The Miracles of Jesus
“Jesus Heals the Lame Man At Bethesada”
John 5:1-18
In fact
only a few of the 35 miracles were the consequences of faith. Verse thirteen of our
text declares that the lame man did not even know who had healed him, (he did not
recognize Jesus or know who he was) therefore, there can be no question then that faith
was not a condition of his healing. In
the miracle that we will examine tonight we will see that He simply commanded a man to be
healed not because he believed, but because it was His will.
“After this there
was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. (2) Now there is in Jerusalem by
the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches. (3) In
these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving
of the water. (4) For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up
the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well
of whatever disease he had.(5) Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity
thirty-eight years.”
According to John, Jesus has traveled from Galilee to Jerusalem in order to
celebrate a feast or festival. We don’t know for sure which one, but it may have been
the feast of Pentecost, a feast commemorating the giving of the law on Mount
Sinai. When he was in Jerusalem, Jesus went to the Pool of Bethesda, also known as
Bethsaida, where “a great multitude of sick people”
gathered. Fittingly the name Bethesda means
“house of mercy.” The attraction of the pool given in verse four
is omitted in some of the versions, because it was thought by some to be a later addition.
At any rate, it was said that an angel of the Lord would at certain times come down to the
pool and disturb the surface of the water and the first person to enter the pool
there-after was cured of any illness. Whether or not this had ever in fact happened, that
was what these people believed. In the
multitude of people gathered
“When Jesus saw
him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said
to him, "Do you want to be made well?" (7)
The sick man answered Him, "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." (8) Jesus said
to him, "Rise, take up your bed and walk." (9) And immediately the man was made
well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath.”
It is interesting to note that Jesus does not heal everyone at that the pool that
day but as He moved among the blind and the lame, he spotted one particular man who had
been ill for 38 years. The Bible does not say the nature of his disease other than it
rendered him unable to walk, nor why among so many Jesus chose this man to heal.
As we
noted at the beginning Jesus did not always demand faith; but he did demand agreement.
He would not have healed this man against his will.
But there
is even more being asked here as well, he had been an invalid for nearly forty years,
during that time he had lived by the pity of others collecting alms, if he is healed he
will have to be responsible for himself. He will have find work; he will be entering a
whole new world. It would be the equivalent today of asking a person who had lived on
welfare if they were willing to give up in order to be well.
In fact
some people will go to extraordinary lengths to avoid unwelcome changes in their lives.
“Dave Reavor, a disabled Vietnam veteran, tells of
a young man in the 1960’s who did not want to be drafted. So he had all of his teeth
pulled to make himself unfit for military duty. But when he took his physical, he was
declared unfit because of his flat feet.”
The lame man did not answer Jesus’ question directly but rather said, that he
had no one to place him in the pool when it was disturbed. In
saying this he declared that he had lost not only his ability to walk but all hope
as well.
Jesus did not discuss the pool or its alleged abilities to provide a cure, He
simply told the man to get up, take up your bed and walk.
“Afterward Jesus
found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more,
lest a worse thing come upon you."
A literal translation of the Greek is “don’t keep on
sinning.” Why was he told to stop sinning? Was the disability really caused by
his sin? What could be worse than suffering from a disability for thirty-eight years?
Whether or not we think that he is implying that this man’s original condition
was due to his sins, Jesus warning is that he is not to take his healing for granted. It
is also significant to note that when he is told to “stop sinning” it is in
effect the same as being told to repent.
“And immediately
the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath.”
I want you to notice three things about the Lord’s healing power. If you
should encounter someone who claims to have healing power today, measure their claims
against these Bible truths.
1. Jesus’ healing was instantaneous.
2. It was complete. He arose and walked although he had not walked in
38 years.
3. Jesus’ miracles were undeniable.
In verse nine we were told, “And that day
was the Sabbath” on which the miracle was performed.
The Old Testament taught that a
person should do no work on the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8-10). By Jesus’ time the rabbis
had expanded this simple command by going into great detail as to what constituted
“work.”
“The Jews
therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to
carry your bed." (11) He answered them, "He who made me well said to me,
"Take up your bed and walk."' (12) Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who
said to you, "Take up your bed and walk'?" (13) But the one who was healed did
not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place. … (15)
The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.”
The healed
man is intercepted by the religious leaders who inform him that he is breaking the law by
carrying his bed on the Sabbath. They are not concerned about this man – they do no
even acknowledge that he has been healed – let alone rejoice over it. Their only
concern is that this man is breaking the rules – their rules. He tells them that the
one who commanded him to get up and walk is the one who also commanded him to carry his
bed.
Once
informed that Jesus is the one who healed the lame man, the Jews cease to harass the
healed man and fix their attention on Jesus.
Third, the miracle results in
the religious leaders rejection of Jesus
“For this reason
the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the
Sabbath.”
John tells us that the religious leaders began to “persecute Jesus.” An important feature of this
miracle is that it began an open conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders that
would culminate at the cross. Because this miracle was done on the Sabbath day, it gave
raise to the first demonstration of rejection on the part of the religious leadership.
Jesus now further added to the rejection of the religious leaders in verse
seventeen, by declaring the he was equal with the father. “But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until
now, and I have been working." (18) Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill
Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making
Himself equal with God.”
Jesus defends His actions by pointing out that He is mere imitating His father.
Jesus states that that God’s creative and sustaining work upon which the world
depends has never ceased nor will it. He says, “My Father is working and I am
working too!”
The Jews
immediately grasp what he was saying. Jesus is stating He is equal with God.
The religious leaders did not reject Christ because they did not understand who he claimed
to be, they understood perfectly, and rejected him because of these claims.
Notice
that John does not tells us that from this point on the Jewish authorities are trying to
kill Jesus, it says for this reason “the Jews were trying even harder to
kill Him.” The authorities have already determined that he must be put to
death. This incident only provided them with added incentive for doing it as soon as
possible.
There are some that suggest that this miracle is “not
so much a story of an actual event as it is an allegory. [An allegory is a story in which
every event has an inner meaning.] …It has been suggested that in this story the
helpless man stands for Israel. The thirty-eight years stand for the thirty-eight
years during which the people wandered in the wilderness (Deut. 2:14). The five
porches stand for the five books of the Law (the first five books of the
O.T.). The Law could tell a man what was wrong with his life
and show him his sin, but it could never help him mend himself or cure his sin. The Law,
like the porches, was the shelter of people who were ill and knew it, who were morally
helpless and could do nothing about it. The pool stands for the waters of baptism through
which a man enters a new life with a new goodness and a new power, leaving his sins behind
him.’
[William Barclay. And He Had
Compassion: The Miracles of Jesus. (Valley Vorge: Judson Press, 1992) p. 174]
But this reads to much like an eye-witness
account for that. We are better to take it as a real life story of an extraordinary
miracle which Jesus performed on a poor helpless man who had lost all hope.
Today’s world is deeply
interested in angels, but the world’s concept of angels in not always a biblical
one. Angels whether they are
depicted in movies or television, in countless books (more that 75 currently in print) and
magazine articles or described by someone who has seen one, they are always depicted as
beneficent and protective. But we have come not to expecting theological accuracy
from Hollywood, but sometimes even respect and decency are lacking. For example in the
movie “Michael” actor John Travolta portrays a profane archangel who is a
brawling, promiscuous, but lovable slob. Perhaps influencing more people than any other
format are the over one hundred episodes of a series entitled “Touched by an Angel”
and millions of viewers who have exposed to
its subtle teachings.
So what false views do these and other modern portrayals of angels teach us.
1. Man is basically good,
sin is not the problem but just disconnectedness with God.
Although
the show “Touched by an Angel,” for example, does expose the viewers to a
God that exists and that has an active and concerned love for man. Yet there is room for concern that it also
expresses a redemption that cost nothing, stories that warm the heart but do not convict
the soul.
2. They were created Angels and are not formerly humans.
Almost everyone remembers the angel “Clarence“ from the Christmas classic
“It is a Wonderful Life“ who is trying to earn his wings. It is a great story but poor theology. Angels are supernatural
spirit beings created by God. Before the
creation of man, angels were in existence: for when the foundations of the world were
laid, “the
morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy.” (Job 38:7). After
the fall of man, angels were sent to guard the tree of life, all this before a single
human being had died.
3. All Angels Are Good.
In their
original state they were holy, but
before the creation of the world some of them rebelled against God and lost this exalted
position.
When Satan fell from Heaven (see
Ezek. 28:11-19, Isa. 14:12-17) unfortunately he did not fall alone, he took a percentage
of the angelic host with him (perhaps as many as one-third according to
Revelation 12:4). All these fallen angels now known as Demons do the bidding
of Satan and attempt to extend his kingdom.
So beware of getting your theology concerning angels from Hollywood!