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.
-John 5:2-9 (ESV)
Here in John’s gospel, Jesus meets up with a sick man at the pool of Bethesda and asks him an obvious question: “Do you want to be healed?”
You have a disabled man who has not been able to do anything for himself for 38 years, and Jesus has the audacity to ask him if he wants to get well. Well, duh! Of course! That’s like asking someone who has been lost in the desert for days if they would like a drink of water.
On the surface, Jesus’ question even sounds slightly inappropriate and insensitive. It’s almost as if he is teasing the man. However, Jesus, of course, knew his heart.
So you would think the sick man would give the obvious response… “Yes, thank you! Those are the exact words I’ve been praying to hear for 38 years! Finally, I can be healed!” But no, instead the man gives rehashed reasons as to why it will never happen.
It’s sad, really. The one person who can truly heal the man is standing right in front of him and he’s completely oblivious to the fact because he is wrapped up in his excuses. And that’s where the problem lies. The sick man is only focused on his own failed efforts and inadequacies, and not on Jesus.
I think it’s terribly tragic how many people today are suffering from the exact same condition as this man. And I’m not talking about his illness… I’m talking about his excuses!
The explanations are endless… “It’s just the way that I was made… It doesn’t come naturally to me… My parents were this way, so I will always be this way.” There’s always an excuse! And some people would actually prefer it that way. Their brokenness gives them an out. They really don’t want to be restored.
How many many times have you heard others say that they can’t change the way they are? And how many times have you said it yourself?
Are there things outside your control that affect who you are? Sure. But those things do not make you who you are. Who you are is defined in Christ and in Christ alone. And by his power you can be healed.
So it’s time to can the excuses. Jesus can help you. Jesus can change you. Jesus can free you. But the ball is in your court. Just like the sick man, the question remains the same…
Do you want to be healed?
