John 5:2-18 – Two easily misunderstood issues are raised in this portion of Scripture:
• The relationship of faith to healing.
• The true understanding of the Sabbath.
 
The pool of Bethesda was the venue for the healing of the man crippled for some thirty-eight years (vs. 5). To suffer such debilitation for so long a period must have had a crippling effect on the sufferer’s mental state that would have been equal, at least, to his physical inability.
 
Vs. 6 records what at face value is the most insensitive and even absurd question such a sick individual could be asked. After all, which sick individual would not crave their healing if such were offered regardless of whether it occurred instantly or not?
 
Vs. 7 springs to Jesus’ defence in this matter. Herein is recorded the man’s psychological condition. It is one of complete hopelessness that allows the sufferer to believe his healing is dependent upon the actions of others and, as a result, he remains ill because of the carelessness of others.
 
In other words, his ongoing malady was not his responsibility, but was that of those around him, not some long forgotten action (cf. Vs. 14b) or circumstance.
 
In vs. 8 Jesus cuts right through the self-pity and the apportioning of guilt with a three-pronged, incisive command which demands a sequence of physical actions without the offer of assistance, “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.”
 
What needs to be understood here is that there is no evidence at all that this man had faith in any measure or, secondly, that he knew then identity of the one who was speaking with him (5:12,13&15; cf. Matthew 26:48).
 
Vs. 9 records the miracle. Healing came immediately and the now healed man performed a series of formerly impossible physical tasks.
 
In vs. 14, after Jesus had sought out the healed man in the Temple, He said, “… you have become well …” That may not appear strange upon first reading, but when considered in conjunction with Matthew 9:22; Mark 10:52 and Luke 17:19 an interesting omission comes to light.
 
On the three occasions listed Jesus makes it clear that it was each individual former sufferer’s faith that had made them well. This was not the case with the healing at the Pool of Bethesda.
 
A critical question arises here:
• Can healing only be received if one has faith?
 
Evidently, the answer is ‘no’. Why is that so? Because God is sovereign and, as such, cannot be pinned down by pseudo-spiritual formulas or boxed in by flesh-based methodology.
 
Another question now comes to the fore:
• Was the healing event merely a ploy (Jesus’ compassion for the suffering notwithstanding) to provoke a confrontation with the religious professionals in the Temple (vs. 9b)?
 
If the answer is ‘yes’, then it would provide an adequate explanation for the man being healed without the necessity of faith. Either way, the fact that healing is the prerogative of God remains uncontested.
 
With the possibility of this motive in mind, it is necessary that we refer to vs. 1. Most generally accepted scholars agree that this feast was more than likely that of Passover. This event demanded the attendance (where at all possible) of all Jewish males at the Temple in Jerusalem. This would have guaranteed a sizeable audience within the Temple precincts.
 
Vs. 10 highlights the dead hand of institutionalized religion. The Jews Sabbath claims were not based in Scripture, but rather upon tradition. They were faithfully declaring a principle found in the Mishna, a collection of rabbinical teachings from 200 B.C. onwards (Mishna Shabbat 7:2/39).
 
The religious had missed a vital point concerning the Sabbath, a point firmly rooted in the Old Testament – “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27). In other words, the Sabbath was a benefit not a regulation (cf. Exodus 23:12; Deuteronomy 5:14).
 
What spiritual principle was the Sabbath designed to impart? It was one day of the week where God had to be relied upon solely for provision and right standing with Himself (Exodus 16:5 & 22-30).
 
So, does the Sabbath have any relevance in the New Testament? No, not in the sense that it appeared in the Old Testament. In fact, the Sabbath was a sign or shadow of something far greater still to come and His Name is Jesus (Luke 24:27; John 5:39).
 
In the same way that Canaan, the Promised Land, symbolizes Christ; so the Sabbath foreshadows the rest of God that exists in Christ – He is the eternal seventh day (Hebrews 3:7 – 4:11).
 
Vs. 17 reveals the open defiance (cf. Vs. 18) of Jesus in the face of organized man-centred religion. The fact that Jesus said “My Father is working until now …” doubtless acted as a goad to the Jews.
 
This remark raised two key related issues (relevant to this discussion):
• Yahweh worked on the Sabbath through Jesus thus displaying the status of the Son. Note that
 
Jesus says “My Father” not our Father.
• The Rabbinic tradition stated: “God still does two works on the Sabbath: He creates and He judges.” Jesus makes it clear that the Father is working because He is God and that He (Jesus) is working as well.
 
Either the healing that had taken place was not of God at all (the alternative was unthinkable), or Yahweh had worked through Jesus on the Sabbath.
 
Secondly, if the Rabbinic tradition was accurate, Jesus had indeed performed a work of Yahweh either through a ‘creative miracle’ or He was the means of judging the Jews. Either way, the religionists were stumped and effectively and embarrassingly out of the debate.