Daily Lesson for August 12, 2016

Today's daily lesson comes from John chapter 4 verses 47 through 50:

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.

If you have ever worried yourself sick over the wellbeing of a child, then you understand the father in this story. If in the middle of the night you have pleaded with God for the miracle of your child's healing or salvation then you know this father.

The man's son is gravely ill, near even to the point of death.  And hearing that this Jesus with the power to work miracles is up in the mountain village of Cana, the father makes the desperate decision to leave his son in his town of Capernaum by the Sea of Galilee and make the day-long journey up to Cana.

Arriving and finding Jesus there in Cana, the father begs him to come down to Capernaum and perform a miracle. But disappointingly Jesus refuses to come, and even speaks suspiciously about miracles.  “Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe.” Again, the father begs Jesus to come down before the child dies.  But again Jesus says no; instead Jesus tells the man to go back down himself and trust that his son will live.

At some point every parent begs for Jesus to come down, out of heaven to do something miraculous to heal or save our child. We travel up the mountain in desperate prayer to Him to come back down with us. But for whatever reason -- and this is a mystery hidden with Him in God -- Jesus cannot or will not come down to do the miraculous. Instead, He tells us to go back down, to be with the child, and to trust Him that though no sign or miraculous wonder is to be done our child will indeed live.

Jesus asks us to go back down the mountain, without miracle in hand. It is an act of faith to trust Him at His word, that though we don't get what we would wanted going up the mountain, we got what we needed -- his promise to us that our children will be will, in life or in death they shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.