Transcript

Humanity Apart From Him

John 5:1-9
Sunday, November 10, 2002
Pastor Randy Smith

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About 100 yards from where all of us are sitting stands what I believe to be one of the greatest local monuments of Creation. Visible even from the ocean, this tree I am referring to towers over the majority of the South Belmar skyline. From a closer perspective in our backyard, the tree provides a majestic canopy as it engulfs a number of houses under the domain of its mighty foliage. The 12-foot circumference around the base of its massive truck, most likely dates the tree back to the early years of our state.

As you know, Monday is my day off. This past Monday shortly after I awoke a stranger was knocking on our door. He was seeking permission to cut across our yard, as he embarked upon the enormous task of removing the massive tree. My jaw dropped! The tree was not diseased, it was well groomed and it posed no danger to the neighbors. What cold-blooded, nature-hater on my block was willing to spend thousands of dollars to destroy such a beautiful landmark? Who had the audacity to take something that took hundreds of years to develop and then annihilate it in less than 24 hours!

Within 10 minutes I was knocking on my neighbor's door determined to defend the rights of that tree, which stood on the corner of 4 property lines. I was so single-focused at that time, I'm not sure if I even changed out of my pajamas! My intensity grew even greater when he told me his reason for cutting the tree down was because it dropped leaves on his deck! I debated with the man for quite some time posing arguments that every environmentalist in Central Jersey would have been proud of! Then I returned home having won the confrontation.

When I walked in the door Julie asked me how the encounter went. I told her that we saved the tree, but I think we might have lost a neighbor. I could tell that the man took the defeat of his desires very personally. I could tell the man believed that I thought more of the tree than his feelings. I could tell that this encounter would give a black eye to our testimony, both of the Lord and the church we represent. I could tell that the Holy Spirit was reminding me that the glory of Jesus Christ and saving His soul, were more important than saving a dumb tree.

Therefore I went back to his house and shared with Him what the Lord shared with me. I tried my best to prioritize his perspective and gave him my blessing on his desire to remove the tree. The event reminded me that people and not trees are the greatest monument of God's creation.

Aren't we glad that Jesus responds a whole lot better to our needs and desires than I did with this gentleman? He became a human and humbly came into this world to help humans. He didn't come for the polar ice cap in the north Atlantic or the whales in the south Pacific or the trees in our backyard. He came for humans. He lived among humans and personally experienced the pains and difficulties and trials we battle on a daily basis. He knows what it's like to be betrayed. He knows what it's like to be forsaken. He can empathize with our needs; His understanding is not passive. Jesus Christ also has the ability to meet our needs, sometimes on the outside, but always on the inside through His powerful, compassionate and reliable word which transforms our hearts, whereby our depression, our loneliness, our grief and our pain may be turned into joy, peace, thanksgiving, satisfaction and abundant life.

You don't have to look hard in this world to find hurting people (often you simply only need to find a mirror). This morning we'll meet one of these broken hearts as we consider the secluded paralytic of John chapter 5. After His encounter with Jesus, the man came to understand Jesus Christ as the Great Physician who seeks to heal the emotionally, socially, physically and spiritually disabled.

1. LIFE WITHOUT CHRIST (5:1-5)

Beginning in chapter 5, verse 1. "After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, waiting for the moving of the waters; for 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. A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years." (Jn. 5:1-5).

Verse 1 says that Jesus followed the habit of the devout Israelites and went up to Jerusalem for the celebration of a certain feast. For some reason the specific feast is not identified. However, in verse 2, the author does mention a specific pool in Jerusalem located by the sheep gate. The sheep gate (c.f. Neh. 3:1, 32; 12:39) was a little opening in the north wall of the city. This pool identified as Bethesda, consisted of 5 porticoes or colonnades (NIV). Interestingly, archeology has discovered this actual site. They describe it as: "Two adjacent pools occupying a trapezoidal area surrounded by four covered colonnades, one on each side, with a fifth one separating the two pools" (quoting F.F. Bruce).

Verse 3 says that "(With)in these (colonnades) lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame and withered." I think you can visualize the pitiful sight. Sheltered from the sun under these colonnades were countless bodies no doubt rejected by society. They were all huddled together, amidst the stench and fifth demonstrating the hopeless condition of suffering humanity.

You may be wondering, why did all of these desperately needy people gather at this specific location? A reason is stated in the remainder of verse 3 and the entirety of verse 4. "(They were) waiting for the moving of the waters; (verse 4) for 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."

Possibly a translation you are using this morning does not contain the verse and a half that I just read. If you are using the New American Standard Version like I, you will notice the section in parenthesis, followed by a footnote indicating that these verses were not found in the early manuscripts. Therefore, odds are this section is probably not from the pen of John and thereby not part of the original gospel. However, simply because these words are not inspired does not mean the words are not true. After all, this ancient explanation that somehow crept into the text accounts for the man's response in verse 7 (which is inspired) when he said, "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."

So again, imagine the abandoned, lonely, hurting people who spent their time waiting around the side of the pool. They invested all of their hope of healing in some religious myth. They waited on a dream that would never come true. These sick people waited. In desperation they waited for the waters to be stirred, whereby they might eagerly crawl over those weaker than themselves, fighting one another to enter the pool first.

One commentator's words captured this scene well. "Can you imagine the pushing, shoving, and tripping that takes place as every ailing person desperately strives to be the first into the water? What a pathetic sight, to see cripples crawling, hopping, rolling, clawing their way to the water's edge. What chaos there would be! And then, even if one person were healed, it would not be the most needy person, because the one with the smallest ailment would be the most likely one to reach the pool first. The most needy person would be the least likely to get into the water first. Therefore, the least needy would probably be the one cured, while all the rest struggle to get out of the pool, get back to their "stations," and await their next chance. What a very pathetic scene." (Bob Deffinbaugh)

In thinking about this tragic situation, I believe humanity is still in the same predicament today. People are still greatly suffering. They suffer physically, socially, emotionally and spiritually. And like then, few of these hurting souls are ever turning to the true remedy to overcome their suffering.

Take actress (and recent shoplifter) Winona Rider for example. She said, "When I was 18, I was driving around at two in the morning, completely crying and alone and scared. I drove by this magazine stand that had this "Rolling Stone" that I was on the cover of, and it said, 'Winona Ryder: The Luckiest Girl in the World.' And there I was feeling more alone than I ever had." The suffering is not limited to Hollywood stars. Consider one of the most influential psychologists of our time, Sigmund Freud. Surely this "master of the mind" had things going well for him. Near the end of his life he wrote, "I have found little that is good about human beings on the whole. In my experience most of them are trash, no matter whether they publicly subscribe to this or that ethical doctrine or to none at all." It has been documented that Freud died friendless as a bitter and disillusioned man. The rich, the famous and the intelligent all testify to the pains they experience in life. Even the common folk are not exempt. I recall the ad in a Kansas newspaper. It read, "I will listen to you talk for 30 minutes without comment for $5." Reports indicated that the person was receiving 10 to 20 calls a day!

People are hurting. They feel lonely. They feel rejected. They are suffering. They are looking for hope. They are waiting and waiting and waiting for a cure.

One psychologist named William Molten Marsten reported that 94% of the 3,000 people he surveyed are simply enduring the present as they are waiting for what they believe to be a better future. You can see it in their faces at the Supermarket or when they drive to work on Monday morning. They find little in the present worth living for. Like those waiting alongside the pool, humans today are waiting for tomorrow, waiting for the weekend, waiting for the New Year, waiting for a certain phase of life when they believe they will be finally satisfied. Instead of being thankful for each day and making the most of their day, countless bank their disillusioned hopes on a bright future that will never arrive.

Many turn to false religions and myths as a solution to their daily dilemma instead of the true remedy. They turn to faith healers or physics or astrologers or horoscopes for a quick fix. Once again, our age too has witnessed a great fascination in angels. Possibly they jump on the latest pharmaceutical product (whether legal or not) or follow the "in" psychological trend in desperation of healing, acceptance and fulfillment. They jump from fad to fad, hoping to find something that will turn their life around, or at least ease their pain, only to realize that someone else beats them into the pool when the water is stirred.

The reasons so many are looking for deliverance is because they, like the multitudes in verse 3, are "sick, blind, lame and withered." These words describe the physical pain of some, but also the emotional, social and especially the spiritual pain of everybody.

The Bible says that all humans apart from the true remedy are spiritually sick. Jeremiah 17:9 declares, "The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?" Jesus said, "For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly" (Mk. 7:21-22). Recalling the mission of Jesus, He said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners" (Mk. 2:17). Biblically speaking, all humans are sick. And apart from the remedy, and a realization of their condition, they will stay sick.

Biblically speaking all humans are also spiritually blind and deaf. Paul said, "The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (2 Cor. 4:4). Jesus said, "Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (Jn. 3:3). He called the Pharisees "blind guides" (Mt. 23:16). Elsewhere He told them they fail to understand because they "cannot hear (His) word" (Jn. 8:43). Even to His disciples He said, "Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear" (Mk. 8:18).

Apart from the remedy, all people are sick, blind, deaf. Finally, they are spiritually lame and withered. They are immobilized (Eph. 2:1), alienated (Col. 1:21) and unable to follow God in their own strength. Jesus said, "Apart from Me you can do nothing" (Jn. 15:5).

Interestingly, Matthew 15 brings all of these aliments together in two verses. "And large crowds came to Him, bringing with them those who were lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they laid them down at His feet; and He healed them. So the crowd marveled as they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel" (Mt. 15:30-31). Though the text is speaking of physical healings, I believe the miracles of Jesus Christ point beyond their physical truths to greater spiritual realities. We'll see this throughout the book of John. The author preferred to call the miracles of Christ "signs" because they pointed to something more significant. For example, when the blind man in chapter 9 said, "I was blind, (but) now I see" (Jn. 9:25), the opening of his physical eyes pointed to the opening of his spiritual eyes. Jesus did not heal everyone, but He used His specific physical healings as a sign to illustrate spiritual realities. And one of those spiritual realities is His ability to meet all of the needs of the human heart. Yes, I still believe Jesus miraculously heals physical infirmities, but I believe His greatest miracle is to heal those who are suffering due to a spiritual separation from God.

Let us return to our text. Similar to last week, one man is singled out from the multitudes. He too was in desperate need of a healing. Not only was he spiritually separated from God, but verse 5 informs us that he was also physically sick. According to verse 7, his specific sickness was some form of paralysis. He waited alongside the pool as the moments turned to hours and the hours turned to days and the days turned to months and the months turned to years. For 38 long years nobody had been able to help him. Even the superstitious waters proved ineffective. Rejection, depression, isolation and frustration are few adjectives to describe his condition. With nowhere else to turn, he wasted his life alongside the pool in vigilant expectation with the hopes that each new day might bring the remedy he sought.

2. LIFE WITH CHRIST (5:6-9)

Yet this day something special was about to happen. While all the invalids around the pool were waiting for the waters to move, the Son of God was moving around the suffering heap of humanity. Jesus Christ, the One who could heal them all with the power of His word was virtually unnoticed by the crowd. They, like so many today, were searching in the wrong place for a remedy. Nobody in the crowd chose Christ. Nor did Christ choose to heal them all. Rather the tender and sovereign eyes of Christ rested on one man in crowd. Verse 6 says, "When 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?'" Do you wish to get well?

Once again just before performing the miracle, Jesus catches us by surprise with His choice of words. Do you remember His first sign in Cana when He was informed by His mother regarding the lack of wine? Jesus responded, "Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come" (Jn. 2:4). Then last week we learned of the royal official who pleaded with Jesus over the life of his son. Jesus, before He performed His second sign, said, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe" (Jn. 4:48). And now (the third sign in John) we see the response to the man who had been lame for 38 years. Why would Jesus have the audacity to ask Him, "Do you wish to get well" (Jn. 5:6)?

Would any of us dare lean over a hospital bed and ask a patient, "Do you wish to get well?" But, what seems like a ridiculous question at first, soon reveals the probing insight of Jesus to seek the true intentions of this man's heart. As odd as it may seem, maybe the lame individual liked the pity from others. Maybe he liked feeling sorry for himself. Maybe he liked a thoughtless and workless lifestyle. After all, a healing would bring responsibilities that he may simply have preferred to avoid.

In the same way, the general call of Jesus Christ goes out to the world. He is asking the deplorable state of humanity, spiritually sick to the gills, if they wish to be made well. Upon considering the cost, countless foolish souls prefer their immorality, their drunkenness, their foul mouths, and their selfish pursuits and spending habits, to the total wellness that Christ can impart. When it comes down to the truth, they don't want a Lord in their lives. They would prefer to live in the pile of rubbish rather than turn to the surpassing treasure of Jesus Christ. Jesus asked the man, "Do you wish to get well?"

The man answered in verse 7, "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." I take his answer as his affirmative desire to be made well, but I also believe that he still saw Jesus as an inquisitive bystander and the water as the cure to his problems. His response was simply, "I have no man." In other words, "Sir, I want to get better, but I have no man who will help me into the water. I have no man who will care for me and consider my needs. I have no man who will lift me up and carry my burdens. Yes, I most definitely want to get better, but I have no man."

One theologian said, "We need to see that universal sickness, that innumerable throng of men and women laden down with their secrets, laden down with their fears, their sufferings, their sorrows, their disappointments, and their guilt. We need to understand how tragically alone they find themselves. They may take part in social life, may even play a leading role there, chairing club meetings, winning sports championships, going to the movies with their wives. Yet what eats away at them from within is that they may live years without finding anyone in whom they have enough confidence to unburden themselves" (Paul Tournier). They have no man!

As we will see later on in this account, it is doubtful that this man had God-honoring faith at this point. Nevertheless, Christ chose to heal him to demonstrate the power of His Word, His common grace and lordship to do good on the Sabbath. He said to the man in verse 8, "Get up, pick up your pallet (or bed) and walk." "Immediately" verse 9 says, "The man became well, and picked up his pallet and beganto walk."

After being lame and diseased for 38 years the man sprung to his feet to the amazement of those waiting around the pool. The man was physically cured by the word of Christ, but he was not completely cured. Though I believe this was one of those rare cases when the miracle preceded faith, Jesus Christ would now begin to work in this man's heart in the verses that follow.

The point of this morning's account is to contrast the multitudes of humanity who are searching for a solution to their needs against the solution Himself, Jesus Christ who powerfully heals the sick who wish to be made well. All of those apart from Christ deal with the painful effects of life in a sinful world. Even those who know the Savior, still suffer from physical, emotional, social and spiritual pain. But Jesus Christ is the solution! Trust Him! Cast your cares upon Him! Realize that He knows you, loves you and is able to meet every one of your needs!

For those of you in Christ this morning, allow the promises from His word to comfort your heart: "'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope'" (Jer. 29:11). "The Lord is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness" (Psm. 103:8). "How precious also are Thy thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand. When I awake, I am still with Thee" (Psm. 139:17-18). "The Lord is good, A stronghold in the day of trouble, And He knows those who take refuge in Him" (Nah. 1:7). "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28). "And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19). "I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you" (Heb. 13:5).

There can be no doubt that God loves the world. He demonstrated it in the greatest sacrificial act the world has ever seen. For the Scriptures declare, "That while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:8). We know that Jesus Christ went to the cross to put away sin and reconcile humankind to the Father. Jesus Christ willing experienced all kinds of suffering, whereby those with faith in Him and His work might be ministered to by the compassion of God in the midst of their own suffering.

Interestingly, the opposition and plot to execute Jesus Christ begins in this chapter of the Gospel. We read in verse 16, "And for this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. But He answered them, 'My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.' For this cause 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" (Jn. 5:16-18). The desire to kill Jesus was based upon His claim of equality with God. That claim was based upon His ability to violate the Sabbath. That act was based upon His desire to heal this paralyzed man at the pool. In others words, Christ's love to help hurting people was the spark that led to His experience with the cross. The Jews put priority on a day. I put priority on a tree. Jesus Christ puts priority on people who are the apex of God's creation.

There is no doubt that all of us in this room are suffering to some degree. I ask you, "Do you wish to get well? You may be saying, yes, but "I have no man." Well, I am here to tell you this morning that Jesus Christ is the Man! Turn to Him and experience the total healing that is found in His name.