Go your way; your son lives

 

 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!"  So 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. 

 

- John 4:43–54 

 

Yesterday we read that, after Christ had begun to speak with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, His disciples returned from purchasing food in the town, 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 waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, "Come, see a Man who told me all thing 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. Christ's own country is Galilee (John 1:46; 2:1; 7:42, 52; 19:19).  There were Galileans present at Jerusalem during the Passover (see this reading), where Jesus had performed many signs.  My study Bible comments that  while the Galileans received Christ, having seen His signs at the Feast, St. John Chrysostom gives greater credit to the Samaritans (see yesterday's reading, above) for having accepted Christ based on words alone, without the accompanying signs (see also John 20:29).  

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."   My study Bible comments here that Christ is admonishing the people in general (as you in this last verse here is plural both times), and not only the nobleman.  It says that faith based on miraculous works alone is insufficient for salvation; such a type of incomplete faith will quickly turn to scorn when the miracles cease (John 19:15).  

The nobleman said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies!"  So 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 nobleman's great concern is clearly for his child, although his faith in Christ is weak.  My study Bible says that he does not understand that Christ is Lord over illness even from a  distance, nor does he grasp that Jesus would have the power to heal even if the child were to die.  Then he asks about the timing of the healing, as he still does not completely trust the Lord's authority.  It's only after all is confirmed that he and his whole household believe.  Therefore, it notes, in healing the child from a distance, Jesus heals not just the body of the child, but also the soul of the nobleman.

This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee. This is the second of seven signs that Christ performs as reported in John's Gospel.  My study Bible says that as He has revealed He can see into the hearts of people from a distance (John 1:45-48), Christ now demonstrates that He can heal from a distance; therefore, His divine power knows no earthly limits.  There are some similarities between this sign and the miracle which is recorded in Matthew 8:5-13, there are also some crucial differences; they are two different encounters.

It's rather interesting that Jesus has come again to Cana in Galilee -- where He made the water wine -- and here is also the setting for this second sign in John's Gospel.  We might wonder what it is about Cana specifically that enables or allows Christ to perform such miracles, as they are also dependent upon faith (Matthew 13:58).  We remember that, as my study Bible explains it, John uses the term "signs" in his Gospel, to show that these miraculous actions point beyond themselves to the truth that the Kingdom of God has come among us in the Person of Jesus Christ.  So, while the first sign was turning water to wine at the wedding in Cana, here Christ heals the nobleman's son from a distance.  It is a clear statement of Christ's authority as One who is divine, who is God, for who else could perform such an action?  Indeed, this is the point of the encounter with the centurion in the similar story in Matthew 3:5-13.  We have to wonder at the statement that forms a central crux of the story in today's reading, though, Christ's declaration, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe."   Possibly, having returned from Jerusalem, and coming again to Cana, Jesus felt that more signs and wonders would not be necessary, that His previous signs both at Cana and in Jerusalem at the Passover would be enough.   He is apparently disturbed enough by this to remark upon the lack of faith He's finding.  Perhaps He's disappointed in these demands for signs and wonders, but that also becomes another reason for the healing.  The "little" faith the nobleman starts with in asking Christ to heal his son is enough for Christ to go on, so as to build up and strengthen a beginning faith.  For, after all, Christ has come into the world in order to save, and for salvation, it is necessary to have faith.  At any rate, we might assume, also, that the nobleman is used to giving orders himself, having a high rank in the society.  At this stage, Jesus (although not a nobleman, nor even a Levitical priest or member of the ruling Council) in some sense is socially equal to the nobleman; it is the nobleman who must approach him and plead for help, demanding that He "come down" to heal his son.  But Jesus need not travel down to where the boy is, and with only the words "your son lives" the boy is healed.  This is a command indeed, that traverses space and time so as to be instantaneous.  There are no barriers to Christ, and thus what we see is an expression of power and authority that knows no boundaries at all, beyond the capacity of the nobleman to imagine.  It places Christ squarely in the place of the divine, the One to whom "every knee should bow" (Philippians 2:10).  So Christ is beyond the nobleman in this sense, someone with superseding authority beyond all that we know.  This is the great sign of God's Kingdom being present in Him, yet again, for the second sign given in John's Gospel.  He has insight into those who would become His disciples, insight into the Samaritan woman at the well to whom He directly revealed His divine identity, and now here, He heals at a distance as well, without needing to be shown, without needing to be present, without being told about the ailment leading to death of the boy.  All of our conventional understanding of limitation are not present to Him, but He is clearly present in all ways to us.  That is, in His Incarnation, He heals what ails, and brings His divinity to our humanity.  If He can heal this boy, He can also hear our prayers, for there is no stopping the action and intention of the Lord.  All we need is our faith.

 

 

Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down

 

 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."

He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?'  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.'"

 

- Luke 13:1-9 

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus taught: "I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!  But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!  Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth?  I tell you, not at all, but rather division.  For from now on five in one house will be divided:  three against two, and two against three.  Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law."  Then He also said to the multitudes, "Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, 'A shower is coming'; and so it is.  And when you see the south wind blow, you say, 'There will be hot weather'; and there is.  Hypocrites!  You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?  Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right?  When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison.  I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite."

 

 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."  My study Bible comments that these two historical incidents are only reported in Luke.  The slain Galileans, it says, were probably zealots, Jewish nationalists, who triggered some disturbance against the Romans.  The collapse of the tower in Siloam, either by accident or sabotage, was believed to be divine justice on sinners.  Christ denies that this suffering was God's judgment.  Instead, as He continues the theme from His discourse in yesterday's reading (above), using these events as illustrations for those who perish becuase they will not repent.  

 

He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?'  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.'"  My study Bible reports that the fruitless fig tree is universally interpreted in the Church to be fallen humanity.  The three years, it says, represent God's covenants with His people through Abraham, Moses, and Christ, all of which are rejected, as well as the three-year earthly ministry of Christ.  The keeper of the vineyard is Christ Himself, who intercedes on our behalf that He should suffer His Passion and send the Holy Spirit to us before the final judgment takes place.

 

In today's reading, as we have observed over the course of the past several readings, the shadow of the Cross is playing a part in Jesus' teachings.  Or, at any rate, even if it is not entirely explicit, themes from the Cross are making themselves felt.  In yesterday's reading and today's Jesus has been speaking specifically about death -- that is, our human death that will come for all of us, and He has been teaching about the importance of the time we have in our lives before we die.  The essential message here is the preciousness of that limited time, and the importance of repentance and spiritual growth.  This message is particularly acute as we will recall that Jesus began this discourse after criticizing the Pharisees for their hypocrisy (in Thursday's reading).  Taken in that vein, we can understand Jesus preaching repentance to them and to others as He is on His way to the Cross, and before the Passion.  We can understand His vehement assertion that there is little time in our lives, maybe less than we think, to do so.  Repentance is very much linked to our own acts of compassion and mercy, our capacity for opposing our own selfishness.  In Friday's reading, He taught the parable of the man who stored for the future, only to find that his life was ending.  Our anxieties should not be so much for the material things we want to acquire, but our eyes should be on the kingdom of God first, and God knows what we need.  In Saturday's reading, Christ's emphasis was on our focus on the Kingdom and our place in it.  How do we serve God's kingdom while in this world?  We're to remember that we're stewards of what we have, and we make choices regarding what we do in life, how we care for others, what acts of grace we ourselves practice with whatever resources we have.  Those who are given this Kingdom must remember that it's God's will they seek to fulfill, that they are servants, and so much depends upon how we treat our fellow servants according to the Master's wishes.  Finally, Jesus began yesterday's reading (see above) with a clear reference to the Cross (although possibly none of His listeners understood it to be so at the time):  "I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!  But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!"  That baptism to which He refers is His death on the Cross, and by this time He is distressed and anxious to accomplish it.  This passionate statement lets us now just how aware He is of the Cross.  Note that His Passion will send the fire of the Holy Spirit, which will also result in division.  Division is important, because it speaks to us of the kind of peace Christ brings, as discussed in yesterday's reading and commentary.  This is not a shallow peace where disagreements are never settled but simply smothered; neither is it the peace of a great empire that can turn whole countries to devastation.  But the kind of peace Christ seeks to bring is one where we are reconciled to God.  We will be, of necessity, in conflict with those who oppose this, and this is the kind of division He speaks of.   As He goes to the Cross, He will be the first of the new covenant to die for it (the Faithful and True Witness" of Revelation 3:14).   In today's reading, finally, He once more returns to the theme of death, and the focus on the Kingdom.  The scandalous events of multiple deaths to which He refers mustn't be understood as something far away, or in a special or different category of death than one of more expected causes.  Rather, He says, they must focus on their lives and know that they, too, will die as any other, even as these notorious examples.  The essential thing upon which all must focus is a life lived in communion with the Kingdom, in reconciliation to God.  It is the things we choose, and especially what (and Whom) we choose to serve in our lifetimes that really matters.  What is our energy and life for?  To what do we dedicate ourselves?  For what purposes?  What do we work for, and strive for?  Nothing is worth sacrificing our lives or our time for so much as is God's life for us, God's will for us, the Kingdom He preaches, the gospel message He gives us.  As Jesus goes to His own human death on the Cross, the light of that Cross throws into stark relief these aspects of our own lives.  What gives our life meaning?  How do we handle the fact that we are all going to die?  How do we face this and cope with it, and what is the one way to give it the meaning it must have for us?  The Cross sends us a message that, just like Jesus, our lives are valuable but only in the potential we have for what we choose to serve.  Like the Cross which is made holy because it is touched by Christ, so our lives take on meaning and value because we seek to serve His purpose, be a part of His kingdom, and touched by His grace.  This is how we make our lives substantial, meaningful, full of worth -- and how we make meaning of our mortality and the time of our lives.  The last martyr of the old covenant is John the Baptist, who preached that people should "bear fruits worthy of repentance" (Luke 3:8).  Christ calls us to produce this spiritual fruit with the time of our lives, for we are all called to the Cross, and we will all meet Him there to be seen in its light.

 

Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down

 

 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."

He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?'  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.' "

 

- Luke 13:1–9 

 

In yesterday's reading, Jesus said to the disciples, "I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!  But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!  Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth?  I tell you, not at all, but rather division.  For from now on five in one house will be divided:  three against two, and two against three.  Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law."  Then He also said to the multitudes, "Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, 'A shower is coming'; and so it is.  And when you see the south wind blow, you say, 'There will be hot weather'; and there is.  Hypocrites!  You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how it is you do not discern this time?  Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right?  When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison.  I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite." 

 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices.  And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.  Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?  I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."  My study bible informs us that these are two historical incidents, which are only reported in Luke.  The slain Galileans were most likely Zealots, Jewish nationalists, who triggered a disturbance against the Romans.  The collapse of the tower in Siloam, whether by accident or sabotage, was thought to be divine justice on sinners.  My study bible points out that Christ denies this suffering was God's judgment.  Instead, Jesus uses these events as illustrations for those who perish because they will not repent, building on His statements at the end of yesterday's reading in the same discourse (see above). 

He also spoke this parable:  "A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none.  Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, 'Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.  Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?'  But he answered and said to him, 'Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it.  And if it bears fruit, well.  But if not, after that you can cut it down.' "  This fruitless fig tree is universally understood in the Church to be fallen humanity.  The three years, my study bible says, represent God's covenants with God's people through Abraham, Moses, and Christ, each of whom are rejected, as well as the three-year earthly ministry of Christ.  The keeper of the vineyard is Christ Himself.  He intercedes on our behalf by suffering His Passion, and sending the Holy Spirit to us before the final judgment takes place.  

Jesus continues to build on His statement from Thursday's reading, "And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.  But I will show you whom you should fear:  Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!"  This is not to emphasize fear itself, but rather to emphasize the central importance of the first great commandment, as He has named it:  "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"  To place God centrally in life, as the focus around which one gathers one's life, is the whole point of Jesus' reiterated teachings in the readings from yesterday and today.  It really little matters what else we concern ourselves about, whether it is gathering up food for the future, or storing money, or clothing.  It doesn't matter if we are concerned about the evils we think we see about us and consider to be beneath us.  If we don't have the conscious awareness of God placed centrally within our own understanding of what guides our own conduct -- including sins large and small -- then we're equally in danger of losing our chance at living in this Kingdom and especially the eternal life that Christ offers.  In other words, whatever else it is we think about, we need to keep this one constant focus centrally in mind.  Everything depends upon our own communion with God.  We don't compare ourselves with the rest of the world to get the true picture of the focus we need to have, no matter what else is going on, and no matter what others are doing.  He goes through all these illustrations of worldly calamity, terror, human needs, and all the rest simply to emphasize this one strong point:  each of our lives needs to be focused around how we serve God, what we need to do for the strength and depth of our relationship with God, and how we constantly participate as disciples within that communion.  This is the one true central thing we always have to keep in mind above every other concern, and midst all others.  Jesus reminds every one of His disciples of the tremendously greater loss that comes from lack of concern and awareness of strengthening and deepening our relationship to God.  Judgment is mentioned in this context to reinforce the importance and value of the great gift of life offered to all who participate in the Kingdom, and to the tremendous loss of that gift that can result from a lack of priority or understanding of the importance of the spiritual life.  That is, we need to get right with God, no matter what we think we've already done, no matter what we see others doing.  This is because the gift we receive from this communion is so much greater than any other goals we can ponder.  In the final paragraph, He emphasizes one thing that He has reiterated again and again, the importance of bearing spiritual fruit.  Whether we are the servants in the household who remain alert and awake for our Master's return or we are those who are stewards and must administer with mercy over our fellow servants (see Saturday's reading), whether we are anxious and concerned with our worldly goods and needs (see Friday's reading), whether we're worried about the conflicts or upset with those around us via our choice for discipleship to Christ (yesterday's reading, above), our chief concern really needs to be with bearing the spiritual fruit that God looks for and that Christ stresses so strongly.  That fruit is the product of our own practices of mercy, generosity, or care that we practice as disciples, and the corrections for our own varieties of selfishness or sins that the communion with God makes us aware of.  There is so much to receive in this Kingdom which blesses us, including the grace of God which enables us to become much more than we think possible and to grow in our faith.  Jesus keeps emphasizing this one thing necessary, this desire to serve and please God by living the life of faithfulness, that nothing else is more important or essential.  We stand to lose so much when we lose sight of it.  Let us keep our focus where it must be.  Let us bear the fruit so carefully nurtured by Christ, and passionately tended with such a depth of sacrifice.