1 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:05,320 Speaker 1: Life Audio for. 2 00:00:11,320 --> 00:00:14,120 Speaker 2: Hello, thank you for listening to your Daily Bible Verse, 3 00:00:14,160 --> 00:00:17,320 Speaker 2: the podcast that examines one verse each day to learn 4 00:00:17,320 --> 00:00:20,160 Speaker 2: more about God and his will for us. I'm your host, 5 00:00:20,239 --> 00:00:23,560 Speaker 2: Shaka Heinz, and after this short word from our sponsor, 6 00:00:23,920 --> 00:00:34,320 Speaker 2: will dive into today's Bible verse and John four, verse fifty. 7 00:00:39,880 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 2: Today's Bible verses John four, verse fifty go, Jesus replied, 8 00:00:45,200 --> 00:00:49,120 Speaker 2: your son will live. The man took Jesus at his 9 00:00:49,200 --> 00:00:53,080 Speaker 2: word and departed. You know, I have a friend who 10 00:00:53,120 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 2: was waiting for an important phone call. It was a 11 00:00:55,960 --> 00:00:59,560 Speaker 2: phone call from an official who needed to relay important 12 00:00:59,600 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 2: information to my friend so that she could make possibly 13 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:08,040 Speaker 2: life altering decisions. The official had seemingly ghosted my friend 14 00:01:08,120 --> 00:01:11,199 Speaker 2: for several weeks. So my friend and I we prayed 15 00:01:11,200 --> 00:01:13,560 Speaker 2: for the situation, and I asked her if she could 16 00:01:13,840 --> 00:01:16,560 Speaker 2: walk away from the prayer with the confidence that the 17 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:20,319 Speaker 2: Lord heard her and would act on her behalf. It's 18 00:01:20,360 --> 00:01:24,200 Speaker 2: a hard ask, right, I cited this verse and the 19 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:28,440 Speaker 2: faith of a man, and with a dying child, my 20 00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:32,200 Speaker 2: friend decided to trust God. The very next day, my 21 00:01:32,280 --> 00:01:35,360 Speaker 2: friend and I spoke and she told me the official 22 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:38,920 Speaker 2: it called, and when we remembered our prayer, because yes, 23 00:01:39,160 --> 00:01:42,840 Speaker 2: we had actually forgotten what we asked God for well, 24 00:01:42,840 --> 00:01:47,039 Speaker 2: but when we remember, we rejoiced in what God had done. Now, 25 00:01:47,160 --> 00:01:50,880 Speaker 2: John records the story of a royal official whose child 26 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:56,280 Speaker 2: in Copernaum is dying. Copernaum is a city approximately twenty 27 00:01:56,320 --> 00:01:59,600 Speaker 2: five miles away from Cana of Galilee, where Jesus is 28 00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:04,240 Speaker 2: visiting at this time. The text doesn't clarify the capacity 29 00:02:04,280 --> 00:02:07,320 Speaker 2: of his office. It just calls him royal official, so 30 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:10,000 Speaker 2: we don't know whether he's a member of Herod's quart 31 00:02:10,120 --> 00:02:13,799 Speaker 2: or not. The text doesn't even explicitly state that he's 32 00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:16,600 Speaker 2: a Jew or a gentile. We only know that this 33 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:21,120 Speaker 2: man is desperately seeking Jesus to heal his son. The 34 00:02:21,200 --> 00:02:25,040 Speaker 2: royal official finds Jesus in Cana, and according to Google Maps, 35 00:02:25,520 --> 00:02:30,200 Speaker 2: historically this journey from Capernaum to Cana was significant as 36 00:02:30,240 --> 00:02:33,880 Speaker 2: it involved a steep climb from Capernaum on the shores 37 00:02:33,919 --> 00:02:37,120 Speaker 2: of the Sea of Galilee, which sits roughly seven hundred 38 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:40,120 Speaker 2: feet below sea level, to the inland hills of Cana, 39 00:02:40,720 --> 00:02:44,800 Speaker 2: situated about one thousand feet above sea level. The trip 40 00:02:44,840 --> 00:02:48,320 Speaker 2: downhill from Copernaum to Cana would take approximately eight hours, 41 00:02:48,320 --> 00:02:50,960 Speaker 2: so it's possible to reach it in a day. I 42 00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:54,399 Speaker 2: imagine a trip though from Copernium uphill to Cana might 43 00:02:54,440 --> 00:02:58,480 Speaker 2: take even longer. Well, the official takes the trip and 44 00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:01,840 Speaker 2: he finds Jesus in Cana and begs him to heal 45 00:03:01,840 --> 00:03:05,520 Speaker 2: his son. In verse fifty, Jesus tells the man go, 46 00:03:06,400 --> 00:03:10,560 Speaker 2: your son will live. And in this moment, a father 47 00:03:10,680 --> 00:03:13,920 Speaker 2: who is journeyed to Jesus in a desperate gambit to 48 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:18,120 Speaker 2: save his son faces a choice. Understand that if this 49 00:03:18,200 --> 00:03:21,240 Speaker 2: man begins the journey home, there's no way to verify 50 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 2: Jesus's words. They don't have texts or email, he can't 51 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:28,919 Speaker 2: call back video chat, and should he leave Jesus's presence, 52 00:03:28,960 --> 00:03:31,560 Speaker 2: there is no quick or easy way to get back 53 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:32,680 Speaker 2: in touch with Jesus. 54 00:03:33,320 --> 00:03:36,880 Speaker 3: So in this moment, the royal official, the father of 55 00:03:36,960 --> 00:03:41,000 Speaker 3: a dying child, must make a choice. He can choose 56 00:03:41,080 --> 00:03:45,400 Speaker 3: to doubt Jesus's word by disagreeing with Jesus's methods and 57 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:49,320 Speaker 3: questioning his authority, like, hey, Jesus, no, you need to 58 00:03:49,360 --> 00:03:52,760 Speaker 3: come with me home. I can't let you leave my site. Jesus, 59 00:03:52,840 --> 00:03:57,080 Speaker 3: you have to do something for my son in person, He. 60 00:03:57,080 --> 00:03:59,920 Speaker 2: Could do that he could doubt Jesus, or he can 61 00:04:00,160 --> 00:04:03,720 Speaker 2: take Jesus at his word, the Greek verb used here 62 00:04:03,720 --> 00:04:06,440 Speaker 2: in this phrase. The phrase took him at his word 63 00:04:06,520 --> 00:04:10,240 Speaker 2: means the man trusted Jesus in such a way that 64 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:15,960 Speaker 2: actions based on that trust followed. This is faith, an 65 00:04:16,000 --> 00:04:20,039 Speaker 2: action word meaning that a person is living acting in 66 00:04:20,080 --> 00:04:23,719 Speaker 2: a way consistent with what they believed to be true. 67 00:04:24,520 --> 00:04:27,520 Speaker 2: Jesus told the man, it's a done deal. Your son 68 00:04:27,560 --> 00:04:30,839 Speaker 2: will live, and the man chose to take the truth 69 00:04:31,000 --> 00:04:35,280 Speaker 2: of what Jesus had declared, believe it before he saw 70 00:04:35,440 --> 00:04:40,000 Speaker 2: the miracle and had home. And it's interesting that the 71 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:42,359 Speaker 2: text it says here that on his way home, the 72 00:04:42,480 --> 00:04:45,719 Speaker 2: royal official runs into a servant who tells him that 73 00:04:45,839 --> 00:04:50,280 Speaker 2: his son is well. On his way home the very 74 00:04:50,440 --> 00:04:53,920 Speaker 2: next day. Remember this is an eight hour journey downhill 75 00:04:54,000 --> 00:04:57,240 Speaker 2: from Cana to Copernium. The man could have made it 76 00:04:57,279 --> 00:05:00,000 Speaker 2: in one day. You would think a frantic father desperate 77 00:05:00,240 --> 00:05:02,720 Speaker 2: to get back to his dying son would not have 78 00:05:02,839 --> 00:05:06,880 Speaker 2: stayed overnight somewhere on the journey home. But this man slept, 79 00:05:07,320 --> 00:05:10,520 Speaker 2: got up, and journeyed home like a person who was 80 00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:14,760 Speaker 2: confident that Jesus could and would somehow keep his word, 81 00:05:15,360 --> 00:05:18,599 Speaker 2: and Jesus did keep his word. The man's son was 82 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:23,799 Speaker 2: healed at the very hour Jesus spoke, go your son 83 00:05:24,120 --> 00:05:28,400 Speaker 2: will live. Oh, this is the choice, my friends, we 84 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:31,479 Speaker 2: must make when we hear the word of God. He 85 00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:35,200 Speaker 2: cannot lie, So every promise he gives is yes and 86 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:38,719 Speaker 2: a man, it's up to us to choose to believe 87 00:05:38,800 --> 00:05:42,680 Speaker 2: him before we see the answer, the miracle, the way out, 88 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:47,040 Speaker 2: the promised help, and we are supposed to act then 89 00:05:47,279 --> 00:05:51,799 Speaker 2: in a way that is consistent with that belief. Today, 90 00:05:52,279 --> 00:05:54,800 Speaker 2: where's God calling you to take him at his word 91 00:05:54,920 --> 00:05:58,800 Speaker 2: and act like a believer. Let's have faith like this 92 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:03,520 Speaker 2: desperate father, and live like people who trust God to 93 00:06:03,640 --> 00:06:10,240 Speaker 2: keep his word. Let's pray, Father, you're a promise keeper. 94 00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:15,880 Speaker 2: Every word you speak is truth. In your time and 95 00:06:15,960 --> 00:06:20,039 Speaker 2: your way, we will always, always, always have what you 96 00:06:20,160 --> 00:06:24,120 Speaker 2: promise to give. Bless us God, and take that truth 97 00:06:24,160 --> 00:06:27,320 Speaker 2: from head knowledge to heart knowledge, so that we can 98 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:31,120 Speaker 2: live in freedom from fear and anxiety. As sons and 99 00:06:31,279 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 2: daughters of the Living God. We love you and we 100 00:06:35,400 --> 00:06:38,040 Speaker 2: pray these things in Jesus's name. 101 00:06:38,800 --> 00:06:39,200 Speaker 3: Amen. 102 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:47,440 Speaker 1: Hey listeners, it's Kelly from the Life Audio Team with 103 00:06:47,480 --> 00:06:50,560 Speaker 1: a quick favor to ask. We're working on a newsletter, 104 00:06:50,720 --> 00:06:54,159 Speaker 1: and honestly, we'd rather ask you what you want than guess. 105 00:06:54,600 --> 00:06:56,719 Speaker 1: There's a two minute survey linked in the show notes. 106 00:06:57,000 --> 00:06:59,600 Speaker 1: Fill it out and shape what we make. Thanks.