The Miracle at Bethesda; John 5:1-9a

After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Introduction

Our three overarching themes in this text are: human impotency, divine potency, and sickness as mercy. As I’ve tried to emphasize at points throughout John thus far, it’s important for us to keep the flow of thought in our minds, and not break off each chapter or verse from the rest. There are certain comparisons and contrasts with our text today and last week’s text of the healing of the official’s son. I will mention a couple, but keep your eyes peeled for those connections as we go through this, and consider the significance that God is trying to teach us.

Before we get into those, there is one point concerning the text itself that we must be aware of. The translation you are using probably does not have verse 3b-4. Verse 4 in the King James Version reads like this, “For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.” The reason that verse 4 is not in the ESV, or most translations, is because this verse only shows up in later manuscripts as a textual gloss, like a note written in the text, and it probably was passed down as the common belief about the pool there, at the time. The overwhelming evidence is that it is not the original text of Scripture. So exactly how these waters were stirred up and provided healing, we do not know for sure, and it is not a matter which will concern our time today.

 

Human Impotency

 

We are not told what this man’s specific inability or inabilities were. We just see that at least he was not able to walk.

We see as well that this man had been an invalid for 38 years. Whether he was born that way, or something happened to him, we do not know. At the very least, 38 years indicates to us the seriousness and thoroughness of this man’s disabilities. So it is with our sin. We have a very serious sin problem that has thoroughly depraved us. This is not to say that we are all as bad as we possibly could be – it is to say that the totality of our being is ruined by sin – our mind, our heart, our will, etc.

Not only was this man an invalid but he had no one to help him, and everyone took advantage of him. He was alone. He had no one to take him to the water. If he did find a way to get there, someone always trampled over him. Again, so it is with us in our sin – not only are we totally depraved, but we have no one to help us be righteous. There is no grandparent, parent, pastor, or friend, who can give us faith and grace to save our souls. We are certainly impotent in ourselves to do it alone. We have a serious and thorough impotency that cannot be cured by ourselves or another person. That is this man’s condition, and it is our spiritual condition apart from Christ.

This pool called Bethesda had five roofed colonnades, verse 2 tells us. This could simply be a descriptive detail of the location of this event, or there could also be a spiritual intent. There are some commentators of the past who say that the five pillars represent the five books of the law. So the fact that you have all these invalids under these five colonnades symbolizes the fact that men who are under the law are as invalids, unable to fulfill the laws demands. Most modern commentators dismiss the notion that these colonnades are a symbol of the law. Nevertheless, the reality remains true that the scores of invalids here at Bethesda show us what life is like under the law. The law is unable to heal our spiritual maladies, and we can never live up to its demands. The law cannot give us legs to walk. It tells us to walk, and to walk in what way; but it doesn’t give us the power to do it. Spiritually speaking, in our flesh, under the law, we are not able to walk in righteousness. We cannot please God on our own. We cannot earn our place into heaven. The law tells us what to do, it shows us what is right, but it cannot give us the power to do it, only showing us that we cannot, revealing to us that we are sinners, in need of mercy and power from without. 

 

Divine Potency

 

Let us consider that divine potency and mercy. Jesus here shows us that He has a power that the law does not. Jesus here shows us that He provides what the law demands. The law says “walk,” the man can’t. Christ says “walk,” the man gets up at once and walks. There is a short poem that is often attributed to John Bunyan that goes like this: “Run , John Run, the law commands / But gives us neither feet nor hands. / Far better news the gospel brings; / it bids us fly and gives us wings.” How does this happen? By imputation and new creation.

In verse 2 it tells us that Bethesda was by the Sheep Gate. This is overwhelmingly believed to be the gate through which sacrificial lambs were brought to the temple, to be sacrificed. Here we have the Lamb of God healing the invalid at the Sheep Gate. Thus we are reminded that gospel life, only comes to us through the sacrifice of Christ, the pure and spotless Lamb of God for sins. 

Notice that Jesus was there among all the invalids. He went where most people probably would not want to go. I don’t think you would catch a Pharisee at Bethesda helping invalids into the pool. Jesus went there among the outcasts of society. So often we wouldn’t go to the people that Jesus sought ought. It’s a failure to recognize that we are no better. That but for the grace of God, there go I. I am glad Jesus comes to us in our wretchedness. We are all outcasts of heaven and spiritual invalids, yet in mercy divine, Christ came where no angel would go but by the command of God.

Consider also, unlike the sick boy in chapter four, this man had no one to help him, no one to go get Jesus for him… but Jesus sought him out. Jesus is a Savior who is a seeking Savior. He isn’t sitting and waiting for sinners to drag themselves up to Him, for none would ever come. He came down to sinful man. He seeks out His lost shop. He seeks out the lost and lonely. Those who would not, and could not ever come, Christ came for them. 

So often you hear the phrase today, “God helps those who help themselves.” Or another one I saw this week, “I do my best and God does the rest.” That could not be more wrong! It’s false! God helps the helpless. God helps those who can’t help themselves. It’s really not even helping, because they’re not doing anything. God monergistically raises the dead to life! Your best is but filthy rags before a holy God. Jesus didn’t just die to forgive us for our really bad sins and our worst days. He died for our best days. He died to forgive us of our good works too.

 

Sickness as Mercy

 

Without the disease, the disabled man would not have been healed by Jesus.

Notice, the text tells us that this man had been an invalid for 38 years. This was also the amount of time that Israel wandered in the wilderness from the time of the rebellion at Kadesh until all the men of war died in the wilderness, unable to enter the promised land as God promised. Deuteronomy 2:12 specifically notes the 38 years. If you remember, the rebellion at Kadesh was when Moses sent the 12 spies to go spy out the land of Canaan, ten brought back a fearful report of the giants, and only Joshua and Caleb have faith that they can take them as God promised. So it was 38 years from that time till all the men of war died. 

This man was diseased for 38 years – a long time. Sometimes the afflictions that are put on us by God are meant to be carried for a long time. There is not always quick relief or immediate deliverance. God has plans that are beyond our ways and above our wisdom. Sometimes that includes long-endured affliction.

Let us not think that the Lord cannot or will not remove our afflictions because we have had them forever, or so it seems. The length of time we are afflicted is no indicator of the unwillingness or impotency of God to heal. This is ever true with the salvation of souls. A sinner hardened in his sins for 90 years is not out of the saving reach of Christ so long as there is life in his body. Let us never give up hope or prayer for those we know who have lived long in rebellion. It is no difficulty for Christ to save one on his deathbed. Our flesh will often write someone off after just a few years of a brick wall conversation on spiritual things. But brick walls are paper thin to the Sword of the Spirit. God’s saving mercy has been around a lot longer than their stony heart. Let us put our faith in the right place.

38 years… There is purpose not only in the affliction, but also in the length of the affliction. It was not an arbitrary 38 years – it was the perfect amount of time to fill up the purpose of God in this man’s affliction.

Sometimes long seasons of affliction:

• Mature us in faith and dependency upon God
• Bring the most glory to God that He desires in that situation
• Keep us from pride, or other sins, or other destruction.

Let us faithfully bear our afflictions however long the Lord lays them upon us, knowing the power of God is not far. No matter how long we may bear the same affliction, it is but light momentary affliction.

The invalid, in contrast to the official that we saw last week, displays a weak faith, in that when Christ asked him if he wanted to be healed, all he could answer was to describe the lack of ability and resources he had; and the unfavorable circumstances that he was in. Yet still, the Lord healed him. How merciful this was. Note, that the reception of sovereign grace is not dependent on the strength of our faith. It is not a strong faith that saves, but a true faith. It is not a mighty faith that saves, but a mighty Savior.

So often we are like the invalid in this way. We get caught up in looking at our affliction. We get distracted by looking at the circumstances, and all the reasons why we can’t obey, or we can’t ever get it right, or things can’t be worked out. We get so caught up in looking at our inability, and our sin, and all the things around us, when we have the Savior right in front of us. And so we make excuses. “I’ve got so many kids running around the house and I’ve been so inconsistent so my disciplining of them won’t matter!” That’s not faith. “It’s no use doing family worship because every time I try, no one listens or gets it.” That’s not faith. “I am the chief of sinners, I’ve made a mess of my life and hurt too many people, I don’t even know why God would love me!” Friend, get your eyes off of your sin and your failures and quit blaming the people and circumstances around you. Christ is right here in front of you. Faith looks upon Him. Do not despair that it has been 38 years; be filled with Faith that Christ stands ready to redeem and make new. He’s doing that now. He’s making new, He’s advancing the Kingdom, He’s driving away the curse, and by faith we join Him, tearing down strongholds and slaying dragons. Let us be victorious; for in sickness or in health, in trial or in ease, we are more than conquerors in Christ. 

As with the other miracles thus far, it is by the Word of Christ that a lame man walks. Jesus asks, “do you want to be healed?” The man responds, “Well I’ve tried, but these people, and this and that…” Jesus: “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” Man: “Ok I’m up!” Maybe some of us are like this invalid, wallowing in self-pity, sin, and excuses. Maybe Jesus is saying to us, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk!” Excuses are gone at the command of Christ. As R. C. Sproul said in another context, “When God says something the argument is over.”

Are you spiritually invalid? Are your legs broke under the weight of the law? Christ is here. Jesus gives us His legs. He lived and carried the weight of law, fulfilling it all, and He gives that to us. We can be forgiven of our sin. We can be given new legs to walk in faith and in righteousness – after all, we are new creatures in Christ Jesus. What was ruined by sin after the old creation is made better in the New Creation. That New Creation begins with sinners coming to Christ to have their sins washed away, and to have their hearts of stone taken out and traded in for a new one with a beat for God.

Do you want to be healed? We are not promised healing from physical disabilities in this life. It’s not something we are owed. Yet, we clearly learn that healing is possible. We are not promised physical healing in this life, but we actually are promised physical healing. That will come when Christ returns, and he says to our graves, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” Resurrected bodies await us. No more sickness. No more disability. And you know why? Because there will be no more sin. That’s the real thrilling thing – no more sin. That’s what Jesus does. He takes our sin off us, took it on the cross, paid it in full, went down to death, and got back up again. In Him, we died, as shown in our baptism, as we are raised to walk in newness of life, as new creatures in Christ’s Kingdom, guaranteed a future resurrection from the dead. Take up your bed and walk.