Healing At Bethesda

Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. (NASB) John 5:8-9a

Get up and walk! Jesus’ command was easy to understand. There were no more questions, no conversation - just a command, “Get up!” Immediately, the man stood up, picked up his pallet, and walked!

When God heals, He heals. When God fixes a problem in the church, at work, or in our soul, He fixes the problem. He knows the right solution. He knows what is best for us. He has given us the answers in His book - the Bible. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us that the Bible has given us everything that we need to know for our spiritual life.

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (NASB) 2 Tim. 3:16-17

Our Rules Were Broken. Jesus had healed this man, and the Jewish religious leaders were not happy that Jesus had healed this man on a Sabbath day.

Now it was the Sabbath on that day. So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” But he answered them, “He who made me well was the one who said to me, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk.’” They asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk’?” But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. (NASB) John 5:9b-13

At first the religious leaders challenged the man about carrying his pallet. When the man explained that the one who had healed him told him to carry his pallet, the religious leaders were upset with the unknown healer. Most likely they suspected that it was Jesus. The religious leaders were heartless. They did not rejoice that the man had been healed. They were only interested in the fact that someone had told the man to carry his pallet on a Sabbath. Who cares that he was healed!

Why did they react this way? The answer is found in their wrong interpretation of Exodus 20:10 where God had commanded them not to work on the Sabbath day. For centuries the Jews had correctly understood God’s command about working on the Sabbath as Nehemiah 13 proves. In that passage Nehemiah said this,

In those days I saw in Judah some who were treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sacks of grain and loading them on donkeys, as well as wine, grapes, figs and all kinds of loads, and they brought them into Jerusalem on the sabbath day. So I admonished them on the day they sold food. Also men of Tyre were living there who imported fish and all kinds of merchandise, and sold them to the sons of Judah on the sabbath, even in Jerusalem. Then I reprimanded the nobles of Judah and said to them, “What is this evil thing you are doing, by profaning the sabbath day? (NASB) Neh. 13:15-17