Where is your healing?

John 5:1–16 – The Healing at Bethesda

In John 5:1–16, we read of one of the remarkable healing miracles performed by our Lord Jesus Christ. The scene is set at the pool of Bethesda, near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem. This pool was surrounded by five roofed colonnades and was a gathering place for many who were sick, blind, lame, and paralyzed. They came there in hope of being healed by what they believed to be the stirring of the waters.

Verse 4, which appears in some manuscripts and not in others, reflects a local superstition that an angel would stir the waters and that the first person to enter afterward would be healed. However, this belief likely grew out of pagan influence, particularly from the worship of Asclepius, the Greek god of healing. In that region, Asclepian healing pools were common, where people believed divine power would move the waters to bring restoration. The pool of Bethesda had come to be viewed in a similar light. The people placed their faith in the movement of the water rather than in the living God who alone has power to heal.

Into this setting of hopeless superstition and human helplessness walks the Lord of glory Himself. Jesus sees a man who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. The Lord knew his condition perfectly and asked him, “Do you want to be healed?” (John 5:6). This question was not because Jesus needed information, but because He was exposing the man’s misplaced hope. The man replied that he had no one to help him into the water, revealing that his faith was still in the supposed power of the pool.

Then Jesus spoke the simple but powerful words, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk” (John 5:8). Instantly, the man was healed. He did not crawl to the water or wait for it to move. His healing came entirely from the word of Christ. This is a vivid picture of divine grace: Jesus brings life and strength to the powerless by His sovereign command.

This miracle also reveals the tragic blindness of the religious leaders. Instead of rejoicing at the man’s healing, they condemned him for carrying his mat on the Sabbath (John 5:10). Their hearts were so hardened by legalism that they could not see the mercy of God displayed before them. When they later discovered that it was Jesus who had healed him, they began to persecute Him because He had done these things on the Sabbath (John 5:16).

The deeper meaning of this account is that spiritual healing, like physical healing, comes only through Christ. Just as the man was unable to help himself, so every sinner is unable to rise from spiritual death apart from the gracious command of Jesus. He does not need holy water, rituals, or human effort. Salvation is by His word alone.

Bethesda means “house of mercy,” and that is exactly what it became that day. The grace and mercy of God were displayed in the person of His Son, who came not to uphold empty tradition, but to make the broken whole and to reveal that true rest and healing are found only in Him.

We are reminded here that the world’s false hopes, whether ancient superstitions or modern self-help philosophies, can never bring true healing. Only the voice of Christ can say, “Rise,” and give life to those who are spiritually paralyzed by sin. Let us not place our trust in anything less than Him.

We always encourage everyone to check everything through the lens of the Scriptures. Be like the noble Bereans of Paul's day. Please visit us here for much more, and remember, Christ is enough.

Until we meet again, lets go serve our King!

FRF Family