Lent Day 7 : Do you want to get well? (John 5:1-3,5-6)
Lent Day 7
Do you want to get well?
John 5:1-3,5-6
1 Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals.
2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades.
3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed.
5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"
◇ Near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem, there was a pool called Bethesda. This place was filled with many who were sick, because of a legend tied to the pool. It was believed that occasionally angels would come down and stir the waters, and the first person to enter the water after such a disturbance would be healed.
When Jesus visited the pool of Bethesda, he found a man who had been unable to walk for 38 years. Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed. Instead of directly answering the question, the patient explained why he had been unable to get into the pool and expressed his frustrations.
What does a person suffering from an incurable disease desire most? What does someone who has never walked in their life yearn for? Is it not to be healed? Isn't that the obvious answer? Knowing the man had been unable to walk for so long, why did Jesus ask this question?
The patient surely wanted to be healed. Having never walked, how much he must have wished to walk, or even run! He probably had nothing but the desire to be healed. Perhaps after learning about the pool of Bethesda, he spent his life lying there, begging. He may have lived off the coins thrown to him by others.
To be healed means the end of such a life. It means the beginning of a new life. Perhaps Jesus' question was really asking, "Are you ready for a new life?" Once he starts walking, his life will change completely. He will no longer be able to beg. He won't live off the help of others but will have to rely on his own strength. He may even have to support the parents and family who have cared for him all his life. He will have to work and toil to survive. Jesus' question suggests that being healed isn't just about the good; it implies that new hardships, pains, and difficulties may arise.
Believing in Jesus and becoming a child of God isn't always about joy. Joseph, Moses, David, Elijah, the disciples, and Paul—they all enjoyed the joy of being God's children, but they also faced false accusations, misunderstandings, threats to their lives, and had to flee. They endured many hardships and had to persevere.
Following Jesus and becoming his disciple is a great blessing. But becoming a disciple means a different life awaits. However, suffering for God can also be a joy and a blessing.
Jesus is asking us, "Do you love me? Do you wish to be my disciple?"
God, please help me to carry my cross! Holy Spirit, lead me in truth!
Do you want to get well?
John 5:1-3,5-6
1 Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals.
2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades.
3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed.
5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"
◇ Near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem, there was a pool called Bethesda. This place was filled with many who were sick, because of a legend tied to the pool. It was believed that occasionally angels would come down and stir the waters, and the first person to enter the water after such a disturbance would be healed.
When Jesus visited the pool of Bethesda, he found a man who had been unable to walk for 38 years. Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed. Instead of directly answering the question, the patient explained why he had been unable to get into the pool and expressed his frustrations.
What does a person suffering from an incurable disease desire most? What does someone who has never walked in their life yearn for? Is it not to be healed? Isn't that the obvious answer? Knowing the man had been unable to walk for so long, why did Jesus ask this question?
The patient surely wanted to be healed. Having never walked, how much he must have wished to walk, or even run! He probably had nothing but the desire to be healed. Perhaps after learning about the pool of Bethesda, he spent his life lying there, begging. He may have lived off the coins thrown to him by others.
To be healed means the end of such a life. It means the beginning of a new life. Perhaps Jesus' question was really asking, "Are you ready for a new life?" Once he starts walking, his life will change completely. He will no longer be able to beg. He won't live off the help of others but will have to rely on his own strength. He may even have to support the parents and family who have cared for him all his life. He will have to work and toil to survive. Jesus' question suggests that being healed isn't just about the good; it implies that new hardships, pains, and difficulties may arise.
Believing in Jesus and becoming a child of God isn't always about joy. Joseph, Moses, David, Elijah, the disciples, and Paul—they all enjoyed the joy of being God's children, but they also faced false accusations, misunderstandings, threats to their lives, and had to flee. They endured many hardships and had to persevere.
Following Jesus and becoming his disciple is a great blessing. But becoming a disciple means a different life awaits. However, suffering for God can also be a joy and a blessing.
Jesus is asking us, "Do you love me? Do you wish to be my disciple?"
God, please help me to carry my cross! Holy Spirit, lead me in truth!