The Elephant in the Room

Who is Jesus? part 51 – John 4:46-51

Some things are often left unspoken. I was taught that politics and religion are not topics for discussion. However, avoiding political conversations has led to political ignorance, support for extremist views, and an increase in fear of foreigners.

Ignorance of Jesus’ teachings has caused some Christians to support new right-wing politics. How is this related to John’s Gospel? It focuses on who Jesus is and what he did and taught.

⁴³ After the two days he departed for Galilee. ⁴⁴ (For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honour in his own home town.) ⁴⁵ So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast.

⁴⁶ So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose son was ill. ⁴⁷ When this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. ⁴⁸ So Jesus said to him, “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” ⁴⁹ The official said to him, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” ⁵⁰ Jesus said to him, “Go; your son will live.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and went on his way. ⁵¹ As he was going down, his servants met him and told him that his son was recovering. ⁵² So he asked them the hour when he began to get better, and they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” ⁵³ The father knew that was the hour when Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” And he himself believed, and all his household. ⁵⁴ This was now the second sign that Jesus did when he had come from Judea to Galilee.

John 4:46-51 ESVUK

There is a structure to chapters 2 to 4. They are one big chiasmus. Chiasm, meaning crossing over, is a poetic form used in nearly all Psalms and is a repetition of similar ideas in the reverse sequence. Where there is a central section, here marked X, that is usually the focus of the poem.

A. John 2:1-11 Miracle at Cana – Water into wine.
B. 2:12-22 Temple cleansed – new Temple of his body.
C. 2:23-3:13 We must be born from above.
X. 3:14-21 God so loved the world that He gave His Son.
C’. 3:22-4:3 Christ comes from above.
B’. 4:4-46 Temple to be replaced by a new place of worship.
A’. 4:46-54 Miracle at Cana – healing of a nobleman’s son.

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Jesus is back in Galilee, and many people are coming to him. An official asks for his son to be healed. Although it seems everything is okay, Jesus is cautious and suggests that people only believe when they see miracles. Why does he say that?

Not everything is a good as it seems on the surface, but there is a darkness beneath this; the acclaim Jesus is getting from the Galilean people is not the welcome Jesus wants.

I missed it too. I’ve read this passage many times and heard sermons about it, but I didn’t grasp the main point. The commentaries I usually refer to overlooked it as well, including John Calvin, whom I mentioned before. John Chrysostom had it right; Galilee was where Jesus was not honoured. People came to Jesus wanting to see the miracles they heard about in Jerusalem.

So the official approaches Jesus, who is frustrated that people seek miracles instead of his teachings. Jesus tells him, “Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe,” then assures him, “Go; your son will live.” The official’s faith is tested, as he does not witness the miracle but learns that his son is recovering, starting when Jesus said to go. This led the official and his household to believe. He could have left feeling disappointed if he wanted something dramatic, but he chose to believe instead of dismissing it as a coincidence.

So why does the passage call this the second sign of Jesus? The first sign was turning water into wine, and this healing is the second. But there were miracles done in Jerusalem; why aren’t they considered signs?

I had only read John’s Gospel in sections; reading a whole chapter was overwhelming. Looking at the Gospel as a whole and then exploring it in depth made me realise that my previous method of reading the Bible, whether by lectionary or topic, caused me to miss a lot.

Many people in Galilee followed Jesus not for his teachings but for the miracles he performed. John’s Gospel explains this more in Chapter 6, which you’ll see later. They should have been paying attention to Jesus’ words. While the Galilean people welcomed Jesus, they did not truly honour him.

Be cautious of churches that promote, “Receive a free spiritual blessing here.” It’s not about what you receive; while there are spiritual blessings in following Jesus, these are given by the Holy Spirit at the Spirit’s own time and place. We can’t decide when or how the Spirit will bless us. It can be hard when the Spirit wants to change our lives or calls us to repent. The path to God’s blessing is often challenging. When driving, you should focus on the road signs leading to your destination, not pause to admire them.

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