John 4:46-54 on February 8th, 2026
Above is audio of the sermon pulled from the video and amplified.
Below is transcript pulled from the video and formatted by artificial intelligence. There may be inconsistencies or errors.
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Our Gospel story for today is an analogy for the life of faith. This is a miracle story, or rather a sign, as John's Gospel calls them. Today Jesus returns to Cana, where he previously turned gallons of water into the very best wine. He is confronted by a royal official whose son is near death. Abundant, celebratory wine is one thing; healing a boy at death's door is another. And while these signs are meant to point us to God's glory, this healing shows us even more about what it is that God wants and desires.
But it didn't seem like Jesus was actually going to do it. Like at the wedding in chapter 2, Jesus is a bit put off by the idea of doing something impressive. Much like he snipped at his mother at the wedding, he snips this guy. You won't believe unless you're dazzled by a miracle. It doesn't seem to take much to convince Jesus, though, because just one short sentence later, Jesus tells the man to go home. Go home. Your son will live. Jesus speaks the words, making the miraculous healing happen from a distance. It's a sign not just that Jesus and God can heal, but they have the power to do it from afar. This healing reveals God's glory and power.
Now I opened the sermon by saying this story is an analogy for the life of faith. And I think some people hear that and they connect faith with healing. If we have faith, we or a loved one will be healed. More faith means more healing. Because isn't that what this story is about? Faith leading to healing. That healing is a sign of faith in Jesus, faith in God, faith that God will heal. Healing miracles. We want that. We want that sign. And truthfully, truthfully, we always look for signs. Signs that we're on the right path. Signs about what we should do. Signs that our faith is validated. But we can get distracted, obsessed by these signs, which may be why Jesus is so flippant about them. Why? Healing? Jesus doesn't want us to see the sign and the sign only. Jesus' mission isn't to do cool party tricks to give us what we want. Right? Rather, Jesus' mission is to give us what we need.
Faith in this story isn't created because of Jesus' healing. Nor do we see Jesus' healing because of this man's faith. Faith and healing aren't all that connected. Instead, faith is what happens after Jesus makes the promise. Faith is what happens after Jesus makes the promise. Go. Your son will live. The man has zero proof that this is true. He is a whole day's journey away from his home and he has to walk all that way without actually knowing if the promise is fulfilled or not. And though it's only a day's walk, it probably felt to him like a lifetime. But even though he can't see or can't verify, he takes steps toward the promised result. He trusts what Jesus says is true. And that is the analogy to our life of faith. That's what hits home for me. We live in the middle of this story. We are told of the promise, told what Jesus proclaims, told the God, so loves the world. And then we journey through life, hoping in that promise, living as if that promise is true. And we walk without actually seeing the outcome, without actually knowing what it is we'll find when we go home. That is what it means to live by faith. And I sure wish it were easier sometimes. I wish that I would get more signs that that slapped me in the face and let me know exactly how things are going to work out along the journey. Miracles that help me avoid pitfalls, signs to direct me forward something, something that let me see and know and have a whole hearted without a shadow of a doubt ironclad locked in loaded faith. But Jesus doesn't give us what we want. Jesus gives us what we need.
At the end, this man finds life. The man arrives home and he finds it just as Jesus said. His son is alive. Jesus gave him the word, the promise of life. And yes, of course it's true. Of course, Jesus upholds the promise. There's life at the end of this man's journey. And his journey alone the way like our journey now was one of faith in a God who brings life. His journey led to life God always brings life. And the thing is we have even more of the story than this official did. I'm sure meeting Jesus face to face is a big check mark in his column, but we know more of the story, more of what God truly has in store. We've seen that nothing, nothing in life or death will stop the life that God promises. In the ultimate we get the sign we need, not the sign we want. Jesus dies. Dies on a cross that there is no way that that is the sign that we would be looking for to show us that Jesus is the savior of the world. In fact, the cross was a big old sign for death, a sign of failure, a sign that read, this is the end. And when Jesus didn't act the way humanity demanded, we made an example out of him, a warning sign to others. Fall in line or this happens to you. And God took our sign of pain and death and fear and God turned it into the sign that shows us life, life eternal. What once was a sign of pain and suffering God turned into healing and victory, God gives us the sign we need, not the sign we want. And in much the same way instead of showing up in something fancy, expensive and rare, Christ is present in bread and wine, a simple meal of wheat and grapes. It's not special per se, but it is where Jesus promises to meet us, to dine with us, to feed us and nourish us in faith. The bread and cupper are the glory of God, signs that point us through the love and life that Jesus promises.
In healing, signs and miracles and sacrament story and song and cross and empty tomb each step of the way Jesus has shown us that the promise is true, that life is true. He wants to give us what we truly need. And what we need is the life that he offers. Of course, Jesus' promise is true. It is true for this man who finds life waiting at the end of his journey and it is true for us to as we walk our own road of faith. God in Jesus promises life. Maybe not in the ways we want, but in ways that are true, ways that we need. And healing in the cross, then an empty tomb. Because that is what we need. Amen.