← Back to sermon library

Turn with me in your Bibles to 
John's Gospel, John chapter 4. John 4, I'll pick up reading 
in verse 27 to the end of the chapter, but our focus will be 
on verses 43 to 54. So beginning in John 4 at verse 
27. And at this point, his disciples 
came and they marveled that he talked with a woman. Yet no one 
said, what do you seek? Or why are you talking with her? 
The woman then left her water pot, went her way into the city 
and said to the men, come, see a man who told me all things 
that I ever did. Could this be the Christ? Then 
they went out of the city and came to him. In the meantime, 
his disciples urged him, saying, Rabbi, eat. But he said to them, 
I have food to eat of which you do not know. Therefore, the disciples 
said to one another, has anyone brought him anything to eat? 
Jesus said to them, my food is to do the will of him who sent 
me and to finish his work. Do you not say there are still 
four months and then comes the harvest? Behold, I say to you, 
lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already 
white for harvest. And he who reaps receives wages 
and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and 
he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true, 
one sows and another reaps. I sent you to reap that for which 
you have not labored. Others have labored and you have 
entered into their labors. And many of the Samaritans of 
that city believed in him, because of the word of the woman who 
testified, he told me all that I ever did. So when the Samaritans 
had come to him, they urged him to stay with them. And he stayed 
there two days, and many more believed because of his own word. 
Then they said to the woman, now we believe, not because of 
what you said, for we ourselves have heard him, and we know that 
this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world. Now after 
the two days, he departed from there and went to Galilee. For 
Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his 
own country. So when he came to Galilee, the 
Galileans received him, having seen all the things he did in 
Jerusalem at the feast, for they also had gone to the feast. So 
Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee, where he had made the water wine. 
And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. 
When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, 
he went to him and implored him to come down and heal his son, 
for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, unless 
you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe. 
The nobleman said to him, sir, come down before my child dies. 
Jesus said to him, go your way, your son lives. So the man believed 
the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. And 
as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, 
saying, Your son lives. Then he inquired of them the 
hour when he got better, and they said to him, Yesterday at 
the seventh hour the fever left him. So the father knew that 
it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, Your son lives. and he himself believed and his 
whole household. This again is the second sign 
Jesus did when he had come out of Judea into Galilee. Amen. Let us pray. Our blessed God 
and Holy Father, we thank you for your glory and your majesty. 
We see it so clearly displayed today in the created order. We 
thank you for the sunshine. We thank you for what creation 
testifies concerning your eternal Godhead, your power, your wisdom, 
and your perfections. And we as well rejoice in redemption, 
the fact that you have not dealt with us according to our sins, 
nor rewarded us according to our transgression. But as far 
as the East is from the West, you have removed our iniquity. 
And God, we rejoice in your loving kindness. We rejoice in the power 
of the Savior. And in the reading of the Word 
today, we see that power manifested in His ability to heal and to 
save. We ask now that You would forgive 
us for all of our sin and transgression. We pray that You would provide 
to us the Holy Spirit, that He would illumine our minds and 
our hearts, and that You would be glorified in this glad hour. 
And we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, as we look 
at this particular section, we'll notice the power of Christ in 
his ability to heal this sick boy. We don't know how old this 
particular child is, the son of this noble man, but he was 
certainly near and dear to this man that we find here in John 
chapter 5. Now, this account is similar 
to the healing of the centurion servant, in Matthew chapter 8 
and in Luke chapter 7. Though it is similar, it's not 
the same. There are four distinctions between 
the narratives. There, or here rather, we have 
a nobleman and there a centurion. Here we have a son and there 
a servant. Here a fever, there paralysis. And here the man believes that 
Jesus needs to be physically present in Capernaum in order 
to heal his son. But in the account with reference 
to the centurion, he is unworthy that Jesus come to visit. So 
they are separate. They are distinct, but they are 
similar in that Christ has power over men to give them health 
and to bring them back to a place of stability. Now, when we look 
at the passage as well, we see him identified in the King James 
tradition as a nobleman. Your translation probably has 
royal official. Both are good, but the emphasis 
is upon an earnest and a concerned father. That's the issue at stake 
for this man. This man sees that Jesus, or 
has heard of Jesus, and he believes that Jesus possesses the power 
and the ability to make his son well again. And so the man at 
the outset has perhaps a curiosity that there is no doubt a mingling 
of some faith. And we see that faith grow in 
the midst of his interaction with the Savior. So I wanna look 
at two things this morning. First, Jesus returned to Galilee 
in verses 43 to 45. And then secondly, the healing 
of the noble man's son. Now, thus far in our study in 
John's gospel, if you go back to John chapter one, we have 
seen Jesus in Judea, In John 1, 28, we see a reference to 
Bethabara, where John the Baptist is. And then Jesus, the next 
day, walking by, John the Baptist says, Behold the Lamb of God, 
who takes away the sin of the world. From that vantage point, 
he then goes to Cana of Galilee in chapter 2, at verse 1. He then moves to Jerusalem in 
chapter 2, at verse 13. And by move, I don't mean with 
trucks, I mean he moved with his feet. And then at the end 
of chapter 2, verse 13 rather, he moves from Cana of Galilee 
back down to Judea, and he spends time in Jerusalem. And in chapter 
4, he departs from Judea to go to Galilee, but remember that 
he is detained for two days in Samaria. He has those saving 
dealings with the woman by the well, and then he has saving 
dealings with the men of Samaria, such that they are able to acknowledge, 
according to 442, we know that this is indeed the Christ, the 
Savior of the world. So according to verse 43, after 
the two days, he departed from there and went to Galilee. Now, 
the apostle gives us a reason for this movement. The apostle 
underscores in verse 44 why it is that Jesus went from Jerusalem 
back down or back up to Galilee. Notice in verse 44, I'm sorry, 
Samaria to Galilee. Notice in verse 44, for Jesus 
himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. Now this is a bit of an ambiguous 
statement. It's a bit difficult to understand 
in this particular context. It's said by Jesus while he's 
in Nazareth in the Synoptic Gospels. So both are in Matthew, Mark, 
and Luke, we find Jesus in Nazareth where he doesn't get a warm reception. 
So he invokes this saying, a prophet is not without honor. A prophet 
is not without honor except in his own country. And so while 
he's in Nazareth, he is not treated well. And so in John 4.44, it 
indicates that Jesus himself testified that a prophet has 
no honor in his own country. Now this could mean that while 
he makes this excursion up into Galilee, he is not going to go 
into Nazareth. That's certainly one way to read 
the passage. But also, we could see a contrast 
between what happens in Samaria, where those men believe, not 
simply on the testimony of the woman, but because they heard 
the words of Jesus himself, and they underscore the reality that 
he is the savior of the world. So Jesus leaves a pagan Gentile 
area, which is Samaria, and he goes back into Israel. And so 
the contrast might just be that. He comes to his own and his own 
receive him not. He is conscious of the reality 
that there is enmity against him, and that is only going to 
increase while he maintains his public ministry in the land of 
Israel. One man, a commentator, says, 
in comparison to the region of Samaria, Galilee is related to 
the region of Judea and Jerusalem. And the fourth gospel as a whole 
makes clear that the theme of rejection embraces the whole 
of the Jewish nation. That doesn't mean each and every 
person. That means in bulk, by way of a majority. There was 
an animosity toward the Savior who claimed to be Messiah. And 
so there was this rejection of Him. He was a man of sorrows. 
He was acquainted with grief. When we saw Him, there was no 
form or calmliness. There was nothing attractive 
about Him that invited the people of Israel to say, Oh, this is 
in fact our Messiah. No, it's just the opposite. The 
prologue makes that clear in 1.11. Go back there for just 
a moment. Verse 10, He was in the world, 
and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know 
Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. 
So he's back on Israel dirt, and he makes, or John interprets 
for us, this whole maxim. But then as well, notice what 
Jesus does. He's identifying himself, or 
he does in context similar as a prophet. Now, in our own generation, 
if somebody were to say, I'm a prophet, we'd probably think 
they were a bit of a nut. We might think they're a bit 
of a proud, arrogant person. We might think that they have 
some illusions of grandeur, delusions of grandeur. But in Israel, the 
prophetic ministry was sanctioned by God. The prophetic ministry 
originated by God. There were actually prophets 
in Israel. But what ultimately was the test 
of the prophet? was it not whether or not his 
word was true. If it was in fact the word that 
God spoke, then that prophet was to be received. So the self-disclosure 
here of our Lord Jesus in that he is in fact a prophet. And 
when he makes this statement concerning, or when John makes 
this statement concerning the opposition to Jesus as a prophet, 
This is consistent with the rest of Scripture. Matthew 23, 37. 
The Lord Jesus upbraids Jerusalem. Why? Because she destroys and 
rejects the prophets. Stephen, in his sermon that culminates 
in his martyrdom in Acts 7 at verse 52, he says to the Sanhedrin, 
which of the prophets did you not murder? Again, that doesn't 
mean every single person in Israel was at enmity with the prophets 
of God, but in mass, in bulk, to the To the majority of them, 
they resisted and rejected the mouthpiece of God Most High. This jives with what we find 
in Isaiah 53, 3. He is despised and rejected by 
men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid as it 
were our faces from him. He was despised and we did not 
receive him. So this is the rationale as to 
why he goes back into Galilee, but it does set the tone for 
what's going to happen in terms of his ministry in Israel. Now 
notice the reception that he receives, verse 45. So when he 
came to Galilee, the Galileans received him, having seen all 
the things he did in Jerusalem at the feast, for they also had 
gone to the feast. When it says they received him, 
it doesn't mean as Lord, it doesn't mean as God, it doesn't necessarily 
mean as Messiah, it simply means they had a curiosity. And when 
it says the Galileans, I doubt every single Galilean went to 
the feast in Jerusalem when Jesus was present. So there is this 
desire on the part of these people to see again with their own eyes 
what this man has done, what this man is capable of doing. If you go back to chapter 2, 
you'll notice beginning in verse 13, it was the time of the Passover. And if you look specifically 
at verse 23, it says, Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover, 
during the feast, many believed in his name when they saw the 
signs which he did. Now John the Apostle in his gospel 
is only going to give us seven of the signs of Jesus. In fact, 
if you look at John 4 at verse 54, when he says, this again 
is the second sign Jesus did when he had come out of Judea 
into Galilee. The first was the turning of 
the water into wine in Cana of Galilee in John 2, 1 to 11. Now, 
just because John the Apostle underscores seven signs for specific 
attention, it doesn't mean that that's all that Jesus did. In 
fact, we see a plurality of signs done by Jesus according to chapter 
2 and verse 23 while he was in Jerusalem. And then John's purpose 
in writing the gospel is in John 20 at 30 and 31. He says, truly 
many more signs Jesus did, but these are written so that you 
may know that Jesus is the Christ, the son of the living God, and 
that by believing in him, you may have everlasting life. So 
John is a theologian, and when he puts together his gospel narrative, 
he is selective in the data. But back to the Galileans, when 
he came, 445, to Galilee, the Galileans received him, having 
seen all the things he did in Jerusalem at the feast, for they 
also had gone to the feast. So this describes his entry now 
into Galilee. So let's look secondly at the 
healing of the nobleman's son. Two things to observe here. First, 
the problem of the noblemen, verses 46 to 49. And secondly, 
the power of the Lord Jesus in verses 50 to 54. Note first the 
problem of the noblemen, verse 46a. So Jesus again, or came 
again to Cana of Galilee, where he had made the water wine. and 
there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. Now the place again links us 
to chapter 2 verses 1 to 11 and helps us understand chapter 4 
verse 54 in terms of this being the second sign. It was the second 
sign that he did in Cana of Galilee. The man is identified as a nobleman, 
or as I said, your translation might have royal official. And 
essentially, he worked for Herod Antipas, who was the tetrarch 
of Galilee from about 4 BC to AD 39. Now, Herod, while not 
technically a king, is referred to as a king in Mark chapter 
6. It was kind of the convention 
at that particular time. But this fellow was a nobleman. This fellow was a royal official. This man was an attendant upon 
this King Herod. One man says, although the qualifier 
is simply the adjective royal, the context make clear that this 
man was not of royal blood, but an official of the king. That 
is, of the royal house, hence a royal official. So that's what 
we're dealing with in this particular man. Now, notice as well that 
he has a sick son. That's where the emphasis lies. 
That's what the point is in terms of this particular narrative. 
But this is instructive for us. This man was a noble man. While 
he was not royalty, he nevertheless had a good job. He nevertheless 
made good money. He nevertheless had servants, 
in the plural, as we'll see later in our particular narrative. 
But notice that his riches do not protect him from the sorrows 
and the miseries and the woes that affect us here in this world. I think A.W. Pink is right on. 
He says, neither rank nor riches exempt their possessor from the 
common sorrows of humankind. There's something that knits 
us all together. It is misery, sorrow, despair, 
destruction, depression, and death. And I'm not trying to 
encourage you all this morning and make you feel really good 
with that litany of things, but you know that life in a fallen 
world is hard. It doesn't matter if you have 
rank. It doesn't matter if you have riches. It doesn't matter 
what your station. It doesn't matter what your position. 
It doesn't matter your prestige. It doesn't matter your peer group. 
What matters is that we live in a sin-cursed world. And in 
a sin-cursed world, even sons of noble men get sick. And this 
boy, this young man is described as sick, he has a fever, and 
he's nigh unto death. The noble man is fearful with 
reference to the death of his son. So whatever it is that we 
have, whatever it is that we possess, it does not inoculate 
us against the common frailties or the common infirmities that 
are intrinsic upon man who lives in a sin-cursed and fallen world. 
Now notice the request of this noble man in verse 47. When he 
heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went 
to him and implored him to come down and heal his son, for he 
was at the point of death. Notice the noble man or the royal 
official approaches the real royal official. the Lord Jesus 
Christ. The noble man understands that 
Jesus can help, but the noble man thinks that Jesus must be 
present in Capernaum in order to heal his son. Now, Capernaum 
is about 16 miles away from Cana of Galilee. And so as far as 
the man is concerned, Jesus must come with him now. He must travel 
the 16 miles to Capernaum, and there he must lay the whammy 
on the sun and let that sun rise up from his sickbed. So while 
he has faith, while he has understanding, while he has some degree of knowledge 
concerning the power of Christ, it's still deficient. It's not 
fully orbed. It's not well-rounded. As well, 
notice what he does in verse 47. He went to him and implored 
him. Now, some of you may know that 
I'm not a big fan of exemplary preaching when it comes in the 
gospel narratives. The gospel, the four gospels 
are about Jesus. And by exemplary preaching, I 
mean, you know, those sorts of behavior modification sermons. 
Go out and be a better you. Be like David and face the giants 
that you have to face in your life and the hardships. That's 
exemplary preaching. It's moralistic. But in this 
particular section, in this particular narrative, this man is very instructive 
for us. What we find or hear from Jesus 
is very scarce. There's not a lot of Jesus in 
this particular passage. in terms of statement or in terms 
of declaration. But this man implores Jesus on 
behalf of his children. We're going to revisit this when 
we end the sermon this morning, but I want to ask you men and 
women, do you implore God for your children? Do you ask and 
seek and knock? They may not have a fever presently, 
they may not be on death's door right now, but spiritually speaking, 
we as Reformed believers understand the doctrine of total depravity. 
We understand David in Psalm 51 who says, in sin my mother 
conceived me, and by that he's not talking about the conjugal 
relationship being sinful. He's talking about the moment 
there was a David. Because of Adam, David was a 
sinner. David was a sinful man. Understanding 
that about our children. Do we implore God? Do we come 
to the throne of grace with boldness? Do we make this an afterthought? 
Oh yeah, I guess I should pray for my kids. Is this something 
that ought not to be a priority with the people of God, bringing 
their children to the throne of grace, seeking blessing on 
their behalf, imploring the Lord to heal their sin-sick souls, 
imploring the Lord to open their ears and their hearts to the 
reading of the scriptures at home, to open their ears and 
their hearts to the preaching of the scriptures in the church? 
We ought to be imploring God Almighty on behalf of our children. Brethren, when all is said and 
done, Family is absolutely crucial. Church is blessed. Family of 
God is most excellent. But we need to prioritize, we 
need to understand, not prioritize in the sense that we don't pray 
for the church and we don't pray for others, but God has blessed 
us as parents and has given us children. What's the best gift 
that we can give to them? Is it a good college education? Is it a good vocation? Is it 
a good house? Is it shelter and clothing and 
food? All that stuff is good. And Paul 
tells us that a man who does not provide those things for 
his children is worse than an infidel. But a righteous man 
leaves an inheritance to his children's children. What inheritance 
is that? It's the gospel of our Lord and 
Savior, Jesus Christ. If we are not imploring God on 
behalf of our children, we must repent, we must forsake that 
sin, and we must take on this ethic of this noble man, who 
in a time of desperation sees the necessity of imploring Jesus. He doesn't just say, you know, 
I happen to have this sick son, and if you're so inclined, come 
on up to Capernaum, and you can lay your hands on him and heal 
him. No, he implores him. He's begging him. He's entreating 
him. This is earnestness. Again, the 
accent does not fall upon this man's status as a nobleman or 
as a royal official, but what the accent falls upon is a great 
example for us as fathers and us as mothers in imploring God 
Most High for the good and well-being of our children. Notice the rebuke 
of the nobleman by our Lord Jesus in verse 48. It's not just the 
noble man. Notice in verse 48, then Jesus 
said to him, unless you people see signs and wonders, you will 
by no means believe. Again, not just for him. The 
new King James supplies people there. That's good because the 
you is plural. It's not just saying this to 
the nobleman, but it goes to those Galileans that we read 
of in verse 45, who had a curiosity because they had seen the signs 
that Jesus had done in Jerusalem. So Jesus says, unless you see 
signs and wonders, you won't believe. You will certainly not 
believe. Again, a rampant theme in the gospel narratives. Not 
that signs and wonders are not confirmatory. Not that they aren't 
a great display of the power and majesty of Christ. Not that 
they don't affirm him as the prophet that he says that he 
is. But what we find is that there was a class of people in 
first century Israel And there is a class of people today in 
21st century North America that unless they see a particular 
sign, then they won't believe. Remember Doubting Thomas? We call him Doubting Thomas. 
No, Thomas was rebellious. Thomas says, unless I see, unless 
I touch, I will certainly not believe. What does Jesus do? 
He doesn't cut him off, but rather he does rebuke him. Blessed are 
those who believe who haven't seen. But again, not that he 
cuts off Thomas. So don't get this idea that everybody 
who first responds with reference to the signs and wonders are 
gonna end up in hell. No, that's not it at all. But 
Jesus' point is that the prophetic word is sufficient. In other 
words, the word that he speaks ought to be enough for the people 
that come to him. And that's his point as he mentions 
this now. The rebuke was true of first 
century Israel. Look at chapter 16 in Matthew's 
gospel. Matthew chapter 16, just to see 
this in first century Israel and think about it in our own 
generation. I've mentioned to you before that debate by Dr. Greg Bonson and Dr. Gordon Stein 
in the 1980s. Greg Bonson was the Christian 
theist, and he was arguing that God exists. And Dr. Gordon Stein 
was the atheist, who was arguing that God does not exist. And 
at the end of the debate, there was a time of question and answer. 
And persons came up, and they asked the particular doctor that 
they wanted to ask. And one man asked Dr. Stein, 
what would it take for you to believe that there is a God? 
And Stein says, well, if God puts in a personal appearance 
in one of our meetings, if God comes to our next atheist meeting, 
then I will believe that God exists. Or if this pulpit, he 
didn't say pulpit, I think that's a Christian term, but he said, 
if this lectern or this podium were to rise up without any wires, 
without any motors, without anything like that, then I would believe 
that there was a God. Well, Greg Bonson obviously rebukes 
him for that and says, you would not. The people of Jesus' day 
saw many mighty miracles. Remember Matthew 11? He upbraids 
the cities in which he did his miracles because they didn't 
repent. And what Greg Bonson points out is what we learned 
in John chapter 3. You must be born again. You must 
have your heart changed. You must receive the graces of 
faith and repentance in order to acknowledge the glory of God 
Most High. And so while men may claim, well, 
if he puts in a sign or he puts in an appearance, then I'll believe 
in him. We know better. Total depravity is such that 
he would live the rest of his life trying to explain how that 
lectern rose up into the air without any mechanics. How this 
one who appeared at their study and claimed to be God wasn't 
God. You must be born again. You must be changed from within 
by the power of the Holy Spirit. you must believe the gospel of 
our Lord Jesus Christ. That's the emphasis that we find. 
But in Matthew 16, notice in verse one, then the Pharisees 
and Sadducees came and testing him, asked that he would show 
them a sign from heaven. He answered and said to them, 
when it is evening you say it will be fair weather, for the 
sky is red, and in the morning it will be foul weather today, 
for the sky is red and threatening. Hypocrites, you know how to discern 
the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the 
times. A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, 
and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet 
Jonah. You see that in John 2. Go back 
to our passage in John 4. Back two pages to John 2. John 
2, 18. While Jesus is in Jerusalem, 
after he cleanses the temple, so the Jews answered him in verse 
18 and said to him, what sign do you show to us since you do 
these things? And then again in John 6 at verse 
30. John 6 at verse 30, Therefore 
they said to him, What sign will you perform then, that we may 
see it and believe you? What work will you do? And then 
of course Paul's saying in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 22, For Jews 
request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ 
crucified. Now again, brethren, it's not 
the case that the Lord Jesus cuts off Thomas. Because you 
demanded to see and touch, you're done, you're out, you're going 
to hell. That's not how He deals with it. But He does chide him, 
He does rebuke him, and He does chide and rebuke that mindset 
where the creature has the wherewithal to place demands upon the Creator. and demand that God perform in 
such a way or else I'm not going to believe. You hear those kinds 
of deals sometimes. Lord, if you get me out of this, 
then I'll go to church. Lord, if you get me out of this, 
then I'll give money to the church. That's not the way the creature 
is to respond to the creator. We're to submit, we're to listen 
to his word, and we're to believe it because that word is true. 
Klink says, again, Jesus is criticizing belief that is founded on the 
witness itself, the signs, and not on the object of witness, 
Jesus, as well as belief that stems from wrong motivations. So it's not that Thomas is in 
hell, but as Jesus says, it's better for us to respond to the 
prophetic word of Christ as it comes to us from Genesis to Revelation, 
unquestioningly, unwaveringly, receiving it faithfully and happily 
to the good of our own soul. Now notice the desperation of 
the noble man in verse 49. The noble man said to him, sir, 
He says, Lord, come down before my child dies. It's as if he 
didn't even listen to verse 48. Why? Because his son is dying. Right? And again, Jesus isn't 
just addressing the noblemen at this point. He's addressing 
the Galileans who saw his signs in Jerusalem, and now that's 
what they want from him as he comes back to Galilee. Just do 
those things. Just dazzle us. Just impress 
us. Just heal us. Just give us food. Just engage in those sorts of 
things that we want. The nobleman rather has graver 
issues, namely a sick son who's about to die. He implores him. And here, brethren, the condition 
of the son increases the earnestness of the father. So you think about 
earlier when I mentioned prayer for our children, they hit the 
teenage years, brethren, you better be more earnest in terms 
of importunate prayer. You often think as young parents 
that two and three is the most difficult of age. Wait till 14 
or 15. Wait till 17. Wait till 18. Wait till shoes and clothes and 
all those sorts of things that young people crave and want to 
look like all the other young people. Wait till those seasons. Brethren, the desperateness of 
the condition necessitates an earnestness at the throne of 
grace. And so this nobleman, understanding 
this, he doesn't respond to what Jesus says in terms of rebuke, 
rather he says, Lord, calm down before my child dies. Now that 
brings us to the power of the Lord Jesus in verses 50 to 54. Notice the response by Jesus 
in verse 50. Jesus said to him, go your way, 
your son lives. Now, the power of Christ is such 
that he doesn't need to walk 16 miles to touch the boy in 
Capernaum in order to make him well. We understand that brethren, 
because we've gone through John 1. 1 to 18 is the prologue. And the prologue tells us in 
the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the 
word was God. So Jesus is co-eternal with the 
Father. He's distinct from the Father. 
He's consubstantial with the Father, such that we know He 
has the ability and the power to simply speak the Word and 
effect healing in this boy. The one who said, let there be 
light, is the one who's able to say, let this boy live. This 
Christ is, in the language of John the Baptist, the Son of 
God, John 1.34. So this comes as no surprise 
to us in verse 50, when Jesus says, go your way, your son lives. We've heard it, we've read it, 
we understand it, and therefore it doesn't surprise us and it 
doesn't shock us. But it certainly does with the 
nobleman. Initially, the nobleman receives 
this. Notice in verse 50. So the man 
believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and he went his 
way. And this is a blessed thing. 
The man believed the word of Jesus before seeing the confirmation 
of that word. Again, just like Jesus says to 
Thomas, blessed are those who believe who haven't seen. But 
then notice as well, the power of Christ. It's not only able 
to heal the son, but it's able to heal the noble man as well. 
This is what John Gill says, such power went along with the 
words of Christ as not only cured the son at that distance who 
lay at the point of death, but also the father of his unbelief. The Father has issues as well, 
and the Father needs to be set in order as well, and Christ 
in his goodness is doing that. So that's the response by Jesus 
in verse 50. Again, the language is simple, 
the language is certain. The Lord Jesus doesn't have to 
engage in incantation. The Lord Jesus isn't a magician. 
He doesn't have to try to cajole the created order. He doesn't 
have to try to manipulate created forces or appeal to supernatural 
forces outside of his control. And, you know, eye of newt and 
wing of bat and put it all together in a cauldron and stir it up 
and sprinkle it on the boy and then wave sage over him and cast 
out whatever, you know, hurting things are in. That's not the 
gospel. That's not the Lord God most 
high. That's not the second person of the Trinity. Your son lives. 
The prophetic word of Jesus Christ is efficacious. And doesn't this 
ring true thematically with the whole and entire gospel of John? Turn to John chapter 20. John 
chapter 20, I cited it before, it bears repetition now. John 
20 at verse 30, truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence 
of his disciples which are not written in this book, but these 
are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the 
Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name. 
Again, He's not anti-sign. He's not saying it's wrong to 
ever look at or to see those miracles, but it's wrong when 
we're more enamored with the miracle than the miracle worker. It's wrong when we value what 
God gives versus who God is. But with reference to the emphasis, 
these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, 
the Son of God, and that believing, you may have life in his name. 
So again, physical healing for this man in Capernaum, or this 
young man in Capernaum. But this is thematically true 
of John's gospel. Believing the word of Christ 
brings what? Life in his name. You may not 
be sick unto death today, but you are if you are not a believer 
in Jesus. We have all sinned. We have all 
gone astray like sheep. We have all rejected God. We've 
raised our fists at Him. We are the men and women of Psalm 
2, raising our fists at Yahweh and against His Christ and saying, 
we will not have Him to rule over us. That's us by nature. And without Christ, in terms 
of His grace, in terms of His mercy, in terms of His gospel, 
we will perish in our sins. We will perish in hell forever. 
The whole point of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ was 
for us men and for our salvation. That He lives in obedience to 
the law of God, because we don't. that He goes to the cross as 
a sacrifice and as a substitute in order to pay the debt for 
our sin, and that He's raised again that third day. And as 
Paul says, and as I know you've heard me say on many occasions, 
Romans 4.25, Jesus was delivered up because of our offenses and 
was raised for our justification. Your Son lives in and through 
the Word of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now notice the report of the 
servants in verses 51 to 53. So the man visits with Jesus 
on a particular day, and then he makes the journey back to 
Capernaum. And while he's going back to 
Capernaum, his servants come and approach him. They're happy, 
they're delighted, they want to give him the good news. So 
notice, they assert the fact of his healing. Verse 51. It 
says, And as he was now going down, his servants met him and 
told him, saying, Your son lives. Now, this is something I don't 
think we do often when we read our Bibles. But imagine that 
man for a moment. Imagine that man for a moment. The man the previous day left 
for a 16-mile walk to go visit a man named Jesus of Nazareth, 
who he had hoped would come back with him to Capernaum in order 
to heal his son. So as the man is returning home, 
he has faith in the Word of Christ, but there's still probably, and 
we note it from the next verse, there's still this ambiguity 
in his heart, there's still an uncertainty in his soul, but 
as he's going, they say, your son lives. That was great news, 
wasn't it? That was blessed news. This was 
a man who implored Jesus for his intervention. This was a 
man who didn't even listen to the rebuke of Jesus, or if he 
did, he didn't pay it any attention. Because in verse 49, he says, 
Lord, come down for my son is going to die. And now he hears 
that his son is alive. Now notice the man questions 
the time of the healing. Again, he believes the word of 
Jesus, but he wants to hedge his bets. He wants to confirm 
it. He wants to affirm that these two things were coincidental. 
In other words, was it because of the word that Jesus spoke, 
or was it just sort of a happy accident? You know, I visit this 
man, Jesus, I go back the next day, happens to be that my son 
lives. Again, persons are pretty perverse 
when it comes to the power of God. We like to try and explain 
it away any way that we can. So he asks his servants specifically 
in verse 52. He inquired of them the hour 
when he got better and they said to him yesterday at the seventh 
hour the fever left him. That would have been 1 p.m. So 
what does this man now learn that we already knew coming into 
the narrative? Jesus does not have to be physically 
present in order to heal this man's son in Capernaum. Jesus 
does not need to be physically present to heal us now from the 
malady of sin. Jesus, enthroned at the right 
hand of the majesty of God on high, is able to save to the 
uttermost, in the language of the apostle in Hebrews 7, all 
who draw nigh unto God through him. So while Jesus is not physically 
present, Jesus is present. Jesus, according to His divinity, 
is omnipresent. Jesus, according to His divinity, 
is immense. Jesus, according to His divinity, 
hears the prayers of His people, hears the callings upon Him from 
those coming to Him. So this man now understands. Now notice in verse 53, the response 
to the healing. So the father knew it was at 
the same hour in which Jesus said to him, your son lives and 
he himself believed and his whole household. Just imagine for a 
moment, you're that man, you've heard that your son lives, you've 
investigated the matter a little bit more further, and you found 
that it was at the time that this man, Jesus of Nazareth, 
said, your son lives, that's when he took the turn for the 
better. That's when the fever broke. That's when he was able 
to get up. That's when he was able to eat. 
That's when he was able to go to the bathroom. That's when 
he was able to go outside. That's when he was returned, 
as it were, to good full health. And so this man now rejoices 
in this. He believes in the Lord Jesus 
Christ. Again, it's not the case that, you know, the first faith 
wasn't real and the second. No, we see that growth when we 
understand, when we have knowledge. This is Peter's point in 2 Peter 
3, 18. But grow in the grace and in 
the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. What happens 
when we grow in our knowledge of God? Our faith increases, 
doesn't it? Brethren, remember Hebrews chapter 
12, when Paul the apostle, I think Paul wrote Hebrews, says, we 
are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses. What is that cloud 
of witnesses? The apostle pictures an amphitheater 
surrounding Christian runners, because that's the point in his 
exhortation in Hebrews 12. Run with endurance the race that 
is set before you. But he speaks concerning this 
cloud of witnesses. Who are they and how do they 
function? They're the men and women of Hebrews 11, the great 
persons of the hall of faith. And they're not in that amphitheater 
rooting us on. It's not like they're cheering 
us saying, run, keep going, endure, persevere. No, their witness 
is to God. We are to look up to Father Abraham 
in the amphitheater. We're to look up to Enoch in 
the amphitheater. We're to look up to David in 
the amphitheater. We're to look up to Rahab the 
harlot in the amphitheater. We're to look up to Jephthah 
and Samson. And what are we supposed to hear 
from them? Their witness that God is faithful. That's the point of that cloud 
of witnesses. That's the point in our understanding 
what God or who God is and what God does. It's so that we'll 
grow in faith. It's that we'll increase in our 
stability. It's that we won't be tossed 
to and fro by every wind of doctrine. It's so that we'll be solid and 
rooted firmly the way the man of Psalm 1 is by God's grace 
and mercy. So he responds to this, he understands 
this at the end of verse 53, he himself believed and his whole 
household. Cyril of Alexandria says he asks 
them the hour that the sick child turned for the better to see 
if it coincided with the time of grace. And when he learns 
that it does and the time is no different, he is saved with 
his entire household. He attributes the power of the 
miracle to the Savior Christ and brings to Christ a firmer 
faith as a fruit of his thanksgiving for what had happened. It's a 
great way to summarize that. Calvin comments in a way that 
I think is helpful as well. It's more of a rebuke to us in 
terms of the measure of material that we have. We have whole Bibles. We have Genesis to Revelation. We have sermon audio. We have banner of true trust. 
We have the internet. We have CCEL, which is the Christian, 
classic, ethereal library. We have so many resources at 
our disposal. We have, in our church, a morning 
confession study every other week at 930. This isn't a shameless 
plug, by the way. It's simply making a point. We 
have a morning worship service and then we have an evening worship 
service. And the two services are not the same in terms of 
content and material. We have a Wednesday night Bible 
study. We have a Saturday morning study every other Saturday. In 
other words, we have a lot of reception of data. There's a 
lot of availability here to get the word of God. What did this 
man have? Your son lives. That's what he 
had. That's what he had. Listen to 
Calvin. For how many will you find that 
profit as much by many sermons as this man, who was half a heathen, 
profited by hearing a single word? So much the more ought 
we to labor with zeal to arouse our sluggishness, and above all 
to pray that God would touch our hearts in such a manner that 
we may not be less willing to believe than he is ready and 
gracious to promise. This man received the word and 
marched 16 miles back to Capernaum. He is faced with the happy news 
from the servants that his son lives. And it's that reality 
that stabilizes him, that strengthens him, that increases his faith. Calvin's right. We need to arouse 
our sluggishness. If we're not increasing in our 
faith, if we're not growing in the grace and in the knowledge 
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, it's very symptomatic, 
it's very typical of all of us to blame everything else. Well, 
you know, it's my wife, it's my husband, it's my children, 
it's my job, it's all these things that have prevailed against me 
such that I could be a spiritual sloth. No, it's you. Let's just accept that fact. Let's march on in this new year 
taking responsibility for our sluggishness and praying to God 
Most High that he help us to overcome it. That we improve 
upon sermons that we hear. That we read our Bibles with 
attentiveness. That we don't just do it in some 
sort of a checklist way, and that we receive the Word of God 
with thanksgiving. God Most High, in His grace, 
has given us Genesis to Revelation, and God Most High, in His grace, 
has given to us, in this Western world, an abundance of resources, 
an abundance of data and information. You can hear the best preaching 
on sermon audio. I mean, I don't even know how 
many people are on there. Whatever your fancy is, whatever 
text, whatever topic, whatever issue, whatever desire you have 
to understand from the word of truth, you can avail yourself 
of that. Sluggishness on our part is simply 
unacceptable. And this morning in our time 
at 9.30, it wasn't confession study, it was prayer meeting. 
You know what the common theme is concerning prayer requests 
from around the world, and increasingly we're seeing it in our own country, 
is the oppression by government of the Christian religion. Now, 
if you doubt that, brethren, understand that this Friday, 
this two days ago Friday, a law was passed forbidding me to say 
that transgenderism is a sin. That is oppression. The government needs to stay 
out of the lane of the church and let the church just do what 
the church has always done. So as we survey, not just our 
country where there's increasing oppression, but when we survey 
North Korea, I mean, that nut just said his father invented 
the burrito. Brethren, they've got big problems 
in North Korea. They've got big problems in China. 
There's big problems throughout the Middle East. There's big 
problems throughout the Earth. It is simply unacceptable for 
Christians in the 21st century to be apathetic, to be lazy, 
and to be sluggish. We've got Satan, we've got our 
own remaining corruption, and we've got the world now in spades 
against us. And if we are not on our game, 
if we are not on our toes, if we do not know the scriptures, 
then we're going to be run roughshod over. We look back at the church 
and we ask the question, well, how do we get here? Because the 
church hasn't been faithful. Because the church hasn't held 
fast. The church hasn't stood fast concerning the admonition 
by Jude in Jude 3. Contend earnestly for the faith 
which was once for all delivered to the saints. That's not negotiable. That's not up for debate. That's 
not something we can choose to do if we'd like to. You know, 
we're not about doctrine. We're just about love. What kind 
of love is it without doctrine? The apostle says that love rejoices 
in the truth in 1 Corinthians 13. When the church misplaced 
her love with the truth, when she said, oh yeah, we're not 
gonna be given to doctrine and to creeds and to confessions, 
we're gonna just love everybody. Brethren, I'm not against loving 
everybody. Believe you me, I struggle with it because I've got remaining 
corruption and not everybody's pleasant to me. But when it comes 
to the admonition or the command, this is what we're supposed to 
do. never at the compromise of truth. Why would we think we're 
going to somehow win God's battles by putting down God's armament? David, when he went to that valley 
of Elah, did not wear Saul's armor because it wasn't proven 
and tested. He wanted what he knew, he wanted what he had, 
and he wanted what was effective. And the church needs to regain 
that. The church needs to be about 
the truth. That's how she's described in 
1 Timothy chapter 3 at verse 15. She is the church of God, 
the household of God, the pillar and ground of what? The truth. So when it comes to this sluggishness 
that is so epidemic in the church today, may I encourage all of 
us to repent, cast off the sluggishness, read your Bibles with attention, 
and attend preaching with attention as well. So then notice John ends verse 
54 with reference to a review. This again is the second sign 
Jesus did when he had come out of Judea into Galilee. As I said, 
the seven signs, the water and the wine, the healing of the 
nobleman's son, the healing at the pool of Bethesda in chapter 
5, feeding of the 5,000 in chapter 6, walking on the water in chapter 
six, the healing of the blind man in chapter nine, and then 
the raising of Lazarus from the dead in John chapter 11. So the 
apostle narrates, the apostle puts together his gospel narrative, 
not including every single sign, but signs calculated to show 
and confirm to you that this Jesus is the Christ, the son 
of the living God. and to call upon you to believe 
in Him, and to promise that those who do believe in Him will have 
everlasting life. Well, in conclusion, just a few 
lessons and then we'll go. First, as I said, the example 
of the nobleman. The example of the nobleman. 
He experienced life in a fallen world. His experience is our 
experience, right? People get sick. People die. 
People contract disease. People have issues. This world, 
it was never promised. Genesis, you know, chapter 3, 
when God says, you know, cursed will you be. He didn't say, but 
there'll never be any problems. There'll never be any issues. 
There'll never be any challenges. Life, brethren, is about risk. The other day, a couple of weeks 
ago, I saw the Premier of Ontario say what was an overabundance 
of caution. I don't put a helmet on when 
I drive in my car. That would be an overabundance 
of caution. I make a calculated risk and 
choose not to wear a helmet when I drive in my car. or if I'm 
gonna shimmy up a ladder to go get something off my roof, I 
don't now because I'm in a townhouse, but I don't put on a safety harness. 
I probably should, but I don't live based on an overabundance 
of caution. I do risk management like we've 
always done, and it pretty much works out for most people. But 
the common experience of man living in a sin-cursed world 
is sorrow, misery, difficulty, sickness, and death. So this 
man had the common experience of man. Secondly, this man recognized 
the power of the Lord Jesus Christ. Think about this for a moment. 
He is a royal official. He works under Herod Antipas. 
He works under not a king, but a king-like figure. He had means. He had servants. He certainly 
could have afforded the best doctors in Galilee or Capernaum. He certainly could have afforded 
the best nutritionist to make sure that, you know, no bad thing 
would have ever been ingested by his son. No, he had all that, 
but he traveled 16 miles to go see Jesus. He recognized in Jesus 
something concerning his power and his ability and his efficacy. 
Thirdly, we see the earnestness with which he addresses the Lord. He implores him. He says, come 
down for my son is about to die. I think this father is a great 
example to us. Yesterday, we had the memorial 
service for my father-in-law. We weren't able to go because 
that's just not allowed anymore, but we watched online, we watched 
on YouTube, and my brother-in-law happened to be the pastor of 
the church, so he does the funeral. And one of the things that he 
said concerning his father, and I can vouchsafe too, I think 
that's the right word there, is that his father was a present 
man. His father was with his children. His father loved the children. The father was there in their 
lives. We hear that sometimes. Well, 
it's not about quantity time, it's about quality time. No, 
it's about quantity time too. You change your schedule. You 
deny yourself. You make your life more miserable 
for your children. That's what people have typically 
done as long as they've had children. They see the need to protect 
them. They see the need to provide 
for them. They see the need to intercede 
for them. And they see the need to go to 
God on their behalf. Think about Job. Job 1, 4-5. His sons would go and feast in 
their houses, each on his appointed day, and would send and invite 
their three sisters to eat and drink with them. So it was when 
the days of feasting had run their course, that Job would 
send and sanctify them. And he would rise early in the 
morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them 
all. For Job said, it may be that my sons have sinned and 
cursed God in their hearts. Thus Job did what? Job did this 
regularly. He did it regularly, not just 
after he heard a sermon that kind of pinched his conscience 
a bit, so he went home and he, you know, he gathered his kids 
up and he prayed with them and then forgot about them on Tuesday. 
Brethren, it is a long-haul process parenting children. It is a long-haul 
process raising and rearing them unto the Lord. We've been told 
to do so In Ephesians chapter 6, do not provoke your children, 
but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. I 
think this man is a great example of that. And then the final aspect 
of his example is the catechizing of his household. What happens 
when he goes home? He says, son, you're now well 
because of Jesus of Nazareth. Kids, you see your brother? You 
see how he's healthy? You see how the fever broke? 
See his mammoth appetite? See how he's back to normal? 
That's because of Jesus of Nazareth. This man who has power to heal. 
This man who speaks the spoken word. And it heals from 16 miles 
away. This father catechized his children. He taught them. He instructed 
them. He showed them where the power 
lies. He didn't say, well, just a lucky 
event. So glad these natural pathic 
remedies, you know, the sage help. That's not it. He gives 
glory to Jesus, brethren. This is fathering. I think this 
nobleman functions here in an exemplary manner. Secondly, we 
see the glory of Christ. Again, not a lot. He says just 
a couple of things. One's a rebuke and the other 
is, go your way, your son lives. That's it. We're going to look 
at Naaman tonight. I thought about the healing of 
Naaman in 2 Kings chapter 5 when I was working through this passage. 
It's been a few years since we looked at that, so we'll go ahead 
and look at it tonight. Naaman's the same sort of a guy. He's just offended that Elisha 
doesn't leave Elisha's house, but rather sends his servant. 
And when Elisha tells him to go and dip in the river, he says, 
well, aren't the rivers in my place even more majestic? What 
is it? Man judges God based on man. Man judges God and his power 
and ability based on what we know. This guy, this nobleman 
thought that Jesus had to be present, but he didn't. So the 
glory of Christ is seen in the simplicity and the certainty 
with which he speaks. The glory of Christ is seen in 
his office as a prophet. Your son lives. He's claimed 
to be a prophet, or John has claimed that Jesus is a prophet, 
which Jesus claims in the parallel passages in Nazareth anyway, 
and which was promised by God through Moses in Deuteronomy 
chapter 18 at verse 15, which is applied by Peter to Jesus 
in Acts chapter 3 at verse 22. So Jesus is a prophet. What did 
I say earlier? It was the test of the prophet's 
status. The word. You read this in Deuteronomy 
chapter 13. You see it in Deuteronomy chapter 
18. If a prophet speaks something in the name of God and it doesn't 
come to pass, what happens? You execute him. The gutters 
would run with blood if we did that since then with everybody 
who's had a hankering to tell us when Jesus is going to come 
again. Jesus has said, no man knows the hour of day, but that 
doesn't stop the fools among us. Well, I don't know the hour 
of the day, but I'll give you the month and the year. They're nuts. They're 
wrong. And according to the Old Testament, 
with reference to false prophecy, it was a capital offense. Why? Because God deemed to speak to 
his people through the prophetic word. So Christ as prophet speaks 
the words, your son lives. And guess what? The son lived. 
We see the compassion of the Savior. Again, we may not see 
it right here. This man comes and he implores, 
and then Jesus in verse 48, unless you people see signs and wonders, 
you will by no means believe. Where's the compassion there? 
Hey, it was a word of truism that needed to be said, and then 
go your way, your son lives. That's compassion. That's compassion. That's sympathizing with. And the blessed thing, with reference 
to God, when we understand His compassion, it's not like ours. 
I may sympathize with you. You may have a child, nigh unto 
death, and I can pray for him, and I will pray for him, but 
I don't have the power to effectively raise him from the dead. So my 
co-sympathy with you is nice, it probably makes you feel good, 
but it doesn't raise your child from his sick bed. The co-sympathy 
of Christ with his people is joined with power, it's joined 
with efficacy, it's joined with the fact that he is God most 
high. And then thirdly, the providence 
of God. I know there's nothing in here 
that says, this is the theological lesson you ought to take away 
from this, but look at it, the providence of God. It's oftentimes 
calamity that brings persons to the Lord. It's oftentimes 
calamity that gets people thinking about things of another world. 
As I said, two Greek words are used for this particular son 
or child. We don't know how old he was, 
but we do know that typically in the course of human events, 
fathers usually precede their sons to the grave. That's just 
the normal course. I know there are travesties along 
the way. I know there are tragedies along 
the way. I know that children die. I know 
that it's a most painful sort of a situation. But for the most 
part, fathers typically go to the grave first. Not in this 
instance. The son was on death's door. Providence brought the noble 
man to Jesus. Listen to A.W. Pink. He says, 
it is well when trouble leads a man to God. Doesn't always 
do that, does it? Sometimes people get really upset. 
How could God do this? How could God engage in this? 
How could God or why would God? Pink says it as well, when trouble 
leads a man to God instead of away from God. Affliction is 
one of God's medicines. Let us beware of murmuring in 
time of trouble. It was this providence in this 
man's life that brought him seeking the Lord Jesus Christ. I don't 
know why you're here this morning. If you're new, if you're visiting, 
if you've just thought, hey, I'm gonna try out this church 
today. Well, providentially you are 
here and I'm gonna tell you something that you need to hear. God is 
a holy God. He is righteous. He is pure. 
The scripture says, his eye is too pure to behold any evil. 
Now that is mind blowing. But what is agonizingly painful 
is to understand what the Bible says about man. Man is sinful. We're messed up. Not just, you 
know, the heathen or the pagan. All of us, all have sinned and 
fallen short of the glory of God. So that's bad news. If God 
is absolutely holy, righteous, and just, and he doesn't look 
upon any evil in an approving sort of a way, and he must punish 
sin as a just judge and as a righteous God, and we're sinners in Adam, 
and then we sin in our own way, in our own schemes, our own devices, 
the things that we indulge in, the violation, the transgression 
of God's law. See the bad news there? But the 
good news is that God sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, who 
took on our humanity with all the essential properties and 
the common infirmities thereof, and yet without sin. And this 
Lord Jesus lived a life of obedience to that law. This Lord Jesus 
did everything that was ever commanded of Him by God. He doesn't 
do that simply to be an example for us. He does that so that 
we can have a righteousness, be clothed in His righteousness. 
But as well, he goes to the cross and there he takes in himself 
the punishment due for us. That's what the cross is about. 
I know at times we have these ideas in the cross of sentimentality. We read a reading this morning. 
Maudlin's sentimentalism is what A.W. Pink calls the modern church's 
reflection upon the love of God. Like it's syrupy and it's sappy. No, that love of God was also 
upholding the righteousness and the justice of God. so that Paul 
can say that God is both just and the justifier of the one 
who has faith in Jesus. So at the cross, there is a demonstration 
of the righteousness of God. God didn't sacrifice His righteousness 
to save us. Rather, God upheld His righteousness 
in saving us, and that was the aspect of the Savior on the cross. So He is a substitute for real 
sinners whom the Father had given Him. He goes to the grave, He's 
raised again the third day, such that when by grace we believe 
in Him, we're not only forgiven of our sins, but we receive a 
righteousness by which we get to enter into the presence of 
God Almighty. That's the gospel. Providence 
has brought us together on this beautiful day to hear and to 
focus our thoughts upon that. Let us not be sluggish. Let us 
not forget. Let us not be lazy. Let us not 
go our way and say, oh, I'm more concerned about my soup today 
than I am with the truth that Christ Jesus saves all those 
who draw nigh unto God through him. Let us pray. Our Father, 
we thank you for your Word. We thank you for the power of 
the Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for the Word of 
Christ and the blessedness that we have in having the Bibles 
and having the whole Bible in our laps. We ask that you would 
help us to shake off the sluggishness that so often infects us and 
help us, God, to receive with thanksgiving the implanted Word. And for us as parents and grandparents, 
may we see something of the example of this noble man who experienced 
the world's miseries and sorrows, this man who recognized the power 
and the efficacy of our Lord Jesus Christ, this man who implored 
the Lord on behalf of his son, and this man who taught his whole 
household to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Help us, Lord God, 
in this godless age to equip our children Help us to equip 
them with the word of truth, with the confession of faith, 
with sound doctrine, so that they may be protected, that they 
may be on guard. But Lord, we acknowledge we can 
only provide that in the external way. We commit them to you and 
pray that you'd open their hearts. cause them to receive the word 
of God, cause them to see that Jesus Christ is altogether lovely 
and chief among 10,000, and cause them by grace to believe on him 
and be saved. And we ask this in Jesus' name, 
amen. We'll close with a brief time 
of meditation.