Today in our study of the Gospel of John, we see two people who are desperate for the healing Jesus can give them.
John 4:43-45: At first these verses are confusing. Do people in his home area believe in him or not?
Well, we know from what Jesus says earlier in John 2:23-25 that the people in his home area believed in him because of the miraculous signs he did. However, he didn’t trust them because he knew what was in their hearts. He knew their belief was based on the miracles he could do for them. They were not trusting in Him for salvation, but rather for the benefits they get from following him. They are fans but not followers of Jesus.
But here we have a story of a man whose faith becomes more than about the miracles Jesus can do. It becomes a life and eternity changing faith in Jesus.
John 4:46-54: The story of the Roman Official who is desperate for the healing of his son…
John 5:1-16: The story of the paraplegic man by the pool of Bethesda who desperately wants healing…
NOTE: It is important to note that the earliest and most reliable Greek manuscripts omit the last part of verse 3 and all of verse 4 which is why you probably do not have it in your version, and it looks like this in your Bible: [4] 5 .
The explanation for this is that in the years after John wrote his gospel, scribes apparently added this material as a marginal note to present the popular explanation for the stirring of the water that the man talks about in verse 7. The early church father Tertullian referred to the superstition of the Angel stirring the water in the late 2nd or early 3rd century. Later manuscripts incorporated the scribal notes into the text itself. We understand it when we realize that the pool of Bethesda was near the temple of Asclepius – the mythological Egyptian god of healing.
According to mythology, Asclepius would heal and prevent death using special diets, exercise, time in the sun, herbs, incantations and especially treatments involving moving water. Most likely, some of the elements of the worship of this mythological God had crept into people's thinking as the myth of Asclepius had spilled over into the Jewish community.
The opposition of the religious leaders is fueled by the fact that Jesus performed this miracle on the Sabbath day.
Jesus' refusal to observe the legalistic and man-made Sabbath regulations of rabbinic tradition was a major point of contention between him and Israel’s religious establishment. Their opposition to Jesus would only escalate through the remainder of his ministry and finally culminate in them orchestrating his death on a cross. Instead of rejoicing that the man was healed, they were far more concerned with legalistic regulations than with the man’s well-being.
John 5:14: These words are a sobering warning that reflect an important biblical truth which is that although scripture is clear that illness is NOT ALWAYS an immediate result of personal sin but the result of living in a fallen and broken world, at the same time, there are some sicknesses directly related to our choices and deliberate disobedience.
Application / Takeaways:
- Jesus welcomes those who desperately need Him and seek Him.
- Jesus shows us that He Offers Healing and Calls us to freedom.
Taking It Home
We encourage you to take a few minutes today and this week to process this morning’s message. These questions are designed for discussion with your family, a friend, mentor, spouse, and small group. They are also useful for self-reflection.
1. What stands out to you in these passages from the Bible? From the message?
2. What is difficult for you to understand or accept in these passages from the Bible? From the message?
3. What is God saying in these passages and through what we heard in the message about Himself? About people? About you?
4. What examples are there to follow, commands to obey, or promises to stand on from these passages in the Bible, and from what we heard in the message?
