I invite you to take your Bible with me and we will study together from the Gospel according to John, chapter 4, verses 43 to 54. And the theme of this study is the authority of Jesus Christ. Indeed, he was the Son of Man, such was the title given to him by the Bible, being in the flesh, but at the same time the Son of God. He never ceased to be God. even when he came to this earth in the form of a man. So wherever he went, people only saw a man before them. Yet the glory of God was hidden in this body, and it was manifested as the Lord Jesus himself decided to manifest this glory. It did not depend on men, but he came to do a work that his father gave him to accomplish, and all he did was to satisfy the will of his father, and not to satisfy the pleasure of men. This is how the Lord Jesus of the Bible is distinguished from the Jesus who is preached today. There is a Jesus who is preached, there is a Gospel that men have adopted and they announce, It is not the Jesus Christ of the Bible as we see here. The popular Jesus is a Jesus who is in the hands of men to do what they want with him. Moreover, even the Jesus who is preached is a Jesus who depends entirely on the will of man. So if man decides, to follow him, then Christ will have at that moment a disciple. But if man refuses, then Christ, the Jesus of men, can do nothing. What contrast do we have here with the Christ of the Bible? And so I read here from verse 43 of John 4. It is written, After these two days, Jesus left there to go to Galilee, for he had declared himself that a prophet is not honored in his own country. Lorsqu'il arriva en Galilée, il fut bien reçu des Galiléens. Donc voilà un exemple. On en a ici qui ne l'ont pas honoré. Pourtant, c'est écrit dans le verset 45, il y en avait qui l'ont bien reçu parmi les Galiléens. Alors on peut se poser la question, mais qu'est-ce qui fait la différence? Parce qu'il faut savoir que le cœur de l'homme est toujours endossé. Pourquoi y en a-t-il qui refusent de croire en Christ et y en a d'autres qui croient? Je dois vous dire que selon la Bible, la différence c'est dans la volonté de Dieu et la grâce de Dieu de sauver certains et de laisser d'autres à leur sens réprouvé. Donc nous avons cet exemple ici où Christ a laissé a certain number, even of his own village, where he grew up, in Nazareth, left to themselves. As it is written, a prophet is not honored in his own country. Here is the Son of Jesus who lived among them, but they did not know him. Such is the blindness of the heart. But, on the other hand, of the Galileans. We must ask, how did these people receive it? It is because God himself had already prepared their hearts in advance. This is the only answer to this question. And even for us, if we believe in Christ as he is revealed here in the Scriptures, You must know that it is a work of the grace of God alone. It does not come from ourselves, but it is the gift of God. So those who received it, it is written, they saw all that he had done in Jerusalem during the Feast, because they also went to the Feast. So they have already seen miracles that the Lord Jesus did, During the celebration and now returning home, here is the Christ they were looking for again. You have to know that it is not the miracles that open, but the miracles were an evidence, it was a proof. of the person of Christ and who he is. Even in the Old Testament, it was announced that the Jews had to recognize the Messiah through the miracles he did. So, Christ did these miracles, not to convert people, but as a proof of his person. and an affirmation of the doctrine he announced about himself. That's why today we don't need miracles, because everything is written here, in the Scriptures. Pope John himself pointed this out further in this Gospel, in John chapter 20, It is written in verse 30, Jesus did in the presence of his disciples many other miracles that are not written in this book. Listen, these things were written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you have life in his name. These writings that we hold in our hands today, we do not need other experiences or other proofs than what is written by these inspired writings that we have, so that we believe. But at the time, when Christ was doing his work here on earth, the writings were not yet finished. So, this miracle served as proof that he was indeed the one the Old Testament announced, the Messiah, the Son of God, who came to satisfy God's justice in everything. So, this was present. Now, we read in verse 46, he returned to Cana, en Galilée où il avait changé l'eau en vin. Donc c'était le premier miracle que le Seigneur Jésus avait fait. Nous avons vu ça déjà dans Jean chapitre 2 et le versets 1 et 11. C'était à un mariage dont le Seigneur Jésus était l'invité et il a changé l'eau en vin. But he comes back again this time, and we must understand that Christ had chosen this village of Canaan as a place to manifest his glory as a creator, but also as a savior and redeemer. What a blessing for this little village. Why did Christ pass through there? It's because there were electors there. There were bribes that the Father had given him since eternity. So it was necessary that he pass through there, leaving many other villages through which he never passed. So we must also know that if the Lord Jesus went through the place where we find ourselves, it is a grace because he left a lot in the world, in their blindness and in their incredulity. But here he comes where his brebis are, as this chapter 4 began with the Samaritan woman, In verse 4, it is written that he had to go through Samaria. Why? Because of one woman. And this is the way that Christ was directed by the Spirit. He did not come to try to save all men in the whole world, although this is the popular message. But if this is the case, he failed in his mission because many will go to perdition. But what we know by reading the Bible, the Bible is that the Scriptures announce that all that the Father has given him, he cannot lose any of it. And here is an example, that when he was in Cana, it is written, there was in Capernaum an officer of the king, dont le fils était malade. Quand il s'agit d'un officier du roi, il s'agit de quelqu'un qui faisait partie de l'aristocratie, parmi les nobles, parmi les notables, les riches, quelqu'un que peut-être, en voyant, on ne pouvait jamais imaginer qu'il était un de ceux-là that Christ came to seek and save, yet the Bible shows us who he was. And so, he came because of a sick son. In verse 45, having learned that Jesus had come from Judah in Galilee, he went to him. Each word in the Bible is inspired and Important for us to contemplate, note the order here. Having learned that Jesus had come from Judah to Galilee, he went to him. If he had not learned that Jesus had come, then he could never have come to him. This order is important. First, there is the revelation of Christ. in the heart, and it is by taking, by hearing the word of God about Christ that the hearts of those whom he came to seek and save are drawn towards him. Christ, further in John chapter 6, and verse 44, says, how can you John chapter 6, verse 5-44 says, No one can come to me if the Father who sent me does not draw him, and I will resurrect him on the last day. Note, no one can come if the Father who sent me does not draw him. So if we read here, Having learned that Jesus had come from Judah in Galilee, he went towards him, we can conclude that it was the Father himself who was attracting this man to Christ. And even though he was a Roman, not even a Jew, a Roman, and a man among the nobles, yet, Il était un de ceux-là qui étaient l'objet de la grâce de Dieu. Je remercie le Seigneur que la grâce de Dieu ne fait pas distinction des hommes selon leur état social ou bien quelques conditions que ce soit dans l'homme. Tout ce que nous savons selon 1 Corinthiens chapitre 1, And verse 26, it is written, Consider, brethren, that among you who have been called, there are not many wise men according to the flesh. Fortunately, it is not written, there are no wise men according to the flesh. Otherwise, we could not hope among the wise men of the world that there are elect. where the Scriptures tell us that there are not many wise men. That's true, not many, but there are still some. And it continues, not many powerful men, not many nobles. That's true, not many nobles, but still, there are some who are among the nobles of society, who are the chosen ones of God for whom the Lord Jesus Christ came into this world to seek and save. And it continues, verse 27, but God chose the crazy things of the world to confuse the wise. And God chose the weak things of the world to confuse the strong. If this man came to Christ imagining that by his own authority, that is, by this nobility himself that Christ had to obey, then he must now know that no, authority resides with Christ. And that's why when he addressed Christ in verse 47, it's written, he prayed to him. That's a supplication from someone in need. So already, God was humiliating him. devant le Seigneur Jésus, sachant qu'à cause de cette maladie de son fils, il ne pouvait plus rien. Donc, il était entièrement soumis maintenant à l'autorité de Christ et de Christ seul. Il le pria de descendre et de guérir son fils. Why did he address the Lord Jesus? Because the Lord Jesus holds in his hand the authority to save whoever he wants and to condemn whoever he wants. And this, this nobleman recognized that the whole decision now depended on the Lord Jesus. And note in verse 48, it's like the woman du pays de Canard qui est venu s'approcher de Christ dans Luc chapitre 15 et elle suppliait le Seigneur Jésus au sujet de sa fille et c'est écrit que le Seigneur Jésus ne lui répondait même pas un mot. Ici nous voyons What Christ said about this noble man, Jesus said to him, if you do not see miracles and wonders, you do not believe. So he was proving, testing, the mobile, de cet homme qui est venu de savoir est-ce pour les miracles seulement que vous me cherchez ou bien est-ce que c'est parce que vous croyez véritablement que je suis le sauveur, le Seigneur. Alors, l'officier dans le verset 49 du roi lui dit, Seigneur, descend avant que mon enfant. There was only one desire, and that is for the Lord to act in His favor. That's all. And in this I also see the grace of God, which makes the sinners come, only to humiliate themselves before the Lord Jesus and ask for His mercy. This is where 1 Corinthians, chapter 1, And verse 27 gives the explanation. God chose the crazy things in the world. This man had to become like a madman, a fool before the Lord to confuse the wise. God chose the weak things in the world. Here is a man who had all the authority in the Roman government, He served the king, yet he was powerless as regards the life and death of his child. God chose the weak things of the world to confuse the strong, and God chose the vile things of the world. Imagine a Roman who had to approach the Lord Jesus in front of all his Jews. those who considered the Romans as their enemy, and here is an enemy who comes now and approaches the Lord Jesus. Yet, it is an example of a sinner who came to the Lord, although many other Jews never approached him. You see how God confounds the wise and the strong. And it's written in verse 28, And God chose the vile things of the world. That's how the Jews looked at such a man, yet nothing prevented him from approaching the Lord Jesus. And those who are despised, those who are not ready to reduce to nothing those who are. réduire en néon. Quel que soit le pouvoir que cet homme tenait devant les hommes, devant Dieu, il n'avait aucun pouvoir. C'est pourquoi, en simplicité, il a dû demander au Seigneur. Et notez, il s'adresse à Jésus comme Seigneur. Quelqu'un n'est jamais venu à Christ qui ne l'a pas reconnu comme le Seigneur. Voilà encore l'autorité du Seigneur Jésus-Christ. Seigneur descend avec moi avant que mon enfant meure. Il reconnaissait que It is the Lord Jesus who held authority over life and over death. And so in verse 50 of John 4, this is where we see the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ manifested in all his power. He says, Go, says Jesus to him, your son lives. And this man believed in the word that Jesus had spoken to him, and he went away. Again, this order is very important in this verse. First, it is Christ who announces his word, and then it is this man who believes in his word. It is always like that. Christ must manifest himself in us in all his glory and power, humiliating ourselves in front of him, and at the same time giving him faith, this belief. This man believed, it is written, in the word that Jesus had told him. No one can say that he believes in the Lord Jesus, in whom the Lord Jesus has not yet revealed himself. et il s'en alla. C'est-à-dire qu'il s'en alla en paix. Ça, c'est la foi. La foi reçoit tout ce qui concerne le Seigneur Jésus, tout ce qui est révélé au sujet de Lui. Et pour nous, tout ce qui est écrit ici, maintenant, dans ces écritures inspirées, la foi vient de ce qu'on entend. c'est-à-dire pas seulement avec les oreilles physiques, mais ce qu'on entend du cœur, telle est l'autorité, la puissance du Seigneur Jésus de donner cette foi. Alors comme il descendait, verset 51, comme déjà il descendait, retournant chez lui, croyant que la simple parole de Christ suffisait pour guérir son fils, ses serviteurs, venant à sa rencontre, lui apporter cette nouvelle. Ton enfant vit. Ça ne doit pas nous étonner. Si Christ donne la parole, alors le pécheur vit. C'est pourquoi même concernant Lazare, quand Christ s'est approché du tombeau, il n'a pas dit à Lazare d'abord, bon, Lazare, If you want me to deliver you, you must first raise your hand or make a sign of life, and then I can deliver you. This is how people preach today. As if the decision depends on man first, and then now it's the Lord who reacts. No. It's with the word of Christ. If we are today in Christ and we know The Lord Jesus, in truth, it is because He Himself gave this Word so that we may live. And where He gives His Word, sinners live. That is certain. It does not depend on the Word of the preacher. It does not depend on the will of the one who listens. but it all depends on the authority of the Lord Jesus. We have already seen this in John chapter 1 and verse 11. She, that is, the word. It's interesting, we're talking here about the word that Christ had announced and that it was fulfilled exactly according to his word. She, the word, came to his people and his people received it. It is as Christ said, that a prophet is not honoured in his own country. This does not mean that these men were stronger than Christ, but according to God's will, he had already resolved that this should remain in their incredulity. faisant leur propre volonté comme ils voulaient, mais en fin de compte, finissant par la condamnation. Donc, il est venu, Christ est venu chez les siens et les siens ne l'ont point reçu. Verset 12. Mais à tous ceux qui l'ont reçu, tel que cet homme noble qui était un aristocrate, qui servait le roi, So, all those who have received it, to those who believe in his name, it is written there that he believed in the word that Christ had said to him, and he received it. So, to those who believe in his name, she, that is, the word, has given the power to become children of God. Yes, that's where authority comes from. It's with the word of Christ. Why do some people believe? It's because it was given to them, the power was given to them to become children of God. And note that they were born by these 13 names of the Holy Spirit. It's not the fact of being born in a Christian family There is no evidence here that this officer of the king came from a Christian family. No, he was a pagan. And it is not written of the will of the flesh. This officer could not even say, no, but it is thanks to my will that I am naked and thanks to the fact that now Christ did what he did. No. And yet, that's how it is, many reasons today, that everything depends on the will of man. So you have to want first, and then... Christ will act. No. Here it is written, neither by the will of the flesh, nor by the will of man. This man, this officer, came alone, attracted to Christ. There was no other person who encouraged him, or who prayed for him, for him to come. No. It's simply because the Lord Jesus attracted him. And that's how John 1.13 ends. Termine, le verset. Non du sang, ni de la volonté de la chair, ni de la volonté de l'homme, mais de Dieu. Combien de fois devons-nous lire cela à travers l'executif pour comprendre que le salut est entièrement de Dieu? Mais là où cette parole est commandée, est envoyée, il y aura toujours ce résultat. Le pécheur vivra. When his servants came and gave him this good news, that his son was alive, this officer knew that it came from the authority of Christ, from the one whom he had just believed, by the grace of God. And that's why he asked, in John 4 and verse 52, he asked them at what time they felt better. And he said to him, yesterday at seven o'clock the fever left him. The Father, note well, recognized, verse 53, that it was at that time. that Jesus had said to him, Your son lives, and he believed. He and all his house. Blessed be the hour when God in his grace ordained that sinners like us have heard this word of Christ. And he gave us this faith to believe en lui et en lui seul. Il y a une heure fixée par Dieu lui-même. Ça ne dépend pas de nous. Si je suis venu à Christ, je peux peut-être me poser la question, mais pourquoi ce n'était pas avant? Pourquoi c'était exactement au moment où ça se passait? Et la réponse est que c'est à cette heure-là. l'éternité. C'est encore pourquoi en Jean chapitre 3 et le verset 8, nous lisons le vent souffre où il veut et tu en entends le bruit mais tu ne sais d'où il vient ni où il va. Il en est ainsi de tout homme qui est né de l'esprit. À quel moment est-ce que cet officier est était en train de l'attirer à Christ, mais à quel moment est-ce qu'il était né de l'esprit? C'est au moment où il a cru à la parole que Jésus lui avait dite dans le verset 50. Mais ce n'est pas sa croyance qui a fait que l'Esprit a agi à ce moment-là, mais le contraire, le fait que l'Esprit agissait déjà et lui a donné maintenant cette vie lui-même de croire en Christ, c'est ainsi qu'il a cru. Et nous savons que cela a été une croyance plus que croire, simplement ce miracle, parce que dans le verset 53, il reconnaît The Father recognized. This is what Christ said to Nicodemus, that if a man is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God. Recognize, perceive, see. The Father recognized that it was at that time that Jesus had told him, your son lives. And he believed, he and his whole house, There are times when God acts to deliver one person in a family. Yet, sometimes we see in the Scriptures that God likes to deliver the whole family. That's what we see here. He believes He is the whole house. Such was God's will. for this family. And it is written that Jesus performed this second miracle when he came from Judah to Galilee. So, don't you see the authority of Jesus Christ through what we have just studied? To review these points, I would say, first of all, we see his authority should, where he wants, quand il veut, comment il veut. Nous voyons ça dans les premiers versets, 43 à 45, parce qu'il y avait beaucoup que Christ a laissé à eux-mêmes et il n'a fait aucun miracle là. Mais lorsqu'il s'est déplacé ici, traversant Galilee to go to Canaan, in Galilee it was with a precision. It is because there he had to meet this officer who came from Capernaum, another village, but having heard that Christ was there, he approached him and nothing prevented him. le droit du Seigneur Jésus d'aller où il veut et de se révéler à qui il veut, quand il veut. Et personne ne peut l'empêcher. Dans Deux Corinthiens chapitre 4 et les versets 3 à 6, nous voyons que Christ ici He acted as a creator, because he is the one who holds life and death, but he also acted as a redeemer. It was for this officer that he came to give his life later, but also as a judge, because it was for this man, this officer, that he came to this place to attract her to himself, although there were many other people who did not believe, and who had no desire to believe. And the explanation for this we find in 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse 3, it is written, If our gospel is still veiled, there are hearts of men who are veiled, il est voilé pour ceux qui périssent. Et nous savons que tel est l'état de chaque pécheur né dans ce monde. Nous sommes nés vers ou bien sous la perdition. Et si Dieu nous délivre, nous allons mourir dans cette perdition. Mais voilà un point que je voudrais clarifier ici dans le verset 4, parce que The translations indicate here that the devil is the one who is blinding people, and that if the devil did not blind them, then they could see and believe. And this is because of the way it is translated here, where it is written, for the unblessed, therefore, the God of this century. And the translators have put here God in small, au lieu de majuscule. Pourtant, ce mot « Dieu » est le même mot que nous avons dans le verset 2, où ça dit « et nous n'alterrons point la parole de Dieu ». Et c'est le même mot à la fin du verset 2 qui dit « mais en publiant la vérité, nous nous recommandons à toute conscience donc de vendre Dieu ». There is only one God of this century, the God of the universe, the God of the Bible. So we have to put God in capital letters and read it this way, to introduce them in the God, God himself, of this century, to blind the intelligence so that it does not see the splendor of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, which is the image of God. Same word. So God, in his sovereignty, is the judge, either to open the eyes or to leave the eyes closed in disbelief. God could have left us also in this blindness, but if he asked God to do us a favor, then he opened our eyes. So that's where we also see the authority of Christ, Others, the crowds, who were there, who saw, in fact, in front of them, the same man that this officer saw, yet he did not believe. Such is the blindness. And if God leaves men in this blindness, they will never believe. Such is his authority. So, we see this clearly. His authority should, wherever he wants, whenever he wants, how he wants. Secondly, we see his authority to deliver fishermen, not only to work where he wants, but to deliver fishermen where he wants, when he wants, how he wants. We have seen that it is Chris who shot this officer himself and then tested his motive so that L'homme lui-même sache qu'il ne pouvait pas venir si ce n'était Christ qui l'a tiré. Tout à l'heure, je faisais référence à Luc 15, mais en fait, c'est à Matthieu chapitre 15. C'est la référence, Matthieu chapitre 15. Concernant cette femme de Cana et qui s'est approchée du Seigneur Jésus, and the disciples sought to prevent him from approaching. In Matthew 15, verse 21, a Canaanite woman who had just come from the countryside cried to him, Have mercy on me, Lord, son of David. My daughter is cruelly tormented by the devil. And we see this comparison with this officer Romain du Roi qui s'est approché de Christ et supplié, il pria le Seigneur de descendre et de guérir son fils. Alors dans le besoin, But as Christ answered in verse 48 of John 4, if you do not see miracles and wonders, you do not believe. He was testing her. He tested this woman in the same way. First, in Matthew 15, verse 23, he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came up to him and said to him, with incense, send her back, for she shouts behind us. And then he said, he answered, I was only sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. This woman was a Canadian woman, as this man here was a Roman. So the Lord will always test our hearts to remove all hope from us in ourselves. That's the reason. But if it is he who is causing such sin as this man, then the result will always be the same. We cannot send back empty the one that the Lord came to seek and save. And like these women, she came to prostrate herself before him, saying, Lord, save me. And then he adds again, In verse 26 of Matthew 15, it is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs. Yes, Lord, she says, but the little dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the table from their hands. Why couldn't this woman be repudiated, even by the Lord? It's because the Lord was attracting her and keeping her with him. And that's why he says in verse 28, then Jesus says to him, Femme, ta foi est grande. Pourquoi sa foi était grande? Comme ici, quand Christ a dit à l'officier, va, lui dit Jésus, ton fils vit. Il faut dire que ça exigeait alors une croyance. Pourtant, la Bible dit, c'est homme cru à la parole que Jésus lui avait dite. Et ce que je trouve intéressant, lorsque c'est écrit, il s'en alla, It is later that we see that he did not even leave exactly at that moment, because in the passage that follows, when his servants met him, and he asked, at what time did this happen? Note verse 52, they said yesterday at seven o'clock, the beast left him. So, This is how this officer left in peace, believing in the word of Christ. He didn't even rush to go and check. He simply believed in what Christ had said to him without seeing it. This is faith. I am now announcing to you, through the Gospel, truths about Christ that even I have never seen with my own eyes. I can't say that my eyes have physically seen the Lord Jesus. My eyes have not seen the eternity of believing what happens in heaven. Everything is based on the word of Christ and the revelation of Christ in my heart. How do I know that salvation is not the grace of God and the grace of God alone? It is because of what is written here. In the word of God, it is because of the word of Christ. This is great faith. Faith is great because the object of faith is great. And he said to this woman, your faith is great that it be done to you as you will. And at the same time, her daughter was healed. Ah, the authority of Christ to deliver sinners who want, when they want, how? And then, thirdly, we see, especially in verse 50 of our passage in John 4, that the authority of Christ is manifest. of the way He gives faith to what He attains. Faith is always the result of the grace of God, and it is evident that we are truly the objects of this grace when the Lord gives us this faith to look at Him and to believe in Him alone. And finally, in verses 51 to 54, we see that this authority of Jesus Christ is always manifested in an effective way. It's not like we hear that Jesus is here, he wants to do certain things, but he can't do them because of man, who is unbelieving, no. If men remain unbelievers, it is because God has left them to their own devices. But where authority is given to Jesus Christ, to his Father, to save sinners, we can be assured that it is an effective salvation. This is what Christ prayed in his sacerdotal prayer in John 17. et le verset 2, selon que tu lui as donné pouvoir sur toute chair afin qu'il accorde la vie éternelle à tous ceux que tu lui as donné. Je remercie le Seigneur pour ce passage qui nous montre l'autorité de Jésus-Christ et son pouvoir de sauver les pécheurs tels que nous sommes. Bienvenue chercher et sauver des pécheurs tels que nous sommes. Nous pouvons nous rassurer que cet insalut sûr et certain est pour toujours.