Below are some preliminary questions to assist in the study of this passage. For a comprehensive study of the passage, download the Study Guide (PDF download).
1. What kind of welcome does Jesus receive when He returns to Galilee? How is He viewed by the Galileans? See John 4:45 (printed below)
So when he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all the things that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast; for they also had attended the Feast. (John 4:45)
When Jesus returned to the region of Galilee, the Galileans enthusiastically welcomed Him; because they had witnessed all the mighty works He had done in Jerusalem during the time of the Passover (verse 45). But it is important to realize that these Galileans are welcoming Jesus as a miracle-worker, they neither recognize Him nor reverence Him for who He really is; namely, the long expected Messiah, the very Son of God Himself.
2. Who approaches Jesus and what does he want? See John 4:46b-47 (printed below)
Now there was at Capernaum a certain nobleman whose son was sick. (47) When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son; for he was at the point of death. (John 4:46b-47)
In John 4:46-54 we read of a Jewish nobleman from Capernaum, who, upon learning that Jesus was in Cana, undertook the 20-mile trip to that city. Arriving in Cana, he persistently urged Jesus to accompany him back to his home to heal his desperately ill son. The Jewish nobleman discerned Jesus’ power, but only focused on how that power might be employed for his personal benefit. The Galilean nobleman thought he was coming to merely a miracle-worker. That Galilean nobleman came imposing himself upon Jesus, seeking to dictate the terms of his relationship with Jesus, and seeking to define that relationship solely in terms of meeting his own personal needs.
3. What is Jesus’ initial response to this man and his request? See John 4:48 (printed below)
Jesus said to him, Unless you see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe. (John 4:48)
Instead of submitting to the man’s request that He accompany him to his home in order to heal his son, Jesus takes this opportunity to rebuke this man and all the rest of the Galileans. The Galileans received Jesus because they had seen all the things He had done in Jerusalem (verse 45). Their “faith” focused on His works, but did not go beyond those works. They welcomed this man, Jesus, because He was able to do mighty works that fascinated them and were of personal benefit to them. They failed to appreciate that these works were “signs” (verse 54)—intended to be the divine credentials that identify Jesus as the Lord and Messiah so that men might trust in Him and His Word. Theirs was not only a “faith” based on miracles, it was also a “faith” that was sustained by miracles—for this Jesus rebukes them: “Unless you see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe” (verse 48)
4. When the man continues to ask Jesus to come with him and heal his son, what does Jesus say? See John 4:49-50a (printed below) What is Jesus forcing this man to do?
The nobleman said to him, Sir, come down before my child dies. (50) Jesus said to him, Go your way, your son lives. (John 4:49-50a)
Jesus did not submit to the nobleman’s request that He accompany him to his home in order to personally heal his son. Notice how Jesus deals with this Jewish nobleman: He puts the man into a position in which he has no other alternative but to believe the word that Jesus spoke to him and then act upon that word in faith (verse 50). Rather than accompanying the man to his home and there personally healing his son, Jesus simply speaks the word, “Go your way; your son lives”—the nobleman is thus put into a position in which he must accept Jesus’ word, he has no other alternative.
5. How does the nobleman respond to Jesus’ word? What happens as a result? See John 4:50b-53 (printed below)
The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and he departed. (51) While he was still on his way, his servants met him, reporting that his son was alive. (52) He asked them what hour he began to recover. They told him, Yesterday at the seventh hour of the day the fever left him. (53) The father realized that it was at the hour when Jesus said to him, Your son lives. Then he believed, together with his whole household. (John 4:50b-53)
That Galilean nobleman came imposing himself upon Jesus, seeking to dictate the terms of his relationship with Jesus, and seeking to define that relationship solely in terms of meeting his own personal needs. But in the hour of crisis this man was forced to rely solely upon the word of Christ (verses 49-53)—and in so doing, he came to know Christ in a far deeper way: he came to know Christ as the divine Savior and the Savior of his whole household.
