.240 verse 43. In verse 43, Jesus has left Samaria, where we saw in verse 40 that he had been for two days, 00:03:15.340 --> 00:03:23.280 and he's come to Galilee. And see what happens at the end of verse 46. This guy comes to him, a royal 00:03:23.280 --> 00:03:29.800 official, and this guy's son is dying. He desperately wants Jesus to do something about it. And the promise 00:03:29.800 --> 00:03:39.319 that Jesus then makes is massive. It's there in verse 50, this massive promise, go, your son will live. 00:03:40.699 --> 00:03:46.139 He doesn't go with the man like the man has asked him to. He just makes this humongous promise. He says, 00:03:46.240 --> 00:03:53.259 I have power over death. Take my word for it. He will live. Do you see how the man responds in the 00:03:53.259 --> 00:04:01.780 rest of the verse? The man took Jesus at his word and departed. That is an incredible act of belief, 00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:09.500 isn't it? Just incredible belief. And we'll see it is precisely the sort of belief that Jesus is looking 00:04:09.500 --> 00:04:17.000 for. That we would take him at his word. And the promise couldn't be any bigger. The promise is that 00:04:17.000 --> 00:04:22.800 he is who he says he is. That he isn't just a miracle worker or a prophet, but that he is 00:04:22.800 --> 00:04:29.780 the son of God. That he is powerful over death. And that by believing in him, we might experience that 00:04:29.780 --> 00:04:35.600 power and live eternally with him. That's the sort of belief that Jesus is looking for. And friends, 00:04:35.740 --> 00:04:42.580 nothing is more important in life than this. There is no bigger promise. It might be very difficult to 00:04:42.580 --> 00:04:47.840 see just now, but when we die, nothing will have been more important than how we believed in Jesus in 00:04:47.839 --> 00:04:53.199 this life. It is the single most important thing, for it has eternal consequences. 00:04:54.799 --> 00:05:00.819 So as we tackle this passage together, we're going to begin by thinking about how the passage that 00:05:00.819 --> 00:05:07.699 Sabina's just read for us fits into the big picture of John's gospel. And this being our last week in John 00:05:07.699 --> 00:05:11.819 for a little while, we're also going to think about why we're pausing here at the end of chapter four, 00:05:11.879 --> 00:05:15.699 how this section that we've been in for the last few months actually fits together. 00:05:15.699 --> 00:05:21.539 And then once we've done that, we'll dive into this passage in particular and see how it all fits. 00:05:22.000 --> 00:05:26.819 Two questions that I'd like us to be asking just to keep bubbling away in the background as we do 00:05:26.819 --> 00:05:35.339 that. Firstly, do you believe that Jesus is who he says he is? Do you believe that his signs and the 00:05:35.339 --> 00:05:41.120 wonders that he does in John's gospel point to something bigger about him? That he came to die in 00:05:41.120 --> 00:05:46.860 your place so that you might be forgiven and that he rose again so that you might rise and live forever 00:05:46.860 --> 00:05:52.759 with him? Do you believe that that's true? And secondly, if you do believe that, what difference 00:05:52.759 --> 00:05:58.720 is that going to make to your life today? Just two questions to keep in the back of your head as we go 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:04.959 through these verses together. Let's begin with the big picture. We're in John's gospel. What is John's 00:06:04.959 --> 00:06:10.280 gospel? Well, John, he was a disciple of Jesus, a friend of Jesus, a follower of Jesus. He writes this 00:06:10.279 --> 00:06:17.219 firsthand account of Jesus's life. But why is John writing? Well, at the end of his book in chapter 20, 00:06:17.219 --> 00:06:20.419 you don't need to turn there. It's on the screen. This is his purpose statement. 00:06:21.599 --> 00:06:27.119 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book, 00:06:27.219 --> 00:06:34.739 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of God, and that by 00:06:34.740 --> 00:06:42.699 believing you may have life in his name. So John is writing a selective account. He's choosing specific 00:06:42.699 --> 00:06:49.379 signs or miracles so that his readers might believe that Jesus really is who he says he is. 00:06:49.900 --> 00:06:58.519 At its core, this book is all about signs and about belief. And there are six signs explicitly described 00:06:58.519 --> 00:07:04.639 by John in this book. They're sort of organized into pairs. We have two of them in the section that 00:07:04.639 --> 00:07:11.379 we've been in over the last few months. But they all, all six of them, really point to a seventh. 00:07:12.079 --> 00:07:17.000 The seventh sign is the thing that Jesus came to do. It's his death and resurrection. 00:07:18.219 --> 00:07:23.459 The seventh sign, we've seen elsewhere in this section that seven is a biblical number of completeness. 00:07:23.459 --> 00:07:29.239 It's completeness. It's the thing that all the other signs point to, because that's just what signs do. 00:07:30.799 --> 00:07:34.939 When I was a kid, we used to come to Edinburgh to visit my grandparents for Christmas, 00:07:35.560 --> 00:07:39.959 and my parents would hear the familiar, are we there yet, ring out from the back of the car from 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:44.459 me and my siblings. And the response was always the same from my parents. No matter how far we had 00:07:44.459 --> 00:07:50.599 traveled, they would always say, we've got an hour to go. That was the promise. And I never believed it, 00:07:50.600 --> 00:07:58.260 because I knew unless we'd seen the sign, the Edinburgh 50 miles sign, when I saw that sign, I knew 00:07:58.260 --> 00:08:06.580 that we had an hour to go. The sign, it pointed to the thing itself. And that's just what Jesus' 00:08:06.879 --> 00:08:12.800 signs in John's gospel do. He records six of them specifically to make the point that they point to a 00:08:12.800 --> 00:08:19.700 seventh sign. So this section that we've been in for the last few months, it begins and ends with sign 00:08:19.699 --> 00:08:25.519 one and sign two. The first sign, water into wine. If you come to chapter two with me, 00:08:26.300 --> 00:08:33.100 this is worth turning to the beginning of chapter two. It begins with this wedding, if you remember. 00:08:33.740 --> 00:08:42.259 Notice where the wedding is in chapter two, verse one. The wedding is at Cana in Galilee. Jesus turns 00:08:42.259 --> 00:08:48.159 water into wine. It's a picture of the eternal resurrection banquet, the thing that Jesus came to do. 00:08:48.159 --> 00:08:53.039 And notice how John describes it in verse 11. Chapter two, verse 11. 00:08:54.779 --> 00:09:01.600 This is the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory and his disciples believed in him. 00:09:02.139 --> 00:09:08.659 This section begins then with John describing this first sign and it ends in our passage this morning. 00:09:08.799 --> 00:09:15.120 If you turn back over to chapter four with me, like I say, much easier if you've got paper in front of you. 00:09:15.120 --> 00:09:22.179 In chapter four, where is the action taking place? Verse 43, we're back in Galilee. 00:09:23.679 --> 00:09:28.659 And then in verse 46, John explicitly tells us it's not just Galilee, 00:09:29.440 --> 00:09:33.779 but Cana in Galilee where Jesus had turned water into wine. 00:09:34.039 --> 00:09:38.879 And if that wasn't obvious enough to link these two signs, in verse 54, it's on the screen. 00:09:38.879 --> 00:09:45.240 This was the second sign Jesus performed after coming from Judea to Galilee. 00:09:45.379 --> 00:09:48.340 So this section is bookended by these two signs. 00:09:48.460 --> 00:09:54.700 They're a pair and they're designed to point to a seventh sign, Jesus's glory, which is his death and resurrection. 00:09:55.620 --> 00:10:01.360 And remember John chapter 20, his purpose, therefore, to lead to belief in Jesus, 00:10:01.559 --> 00:10:03.820 that he really is who he says he is. 00:10:03.820 --> 00:10:08.520 So that's sort of how signs are supposed to function in this gospel. 00:10:09.480 --> 00:10:12.379 But you might have noticed as we've gone through it over the last few months, 00:10:12.460 --> 00:10:14.940 that these aren't the only signs in this section. 00:10:15.860 --> 00:10:21.300 There are signs that John doesn't really explain or describe completely, not part of the six. 00:10:21.980 --> 00:10:23.720 So come back to chapter two with me. 00:10:23.720 --> 00:10:28.840 We get the sign in Cana, water into wine. 00:10:29.480 --> 00:10:32.379 And then in verse 13, Jesus heads to Jerusalem. 00:10:33.080 --> 00:10:37.600 And when he gets to Jerusalem, he finds money changers and merchants in the temple courts. 00:10:37.680 --> 00:10:39.379 He doesn't like what they're doing in the temple. 00:10:39.480 --> 00:10:40.700 And so he drives them out. 00:10:40.840 --> 00:10:43.800 But notice in verse 18, what the people want from him. 00:10:44.639 --> 00:10:46.120 Chapter two, verse 18. 00:10:47.320 --> 00:10:51.759 What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do this? 00:10:51.759 --> 00:10:55.620 They're looking for signs, for miracles, for wonders. 00:10:55.919 --> 00:11:00.220 And instead, in verse 19 and following, Jesus points them to what? 00:11:00.299 --> 00:11:02.159 His death and his resurrection. 00:11:02.759 --> 00:11:04.720 They want signs to believe in now. 00:11:05.200 --> 00:11:07.799 And he gives them a word to trust for the future. 00:11:09.000 --> 00:11:13.100 The people are desperate for Jesus to perform signs as a sort of proof, 00:11:13.500 --> 00:11:16.539 not because they would point to a perfect seventh sign, 00:11:16.659 --> 00:11:19.919 but because they want to believe in a miracle worker for today. 00:11:19.919 --> 00:11:24.000 It's as though we're on our way to an Edinburgh Christmas. 00:11:24.240 --> 00:11:28.539 We've reached the 50 mile sign and we stop and get the picnic blanket out. 00:11:29.199 --> 00:11:31.019 Granny and granddad's is great for Christmas, 00:11:31.019 --> 00:11:34.959 but we'll just stay here and have our Christmas dinner by this sign instead. 00:11:35.719 --> 00:11:36.419 It's ridiculous. 00:11:36.699 --> 00:11:37.899 It's a ridiculous idea. 00:11:38.259 --> 00:11:41.799 The whole purpose of a sign is that it would point to something greater. 00:11:41.799 --> 00:11:46.559 And that's precisely what the people are doing in this section then. 00:11:46.620 --> 00:11:48.439 It's the signs that they care about. 00:11:49.299 --> 00:11:52.939 I see again at the end of chapter 2 in verse 23, 00:11:53.859 --> 00:11:55.740 second half of verse 23, 00:11:56.120 --> 00:12:00.519 many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name, 00:12:00.620 --> 00:12:02.359 which looks pretty good, doesn't it? 00:12:02.620 --> 00:12:04.919 These people, they believe in Jesus' name. 00:12:04.919 --> 00:12:09.099 But then in verse 24, if you look at verse 24, 00:12:09.240 --> 00:12:12.699 Jesus would not entrust himself to them for he knew all people. 00:12:13.919 --> 00:12:18.599 There is in this section a sort of belief that isn't exactly what Jesus wants. 00:12:19.259 --> 00:12:19.699 Why? 00:12:20.179 --> 00:12:24.740 Well, because in chapter 2, verse 25, he knew what was in each person. 00:12:26.079 --> 00:12:26.779 In other words, 00:12:26.899 --> 00:12:30.639 Jesus knew that there was a problem deep in the heart of every human being, 00:12:30.639 --> 00:12:33.439 that though they might see signs and wonders, 00:12:34.340 --> 00:12:36.419 and whatever it might look like on the surface, 00:12:36.659 --> 00:12:37.659 their apparent belief, 00:12:38.600 --> 00:12:43.740 every human being desperately needs their hearts transformed. 00:12:44.740 --> 00:12:48.740 And the signs that he performed were not to transform people's hearts, 00:12:48.779 --> 00:12:52.159 but to point to the moment that he would make that transformation possible. 00:12:53.539 --> 00:12:57.460 But instead, the people just believed in him as a miracle worker sent from God. 00:12:57.460 --> 00:13:02.420 In chapter 3, Nicodemus, the Pharisee, 00:13:02.500 --> 00:13:04.920 seems to have believed in exactly that sort of way. 00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:07.400 See in chapter 3, at the end of verse 2, 00:13:07.540 --> 00:13:09.540 what does Nicodemus say to Jesus? 00:13:11.480 --> 00:13:15.160 No one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him. 00:13:16.160 --> 00:13:18.660 Nicodemus appears to be one of those who, in chapter 2, 00:13:18.740 --> 00:13:21.980 has seen Jesus' signs and he's believed in him in this way. 00:13:23.060 --> 00:13:27.420 But Jesus' response in verse 3 of chapter 3 is really interesting. 00:13:27.419 --> 00:13:27.839 Isn't it? 00:13:27.860 --> 00:13:29.339 In chapter 3, verse 3, he says, 00:13:29.419 --> 00:13:30.599 you need to be born again. 00:13:31.939 --> 00:13:35.519 You can see all the signs and wonders and believe in me in that way as much as you like, 00:13:35.579 --> 00:13:37.099 but what you need is to be transformed. 00:13:38.019 --> 00:13:39.559 And in the rest of chapter 3, 00:13:39.659 --> 00:13:43.079 Jesus explains how that is going to be made possible. 00:13:44.219 --> 00:13:47.639 Essentially, he explains the thing that all the signs point to. 00:13:48.199 --> 00:13:50.399 This is what makes the transformation possible. 00:13:50.519 --> 00:13:53.759 The seventh sign that the Son of Man must be lifted up. 00:13:53.759 --> 00:13:58.460 That Jesus must die so that those who believe in him might have eternal life. 00:13:58.539 --> 00:13:59.580 That is Jesus' promise. 00:13:59.720 --> 00:14:02.539 This is Jesus' word to Nicodemus. 00:14:03.539 --> 00:14:05.460 They want a sign for now. 00:14:06.480 --> 00:14:09.080 He gives them a word to trust for the future. 00:14:10.200 --> 00:14:12.259 We get the same sort of thing in chapter 4. 00:14:13.299 --> 00:14:18.399 Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman and she trusts Jesus because of his word to her. 00:14:18.399 --> 00:14:22.100 The promise of living water, of eternal satisfaction. 00:14:22.819 --> 00:14:24.959 And then she goes down into the town and she says, 00:14:25.039 --> 00:14:26.480 come and look and see this man. 00:14:26.559 --> 00:14:30.459 And all the people come and see what Jesus, what John says, 00:14:30.639 --> 00:14:33.819 what Jesus says, no, what John says in verse 41. 00:14:34.959 --> 00:14:39.259 And because of his words, Jesus' words, many more became believers. 00:14:40.139 --> 00:14:41.480 And into verse 42, 00:14:41.480 --> 00:14:54.759 Jesus has told them what he's come to do. 00:14:55.039 --> 00:14:56.899 To be the savior of the world. 00:14:57.019 --> 00:15:00.779 To die in their place and to pave the way to resurrection life. 00:15:01.100 --> 00:15:02.740 He's given them a word to trust. 00:15:02.840 --> 00:15:04.580 And here in chapter 4, they believe. 00:15:04.580 --> 00:15:10.020 And so as we reflect on that whole section that we've just raced through, 00:15:10.500 --> 00:15:12.980 this is a key question for us this morning, isn't it? 00:15:14.020 --> 00:15:16.180 Can we really take Jesus at his word today? 00:15:17.639 --> 00:15:20.360 The man in our passage, as we saw in verse 50, 00:15:21.000 --> 00:15:22.879 he takes Jesus at his word. 00:15:23.360 --> 00:15:24.420 Will we do the same? 00:15:25.740 --> 00:15:28.960 Not because of any signs and wonders that we might have seen. 00:15:29.580 --> 00:15:33.879 Not even because of any experiences or feelings that we might have had. 00:15:34.580 --> 00:15:36.700 But because of what it all points to. 00:15:37.600 --> 00:15:41.379 Jesus' promise to us of eternal life. 00:15:42.720 --> 00:15:47.340 Does this promise that we read in John's gospel about who he is and what he came to do, 00:15:47.420 --> 00:15:48.480 can we trust his word? 00:15:48.560 --> 00:15:50.400 Is Jesus really the savior of the world? 00:15:50.520 --> 00:15:54.639 2000 odd years later, does that promise still hold true for us today? 00:15:56.560 --> 00:16:01.060 Well, let's walk through the rest of our passage together as we drive towards that question. 00:16:01.420 --> 00:16:03.820 See the sort of belief that Jesus is after. 00:16:04.580 --> 00:16:08.720 It's right there at the start of our passage at the end of chapter four. 00:16:09.200 --> 00:16:10.879 Come to verse 44 with me. 00:16:10.980 --> 00:16:16.000 Notice the contradiction between chapter four, verse 44 and 45. 00:16:16.180 --> 00:16:19.740 We're going to stop jumping around now so you can just get chapter four open. 00:16:20.400 --> 00:16:21.520 Notice the contradiction. 00:16:21.740 --> 00:16:24.440 So Jesus points out in verse 44, the proverb, 00:16:24.660 --> 00:16:27.100 a prophet has no honor in his own country. 00:16:27.100 --> 00:16:34.200 But then in verse 45, arriving in his own country in Galilee, the Galileans welcome him. 00:16:35.100 --> 00:16:36.379 How does that work? 00:16:37.259 --> 00:16:43.879 Well, in the rest of verse 45, these Galileans welcome him because they have seen all that he had done in Jerusalem. 00:16:43.879 --> 00:16:50.279 In other words, they're just like all those others that we've read about from chapter two right through to here. 00:16:50.360 --> 00:16:54.740 They seem to believe in him as a miracle worker because of the signs that he performed in Jerusalem. 00:16:55.659 --> 00:16:57.539 They give him this wonderful welcome. 00:16:57.659 --> 00:16:58.659 The red carpet is out. 00:16:58.740 --> 00:17:00.200 The paparazzi point their cameras. 00:17:00.360 --> 00:17:02.419 The crowds jostle to get a sight of him. 00:17:02.419 --> 00:17:06.940 And yet Jesus says in verse 44, that is not really honoring him. 00:17:07.879 --> 00:17:09.659 I will have no honor in my hometown. 00:17:11.480 --> 00:17:16.960 So as we ask the question, if I do believe in Jesus, if I believe that he is who he says he is, 00:17:17.000 --> 00:17:19.460 then what difference does that make to my life today? 00:17:19.559 --> 00:17:23.859 Well, I think we've got to see that there's a warning here for us just in these first two verses, 00:17:23.859 --> 00:17:30.779 because it remains true that you can give Jesus a warm welcome and yet fail to really honor him. 00:17:30.779 --> 00:17:37.359 It is perfectly possible to turn up to church on a Sunday, to sing his praises, 00:17:37.660 --> 00:17:43.019 to look every bit the committed Christian, to be serving at church on all sorts of teams, 00:17:43.259 --> 00:17:46.359 and then to live the rest of your life giving him no honor at all. 00:17:47.960 --> 00:17:52.039 To allow yourself to be swept up in the wonder and the emotion of church, 00:17:52.079 --> 00:17:54.680 to believe because of your experience of that, 00:17:55.299 --> 00:17:58.960 and then just to blend into the world around you for the rest of the week. 00:17:58.960 --> 00:18:02.000 That isn't really honoring him at all. 00:18:02.640 --> 00:18:04.759 That is not what it means to trust in his word. 00:18:06.340 --> 00:18:07.380 So what does it mean? 00:18:07.460 --> 00:18:11.200 Well, hopefully as we go through the rest of our passage together, come to verse 46. 00:18:12.039 --> 00:18:15.579 As we've seen, we get this royal official in verse 46. 00:18:15.579 --> 00:18:17.900 He's probably part of Herod's court. 00:18:18.039 --> 00:18:19.240 He could have been a Roman. 00:18:19.360 --> 00:18:20.160 He might have been a Jew. 00:18:20.299 --> 00:18:21.620 Either way, you can picture him. 00:18:22.019 --> 00:18:23.680 He is no ordinary man. 00:18:24.000 --> 00:18:27.700 He'd have been uniformed in all the status of the royal court. 00:18:27.700 --> 00:18:30.059 You can picture the sort of clothes that he'd be wearing. 00:18:30.340 --> 00:18:34.259 If he's a Roman, probably a deep red cloak, maybe some ceremonial armor. 00:18:34.700 --> 00:18:39.380 And just the way he carries himself, you can tell this guy is a cut above the rest. 00:18:40.140 --> 00:18:41.840 And he comes to Jesus. 00:18:42.740 --> 00:18:45.319 Notice in verse 46, he comes from Capernaum. 00:18:45.400 --> 00:18:47.440 That's about 20 miles away. 00:18:47.960 --> 00:18:50.000 He makes this journey, a full day's journey. 00:18:50.000 --> 00:18:54.319 This royal official comes to meet this lowly carpenter. 00:18:55.160 --> 00:18:57.579 Now infamous for his signs and wonders. 00:18:57.960 --> 00:19:04.180 And see in verse 47, he literally begs Jesus to heal his dying son. 00:19:05.339 --> 00:19:09.500 The way that John tells this story with this character, the royal official, 00:19:09.500 --> 00:19:12.559 I think it makes Jesus' response to him all the more stark. 00:19:12.900 --> 00:19:15.500 See the way a carpenter would respond to a royal official. 00:19:15.500 --> 00:19:19.299 I mean, how would you expect Jesus to respond though? 00:19:19.779 --> 00:19:22.099 This guy begging that Jesus would heal his son. 00:19:22.460 --> 00:19:26.579 I guess the Jesus of my imaginings would say, well, of course, of course I'll heal your son. 00:19:27.000 --> 00:19:27.619 Lead the way. 00:19:28.200 --> 00:19:29.599 That's what I'm here to do. 00:19:30.619 --> 00:19:33.079 But that's not how Jesus responds at all. 00:19:33.500 --> 00:19:35.279 See how Jesus responds in verse 48? 00:19:36.440 --> 00:19:39.380 Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe. 00:19:40.599 --> 00:19:42.640 It's an almost scathing response, isn't it? 00:19:42.640 --> 00:19:47.580 And the you in that verse, he's not just talking to the royal official. 00:19:47.800 --> 00:19:48.560 It's plural. 00:19:48.720 --> 00:19:49.580 He says, you people. 00:19:50.220 --> 00:19:51.600 He's speaking to the crowd. 00:19:52.700 --> 00:19:56.340 Again, it's exactly what we've seen throughout this section from chapter 2. 00:19:56.560 --> 00:19:58.740 What the people want is signs and wonders. 00:19:59.120 --> 00:20:00.860 They want some kind of proof. 00:20:01.880 --> 00:20:06.000 And that just doesn't seem to be the sort of honor or belief that Jesus is looking for. 00:20:06.340 --> 00:20:09.720 Because to him, that would be like staying at the sign to Edinburgh 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:11.940 and never actually getting to the great city itself. 00:20:13.320 --> 00:20:15.960 Nevertheless, the man persists in verse 49. 00:20:16.940 --> 00:20:20.520 He desperately wants Jesus to come to Capernaum and heal his son. 00:20:21.420 --> 00:20:27.360 And as we've seen in verse 50, at the distance of 20 miles, 20 miles from this dying boy, 00:20:27.560 --> 00:20:29.280 and yet Jesus gives him this word. 00:20:29.920 --> 00:20:34.440 He promises him in verse 50, go, your son will live. 00:20:34.440 --> 00:20:39.720 And we've seen the man's incredible act of belief in the rest of verse 50. 00:20:39.820 --> 00:20:42.340 The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 00:20:42.559 --> 00:20:45.799 This man, he hasn't, as far as we know, seen Jesus's signs. 00:20:45.860 --> 00:20:47.440 He's obviously heard of Jesus. 00:20:47.440 --> 00:20:51.279 But he isn't believing in the signs and wonders that he's seen. 00:20:51.360 --> 00:20:53.700 Instead, he takes Jesus at his word. 00:20:54.220 --> 00:20:56.320 He trusts the promise. 00:20:57.400 --> 00:21:01.360 And we read in the very next verse, verse 51, that as he's on his way home, 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:05.900 he's met by his servants with the wonderful news his son lives. 00:21:05.900 --> 00:21:12.700 Even more incredible in verse 52, that he got better at precisely the time that Jesus's promise was made. 00:21:12.780 --> 00:21:13.519 It's miraculous. 00:21:14.440 --> 00:21:15.900 It's a 20 mile miracle. 00:21:17.380 --> 00:21:20.440 Jesus isn't physically there at the bedside. 00:21:20.440 --> 00:21:26.660 And yet he is physically, and yet he is powerful to heal, to restore life. 00:21:28.240 --> 00:21:31.140 We began this morning by raising two questions. 00:21:32.759 --> 00:21:35.220 Do you believe Jesus is who he says he is? 00:21:35.480 --> 00:21:36.980 Will you take him at his word? 00:21:38.059 --> 00:21:40.519 And what difference does that make to your life today? 00:21:40.660 --> 00:21:42.500 They've hopefully been bubbling away in the background, 00:21:42.680 --> 00:21:44.799 but let's just tackle each of them for ourselves. 00:21:45.660 --> 00:21:47.460 Because of course, it remains true. 00:21:47.460 --> 00:21:50.059 Jesus has the power to restore life. 00:21:50.440 --> 00:21:54.000 In this passage, he does this 20 mile miracle. 00:21:54.960 --> 00:21:57.700 And today we're at a distance of 2000 years. 00:21:58.860 --> 00:22:04.200 But his power, his power in this passage is not bound by space or by time. 00:22:04.299 --> 00:22:07.200 He is powerful to restore life today. 00:22:08.420 --> 00:22:10.519 But more fundamentally than that, 00:22:11.180 --> 00:22:15.539 his promise is that he will restore life eternally to all who will believe. 00:22:16.620 --> 00:22:19.960 This is a sign that points to why he's really come. 00:22:20.440 --> 00:22:24.720 And he may not physically be here today, though he is present with us. 00:22:24.720 --> 00:22:27.299 But that is his promise to us. 00:22:27.579 --> 00:22:29.380 Would we take him at his word? 00:22:29.980 --> 00:22:32.519 And you might be thinking, well, I would take Jesus at his word. 00:22:32.759 --> 00:22:34.680 If only he'd show me that he was real. 00:22:36.299 --> 00:22:37.259 Have you ever thought like that? 00:22:37.279 --> 00:22:38.700 If only I could see a miracle. 00:22:39.059 --> 00:22:41.420 If only he'd give me some sort of sign. 00:22:41.539 --> 00:22:46.860 If only I could experience more of his peace or his joy or whatever else when we sing and we worship. 00:22:46.859 --> 00:22:49.219 If only I could get a word from him today. 00:22:50.779 --> 00:22:55.059 Well, the truth is, that's just not the sort of belief that Jesus is after here in John's gospel. 00:22:56.179 --> 00:22:59.039 Belief in signs and wonders is a superficial belief. 00:22:59.699 --> 00:23:02.339 And it's supposed to point to something much better. 00:23:03.299 --> 00:23:05.159 That we would take him at his word. 00:23:05.259 --> 00:23:07.240 That he really is who he says he is. 00:23:07.379 --> 00:23:10.939 That he really has done everything necessary for you to live with him forever. 00:23:10.940 --> 00:23:14.820 Now, of course, I'm not saying that miracles won't happen today. 00:23:15.559 --> 00:23:18.840 Our God is kind and compassionate and merciful. 00:23:19.120 --> 00:23:22.320 And in his wisdom, unfathomable to us. 00:23:22.759 --> 00:23:28.559 He is powerful and does occasionally, as he is powerful over affliction and illness and addiction. 00:23:28.559 --> 00:23:29.700 He does work miracles. 00:23:30.039 --> 00:23:31.640 But that is not the promise. 00:23:33.180 --> 00:23:38.259 Even as we read about miracles in the New Testament, they are never the thing to believe in themselves. 00:23:38.259 --> 00:23:42.240 They are always there to point to something bigger. 00:23:42.359 --> 00:23:43.579 And the same is true today. 00:23:44.660 --> 00:23:47.819 They point to the fact that Jesus is who he says he is. 00:23:48.299 --> 00:23:50.720 That he really is powerful over death. 00:23:50.859 --> 00:23:55.039 And that one day, if we believe in his promises, we will live with him forever. 00:23:55.859 --> 00:23:59.299 In a place where there will be no need for signs and wonders. 00:24:00.700 --> 00:24:05.079 Where there is no sickness or suffering or tears or pain. 00:24:05.079 --> 00:24:08.720 And so today, would we know this to be true? 00:24:09.679 --> 00:24:19.480 Friends, no matter what you are facing, absolutely in the midst of it, pray for relief, for healing, for help, for compassion and for comfort. 00:24:19.699 --> 00:24:22.519 But above all, trust in Jesus. 00:24:24.339 --> 00:24:28.139 Pray that you would trust in his wonderful promise of eternal life. 00:24:28.140 --> 00:24:32.820 But I guess that might still leave us asking this question. 00:24:32.940 --> 00:24:34.420 How can we trust in him? 00:24:35.340 --> 00:24:38.160 This guy trusted in him at the distance of 20 miles. 00:24:38.240 --> 00:24:41.759 But how are we supposed to trust in him at the distance of 2,000 years? 00:24:41.820 --> 00:24:43.380 It's not always easy, that is it. 00:24:44.000 --> 00:24:45.180 When we can't see him. 00:24:46.300 --> 00:24:49.420 When we don't feel his presence with us. 00:24:50.220 --> 00:24:51.680 When we can't hear him. 00:24:51.740 --> 00:24:53.340 How can we trust in his promises? 00:24:53.339 --> 00:24:58.359 Well, ultimately, we can trust his promises because we can trust his word. 00:24:59.659 --> 00:25:02.019 The Bible is the word of God. 00:25:02.159 --> 00:25:05.699 The book that you have in your hands, it is an incredible book. 00:25:06.139 --> 00:25:09.299 And there are just so many reasons that we can trust it. 00:25:09.939 --> 00:25:17.019 If trusting God's word, if trusting that this is the word of God is a problem for you, I'd love to chat to you about that. 00:25:17.019 --> 00:25:22.679 I'm sure there's nothing more important for us today as to whether we can trust the Bible or not. 00:25:22.680 --> 00:25:29.460 But let me just offer one reason maybe especially relevant for this morning why God's word is trustworthy for us. 00:25:30.060 --> 00:25:32.980 And that is that this book is full of promises. 00:25:34.180 --> 00:25:37.460 And that through this book, we see those promises fulfilled. 00:25:38.000 --> 00:25:43.840 If you read through the Old Testament, you just see God make all these incredible promises to the most improbable people. 00:25:44.500 --> 00:25:46.680 And he is always good to his word. 00:25:47.360 --> 00:25:51.940 But even more significantly, as we read through the Old Testament, is this promise of a savior. 00:25:52.680 --> 00:25:57.340 It's a promise that is just everywhere in virtually every passage of scripture. 00:25:57.860 --> 00:26:05.620 The promise that a Messiah, a servant, that God's own son, that he would come and restore a people to their God. 00:26:06.960 --> 00:26:11.380 So many of those promises are just super specific as well about what this man would do. 00:26:12.320 --> 00:26:14.240 And how he would accomplish that. 00:26:14.240 --> 00:26:17.859 And all of those promises were fulfilled in Jesus. 00:26:19.140 --> 00:26:26.319 The more questions that you have of the Bible, and the more time that you spend just honestly seeking answers to those questions, 00:26:27.059 --> 00:26:31.059 reading and chatting to folk and exploring this incredible book, 00:26:31.620 --> 00:26:34.680 certainly in my experience, the more I've pushed at my questions, 00:26:35.420 --> 00:26:39.099 the more reason that I've found to trust that this really is God's word. 00:26:39.099 --> 00:26:41.679 Do not put your questions in a box. 00:26:42.719 --> 00:26:43.359 Ask them. 00:26:43.959 --> 00:26:44.719 Seek answers. 00:26:46.199 --> 00:26:48.240 How can we trust God when we don't see him? 00:26:49.199 --> 00:26:50.519 When we don't feel him? 00:26:50.579 --> 00:26:52.240 When we can't physically hear him? 00:26:53.139 --> 00:26:54.299 Well, we can trust him. 00:26:54.559 --> 00:26:59.559 Not because of signs and wonders and miracles like these, but because of his word to us. 00:27:00.419 --> 00:27:04.939 We can trust him, even at the distance of 2,000 years, because this book is true. 00:27:04.940 --> 00:27:08.720 And it's not only true, but it's really good news. 00:27:10.700 --> 00:27:12.100 So that's the first question. 00:27:12.200 --> 00:27:14.240 Do you believe Jesus is who he says he is? 00:27:14.320 --> 00:27:15.759 Will you take him at his word? 00:27:16.920 --> 00:27:20.400 The second is, what difference would that make to your life today? 00:27:21.759 --> 00:27:25.500 If that were true, I guess we've seen, haven't we, 00:27:25.620 --> 00:27:30.700 that ultimately the Christian faith isn't primarily about what we can get from Jesus today. 00:27:31.920 --> 00:27:34.820 Trusting Jesus does mean wonderful blessings today. 00:27:34.819 --> 00:27:37.819 Not least being free to live for him and for your good. 00:27:38.439 --> 00:27:41.939 But it is primarily about living a life aimed at eternity. 00:27:42.980 --> 00:27:48.220 And when we fix our eyes on things above, on things beyond, on Jesus, 00:27:48.579 --> 00:27:55.200 when we do that, temporal things, worldly things, worldly goods, worldly behaviors, worldly concerns, 00:27:56.599 --> 00:28:02.379 they are just nothing compared to the hope that we have if we trust in his promises to us. 00:28:02.380 --> 00:28:08.080 It doesn't mean they're unimportant or insignificant, but they are just a pale shadow, 00:28:08.820 --> 00:28:11.920 an imperfect mirror of a perfect world to come. 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:16.779 And this is what it means then to live as people of the promise. 00:28:17.360 --> 00:28:21.200 Trusting in Jesus's word with our whole lives aimed at eternity. 00:28:22.160 --> 00:28:26.180 That means that this coming week, whatever decisions that you have to make, 00:28:26.259 --> 00:28:31.019 whether you're thinking about moving job or house or where your children go to school 00:28:31.019 --> 00:28:33.819 or whether you should go to that party, how much you should drink, 00:28:33.960 --> 00:28:35.839 how many drinks you should have at that party, 00:28:35.920 --> 00:28:38.400 whether you might stay late at work one day or not, 00:28:38.460 --> 00:28:41.740 whether to go to a small group or not, whether to come to the prayer meeting or not. 00:28:41.900 --> 00:28:43.900 Very often when we make these decisions, 00:28:45.000 --> 00:28:51.700 and it's not as though one option is necessarily explicitly more or less Christian than the next. 00:28:51.700 --> 00:28:56.580 You might miss a prayer meeting to go to a praise night or something. 00:28:56.720 --> 00:29:00.600 Like it doesn't necessarily mean that one is more Christian than the next. 00:29:00.680 --> 00:29:04.519 But when we make these decisions, are we even asking the question, 00:29:05.140 --> 00:29:09.920 how can I make this decision with a life aimed at eternity? 00:29:11.400 --> 00:29:15.100 Do we let that perspective affect everything that we do? 00:29:15.099 --> 00:29:21.419 And I guess wrapped up with that, if we believe that Jesus' promise to us is true, 00:29:21.980 --> 00:29:25.859 that he is good to his word and that his word is good, 00:29:26.559 --> 00:29:30.439 then wouldn't we want to share that wonderful good news with anyone who would listen? 00:29:32.799 --> 00:29:36.179 That's going to affect how we make all sorts of decisions like that, isn't it? 00:29:36.879 --> 00:29:39.099 And in just very ordinary ways, I think, 00:29:39.139 --> 00:29:42.500 it's going to affect how we interact with parents at the school gate 00:29:42.500 --> 00:29:45.180 or the teachers at the parents' evening 00:29:45.180 --> 00:29:46.940 or your colleague at the Christmas party 00:29:46.940 --> 00:29:48.440 or your family over Christmas. 00:29:49.339 --> 00:29:52.000 I'm not saying that all we're ever going to do is talk about Jesus, 00:29:52.839 --> 00:29:57.279 but it is going to affect how we approach all our conversations, isn't it? 00:29:57.279 --> 00:30:01.339 If we're seeking to honor him with lives aimed at eternity. 00:30:03.079 --> 00:30:06.500 Truth is, if we trust Jesus' word today, 00:30:06.619 --> 00:30:09.519 it makes the world of difference to everything we do. 00:30:09.519 --> 00:30:14.539 And so as we finish, come back to John chapter 20 with me. 00:30:15.960 --> 00:30:20.160 In John chapter 20, we get the seventh sign, the resurrection, 00:30:20.519 --> 00:30:22.400 and here it's already happened. 00:30:23.619 --> 00:30:25.660 But one disciple, Thomas, 00:30:26.079 --> 00:30:28.400 Thomas hasn't seen the risen Jesus yet. 00:30:29.279 --> 00:30:33.700 And then here in this chapter, in John chapter 20, 00:30:33.900 --> 00:30:36.180 Thomas meets Jesus, the risen Jesus, 00:30:36.180 --> 00:30:39.900 and he believes because he, well, obviously he's seeing the risen Jesus. 00:30:40.360 --> 00:30:42.500 But see what Jesus says to him in verse 29. 00:30:42.620 --> 00:30:43.360 It's on the screen. 00:30:43.460 --> 00:30:46.640 He says, because you have seen me, you have believed. 00:30:47.400 --> 00:30:50.580 Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. 00:30:51.960 --> 00:30:55.259 For us this morning, if we remember the words of the guy, 00:30:55.539 --> 00:30:56.640 that guy on the news, 00:30:56.940 --> 00:30:59.259 I've given up believing in people's words. 00:30:59.460 --> 00:31:00.980 Is there actions that matter? 00:31:00.980 --> 00:31:02.660 Well, the question is this. 00:31:04.500 --> 00:31:07.000 Will you stand firm and take Jesus at his word? 00:31:08.140 --> 00:31:12.220 Do you have this sort of belief that trusts what he has said to us? 00:31:12.700 --> 00:31:14.839 Or have you given up believing his word? 00:31:15.539 --> 00:31:17.299 Are you relying on something else from him, 00:31:17.360 --> 00:31:20.799 waiting for him to reveal himself to you with some sign or wonder, 00:31:21.079 --> 00:31:24.940 or looking for an experience or a feeling or a new word from him? 00:31:24.940 --> 00:31:29.180 Well, friends, this is the sort of belief that Jesus is after, 00:31:29.420 --> 00:31:31.400 that you would take him at his word. 00:31:31.920 --> 00:31:32.360 Why? 00:31:33.240 --> 00:31:35.779 Well, because this is his purpose in John chapter 20, 00:31:35.880 --> 00:31:37.160 verse 30 and 31. 00:31:38.460 --> 00:31:43.680 That we would see that Jesus's signs point to what he came to do, 00:31:44.340 --> 00:31:46.279 which is to die in our place, 00:31:46.299 --> 00:31:48.080 that we might believe in him and live forever. 00:31:48.759 --> 00:31:51.400 To believe that he is the Messiah, the son of God, 00:31:51.460 --> 00:31:53.400 that he really is who he says he is. 00:31:53.400 --> 00:31:57.980 So that you might have a life, a life of living for him today 00:31:57.980 --> 00:32:00.640 and a life with him eternally. 00:32:01.840 --> 00:32:03.160 This is his word to us. 00:32:03.200 --> 00:32:04.759 Would we trust it together? 00:32:06.640 --> 00:32:11.180 I'm just going to invite the band up now as we respond to God's words. 00:32:11.580 --> 00:32:14.420 Just a moment of quiet and then I'll pray before we sing. 00:32:14.420 --> 00:32:14.480 Amen. 00:32:23.400 --> 00:32:32.420 Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for everything that you have done for us in Jesus. 00:32:32.420 --> 00:32:40.340 We thank you for all the promises that you've made to us through your word that are fulfilled in him, 00:32:40.400 --> 00:32:42.640 that he really is who he says he is. 00:32:44.140 --> 00:32:47.400 And so that your promises to us through him are sure. 00:32:47.400 --> 00:32:53.040 But we confess we don't always trust your word. 00:32:53.180 --> 00:32:55.460 We don't always find it easy to trust your word. 00:32:56.700 --> 00:32:59.460 We so often go after experiences, 00:33:00.259 --> 00:33:03.140 desire that you would do more, show us more, 00:33:03.680 --> 00:33:05.200 that we would feel more. 00:33:05.200 --> 00:33:09.559 And so, Lord, would you help us by your Holy Spirit 00:33:09.559 --> 00:33:15.480 to read about your son in your word and see our salvation. 00:33:17.259 --> 00:33:20.620 See all that you've done to transform our hearts today, 00:33:21.420 --> 00:33:23.940 that we might live forever with you. 00:33:25.720 --> 00:33:29.100 Lord, would you by your spirit keep us aimed at eternity. 00:33:29.099 --> 00:33:31.939 In Jesus' name. 00:33:32.939 --> 00:33:33.339 Amen.