When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him. Do you want to be healed?( John 5:6)
The Lord was actually asking this man if he was willing to pay the price for good health. He was asking if he was willing to part with the sin that put him in the condition he was in.
Afterward, Jesus found the man at the temple and said to him, “See, you have been made well. This is what He said to him after he saw him in the temple, following healing him. Stop sinning, or something worse may happen to you.”(John 5:14)
The man did not comprehend this. The sick man answered, “Sir, I have no one here to put me in the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am trying to get in, somebody else gets there first. (John 5:7)
This man was disgruntled. His entire efforts of getting in the pool were thwarted. Pain and suffering has a tendency of making us selfish and self centered. Everyone at this pool was pursuing their own healing. This man was seeking assistance from individuals who were incapable of such a task which unveils his state of mind. The mind is designed such that when we hold a conscious or subconscious belief in our minds, to seek experiences congruent with that belief, establishing a form of confirmation bias and proving us right.Our minds will specifically tailor and seek out these experieces for us on the basis of our belief . Our beliefs set the stage for our experiences. Succinctly, you experience what you believe. Hence the Lord said all things are possible to him who believes. He was goading us to believe correctly.
It did not dawn on this man that those present were likewise, invalids just as he was, yet he was offended by their lack of courtesy. His illness affected his judgment. The fact that he was expecting aid from these individuals indicated that he was entitled, blaming them evidenced a sense of self pity and pride. We cannot demand assistance from anyone, even when we are ill. This man sounded offended.
The wounded soul
When we sin and remain impenitent, it gives the enemy a foothold and an opening. Consequently, he can attack us and that includes making us sick. Sin wounds the soul, giving the enemy legal grounds to attack. It is quite common for an internal soul-wound to give way to a physical ailment. Conversely, the trauma associated with a prolonged physical illness often results in the wounding of the soul.Of course, not all sickness is a consequence of sin.
When an area of our lives is affected by sickness or otherwise, we are required to guard the other healthy areas.
This mans circumstances necessitated the Lord to make him whole. Not only was he infirmed in his physical body, his perception and mindset required His healing touch. His soul was wounded. The Lord needed to empower him to stand on his own again and regain his independence. Hence, he told him to pick up his mat and walk. He did not offer to help him to get up.
This man was at the pool just as everybody else due to it being the avenue that was provided for healing. Yet,this was not yielding the desired outcome. The Lord provided another way for him to attain freedom.
Suffice it to say, sickness possesses the capacity to warp a person’s mindset and paradigm when precautionary measures are not exercised. Subsequently, more measures will be required to attain wellness and wholeness, as observed with this man who required wholeness and not healing alone.
There is a story cited in Evangelist Diga Hernandez’s book, Carriers of the glory, becoming a friend of the Holy Spirit. He held a crusade with his unnamed prophet friend and a woman who looked utterly hopeless, wallowing in her illness was in the prayer line. He was ministering to one individual when he glanced at her. He then thought to himself that he will minister to her next. When he got to her and wanted to pray, the woman said she wanted to die. He wanted to pray for healing however the Holy Spirit halted him and said she required a prophetic word first. Diga does not possess the gift of prophecy so they went to his prophet friend who prophesied accurately to this woman. He told her everything that she revealed to Diga when they were conversing. Subsequently, Diga prayed for her and she was healed instantaneously.
When this man was pursuing his healing and failing at every attempt, Jesus saw him. The Lord sees us in our struggles. He met him where he was. He did not give up thus the Lord created an alternative way for him. Nobody could assist him but God. We at times may despair due to people forsaking us . Yet, this story reminds us that even when others forsake us or their aid fails to alter our situation,as it was with this man who was brought to the pool only to fend for himself, the Lord remains able to intervene where our circumstance is impregnable. He can still make a way where there is ostensibly no way.
