38 years by the pool
Adapted from a sermon Aug 2024 at St Michaels Bedminster and St Francis Ashton
Helena Whitwell
The Healing at the Pool of Bethesda
I am going to pick out a few things from this story of Jesus healing the man by the pool of Bethesda in John chapter 5.
But before we look at that, there is another verse in John that I want to link it to as well. This is something Jesus says, just a little bit further on. He is using the analogy of the shepherd and the sheep, and talking about why he has come to earth.
John 10:9-10. ‘I am the gate, whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.’ I want you to remember that as we will come back to that phrase as we go on.
Ephesians 4:25-5:2 I am not going to talk in detail from this passage but it is so relevant for us as a corporate body of Christ. As God’s people living and being together- how we need each other, how we must encourage each other, speak truth to each other and build each other up in love. So, I would love for that to be a like a framework for the following- and everything that we find in what Jesus says in John 5, is held and backed up within that passage too.
Pool of Bethesda.
This story is one that recently became quite a significant one for my own journey, particularly related to my vocation journey towards ordination.
But I realized something about the miracles of Jesus: They are demonstrations of God’s compassion, kindness and love through the human hands of Jesus. And so many of the healings of Jesus, are actually the removal of barriers for the people being all they were made to be. We see healings of leprosy, blindness, heavy bleeding, inability to walk. These things in the society that Jesus ministered in would be completely crippling for anyone to work, to support their families, to function at all well and live a life of purpose and let alone fulfillment.
So, There are 3 sections to this story, and Jesus speaks 3 times. Firstly, just imagine the setting of this place. We are in Jerusalem, and Near the sheep gate there is a pool, surrounded by 5 covered colonnades. A great number of disabled people used to lie- the blind, the lame, the paralysed. One who had been there had been an invalid for 38 years. Jesus arrives and hears that this man has been an invalid for 38 years. That’s a long time. He asks a simple question which I think has meaning behind it: ‘Do you want to get well?’
I wonder what emphasis Jesus used when he asked that question: ‘Do you even want to get well?!’
If we take some time to unpack what that question could actually unlock, there is quite a lot beneath the surface of the question. You might think it was a strange question from Jesus, or a silly question. If someone has been lying, unable to walk for 38 years of course they would want to get well. But of course, as we know, its not always as straight forward as that is it
I wonder if, what Jesus was gently hinting at here was, - there’s a possibility you are actually quite comfortable in the life you have here. You know how life works here, you are surrounded by others in the same boat who understand, perhaps there are kind people who bring you food and attend to your needs. I understand if actually there is something deep inside you that doesn’t actually want to leave this life. You have a sort of comfort blanket here in the way that you are living.
Or- maybe if we slightly re-phrased Jesus’ question it would be more like:
‘are you ready to move on from this life, and find out what else could be in store?
Are you ready to live life to the full?’
You see, This man had a big barrier to being able to live his life to the full. He was stuck! He couldn’t seem to move forward.
Maybe we can relate to this in our own lives.
Perhaps a simple gentle question from Jesus might give us a nudge to listen, and let him speak to us.
Maybe there are barriers, between our hearts and God’s heart. Maybe they are really subtle barriers that have just gradually grown and developed from our childhood- something like a belief system of the nature of God, of who he is, of how he feels about us. Maybe it has developed into something that is actually not true, but it shapes our thinking, and maybe holds us back from being all we were designed to be.
Or maybe there are more obvious barriers that hold us back. Maybe there is something or someone who immediately pops into your mind at this point- who represents a painful moment, a time when you were really hurt, or let down, or disappointed.
And it could be, that Jesus wants to give you an opportunity to see if you are ready to face those things with him, and move on.
If we look at the reply of the man- there is also a lot we can read into there! He doesn’t really answer the question- maybe he’s avoiding the question? Maybe he doesn’t really want to acknowledge it? But he sort of comes up with an excuse, and even starts comparing his experience to other people’s experiences. Does that sound familiar? I know those things are certainly things I do.
I said that this story has been significant for part of my journey. So just over 7 years ago now, I heard a very quiet, very clear voice which I believe was God, in a church service as we were singing in worship: ‘would you do it, for me?’ I knew the question was about ordination, as that was the context of my thoughts- I was watching an ordinand lead the service, and literally thinking, how pleased I was that I didn’t have to do that. When that question came into my mind: would you do it, for me?
Now, a bit like this man at the pool of Bethesda, I didn’t answer the question. I was not ready to respond to Jesus in that moment. To be completely honest with you, exploring ordination was everything I didn’t want. I was quite comfortable and content where I was! I think I can relate to that man lying by the pool of Bethesda. Now I don’t know if this man liked his life, but I liked my life, I was content, I didn’t think I needed to grow any further, and certainly not to go and study theology and become a vicar. And a bit later, when I was a bit more ready to face it with God and have a conversation with him about it, I did the other thing, of coming up with excuses and comparing myself to others. I could think of so many other people who would do a much better job, and I told God this many times.
Next- Jesus said: ‘Get up! Pick up your mat and walk!’
Ok, so now Jesus has moved on from the gentle, opening question to get us thinking about what we might need to do to face our stuff and think about what we want in life.
Now, it’s a bit more of a directive challenge. He’s being a bit firmer now. Sometimes we need that challenge from someone who knows us and loves us and sees that there is so much more for us.
‘Pick up your mat and walk!’ I love that Jesus was SO specific in this directive. Because it was counter cultural! Jesus healed this man on the sabbath day, which was the very day that you shouldn’t be doing things like carrying a mat. But Jesus gave this man an opportunity to make a statement- to carry what represented his previous 38 year identity, which is so important, its part of him, into his new life- where he is going to discover what living life to the full actually looks like.
And what I love about how Jesus has done this- is that the true meaning of Sabbath is to STOP- but the point is, this man has been stopped, he has been stuck, and now he is getting up and walking, with the presence of God. The sabbath is for rest, and to give us life. Its to reset ourselves before we enter back into the routine of work. I love that Jesus gave this man an opportunity for that, to reset on the sabbath day, so that he could be ready for the next working day.
So, off he goes. He is marching off into his future, carrying his mat which is his story, a reminder of his wounds, the many years he has lost, the pain and the disappointments, and he is taking that with him. This mat is what he knows, he has leant on it, relied on it and needed it, his whole life.
But Jesus has told him: take it with you as a reminder of where you were, but There is MORE to life than this mat. I have come that you may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL. Let me help you look beyond this mat now, and lets WALK forward.
But do you know what? It takes courage to get up and walk.
We can get stuck cant we? We can get stuck in our spiritual walks too. You might find it more helpful to think of your mat as a comfort blanket. And I want to say here- comfort blankets are amazing things! Of course, they provide comfort when we need them.
When a child really wants to be close to their mother, but for a temporary time has to be apart, a comfort blanket can be THE most helpful thing for the child, to help get them through that time. And for this man- his mat was everything- his space, his home, his place to lie, day by day.
I wonder - Do we have Comfort blankets/ mats? Is your mat a comfort blanket right now or a mat representing pain, bitterness, disappointment about how your life turned out? Looking back at your loss and not letting God help you move on? It is a journey. One foot in front of the other.
Choose- stay by the pool of Bethesda for 38 years, coming up with excuses and actually becoming quite accustomed to the comfortable lifestyle. Might be the easiest option. But a gentle challenge to listen today. Is there a gentle question from Jesus to you today?
- For me- this part of my vocation journey came in various different ways, from people who encouraged me and prodded me to keep exploring in the discernment process. I even used the pandemic as an excuse to press pause on the discernment process- saying I needed to focus on my family- but that was completely an excuse to not have to face it. And my slightly more challenging phrase from God when I came up with all my excuses and reasons why other people would be a much better choice- was this; ‘but Helena, its not about you’.
- I really had made it all about me. I was limiting God speaking to me because I just didn’t want to hear what he might want to say, and what he might ask me to do.
- If I was to take that phrase from God and embellish it a bit now, may be it would be: Helena its not about you. Pick up your stuff, your life, your family, all your life experiences, they are all part of you. But lets walk! Lets discover what else I have for you. How you might be able to live life in all its fullness, and- how I might be able to use you to help others do the same.
See the 3rd section at the end. Jesus says to the man: ‘See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.’
Hang on a minute- nothing had been mentioned about sin until this point. Other than breaking the law- carrying his mat on the sabbath day, which the pharisees thought was definitely a sin. It was against the law to do something like carry a mat on the sabbath day.
- So what sin was Jesus focusing on then? Nothing had been mentioned about sin in this mans life?
- Sin: the stuff that gets in the way of us and God. The barriers, the walls, the mess, the other priorities, ANYTHING that comes between a flowing connection. And really- it’s the stuff that we allow, to keep us stuck and keep us from living life in all its fullness. Remember what Jesus said about why he came to earth? ‘I have come, that they may have life, and have it to the full.’
- Definition of sin which I found really helpful ‘The refusal to let God be God in my life.’ Gerard Hughes ‘God of Surprises’
- Ephesians passage actually talks about various different sins to get rid of in our lives. I would encourage you to look at that passage in more detail too. But I think that phrase at the end sums up the instruction to the Ephesians from Paul: ‘Follow God’s example therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.’
- If we KNOW we are fully and unconditionally loved and accepted and known for who we are, then perhaps we too can live in the way we were designed to live.
So, in this final section of the story- Jesus ‘found him’. Didn’t just accidentally bump into him again by chance. Jesus sought him out and found him in his new chapter of life. He found him, in this new context, where he discovering how to live life to the full. He meets him there, and reminds him he is not alone.
He had got up and walked. He had moved on. Maybe he was beginning to live life to the full now. Warning from Jesus- not an evil threat, but a reminder of the consequences of not letting God be God in his life.
Now, you may have picked up that I like to use my imagination sometimes when I read the bible and also when I pray. It helps me bring myself to God in creative ways of connection. So, I want to offer you a re-phrasing of this sentence- which could be for us today, or for this man who was healed earlier in the day.
Perhaps Jesus would say something like this:
See! Look at you now! You are thriving, you are flourishing. You listened to me, to had courage and you stepped forward. I’m telling you, its not easy out here in the real world. People are not always for you, and you need to work hard at relationships, and to build trust with people. But this is a clean slate, you’ve got a new opportunity to live life to the full. Now- Let God be God in your life- don’t let stuff get in the way. When there are blockages and barriers between us, it can lead to implications where others are impacted. Invest in your relationship with me so that things don’t end up taking hold in your life, like temptations, anxious thoughts, rash emotion, saying the wrong thing in anger or from a hurting, offended place, let me be part of your every day life!’
Also- lets do it together, I will walk with you.
A couple of days before I was ordained at the end of June this year, I was on a retreat, which was where I encountered God in this story. I re-phrased this bit for myself, and wrote down in my journal what I thought God was saying to me, as I was preparing to be ordained. Along the lines of what I just read out.
And as I reflected on this, I looked back at the story and thought about how this man had been an invalid for 38 years, sadly not able to step out and live life to the full, until Jesus came along and unlocked that possibility for him. And then it dawned on me – a few days before that, it had been my birthday, and guess how old I was? I had turned 38. So Jesus was quite clearly using this story to speak directly to me, in his living word, 2000 years after this actually happened, to remind me who he is and that through his spirit, he is always with me and this was an important moment to get up and walk.
And just finally – the Ephesians passage talks about how we are all part of one body. So when we look at a story like this when one person is healed and brought into wholeness again, that matters to everyone! That should affect us all, because our body of Christ has been made more whole. When he says to Jesus ‘I have no one to help me’- he is absolutely spot on there because he has acknowledged that he can’t do it on his own- he needs other people- we need each other, in the body of Christ.
Invitation to respond and reflect:
- Listen. Invite you to rest your thoughts a minute and see if there is anything that Jesus may want to gently ask you today? Remember- he loves you unconditionally, and knows what you need. I invite you to trust him with that process today.
- As those thoughts pop into your mind, just think about how you will carry them with you as you go back out into the world today. How will you acknowledge them, carry them and attend to them, with Jesus this week?
Lord God, thank you that we can live as dearly loved children. That no matter what we do, or don’t do, you love us the same. Thank you Lord that you designed each one of us to live life in ALL its fullness. Would you show us how to let you be God, in every area of our lives. Help us to listen to your voice in our minds and let you show us the next step. And where we have got stuck, would you put the right people around us to help us and walk with us.
In Jesus name,
Amen.
