John 4:43-54; 1 Chronicles 17; Zechariah 6 

“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.’” (John 4:48 NKJV)

Jesus left the festival in Jerusalem and went back to Cana in Galilee. They accepted Him, because they had seen what He had done in Jerusalem. They had heard of, if not seen, His miracle at the wedding. And then, a man begged Jesus to heal his son. That’s when Jesus responded with what sounds like exasperation. Jesus wanted people to learn from His teaching and not depend on miracles, so perhaps we can understand His reaction there. I don’t think Jesus was exasperated with the father so much as those gathered around. I believe that some of them were whispering that maybe they’d found a miracle Jesus couldn’t perform. That’s all speculation of course, but it’s hard for me to believe that Jesus was that harsh with a distraught father. The healing itself was anticlimactic. Jesus told the guy to go home because his son was alive. And he was.

How often do I see people talking about seeking signs and miracles from God as an indication of their strong faith. One of the phrases I hear often is “putting out a fleece” in prayer as someone seeks God’s answer to a problem. They mention their test for God piously as if this test comes from great faith. Gideon laid out the fleece because he didn’t have faith that God was telling him something, and then, when God showed him what he was supposed to do, he repeated the fleece exercise only he changed the desired outcome. Given the word from God, and then two different confirmations, Gideon finally moved ahead. “Laying out a fleece” isn’t a sign of faith, it’s a sign of lack of faith. True faith was shown by this nobleman. Even though Jesus didn’t come when he asked, he believed Jesus when Jesus said his son would live. Rather than seeking signs and wonders as we come to God, let’s listen for His voice as we seek Him and obey His call.

Lord, it isn’t easy to know what You want from me. Let me hear Your voice clearly and then act in faith to do Your will.