“Do you want to get well?”

When reading the scriptures there is often a deeper meaning than what we initially read.  One of those places is in John 5 when Jesus encounters the invalid man who has been an invalid for 38 years.  Jesus’ question for the man appears to be a simple question, “Do you want to get well?”  We would expect his answer to be a quick “You bet I do”.  

His response might be surprising, the man points to others.  Blame.  He blames others.  No one is able to help him into the pool when the opportunity for healing comes.  We all respond too often with blame.  We blame our family, our friends, our income, our circumstances, and hundreds of other realities.  It is one of the oldest ways of dealing with trouble.  When God asked Adam why he ate the forbidden fruit, he blamed Eve.  

I don’t think Jesus was asking if he wanted to be healed, his question was if he wanted to change.  To be healed meant a change in his life.  Being healed would mean getting a job.  Being healed would likely mean a new place to live. Being healed would mean a new group of friends.  Being healed would mean change. Being healed would mean learning to live beyond the colonnades of the Sheep Gate Pool.  Jesus enabled the man to walk, but he had to learn to live as a healed man. 

Too often as followers of Christ we are missing the individual care and guidance to live in the healing grace of Jesus Christ.  Whether dealing with a breakdown in communication, guilt, infidelity, resolving difficult emotions such as hurt, anger, fear, and guilt and shame; pastoral care can provide healing through the Holy Spirit.  I have almost 30 years of experience in church ministry and hospice chaplaincy that can provide answers and clarity. But each of us has to answer the question, “do you want to get well?” 

Rev. Stuart Smith MDiv