This morning I am reading from John's Gospel, and reflecting on one of the healings that Jesus did, and the fall-out of that miracle in the eyes of the Jews. Here is the story - John 5:2-3,5-10,16-21 NIV:
[2] "Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. [3] Here a great number of disabled people used to lie---the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. [5] One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. [6] When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
[7] “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”
[8] "Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” [9] At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, [10] and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.”
[16] "So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him. [17] In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” [18] For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God."
[19] "Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. [20] For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. [21] For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it."
This is such an amazing story and one that we could look at from several different points of view.
First there is a man, and invalid for 38 years. To be restored in an instant is a miracle. That would require the complete rebuilding and restoration of muscles and ligaments and tendons that after 38 years would have been atrophied, bound up tight, and unable to move easily. In the natural, a man in that condition would require years of physical therapy to be restored, if that was even possible. Here, following Jesus' command to "Get up!" the man was instantly restored. Note that there was no statement about the man's faith, or anything. He had hope that God could heal, and maybe a little faith, but nothing that Jesus commented on or probably even enflamed. Jesus, sensing the will of the Father just came up to this random man and healed him.
We see later that Jesus, beginning in verse 19, describes His motivation and obedience. He did what the Father showed Him to do. In other words, when He walked into that area, full of sick and lame people, The Father highlighted this one man to Jesus, not all the rest of the people, just the one man, and told Jesus to heal him. This is one of the rare times we see Jesus only heal one person in the mist of many sick and lame, as usually when out in the countryside He healed everyone that was brought to Him. Anyway, here the Father just told Him to heal the one man, and He did just that, and then blended back into the crowd.
Thinking about this more, I think that Jesus must have had at least John and one or two others with him, as this seems like an eye-witness account. Anyway, He must not have made any show of the healing, nor did He hang around for even the realization of healing by the man, as the very next thing we see is that the man was confronted by the Jewish leaders about carrying His mat, and it seems like He was just carrying the mat and heading out for a walk. It was only after confronting and questioning the man that they even realized that Jesus was involved.
Clearly, Jesus was under orders from the Father about what to do and when to do it. In this case, it was heal one man, then leave the vicinity. I think likely because it wasn't time for the real confrontation in Jerusalem between Jesus and the Jewish leaders. Imagine the wild situation that would have occurred if Jesus had healed everyone in the room! They knew that once in a while God would send an Angel to stir the waters and heal one person, imagine what they would have thought if Jesus stepped in and healed them all!
Back to the story at hand, what I really wanted to think about about was the response of the leaders, and John even says this included many of the Jews in general. Instead of celebrating God's visitation, and the fact that when questioned, Jesus basically says He is the Messiah, they get all bent out of shape that He told the man to break the Sabbath Rules. I think this is indicative of a wrong understanding of the nature and character of God. They thought the bigger issue to God was someone breaking a Law (not working on the Sabbath was one of the 10 commandments). They apparently saw God as someone waiting to punish their sins and transgressions, rather than someone who created life and loved His creation! They were focused on the rules, not the nature of God, nor relationship with Him. They were so focused on the rules, that they missed the Messiah in their midst.
I believe that this is the case in many of our churches today as well. How many churches spend much of their time focused on what you can't or shouldn't do? The fact that Christians are basically viewed as judgmental people (at least in the media) is a good indication that the focus on rules rather than character and relationship still runs strong. We are called to love one another, to present to the world the Loving Father, as Jesus did during His ministry. We are called to welcome sinners, and to demonstrate the Good News! Telling someone that what they are doing is wrong is not very much like spreading the Good News of Christ, and the Gospel of Grace! Oh Lord, help us!
Anyway, as I reflected on these verses today, I realized that should people walk in the fullness of Jesus' ministry, seeing people healed, and miracles occurring regularly, that they would likely meet with the same reaction that Jesus did from the religious establishment. They would be attacked, and rejected, their methods and messages would be called into question! The healings that occurred would be questioned and doubted. We see that happening today with many of the great ministries that I know of that see healings and miracles, and that is a sad statement about at least part of the Body of Christ.
Finally, the most important thing in this story is that the man who was healed must have known that God loved him. If he reflected at all on the occurrence, he would have realized that Jesus walked into a room full of sick people and healed him alone. He must have realized that this was a sign of God's love, even in spite of his sin. Oh, that this would be the focus and desire of ministry in our churches, that people would know that they are loved and accepted by God, even if they are sinners. Paul echoed this truth when He wrote this in his letter to the Romans 5:8 NIV: "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Now that is Good News!
Lord, I pray that You will help us to be bearers of Good News! I pray that You will help the church to free itself from this focus on religion, rather than relationship with You! I pray that through Your church that You will convince the world that You are indeed the Savior!
Amen!
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