Third miracle of Jesus; The Lame Man is Healed!
Before getting into the third miracle that Jesus performed in the gospel of John, that is the healing of the disabled man who was infirm for 38 years. I want to give an overview of what I believe this episode in Jesus’ life teaches us.
The scripture I want to start off with is found in John 10:10, I’m sure you are familiar with it, but I hope to give you some deeper insight. Listen to what Jesus said, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
An important truth to remember is that God does not cause sickness and disease; that is the work of the devil and sin in a fallen world. Remember what Jesus came to do, “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.”, 1 John 3:8. Jesus is the abundant life giver; never forget that. Show More
Who is the thief in John 10:10? We know that the thief is Satan or the devil. There are three things that the devil wants to do that is steal, kill, and destroy. Let’s look at each one of these one at a time.
The Thief wants to Steal.
Satan wants to steal everything that God has given you for your good. The first thing that comes to mind is the fruit of the Spirit, which is found in Galatians 5. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are yours because these are the traits of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit lives in you as a believer in Jesus Christ. They may not be especially evident, but as you pursue your relationship with Jesus, they will become more and more manifest.
The second thing the thief wants to steal from you is the Holy Spirit gifts listed in 1 Corinthians 12. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are as follows “7 But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all: 8 for to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit, to another the word of knowledge through the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healings by the same Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another discerning of spirits, to another different kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.” Again, these are your gifts because the Holy Spirit dwells within you. In the same chapter, Paul admonishes us to “not be ignorant of these gifts of the Holy Spirit.”
Without the fruit and the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we become powerless Christians. Powerless to be a witness for Jesus, powerless to be the healing hand of Jesus, and powerless to be a genuine leader for the cause of Christ.
The Thief wants to Kill
As a believer in Jesus Christ, you have an enemy, the devil. The devil’s strategy is that if he can’t have you, He will try to make you ineffective and, if necessary, kill you. It might sound frightening but remember Revelation 12:11, “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” You see, the enemy can’t touch us if we remember who we belong to, Jesus!
The blood of the Lamb of God shed on the cross is our covering and protection. James 4:7 says, “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.” First, obey the Lord, then resist the devil; you have authority in Jesus’ name.
Word of our testimony is our outward expression by words and deeds that Jesus is our King. The thief wants to create fear that will cause us to doubt our God and ultimately not trust Jesus. We are ambassadors of Christ.
We don’t love our lives even to the death because we believe the promise that Jesus made in John 14:2, “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.” As believers in Jesus Christ, our home is Heaven, and one day each of us will depart this life to be with Jesus forever!
The Thief wants to Destroy
Your hope and faith in Jesus. The basis of our relationship with the Lord is faith, as it says in 2 Corinthians 5:7, “We walk by faith and not by sight.” Faith is the key to all spiritual authority and power. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as spiritual, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:6 tells us that it is the only way to please God, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”
So, the devil will do whatever he can to discourage and dismantle our faith in Jesus. Remember, it is not faith in faith but faith in Jesus! The devil will try to get us to trust our experience, our education, our intellect, the pursuit of wealth, our friends, or any other thing that will cause us to take our eyes off Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith!
Jesus’ Third Miracle at the Pool of Bethesda
As Jesus and His disciples traveled to Jerusalem, it is interesting that Jesus chose to go through the Sheep Gate to enter the city. Why would Jesus choose that gate? It was because there was a pool called Bethesda near the gate. This pool had five landings or porches where “a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed,” waited for the water to be stirred. Tradition had it that an angel would come down at certain times and stir up the waters, and it was believed that whoever got into the water first would be healed of whatever disease he had! Now you have to ask yourself the question, “why did Jesus go to the Pool of Bethesda? Let’s read the actual biblical account.
A Man Healed at the Pool of Bethesda
Jesus was able to cut through the traditions of men and reveal the truth of God. The tradition was that an angel of the Lord would stir up the waters of the pool, and the first one in would be healed. There is no scriptural basis for this practice. It was probably an event that became a practice that eventually became a tradition, a tradition of men. The Apostle Paul had this to say about traditions, “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.” Colossians 2:8 The truth that Jesus brought was, “believe in me and I will make you well!” that truth still stands today. Remember, the thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy, but Jesus came to give life and life more abundantly!
John 5:5, “Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?” 7 The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” 8 Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” 9 And immediately the man was made well, took up his bed, and walked. And that day was the Sabbath.”
Deceptions of the Devil
In my last post, I mentioned three general areas where we can be deceived.
- The first and most common area where we can be deceived is relying on personal experience as a basis for our relationship with Jesus. Our emotions can be a very unreliable indicator of truth. When we pray and don’t get what we want from God, our minds can then become fertile ground for the devil to come and deceive us with lies about God.
- The second area of deception is leaning on our own understanding or human logic. You must examine what you believe and why you believe it because most modern education creates skepticism for anything spiritual! (Proverbs 3:5, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;). Depending on your own limited understanding, compared to God’s omniscience, is a trap of the enemy.
- The third area of misinformation is the incorrect teaching that the supernatural does not apply today. Many leaders are teaching that miracles don’t happen today. Yet, the New Testament is filled with miracles, signs, and wonders. The church also has a long history of miracles, signs, and wonders. Think about this; even your salvation is a miracle! However, the thief would try to keep you in ignorance of the glorious life that the Lord has for you.
The Religious Leaders Response to The Lame Man Healed.
10 The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed.”Isn’t it incredible and sad that in the face of a miracle only God could perform the religious Jews preferred to lean on their traditions. The religious leaders preferred legalism over mercy and grace. It is as if there were a veil across their eyes preventing them from seeing the truth, that Jesus was the Christ the hope of glory. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3:12, “Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech— 13 unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. 14 But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. 15 But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. 16 Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.” As Christians, our covenant is found in the New Testament, where the veil is taken away.
The religious leaders did not recognize Jesus because they were more interested in their privilege and position than the truth! They did not make the connection between who Jesus was and the Old Testament prophecy in Jeremiah 31:31, “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the LORD. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” The New Covenant was clearly prophesied in the Old Covenant.
The veils of tradition and culture are strong, and when they are contrary to what Jesus purchased at the Cross of Calvary, we must reject them. We often hear people say, “It is the way we do things here!” Yes, but does it line up with the Word of God? The practice must line up with the Word of God. The veil of culture is a subtle but powerful influence we are unaware of because we grew up in it. Prevailing attitudes about love, vengeance, gender, marriage, children, honesty, and integrity are built into the culture. These attitudes may be contrary to scriptures and yet widely accepted. However, are called to adhere to biblical truth.
When the healed man was questioned by the religious leaders, “11 He answered them, “He who made me well said to me, ‘Take up your bed and walk.’” 12 Then they asked him, “Who is the Man who said to you, ‘Take up your bed and walk’?” 13 But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place” Clearly, the purpose of Jesus healing the crippled man was to glorify the Father, make the statement that He was from God and that He had the power and authority to administer mercy and grace to even the most insignificant of people. This miracle should encourage us, who the devil has tried to steal, kill and destroy, that our Lord and King is greater and has promised us the abundant life.
In closing, let me say what Peter said in 2Peter 1:2, “Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.”
