Do YOU wish to get well?

John 05

JOHN 5:1-47

1After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

2Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. 3In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, waiting for the moving of the waters; 4for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.] 5A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, “Do you wish to get well?” 7The 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.” 8Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.”9Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk.

Now it was the Sabbath on that day. 10So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” 11But he answered them, “He who made me well was the one who said to me, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk.’” 12They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk’?” 13But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. 14Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” 15The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. 17But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.”

18For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

19Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. 20“For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel. 21“For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22“For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

24“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

25“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26“For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28“Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

30“I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

31“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true.32“There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.

33“You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth.34“But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35“He was the lamp that was burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

36“But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.

37“And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. 38“You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.

39You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;40and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. 41“I do not receive glory from men; 42but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves.43“I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? 45“Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. 46“For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 47“But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

Easter 6C

John 5:1-9

1After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

2Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. 3In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, waiting for the moving of the waters; 4for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.] 5A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, “Do you wish to get well?” 7The 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.” 8Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” 9Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk.

“Do you really want to get well?”

Don’t we all know someone who is happy with their diagnosis and uses it as a means to excuse their behavior? My son recently shared a quote with me; “Your disability is not your fault, but your behavior is…”

It is a show of respect that Jesus doesn’t just heal this man who had been disabled for 34 years. When Jewish people entered Jerusalem for Feast Days, they were required to give alms to those gathered at the Sheep Gate. It is quite possible this man made a decent living begging at this gate. Once healed, he would lose that income.

In my own chaplaincy, I found this text important when talking to inmates who were, “Yeahbuts…” No matter what course you discussed, their response was always, “Yeah but…

After a while, it becomes obvious they are not looking for advice, they are looking to be understood. It led me to realize that this is at the heart of all healthy relationships, that almost all people—including myself—would rather be understood than advised.

Jesus models this realization when he asks this man “Do you wish to get well?”

JOHN 5:1-9A

1After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

2Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. 3In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, waiting for the moving of the waters; 4for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.] 5A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, “Do you wish to get well?” 7The 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.” 8Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” 9Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk.

“Do you wish to get well"

In these verses, John lays forth all the witnesses of Jesus. In order for a person’s testimony to have been admissible in the Jewish court, he had to have three witnesses. John shows us the multiple witnesses of Jesus’

1.      His actions

2.      His own testimony

3.      The witness of John the Baptist

4.      God

5.      The witness of scripture

The story of the paralytic seems to show Jesus asking a redundant, even dumb, question. “Do you wish to get well...”

Jesus knows the man has been crippled at the well for nearly forty years, why would he even need to ask this question?

The question was actually one of great respect. Pilgrims passing by this gate were obligated to give an offering to those who begged by the pool of Siloam and it was next to one of the main gates of Jerusalem. When you consider the tens of thousands who came by that gate in preparation for every feast day, the crippled man’s income must have been passable. It is quite possible he would rather have his infirmity, as well as the money and pity that went with it.

Are there times we would rather choose an infirmity rather than healing?

I almost hesitate to write that as I know there are people—even Christians—who look for reasons not to give to the poor. This is pure victimization of the impoverished and those who follow Christ must always remember that our Lord said, “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of mine, even the least of them, you did it to me [Matthew 25:40].”

To love Jesus is to display that love by effectively addressing the plight of “least accepted” and “most rejected.” After all, that is how people are supposed to know we are Christ’s followers. “By this all men will know you are my disciples, if you have love for one another [John 13:35].”

These verses should remind us of the difficult balance that must be monitored between excusing our own weaknesses or turning away from the infirmities of another. Do we “cry out at the gate,” or turn away from those who do?

Jesus listened to the man, asked him a respectful question and then took action on what the man requested. Are our outreaches to those impoverished or outcast, similar? Do we assume we know what they need or want or do we stop to learn?

I don’t give change out on the street, but I always try and learn the name of the person asking for it as well as offer to buy a meal instead. Change on the street can be an irresponsible manner of giving, but if someone is hungry, ask what they are hungry for and buy them some food and drink. It’s less about the food than the courtesy; to look in someone’s eyes and ask them their name. To be kind and offer respect. That’s what Jesus was doing when he asked the cripple, “Do you wish to get well?”

I remember a time volunteering at Mother Teresa’s orphanage in Tijuana. Other volunteers and I were seated in the sand teaching numbers and writing with children. An RV equaling about the size of the children’s dormitory, pulled up alongside the orphanage and the driver got out of his seat and stepped around the front of the rig with a video camera. Meanwhile a passenger opened the side door and began shoveling candy into the dirt.

In an instant, the children left their lessons and began rolling in the dirt fighting for candy. When all the candy was on the ground—and the driver had his video—they loaded up and drove away. I’m sure that couple believed they were doing an act of kindness, but essentially they traded the children’s dignity as students learning for that of beggars digging in the dirt.

This is the type of damage we are capable of doing when we don’t respectfully ask “those we are trying to help” what their perspective is of the situation.

“I have no man…”

According to tradition, an angel would sometimes disturb the waters at the pool. The first person in the pool after the angel would be healed of their malady. In essence, healing was available to this man prior to Christ’s arrival. It was just that no one would sit with him long enough to be present when the man needed assistance.

Helping those wounded on the side of the road is a time-consuming proposition. It requires a re-alignment of our priorities until we are mindful of the true needs of another. We may assume we know, but more often our solutions and advice, are focused on what is best for us, not the person we seek to assist.

The caravans of pilgrims passing this man could have helped him if they were not so busy heading to fulfill their religious obligations. Sometimes it is far easier to give a coin than to give our time.

It was within the power of this local community to help this man be healed, but it would require time, listening and relationship.

JOHN 4:9b-17

Now it was the Sabbath on that day. 10So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” 11But he answered them, “He who made me well was the one who said to me, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk.’” 12They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk’?” 13But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. 14Afterward Jesus *found him in the temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” 15The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. 17But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.”

“It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.”

How small a perspective could a person have to only notice that this man broke a rule even though he had been crippled for 38 years? Rather than celebrate this man’s joy, the religious leaders focus on the mundane. They are so bound by their religion that they cannot experience joy.

Here is the ultimate in jealousy and small-mindedness, I cannot celebrate someone else’ joy because they did not follow the rules in being healed.

What can I do to my inner life that would keep me from being so wrapped up in an external show of religion that strangles my inner life of joy and celebration?

Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place

Some people seek attention for the things they do, some people even take credit for things that they had no part in doing. Remember Harry Truman’s statement? “It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.”

Rather than being sure he gets the credit for the healing of the crippled man; Jesus slips away into the crowd. He didn’t do it for the attention, he did it for the crippled man. Lord, help my intentions be that pure.

There are many occasions where Jesus walks away from being credited with the miraculous. We can only assume why, but most people agree it is because he didn’t want to be followed by people just seeking (even demanding) his miracles. This becomes the situation after Jesus feeds the thousands in the next Chapter of John. Here the crowds divide between those who follow Jesus because of his miracles and those who stay for his teachings.

JOHN 6:66-69

66As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore. 67So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?” 68Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. 69“We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” 

Am I one of those who follow Jesus because of what he can do for me? Is my followership based upon, “What has he done for me lately?” Do I withdraw like those disciples that didn’t receive the bread they desired?

Prayerfully, I can be a follower like Peter, with all of his foibles (and there were many), he risked all to be at the forefront with Jesus. Peter failed many times and in his verbal discussions with the young Mark, he never shied away from sharing his faults, however, Peter never failed from behind.

Here, he tells Jesus, “Lord, to whom shall we go?”

These followers—men and women—were not perfect, nor pretending to be, they were present.

“Lord, help me to be present—even in my gross imperfection.”

Afterward Jesus found him in the temple

Look closely at the verb used in this sentence. “Jesus found him…” The temple would have been a crowded place, but this man would have drawn a crowd. A crowd with accusing religious leaders and others that Jesus would probably have rather avoided.

Have we ever been surrounded by those that Jesus would rather avoid? He would still find us. Do we look for others even when they’re surrounded by those we’d “rather avoid?”

“Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” 

It is an interesting thought, this man had been paralyzed, in a public place, for 34 years. What sin had he been committing? This definitely points to sins that are not physical in nature. Whether the man was passing judgment on those passing him or his attitude of blame and stance of helplessness were the issue we don’t know and can only suppose.

That is something I feel awkward writing because—as stated earlier—I know how many people are quick to blame the downtrodden for their plight. In my work with incarcerated men and foster teens, I have found that hopelessness is largely the result of trauma or mental illness. To blame someone for the trauma or illness they’ve experienced and deny them assistance seems sinful to me and definitely in contrast to the Gospels.

For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath

This man was healed of a thirty-eight-year infirmity and all these leaders can focus on is that religious rules were broken in the process. An insightful book [Originals; How Non-Conformists Change the World, Adam Grant, 2016] tells us that in order to raise children who are original thinkers, we need to start with values instead of rules. In our outreaches to adolescents in institutional foster care, that is the first thing I train staff and managers to focus on—developing and defining the young person’s values. This is a critical concept, it is not about telling them our values, it’s about exploring their history (often traumatic) to find important moments and people in their lives and tie them to values that matter to them. For decades, our institutions surrounding youth have failed at teaching values to young people—and the more classes we have attempted—the greater the failure. Values cannot be taught like rules; they must be modeled. Young people learn what they value from those who value them and they grow their values in the process of valuing others.

Starting with rules instead of values alienates adolescents at a time when they are seeking to self-individuate. Attempts to teach values in classes usually wind up being high in telling and selling—the least effective methods of teaching. Instead of a class, values must be part of a culture, something that teachers’ model and compliment when they see it displayed by children. In this manner, values become part of the culture of a school rather than a class.

It is obvious that these religious leaders started with rules, instead of values. The rules guided their lives and—over time—they forgot the purpose of the rules until adherence to the rules was more important than living by the value.

Do my values lead to rules or are my decisions guided by my values?

JOHN 5:18-23

18For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

19Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. 20“For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel. 21“For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22“For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

Was calling God His own Father

Here is the crux of the issue, Jesus was not calling God “The Father,” but “His own Father.” The religious rule-keepers could not accept such closeness to God. They were mediators of the relationships, that was their source of existence and income. Jesus was unseating them and allowing direct access to “Our Father.”

We must always be careful—as religious leaders—not to interfere with the direct relationship between a person and Our Father. Even more careful when our existence and income are reliant on mediating that relationship. Very quickly our mediation becomes more significant than people’s relationship. This is a primary drawback undermining most religions.

“For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son”

All too often religions have drifted from compassion to judgment. Jesus said The Father has turned over judgment to the Son, yet Jesus rarely judges any but the religious. His treatment of those caught in the sticky compulsions of sin is compassion, his treatment of those who judge them on religious grounds is harsh.

The classic example, of course, is from John 8:3-11 and the “woman” caught in adultery. Rather than judging and condemning her, the Lord challenges the religious, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her [John 8:7b].”

On which side of the crowd would Jesus find me? Would I be among those with a stone in hand? Would I be among those who brought in the woman but let the man go? Would I be siding in compassion with Jesus? Or, would I be like the woman dragged half-naked in front of the crowd to be a litmus test for cornering Jesus?

JOHN 5:24-29

24“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

25“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26“For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28“Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

Does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life

This is what moves us to a life “beyond judgment” (meta-judgment), we are a people who have passed “out of death into life.” Is that displayed in our every action? In how we approach each day and every person? We must be a people of joy, fearlessly inviting others to joy as well. It should be the base of the outlook we have on life and the way that we treat others. Not through an attitude of judgment but a plethora of joy—a cup running over with compassion.

Those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment

This clearly shows, it’s not who you know, it’s how you live. We can’t claim to know Jesus if our deeds don’t reveal him. The resurrection of life is not just available to those who claim a relationship with Jesus but clearly to those whose relationship leads to “Good deeds [G18 agathos, kindness, generous, kindly].”

Those who committed evil deeds [G5337 phaulos, worthless, bad, evil] will face judgment. This could be the crux of the “sin” of the crippled man. Evil is not just doing wrong to others; it is living a life that is empty and worthless. Even when our exteriors are impaired our hearts can still be generous. One gets the overwhelming sense from the responses of the crippled man to Jesus’ queries, that he blamed his situation on others, “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 [John 5:7b].” Worst still for the religious rule-keepers who lived lives of privilege off the backs of others and were still judgmental. M. Scott Peck says that “evil is to live backwards.” To love things more than beings, to use beings to get things instead of using things to empower beings [M. Scott Peck, People of the Lie, 1983].

Do I stand guard against using people to get things in my life? What if we included using people to build an ideology?

We need to make sure we are not so sure of our opinions and ideas that they become dogma then grow into cultic organizations where we only include those who agree with us and make enemies of those who oppose us. Management scholar, Karl Weick suggests, “Argue like you’re right, listen like you’re wrong [Originals: How Nonconformists move the world, Adam Grant, © 2016].”

Jesus prevents this in his life by weighing his words against the testimony of others. We shall see that elaborated in the next section.

JOHN 5:30-38

30“I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

31“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true.32“There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.

33“You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth.34“But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35“He was the lamp that was burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

36“But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.

37“And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. 38“You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.

“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true.”

How important this statement is today! Jesus identifies multiple witnesses to his testimony. The witness of John (his audience held many who were initially followers of John the Baptist), the witness of ‘the truth’—not our truth but the tested eternal truth of scripture—the witness of the Father, the witness of his accomplishments (the works he has done).

Unfortunately, it is not unlike people to testify to themselves today. The greatest testimony will always be our effectiveness and especially our effectiveness in pursuing the ends of the Gospel—compassion and mercy.

JOHN 5:39-47

39You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;40and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. 41“I do not receive glory from men; 42but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves.43“I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? 45“Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. 46“For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 47“But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? 

I have been involved in multiple professional agencies, both in religious circles and elsewhere. Nowhere is the risk so great about affirming our own grandiose impact or passing off our failures as when surrounded by a group of one’s peers. This is the danger of creating “Yes Tanks,” small groups of people prone to affirming each other without relevance to “life outside these walls.”

It seems to me that the first task of Yes Tanks is to come up with their own cultic acronyms which they use in conversations to test who is—and isn’t—in with the group’s codespeak.

The buzz phrase I listen for is people affirming each other about how hard they are working and/or how tired they are. This is especially the case when the lives of professionals are closed to the lives of the impoverished and rejected.

For example, pastors don’t really have that much work to do unless they are leading their congregations into the streets to amoung the poor. I know many pastors would argue this point by saying, “A pastor’s job is with her/his flock,” but, in Gospel reality, a pastor’s job is 1) leading his flock to the poor and 2) sending his flock.” They need to be like a parent teaching a child to swim, the only place you can do that effectively is by being in the water. Pastors should be “in the waters” of poverty and inviting their congregations to “Come and see [Jn. 1:39].”

Many churches have actually become leeches on their cities drawing valuable resources of time and money that could be assisting those in need. If you ask a person, “What are you doing to serve God?” and they say, “I sing in the choir” they really have not answered the question. That’s what they do for their church or for their own sense of accomplishment and recognition. But God is not honored by a bunch of people secluded in a building helping each other feel cozy. It is serving—on the street, in a nursing home or in a homeless shelter—that one learns the “miracles-of-the-daily.”