“Sometime later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to be made well?” “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.”
John 5:1-9
At first glance, there appears to be a bit of irony in our Savior.
The same Jesus who explicitly commanded His followers to “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2) and to “Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” (Matthew 5:42) is the same Jesus who was the perfecter of setting human boundaries.
In reading through the Gospels, we learn that the same Jesus who willingly went to the Cross for our sins is the same Jesus who drove merchants and money changers from the temple with a whip.
The same Jesus who spoke of sacrificial love never allowed anyone to hurry Him along.
The same Jesus who commanded His followers to turn the other cheek never apologized when people made jabs at what they perceived to be His ministry shortcomings.
The same Jesus who commanded us to love our neighbors as ourselves never allowed others to guilt Him into giving them the answer they wanted.
In John 5, we learn of an invalid who laid by a healing pool for thirty-eight years, who never once entered the water to be made well. The man told Jesus it was because no one would help him into the water, or that others would push ahead of him when the water was stirred.
Jesus asked the man, “Do you want to be made well?” As much as Jesus loved people, the discerning side of Him saw through the man’s excuses.
Some people do not want to be made well. Their victimhood becomes their identity. Who would the man be if he was not the invalid by the pool? How would he survive if he was finally well enough to take care of himself?
I am reminded of a trip I took to Atlanta years ago while in college, with a group of about eight fellow students and a professor. When walking to a restaurant one evening, our group was approached by a man who asked us for money. He explained that everyone else had passed him by on the street and had ignored his urgent pleas, but that he was starving and needed money to buy food. A kindhearted friend in our group took the time to speak with the man. She explained the restaurant we were dining at was just a block away, and that if he would meet us in this same spot at a designated time, she would bring him a meal. She even asked the man what type of entrée he wanted.
Near the end of our dinner, she ordered his burger and fries to go. Our group followed her to the same spot where she had promised to meet him. We waited in the cold for a while. She was disappointed that he never returned, and the rest of us silently exchanged glances as if conveying what we knew all along – the man wanted the money, not the meal.
“Do you want to be made well?”
Our sweet friend performed a Kingdom deed – she saw an immediate hardship and provided what someone needed, but not necessarily what they wanted. (As an added bit of humor, our professor, who had not yet eaten dinner, was able to enjoy the burger and fries when we returned to the hotel, so the gesture was not completely in vain.)
Many Christians struggle with understanding when and how to meet the needs of others. How do we convey the love of Christ without being taken advantage of? When we set clear, healthy boundaries, how do we respond when the person asking us for help accuses us of not being Christ-like?
Solomon, the son of David, considered to be the wisest man who lived, wrote the Book of Proverbs in the Bible. Proverbs 19:3 states “A person’s own folly leads to their ruin, yet their heart rages against the Lord.”
Jesus knew His followers would encounter people like the invalid by the pool. People who do not want to be made well. People whose victimhood is their identity. People who rage against God – and therefore, rage against any Christian who refuses to give them what they want, even if they offer what they need – instead of accepting the responsibility of their circumstances.
During Jesus’s ministry on earth, the needs of the people were many, and He was constantly in demand. But Jesus never wavered on prioritizing intentional, quiet time with God. Through this, Jesus received the Father’s insight and prudence. When we abide in the Father – through spending time with Him, reading His word, and through prayer – we become recipients of the same discernment given to Christ. A wisdom that benefits every area of our lives – including knowing when to give, what to give, and how to help others.
There is no irony in our Savior after all.
Jesus never allowed anyone to hurry Him along when performing miracles. He acted out of love, to show the awesome power of the Father.
Jesus never allowed anyone to guilt Him into assisting them or answering their questions. He saw through to the hearts of those who approached Him and used discernment and parables in His responses.
No one pressured Jesus into being the Savior of the world. On His own accord, because He so loved us, Jesus accepted the weight of our sins and went to the Cross.
When we help others, we are called to do so of our own free will, out of the abundance of love we have, through the wisdom and providence we receive from the Lord. We may not give someone what they want, but with God’s guidance, we can offer them what they need.
Their response to our offering is irrelevant. We seek not the approval of men, but of God. And as Matthew 25:40 states, “(Jesus replied) ‘Whatever you have done for the least of these brothers and sisters, you have done for me.’”
Tracy Huneycutt has been a member of the Journey Church family since 2020. She enjoys serving food on Breakfast Sundays, teaching Kindergarten-2nd grade JKids, and being a part of the Moms Group. Her family consists of her husband, John, her son, Reid, and her Labrador, Suki. Tracy writes blogs and social media content as a copywriter and freelance marketing agent. She is blessed to have additional opportunities to write, especially to share the love and wisdom of the Father.