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Volume 18, Number 2

April Spring 2023

The Sovereignty of God and the Helplessness of Man

John 5:1-16

Part I

“After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had. And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole? The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me. Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath. The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed. He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk. Then asked they him, What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk? And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place. Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee. The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole. And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day.”

Introduction

Sovereignty is a word that describes the majestic power, authority, and omniscience of Almighty God. In our Scripture text, we are reminded of God’s Sovereignty over our entire lives, including birth, salvation, health, sicknesses, healing, and death. We are often overtaken with surprise events, but nothing surprises God because He has ordained all things.

For several weeks after my back surgery, I felt the most helpless that I’d ever felt in my adult life which brought to mind the old song, Without Him I can do Nothing. This reminded me of my absolute dependance and reliance upon God for everything worth having in this life. Like the song writer said, Without Him, I can do nothing, Without Him, I’d surely fail, Without Him, I would be drifting, Like a Ship without a sail.

As I was meditating upon that thought, God also laid upon my heart the passage recorded in the 5^th chapter of John’s Gospel. The theme of God’s Sovereignty and man’s Helplessness is plastered throughout the Word of God from Genesis to Revelation. However, we find a picture of that theme portrayed in the story of Christ healing the sick man by the “pool” of “Bethesda” in “Jerusalem.” Perhaps you’ve heard it said that “a picture is worth a thousand words,” and that is so true in the episode recorded in our text. The setting finds “Jesus” in “Jerusalem” confronting a helpless “man” totally unable to walk and do much of anything for himself (v. 1-2). The scene takes place during one of the annual “feast of the Jews” in “Jerusalem” at which time “Jesus” was present to witness a “multitude” of people in need of healing. In this passage we have a vivid contrast between the Sovereignty of God and the Helplessness of man. The Sovereignty of God, in short, refers to the fact that EVERYTHING works together according to the divine plan and purpose of God while man’s helplessness demonstrates our total inability to do anything worthy for ourselves. During days prior to surgery and still today, I lean heavily upon such verses as found in Prov. 3:5-6 and Rom. 8:28, which points me toward the Sovereignity of my God.

God’s Sovereignty is Not based Upon the Will of Man v. 3-7

Like these “impotent (physically disabled), blind, halt (lame) withered (paralyzed) … folk,” mentioned in our text, we are all absolutely helpless and unable to deliver ourselves from our spiritual or physical consequences of sin (v.3). Not only are we all physically marred with some type of problem whether its physical, mental, or emotional, we are also scared spiritually and born separated from God and totally helpless to correct our dilemma. Therefore, we’re in desperate need of God’s intervention simply because we’re totally helpless without Him.

Some scholars debate if the recording of “an angel” being responsible for troubling “the water” is accurate or if it was a scribal error (v.4). Personally, I believe this is a needless debate because it doesn’t change the truth of this text whatsoever. There are times in Scripture when God used “angels” (Heb. 13:2) for specific reasons in ministering to earthly recipients, such as delivering a message to “Joseph” (Matt. 1:20-25) and “Mary” (Lk. 1:26-40) about the birth of Christ. Throughout Scripture, we’re told of “angels” serving as “ministering spirits” to those who are the “heirs of salvation” (Heb. 1:13-14). Some speculate that this “water” had some kind of healing effect similar to the Hot Springs in Hot Springs Arkansas, except it was miraculous and for some reason limited to only a short period of time.

In recent years I’ve heard people argue, like never before, if vaccines and medications are of the Lord. Scripture records on several different occasions how Christ used various methods to bring healing to those who were physically sick. He mixed His “spittle” with dirt to make “clay” and placed it on the eyes of a “blind man” before telling him to go and wash (Jh. 9:6-7). He told another “blind man” that healing had taken place because of his “faith” (Mk. 10:51-52). He is recorded of merely touching another person for them to be healed of their “leprosy” (Lk. 5:12-14). He also put His “fingers” into a man’s “ears” and “touched his tongue” with His saliva to bring healing (Mk. 7:32-35). He healed others when they merely “touched the hem of His garment” which He wore (Matt. 9:20-22, 14:36). Our text records the second physical healing by Jesus in John’s Gospel, both of which were instantly healed with a verbal command from the lips of Jesus (Jh. 4:43-5:16).

All of this indicates that even today, it’s Jesus Who is the Great Physician and He alone brings healing to our sick diseased bodies through whatever method He so chooses. God can use doctors to perform surgery and give them the needed skills and abilities to help us feeble creatures. God can enlighten the intellect of people to invent modern day advancements in procedures and medical technology for our benefit. God can expand the knowledge of medical research to discover vaccines, medications, and treatments for our diseases.

Just like Jesus did in biblical days, He still uses various ways and methods to heal such as doctors, nurses, researchers, lab technicians, pharmacist, and many others who become tools and vessels in God’s Hands to help us as we travel this diseased pathway of life. The amazing thing is WHY God would help us sinful people who are deserving of suffering and Hell and to top it off how God would use heathens to help us in the process. God’s grace is so amazing in so many different ways even when it comes to using the heathen for his divine purpose. A doctor doesn’t have to be a Christian for God to use him to accomplish His plan for our lives.

At this point, I can think of numerous heathens in both the Old and New Testaments that God used to fulfill His plan for His people. We don’t have to read far into the pages of Scripture before learning how God convinced “Pharaoh” to release Israel from Egyptian bondage and even financed their building of the Tabernacle (Ex. 12:29-36). Another such instance jumps off the pages in the Old Testament when God used “Cyrus king of Persia” to release the Children of Israel from Babylonian captivity to rebuild the temple (Ezra 1:1-2). In the New Testament God used the wicked “Caesar” to give Paul a free ride to Rome where he preached the Gospel (Acts 25:11-12). Oftentimes, heathens are being used of God to accomplish His plan for the ages as well as for individuals Whom He has sovereignly chosen for His purposes, both spiritually and physically. Just as it is in all acts of God, He stands alone in everything that He says or does and is never persuaded by any opinion nor act of man (Eph. 1:9). This means that there are lost people getting healed today in God’s common grace just like some of those who entered the “troubling of the water” at the “pool” (Matt. 5:45). Most of us take our healing for granted without ever stopping to realize that there would be no healing upon anyone outside of God’s grace. For the Christian, we ought to see our healing as an opportunity to bear witness of our Lord’s faithfulness to us throughout all the seasons of life (Heb. 13:5).

The sick “man” in our text who claims our attention “had an infirmity” for “38 years” which made him unable to walk (v.5-7). There may be some who believe this “man” was sick because of a particular sin which he had committed, but we have no biblical reason for believing that to be the case. It’s true, there are sins that can bring direct consequences upon us, such as drug addiction, acts of immorality, and all sorts of habits that are bad for our health. But, overall, we are going to get sick and die because we’ve inherited depravity from our parents (Ps. 51:5). Jesus made it perfectly clear when He addressed that subject when confronted by a questioning mob (Jh. 9:2).

We can only assume that either a friend or family member helped the “man” in our text back and forth to the “pool,” but did not stay with him throughout the day. If we’re not careful, we can take our friends and family for granted, even in times of sickness and distress, but what a blessing it is for God to give us people to help us in times of need. I was especially blessed to have our son remain with me through surgery, our daughter to stay with me during the night, and both spending the rest of the week with me, along with my wife who cared for me once I got home and helped me adjust to my new lifestyle for the next several weeks. Above all, especially, during such times, we’re reminded that Jesus is a “friend that sticketh closer than a brother” (Prov. 18:24). What a blessing to know and recognize the healing, comfort, power, and presence of Almighty God at all times and especially in times of illness, surgery, pain, and suffering!

Let’s pay special attention to the brief conversation that Jesus had with this crippled “man” who remains unnamed. Jesus saw him and simply asked, “Wilt thou be made whole?” or in other words, “Do you want to be made well?” This may seem like a strange question because who in their right mind doesn’t want to be well in body? Actually, there are some people who enjoy being sick and even thrive on complaining and getting selfish attention. They are called hypochondriac’s which is a sickness unto itself and is a poor testimony for any Christian.

The man’s reply in our text was not a yes or no, but “Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.” His answer implied that he wanted to be made well and gave his reason for not getting into the “pool” in time for a healing to occur, which once again raises unanswered questions about this mysterious “water.” However, to us it may seem a mystery as to why God heals some and not others, but that’s where we must learn how to “walk by faith, not by sight” (II Cor. 5:7). Jesus could have healed the entire “multitude” that had gathered by the “pool” on this particular occasion, but Scripture records only one “man” whom He chose to heal. Furthermore, this one man did not seek out Jesus, but it was Jesus Who took the initiative and sought him just like it is with the salvation of a lost soul (Jh. 15:16, Rom. 3:11).