Day 20, John 5
After the season in Galilee, Jesus returns to Jerusalem for one of the feasts. John doesn’t record which.
He goes to the Pool of Bethesda, a place of ritual washing and also healing, near the gate where the sheep were brought in for sacrifice. The name means the house of loving kindness or the house of covenant love.
Jesus helps the paralyzed man to grow in his understanding of God’s heart: he doesn’t have to follow the tradition and wait for the pool to swirl. Instead, God will heal him right where he is. And so he jumps up and walks off, carrying his mat.
Now this act of freedom and delight is against the religious law, because carrying a mat is classed as working on the sabbath. So the religious leaders chastise the man for sinning, failing to give glory to God for his healing. The harder you try to keep the rules, the more blind you become to God’s activity.
Jesus then answers His critics at length, demonstrating that God’s heart is far superior to religious small-mindedness. Our actions disclose our motives, and Jesus is clearly showing the motivation of a man who is deeply loved, completely without fear, and focused on bringing freedom to all who will accept it. The Pharisees, on the other hand, are the opposite.
It is a further warning to us that these leaders diligently studied the scriptures, yet failed to see Jesus when He was recognized by multitudes and did miracles in front of them. When you have a moment, take a look at our blog and read some of the posts about reading scripture through the lens of Jesus.
May it never be true of us that we miss what God is doing because we are right in our own eyes!
Have a great day!
Mark.