Christ Heals

10. THE HEALING CHRIST

Every restaurant in America has a sign in the bathroom that says, “Employees must wash hands before returning to work.” If someone is unclean, they are in danger of contaminating everything they touch. God himself cleanses us through the work of Jesus and makes us useful for his work and his purpose.

M. Night Shyamalan’s 2004 movie, The Village, described the struggle to create a “perfect” community in a fallen world (The Village, directed by M. Night Shyamalan [Burbank, CA: Touchstone Pictures, 2004], DVD). The movie described a puritanical-like village set during the eighteenth century. There are clear moral boundaries, respect, no crime, and an Amish-like innocence to life. However, we eventually learn that the village is not an eighteenth-century community, but an isolated social experiment set in contemporary society. The elders of this community each carry a story of how evil in the world has changed their life. They eventually created this community as a society better than the one that hurt them. For them sin/evil could be controlled and forgotten through constructing a community not corrupted by the modern world. The younger generation of the village did not know about the outside world, and that helped maintain their “innocence”—or so they thought. Even though the village grew and there was little doubt of its peaceful nature, one of their young men would try to kill another man. Because of this character’s jealousy, an assault is committed in what seems to be a “perfect” community. One can only imagine the shock for the village. They thought they had rid themselves of the evils of society and created a peaceful community, but in the end, the village never managed to escape evil and violence. Where is sin located? In the human heart. James says that evil and sin comes from our internal desires and thoughts (James 1:14)But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.

. Sin is not something that is out there in the fallen world, but something that is in me.

Today we will look at Jesus healing a paralytic and connecting it with his sin issue – with what was in his heart.

Let us Pray

John 5:1–18 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[a] called Bethesda,[b] which has five roofed colonnades. 3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.[c] 5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.

POINT 1 -

I. THE PERSON—vv. 1–5 – this man had tried for 38 years to be healed -

A. The place—v. 2.

• A spring-fed pool surrounded by five porches

• Probably located in the northeast part of the city

• In 1888 archeological work uncovered two large pools and five porches and numerous fragments of marble columns

• The same discovery (of a time somewhat after the first century) also found a fresco of an angel in the act of troubling the waters

B. The problem—v. 3. All types of sick people came to this pool.

C. The power—v. 4. Many believed that from time to time, an angel would come down from heaven to stir the water. The first one into the water was healed.

D. The person—v. 5. A sick man was at the pool. He had been sick for 38 years. He was crippled and could not get into the pool.

Like tis man - we all need Jesus - we all need Jesus for healing

POINT 1 - we have the PERSON – and our second point is the POWER

II. THE POWER—vv. 6–9 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.

A. The concern—v. 6. Jesus asked a very simple question, “Do you want to be healed?” Jesus showed an interest in and concern for this man. He suffered for the healing of all men—Isaiah 53:5 . But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

B. The complaint—v. 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.” This man had no one to put him into the pool when the water was stirred.

C. The Christ—v. 8. Christ said to the man, “Take up thy bed and walk.” This really meant, “Roll up your bed clothes and go on your way.” This man was depending on “getting into the water” to be healed. Christ healed him, “made him whole.” Some feel that keeping certain rules and laws will make them whole!

D. The completeness—v. 9. The man was made completely whole. When Christ does something, HE DOES IT RIGHT!

He see’s the person, with His Power He changes the person life

But as we see consistently with Jesus’ ministry – He causes problems

And that is our last point

III. THE PROBLEMS—vv. 10–18 10 So the Jews[d] said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” 11 But he answered them, “The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.’” 12 They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” 13 Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there was a crowd in the place. 14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. 16 And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. 17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.

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.

A. The criticism—v. 10. Jesus healed this man on the Sabbath. The keepers of the Sabbath were not happy about this. They were critical of Jesus. Those who were so strict about keeping the Sabbath were the ones who killed Jesus.

Exodus 20:10-11 - but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates.

For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

Exodus 31: 14-17 14 You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it shall be put to death. Whoever does any work on it, that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 15 Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death. 16 Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant forever. 17 It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”

Exodus 35:2-3 2 Six days work shall be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a Sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord. Whoever does any work on it shall be put to death. 3 You shall kindle no fire in all your dwelling places on the Sabbath day.”

So what it comes down to is what does work mean? The Hebrew word for work used here was mel – aw – kaw, the Greek word used in the New Testament writings was ergazomai – er – gad – zom – ahee. And while two different languages speaking on work on the Sabbath – both have the same definition –

* to labor, work out, make gains by trading, doing business, workmanship occupation.

They turned a blessing from God into a strict DO NOT DO – and throughout the other Gospel accounts Jesus asks, is it ok to save a life on the Sabbath? Which law should be broken – if the ritual of circumcision lands on the Sabbath do you violate the law of Sabbath or the law of circumcision?

My question for us as a church – do we tend to be more like Sabbath people and such a literal rendering of God’s word that we miss the blessings? Do we add to and conform God’s Word to our lives, reading between the lines and “Oh I think, I THINK this is really what God meant to say.”

So many denominations are falling away from the Word of God to conform to cultural norms.

We must be countercultural

Just because everyone is doing it doesn’t make it right and just because few are doing it doesn’t make it wrong.

We cannot add to or take away from God’s

B. The confusion—vv. 11–13. The man who was healed didn’t know it was Jesus, who healed him.

C. The command—v. 14. Jesus found this man in the temple. Notice His words, Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.”

Sin has consequences – some physical, some mental, some emotional

After He heals your soul, live right. Leave all sin and follow Him.

We cannot get mad at GOD when we sin and we face consequences

But when God does come through are we like Todd from last week and so easily go back to our old life or are we like the healed man.

D. The confession—vv. 15–16. The man was not ashamed. He told others about Christ. He was a witness for the Lord.

E. The contempt—vv. 17–18. These people sought to kill Christ because He healed on the Sabbath.

So how does this story apply to us, here in 2021

No one here wants to kill Jesus - but

Have you gotten mad over His forgiveness of someone else?

Have you been angry over His blessing on someone else?

Do you have a problem with God when God is God and does God stuff to over people?

Are we living culturally conforming lives or living counterculturally?

Let us pray