Outstanding Faith!

Monday, March 16, 2026

Is 65: 17-21; Jn 4: 43-54

Today’s Gospel highlights the outstanding faith of the royal official. 

The text underlines Jesus’ frustration because the crowd demands signs to believe in him. We find it when Jesus says, ‘Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe.’ While Jesus’ disappointment is the context, the royal official’s entry and his sincere plea for his son’s healing are marked with some striking differences. 

Unlike the crowd that demands signs to believe in Jesus, the royal official comes already believing in the Lord. Or it is because of his faith in Jesus that he is there begging him to heal his dying son. Amid those who demanded signs, the royal official’s faith reveals that faith can precede miracles.

We must note that he was a royal official, probably serving in the administration of Herod. Though he worked under a ruler who did not support Jesus, nothing prevented him from believing in the Lord. The royal official overcomes the concerns of his profession or status to pray for his son’s healing. True faith allows nothing to come between us and the Lord.

Though the royal official comes to Jesus hoping to persuade him to come personally to his house to heal his son, when Jesus says, ‘Go, your son will live,’ he believes in Jesus’ word and leaves. For him, Jesus’ word was enough. He trusted Jesus’ words even before he could see the results. That is an important dimension of faith.

When the royal official finds out from his slaves the time of his son’s recovery, he understands that it was not a mere coincidence but the result of Jesus’ power. And he thanks the Lord not merely with words but with his faith. The royal official transforms his gratitude into faith in the Lord that ‘his whole household came to believe in Jesus.’

The royal official exemplifies what St. Augustine said about faith: ‘Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.’

In the midst of those who tested Jesus, the royal official stood out with his faith in the Lord.

Let us pray that we may have the same faith that animated the life of the royal official. 

Fr. Dhinakaran Savariyar