“Go,” Jesus replied, “your son will live.” – John 4:50

John chapter 4 recounts a time when Jesus went to a suburb of Galilee named Cana, where He turned water into wine. There was a certain royal official whose son lay sick and was bedridden. When this man heard that Jesus was in town, He came to Jesus to beg Him to come heal his son before the child dies. Jesus puts Him off, saying “unless you see signs and wonders, you will never believe.” The man clings on and begs, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” Jesus, wanting to challenge the official’s faith, tells him to go and that his child lives. 

He challenges the man to move his faith from his eyes to his ear, which is the fundamental requirement for salvation. Scripture tells us that faith cometh by hearing and hearing the word of God. This means that if we constantly listen and prioritize the word of God, we will increase our faith and see His glory in our lives. If by the word God created and put the world together, then by the word he can change a dire situation in your life. 

More often than not, we want to see miracles and signs with our eyes before we believe in God. We are like this official, like Thomas, we want to feel Jesus’s pierced hands before we believe. We want Him to give us a sign or physical manifestation before we believe. However, the words He speaks are full of life, and if He speaks those words to us we must believe with all our hearts that it carries weight as much as His presence. 

Today, Jesus is challenging us to go back to His word. The royal official had only the word of Jesus to hold on to and that is all he needed. Likewise, Jesus is declining our requests for Him to give us a sign and urging us to hang on to His word. Because that is all we will ever need. It is my prayer that you will not flinch, rather, you will hold on to the word entirely, because our very existence depends on it. Amen!