John 5
It was the only hope they had—waiting by the pool for the water to stir—waiting for the healing these stirrings could bring. If the leaders of the day had been properly focused, there wouldn’t have been any waiting by the pool. In fact, by the time John writes this, they had already quit waiting by it. John says, “Here a great number of disabled people used to lie”. A new leader had come to town; the waiting was over.
It seems today, in many cases, we have gone back to waiting. We wait in our churches for the water to stir—waiting for the healing these stirrings can bring. The man in this story had waited for 38 years. How many today have done the same thing?
How many of today’s leaders are guilty of the same thing the leaders in this story were guilty of. John writes in 5:39-40, “You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.”
Is it possible, even today, to study and know the Scriptures and yet miss the life of which they speak? Are we somehow coming to the Scriptures, yet not coming to Christ? Do those who wait continue to do so because there is none to help them?
In the absence of life, a great number of disabled people are waiting.
Hunger and Thirst 
Hi Mike,
It is very true that people can study the Scriptures and miss the whole gospel message of God’s love and salvation in Christ alone through faith….. That is why there are so many cults claiming to be Christian.
And, it is true that there can even be church leaders in what should be considered a “good church” who do not seem to know Christ as their Savior, either…. And, yes, many who want to hear the gospel can get discouraged when they do not hear it…..
Nevertheless, we can all go to God Himself, by personally studying God’s word to us in the Bible….. God is willing to open our eyes and ears to His word as we daily study it and spend time in prayer with our heavenly Father…..
As right as you are about all that, I don’t agree with your comparison of the lame man by the pool….. I think only the NIV says, “used to lie”….. Other versions seem to use more of a present tense.
Then, I seem to note some things a bit differently than some readers. In John 5:9 I note that the man became well and walked, but there is no mention of joy or thanksgiving….. This healed man didn’t even know who healed him, so how well did he care about Jesus or bother to really talk to Him?
Then, when Jesus met him later, Jesus said something that really makes me wonder what He knew about this man’s heart. In verse 14, Jesus said, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may befall you.”
It was then that the man went and reported Jesus to the Jews….. To me, it sounds like tattling….. Whatever it was, it led the Jews to persecute Jesus more….. I sometimes wonder what eventually happened to this man, who seems to have had an unthankful heart….. But, some people feel he did give thanks, even though it is not recorded.
In your first paragraph, I’m not sure what you mean by, “If the leaders of the day had been properly focused, there wouldn’t have been any waiting by the pool.”….. I don’t think the leaders had any control over any healings that took place there, so I don’t know what they could do in any situation, except to pray for the people there and tend to physical needs.
As human beings, we are limited in what we can do because of our health, job, and many other factors….. But, in many instances, people need to be more aware of the needs of others….. Everybody has to work harder on that.
Margaret
Margaret,
I consider myself more of a thought for thought interpreter than word for word. That being said, here are some additional thoughts to clarify where I was coming from.
First, in relation to my use of the phrase, ‘use to lie’. It seems to fit when you think that this pool was their only hope before Jesus came along. But once He came on the scene, the lame were regularly brought to Him. In addition, once the disciples were properly equipped, there are healings attributed to them. Bottom line, the pool was not the only hope any more. There was an option – a better option – so it makes sense to me.
Second, regarding the leaders of the day. Had they been properly focused – had they been as right with God as was possible – I don’t think it is at all out of the question that there could have been healings through them.
I have just finished reading the book of Acts. I see the effect the day of Pentecost had on those who experienced it. Power and boldness are the two words/thoughts that stand out to me. As the traditional church of Jesus’ day was not properly focused, in light of what I’ve just read, I don’t think the church today is properly focused. If we were, I think we would see more of what the early church saw. And so, in the absence of this life, people wait.
So . . . I am in the process of rethinking what I have come to believe over the past 30 years. That set of beliefs has not worked real well. These new ones are transforming my life. It’s not to say I will never be wrong. I have an Instructor that has plenty of opportunity to let me know if I am – and good people like yourself. 🙂
Hope that helps.
Mike
Mike,
I understand your line of thinking, and it is what some others also think, but, I don’t see it that way… 🙂
Here’s why….. Throughout the Old Testament (Yah, I’m going way back.), we read about miraculous things God did….. But, they were actually done hundreds or thousands of years apart….. What was done by Moses was just in his life time….. Joshua could not do what Moses did, though God did great things through Joshua also….. And, we don’t read of Moses healing anybody, even though he had great faith….. The miracles God did had special purposes for special time frames, according to God’s wisdom.
Then in 1 Corinthians 12, we read about how different people have different gifts — whether it be wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, distinguishing spirits, tongues, interpretation of tongues, or whatever….. But, chapter 13 says the greatest gift anyone can have is love….. The top three gifts are faith, hope, and love.
Paul explains how all those other gifts are worthless, if one does not have the gift of love….. Then note 1 Corinthians 13:8 — “Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.”
In other words, those special gifts given to the early church were given for a specific purpose for that time frame….. They were a means of waking up a whole bunch of heathen people and also Jews, who needed to realize that the Savior had come…..
I do believe there are many healings today, but they are on an individual basis according to God’s wisdom….. And, I think they are granted in answer to any Christian’s prayer….. One example that is personal happened about 35 years ago….. Our baby son got a severe cold….. I took him to the doctor 60 miles away and he gave some meds and said if it got worse to bring him in to the hospital….. He said one way to get a baby to clear his throat would be to take him out in the cold and give him a slap on the back….. That would cause him to gasp and clear his air passage….. That evening, our baby could not breathe….. We took him out in what had become a severe blizzard….. Yes, he gasped for breath and breathed for a bit, but, back in the house, he lost his ability to breathe again and we were unable to take him anywhere in the blizzard….. He was turning blue….. We prayed, big time….. My husband quickly said, “We’ve got to get some steam rolling.”….. We put all our largest kettles to boiling on the stove; hauled all of our sons’ mattresses into the kitchen, and let the steam roll….. The walls were dripping….. In a short time, our baby son was breathing, and our other three sons were feeling better with their colds.
All we could do was cry our thanksgiving to God, who answers prayer.
Yes, our prayer for healing was answered….. But, we’ve had other prayers about which someone might say, “Well, that prayer certainly wasn’t answered.”….. At the moment, one might think just that….. But, years on down the road, one can see God’s wisdom in doing something that was for the best in the end — even though we didn’t understand it at the time….. God’s actual answer was not revealed until years later, after our hearts had ached for ages and we kept our faith in His love and wisdom.
My point — God still gives gifts for His special times and purposes — and they are not to bring any one person or church to instant fame for all the healings and miracles they perform…… God has already provided the biggest miracle of all time, if we care to give thanks for it….. That miracle is the life, suffering, death, and resurrection of His only begotten Son, so that by faith, we can all have the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
For some people, that miracle is not good enough….. They still think they have to “see” another miracle done before they can believe…… Jesus encountered those people in Matthew 12:38-42…. In that passage Jesus shows that the most important miracle is His resurrection and that is what we need to look to as all the proof we need to change our lives in repentance and a joyful trust.
All the other miracles we read about in the New Testament were just a “jump start” to get people headed in the right direction….. Now that we can look back and see all that God has done just for us, we can trust in His love to carry us through whatever trials He allows in our lives….. We live by faith in the God who loves us….. And, we love because He first loved us….. That is another miracle.
Ooops!….. Time is flying…..
Margaret
Margaret
A good example of why I am ‘relieved’ when we agree. 🙂
The bottom line, in my opinion, is the church today is in much need of life. On that, surely we can agree.
Mike