People are largely taken in by
sensational news, especially concerning the miraculous. In recent years, we have
heard of people flocking to a statue of Mother Mary crying tear drops of blood,
or the statute of a certain elephant in a shrine that spilt out milk from its
trunk. In the face of such human tendency, the description of what happened at
the pool of Bethesda is understandable. All the elements in the making of a
good legend are described in John 5:1-18. It all took place in a pool that was
at Bethesda in the vicinity of Jerusalem, by the sheep gate with five porches.
Occasionally the water would move and certain diseased individual found in the
pool would report of being healed. This rippling effect of the water was
believed to have taken place because an angel got into it and stirred the
water. This thinking was encouraged by the Hebrews’ preoccupation with angels. Soon
news of the so called miracle began to spread far and wide, and reached the
ears of the masses in the city and countryside. So to see folks with all kinds
of diseases gathering around that pool should not come as a surprise. John 5:3
tells us that a great number of disabled were there. They gathered there by the
hundreds hoping to get into the pool first when the water was stirred. The
sight at the pool was pathetic and distressing, except for one thing: the
presence of Jesus there that day.
Jesus came alone to that pool that
day. He approached a man who had been in his sick condition for thirty eight
years. He knew that the sick man had been in that condition for a long time. The
healing of this man by the Lord is truly a great story. The detailed step by
step description of how he got healed, gives us lessons of how Jesus can also
touch and deliver us from our inability. The question Christ asked him seems to
be out of place. “Do you want to get well?” What a ridiculous question. He had
been sick for 38 years, and furthermore he was there by the pool where people
were purported to be healed. To ask him whether he wanted to be well seems preposterous.
He was certainly not there to have a good sun tan. But in reality, the Lord
knows that some people can be in a condition and do not really want to be well.
They imagine that once they are healed, they could no longer get all the easy
support they had been having, enjoying from friends and relatives. They imagine
that they could lose their only means of getting financial support. Besides,
once they are healed they must of necessity take responsibility for their life.
Hence this question from the Lord is indeed relevant for anyone who wants to be
touched. Personally, this question is a call to leave our past in order to
enter into a new place with God.
The answer of the man also tells us
something. “Sir, I have no
man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am
coming, another steps down before me.” He wanted to be
healed but he realized that he couldn’t do it by himself. It’s here that he
came to the fact that it required faith for him to be healed. There is nothing
he could do for himself, hence to get his healing, faith was imperative. At the
command of Jesus to take up his stretcher and walk, he obeyed immediately. And
instantly, he did everything as he was commanded. The moment he responded in faith, he found
instant healing.
This man’s paralysis represents
man’s inability. And the answer to all man’s inability is without a doubt, faith
in Jesus. If we have an insurmountable issue, we need firstly to ask, do we
want it solved? If we want, then we need to know that without the help and
intervention of Jesus, it will remain insurmountable. Thirdly, we need to know
that Jesus is always close by and ready to help. And if we by faith, allow His words
to take effect in that issue, than we will find our resolution. Note, however,
that it requires a personal response to Him! The answer to our inability is
found in Christ. No wonder Hebrews 4:16 tells us to “…draw near with confidence to the throne
of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”
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