Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign- A True Healing and Hinn Can’t Touch That

"These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name." Jesus said, "All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me."

John 5

The Lame, Liars, and the Lord

Background- John 5:1-3

Most likely this pool of water was just north of the temple area. It was divided into two sections- men and women. It would have been surrounded on all four sides and divided in the middle. It was probably spring fed, which would account for the stirring or moving of the water. It was also thought to be reddish in color because of the mineral deposits in it. It is also believed to be on the route that the sheep destined for sacrifice at the Temple would have been led. The pool of water was probably referred to as ‘Sheep’ in the Greek and the Aramaic or Hebrew term was Bethesda, which means the ‘House of mercy’. You can understand why either term would seem appropriate. It was believed that such pools of water with springs had some sort of healing power. This was a hospital of sorts, and Jesus goes to the hospital—He doesn’t wait for the hospital to come to Him and then demand payment. And so, it is understandable why the blind (those who cannot see), the lame (those who walk through life haltingly), and the paralyzed (those who simply cannot move) are there. It is interesting how the physical mimics the spiritual.

The Lame (5:3-9

The man has been in this physical condition longer than most people of his time lived. For 38 years he had been coming to this pool, the same amount of time as the wilderness wanderings of the children of Israel in Deut 2:14. Notice the details of verse 6; the recognition of the fact that the man had been wandering to the water’s edge a long time. We also find the sensitivity of Jesus in seeing the man and seeking to engage the man’s will ("Do you WANT…?") and to awaken the invalid’s sense of hope with a question.
Here is a valuable little insight into human nature from the question of verse 6. Do not think that people with needs, no matter how acute or severe, automatically want help. A sense of need is never solely sufficient as the sole impetus in seeking help. Sometimes need coupled with frustration can quickly lead to futility as a settled way of life. In other words, some people simply do NOT really want the help. Need, in whatever form it is found, is at times the excuse for one to use to escape responsibility of life, or to draw attention which they may think they would otherwise miss. It is not automatic or axiomatic that the hurting want to be healed.
Here is quite another sometime sad observation into human nature from the response of verse 7. No one was there to help him. He might have been bereft of friends. And, no one who may have received a cure in this fashion then proceeded to turn around and help someone else. The right response from help should be thankfulness, and the right reaction to thankfulness should be help.
The pool of water may have had some limited potency, but Jesus as the living water had unlimited power. (John 4:13-14, 7:37-38) What does Jesus do to bring healing? He speaks! The focus is not on healing, or the gift of healing, but on the healer-Jesus.

The Liars (5:10-13)

Liars were the religious leaders who should have led the sheep in the right direction, but were instead leading them to the road of destruction. Notice the questions and statements going on in the dialogue here. There is absolutely no acknowledgment of the fact of the healing, but instead there is an accusation regarding the breaking of a tradition and law. The Sabbath meant an absence of activity and an abstinence from work.
The poor guy who is healed in caught in the crossfire. He is not prepared to argue with the theologians over religious rules and regulations, which were less about Scripture and more about a man-made system that they developed. He should have been jumping for joy, but instead he is jumpy because of an intimidating judgment (5:10). The man does what most people would do in this situation-he denies and blames.

Lord of the Sabbath (5:14-18)

Whether this man being an invalid for 38 years was due to sin is not really the issue here. As bad as it is to lie on mat most of your life with a physical deformity it is much worse to be spiritually deformed. God does not judge sickness, but He does judge sin. Jesus is more concerned over the man being crippled on the inside than the outside. The man will once again suffer something.
Jesus seeks the man out and reminds him of the importance of the physical healing, but the physical was meant to point to the eternal.
Notice the extent of the hatred that they had toward Jesus and the reason why (5:16). This was not a one time deal with Jesus. He apparently repeatedly did this type thing on the Sabbath. He hit them right in the gut of their pride and weakness. How could an unknown and untrained and unaccredited rebel be allowed to freely do what He was doing and to free people from the restrains of the law? Where would it end? What was next?
You must get this next point. Jesus’ statement in verse 17 and His actions clearly means that He is equating himself with God. They got it. And for that they wanted to kill Him. Jesus turned the tables on them and insisted that He was simply doing the very things that God did on the Sabbath. God’s creating the world may have stopped on the 7’TH day, but his creative activity did not stop. The works of divine providence continue on the Sabbath (rain, sun, births, death, the acting out of the laws of nature). He continues to act in an unabated fashion without exception. He does not need to rest because He is not weary. Jesus links His own labor as continuous and coordinate with those of God the Father. He identified with the One who made the Sabbath, and made the laws, and made the world, and who never rests, and who never grows tired or weary, and who is beyond the reach of the established laws and tradition.

They sensed and knew immediately what Jesus was saying. He made implicit in His argument that He was equal with God. And, you cannot be equal with God unless you are God. Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath and the great Physician. Our response must be worship and honor. It is not Jesus and healing. It is Jesus the healer. Nothing is out of His reach or purview. All authority is His. "These things are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."