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In Jerusalem again

Text: John 5:1-15

IN JERUSALEM AGAIN

Whereas the Synoptic Gospels tended to highlight the ministry of Jesus in Galilee, John chose to describe the work of Jesus done in Jerusalem. Once again, Jesus made His way to Jerusalem to celebrate a feast held there.

“After this there was a feast of the Jews,
and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.”
John 5:1

Was there someone special Jesus was going to meet? If we were to think along these lines, we would not be wrong at all. He had gone to Jerusalem before and had met Nicodemus. He went down to Sychar and met a woman of Samaria. He went to Cana of Galilee and He met a nobleman with a desperate need. Whom would Jesus especially meet next?

It may have been a Feast celebration for many, but for Jesus, it was time for ministry. There was one particular person singled out for special attention.

“A GREAT MULTITUDE OF SICK PEOPLE” John 5:3

What would be in the mind of most people when they travel all the way to Jerusalem to celebrate a Feast? Surely, it would be to worship God in thanksgiving, and then have a good time while they were in Jerusalem.

When Jesus came to the Temple in Jerusalem, He had one thing in mind. He came to cleanse the Temple, for it had been defiled by those who bought and sold for very high profits – and all in the name of religion (Cf. John 2:13-22). This time round, Jesus had come to Jerusalem to express care and concern for the sick. John noted the plight of the sick in Jerusalem.

The Messianic Mission must always have been in Jesus’ mind. The Scriptures and the Spirit of God guided Him in all that He did.

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
Because the Lord has anointed Me
To preach good tidings to the poor.
He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted…”
Isaiah 61:1

Were there such people in Jerusalem? Were there those who were poor and broken-hearted? John described a place in Jerusalem that drew Jesus to it.

“Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool,
which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.
In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame,
Paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.
For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool
And stirred up the water;
Then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water,
Was made well of whatever disease he had.”
John 5:3-4

Jesus had come onto this scene, but how should He respond? The Disciples watched Jesus as He moved from one person to another. Was He going to hold a healing campaign? Not likely, for He preferred people to recognize Him as the Messiah through His teaching than through His sign-miracles.

Many had gathered there at the Pool of Bethesda. “A great multitude” was John’s way of describing the huge number of people who gathered there at the poolside. The general hope among those who gathered there was to be miraculously healed. They believed that from time to time an angel would come and stir up the waters and “whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water would be healed of whatever disease he had.

ALL ALONE

Jesus made His way to perhaps the most pathetic of all the people who had gathered at the Pool of Bethesda. John described the man Jesus singled out for special attention.

“Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he
Had already been in that condition a long time,
He said to him, ‘Do you want to be made well?’ “
John 5:5-6

Quite understandably, Jesus went up to him and first befriended him. To have an infirmity for thirty-eight years was a most trying experience to say the least! Perhaps some would have preferred death to being bed-ridden for so many years! Kindly, Jesus went to him and asked if he would like to be made well!

The man misunderstood Jesus completely. He thought that Jesus was just making small talk with him. He had not seen Jesus before and so he took time to explain his sad story.

“Sir, I have no man (read “friend”) to put me
into the pool when the water is stirred up;
but while I am coming, another steps down before me.”
John 5:7

Those simple words revealed just how pathetic his situation was. While others probably had relatives and friends to help them into the pool, he had no one to assist him. He must have remembered some occasions when he worked very hard to be the first to enter the pool, but always somebody else was there before him. Was Jesus offering to be His friend? Were His companions there to help him the next time the pool was stirred? How Jesus’ heart must have been moved with compassion as He listened to the man.