Jesus' Third Sign Healing the Man at the Pool John 5:1-9a

Today we are in our third sermon in the series called The Seven Signs of Jesus from the Gospel of John.

I mentioned last week that John used seven signs very intentionally.

Seven signs were used throughout Scripture to represent perfection or completeness.

The signs John chose by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit was to prove that Jesus is the Son of God and the fulfillment of the law and the prophets.

John knew that Jesus was the completion of the law so the seven signs communicated his knowing that Jesus is the anointed one that Israel has longed to see.

John 20:30–31 (ESV)

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Each one of these signs helps establish a deeper faith for believers already in Christ and helps non-believers to come to know Jesus as the Son of God and Savior of the World.

Each one of these seven signs that John describes signify something greater than just the sign itself as we will study and unpack again in this series.

The first sign of turning water into wine symbolized that at Jesus’ coming a new covenant has begun.

The ceremony pots that Jesus used could only bring temporary cleansing but the water turned into the wine by those ceremony pots showed this new wine would bring an eternal cleansing.

The second sign of healing the Official’s son demonstrated the power in the Word.

At the spoken Word of Jesus the Official’s son recieved his healing.

Now today we will unpack Jesus' Third Sign of Healing the Man at the Pool

John 5:1–10 ESV

1 After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. 3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. 5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 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?” 7 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.” 8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” 9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. Now that day was the Sabbath. 10 So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.”

Before we unpack Jesus’ third sign let us turn to the Lord in prayer....

1. The pool by the Sheep Gate

John 5:2–3 ESV

2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. 3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.

The scene at the pool was a place where all the sick and afflicted gathered to experience healing.

Verse 3 says there was a “multitude” there waiting to be healed.

These were all the outcast in society because they were of no use to society.

Each one that was sitting there was hoping that one day they could be healed and no longer be looked down on because of their situation.

This picture is a depressing picture of helpless people in great need.

People came to the pool from all over because it had gained a reputation of healing those who were blind, lame, and paralyzed.

Most scholars agree that a popular belief was that an angel of the Lord would stir up the water and then the first person to jump in the pool would be healed. (Wright 55 & Carson 242)

In fact if you have an KJV or NKJV you will see in the later part of verse 3 and verse 4 reflect that belief.

The reason part of verse 3 and the entirety of verse 4 is missing in most modern translations of the Bible is because those verses are believed to be foot notes that were added later.

The reason scholars believe that these were footnotes added later is because they have older manuscripts that do not have the later part of verse 3 and the entirety of verse 4 in them.

What we know for certain is people believed they could be healed by this pool by the sheep gate.

That is why there is a crowd of desperate people that are in need waiting there.

In this scene we come upon a man who is paralyzed.

John 5:5 ESV

5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.

This paralyzed man had made it a way of life to sit by the pool waiting to be healed.

For 38 years the man has been paralyzed and is here at this pool at the sheep gate waiting to jump in and be made whole.

The sad thing about this story is here is a man who is put his faith in this pool and has not seen any fruit from it.

How many times have people put their faith and trust in something and received nothing in return.

How many people have put their trust in political systems and have recieved nothing in return.

How many have put their faith and trust that being successful in their careers and has left them empty.

How many have put their faith and trust into false religions just to be left in the same state as they were before.

Here this man has been paralyzed for 38 years and is still in the same state as he was from the beginning.

In a state of brokenness, the man meets Jesus who will change his life forever.

2. The Healer by the Sheep Gate

John 5:6–7 ESV

6 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?” 7 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.”

The part I love about this scene is it shows the heart of Jesus to go to the sick.

Here in this place where a multitude of outcast individuals are lying in a state of brokenness.

Jesus shows up...

How many are glad when we were in a state of brokenness that is when Jesus showed up in our lives?

Jesus shows up and asks the man what may seem like an odd question.

Jesus notices that this paralyzed man has been here for awhile and says “Do you want to be healed?”

It might be odd but sometimes we can be so used to our brokenness that we do not want to be healed.

Some people grow so accustomed to their pain that it is scary for them to be delivered from it.

A physical or spiritual problem can attach to us so strong they we do not want to be free from it.

It is interesting but sometimes people identify with their disability or addiction so much that it becomes apart of who they are.

I have actually seen someone say I don’t want to be prayed for healing.

In this particular case the guy did not want to be healed because he literally said “I just got on disability.”

Em and I had someone meet with us to explain how she was experiencing demonic activity in her life.

The more she explained the more Em and I realized that she was facing some serious issues.

I began to ask questions trying to figure out why all this demonic activity was happening in her life.

She began to explain the books she was reading and it was very graphic stuff...

I said you need to get rid of this stuff and repent of it to experience freedom.

Well she did not want to do that and she still is in bondage.

God wants to bring us healing in our lives us but we have to want to be healed.

Jesus invites the man to be healed and this is how he responds...

John 5:7 ESV

7 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.”

The man was unaware that Jesus the Healer was right in front of him and explains only what he knew.

The man only knew the legend of the pool healing people but did not know the Healer standing face to face with him.

The man explained to Jesus from a broken perspective in how one may be healed.

The man only knew the long held legend that if you are the first to jump in you will be healed.

Jesus responds to the man by saying...

V8-9 “Get up, take up your bed and walk. And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.”

Again at the spoken Word of Jesus healing takes place.

The first sign with the Officials son and now with the man who is paralyzed.

38 years of misery is changed in an instant when Jesus steps into the situation.

What an amazing account of how Jesus steps in and brings healing a freedom to this man who has been chained to his mat for 38 years.

But the John’s account of Jesus’ third sign does not end with a celebration.

3. The Religious by the Sheep Gate

John 5:9–10 (ESV)

9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Now that day was the Sabbath. 10 So the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.”

Here we have a man who has been healed and broken free from being held in bondage as a paralyzed man.

And instead of the Jewish leaders seeing this amazing sign revealing God’s Glory and responding by worshiping the Messiah.

They instead say “wait a minute it is the Sabbath you cant do that!”

You can’t break the sabbath even though it was to bring healing to someone who is broken.

John describes the utter stench of this religious system that has disabled the Jews from experiencing freedom.

All the religious leaders could think about is the strict rules that they had implemented.

They could care less about the people and this highlights their attitude. It screams loud and clear that these Jewish leaders had absolute hard hearts.

Jesus demonstrated the priority to put people over ritual.

Mark 2:27 ESV

27 And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.

This day of rest was for people to experience rest from work, not to weigh down people with more rules.

The religious could not care about why the sabbath was created but only want to enforce the rules to show their dominance.

As you read on in this passage, you see that the healing on the Sabbath was the spark that led the Jewish leaders to start their pursuit to kill Jesus.

Adding gasoline to the fire is when Jesus starts by healing on the sabbath is when Jesus declares himself to be the Son of God.

John 5:18 ESV

18 This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.

John’s account of the third sign further demonstrates evidence that Jesus is the Christ and Son of God. (John 20:31)

What is interesting to me is that the 3rd sign takes place by the sheep gate.

It reminds me of three types of people that try to get through the sheep gate.

The first type are those by the pool.

They are looking to jump first into the pool first to experience healing.

If they just are good enough and do more things then the guy next to them, they will get through the sheep gate.

The second type are the religious leaders.

The religious leaders thought if they just followed the rules they could go through the sheep gate.

Both the religious leaders and the people looking to be first in the pool needed to rely on their own ability to get through that sheep gate.

The third group are those who need the Healer to bring them through the sheep gate.

These people want to be healed and know that they have no one else to get them through the sheep gate than the great Healer.

The pool will not get you through the sheep gate

The religious will not get you through the sheep gate

Only the Healer will bring you through the sheep gate

Jesus said...

John 10:9 ESV

9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

Some were looking to the pool to experience healing

Some looked to the religious system to find healing

But only those who encounter Jesus will be truly healed.

Jesus’ third sign from the book of John, demonstrates that in this new era of the Kingdom of God only the power of Jesus can bring true healing.

To better understand Jesus’ third sign i want to begin with a story about two small boys who where brothers that stumbled upon this abandon garden.

The old man who lived in the big house had been ill for many weeks, and though nurses and doctors came and went to the house nobody seemed to bother about what happened in the garden.

So the brothers had quietly taken it over.

They didn’t know what to do with the tennis court.

They had never seen anyone playing tennis, but the markings on the ground suggested it was for some kind of game.

The net hung slack in the middle of the court, and since the only ball they had was a football, they had invented a game of kicking the ball over the net to each other and trying to land it within the lines on the other side.

It more or less worked, but was not the most exciting ball game ever invented.

One day the old man’s son came from abroad to visit his father.

Looking from the upstairs window down the long garden, he saw the boys playing their made-up game.

He smiled and went into his dad’s garage to collect an armful of tennis equipment.

The boys were alarmed when they saw him coming down the garden.

The man was not angry but rather asked the boys if they wanted to play the real game that this court was designed to be played.

The boys were exited to play the real thing and within minutes the man tightened the net, equipped the boys with rackets, and begun to teach them the game of tennis.

The boys agreed that this was much more rewarding and fun then the game that they tried to turn this court into. (Wright 54-55)