WAITING ON THE LORD, PART THREE: WAITING ON GOD S JOHN 5:1-17 HEALING POWER

Transcription

1 WAITING ON THE LORD, PART THREE: WAITING ON GOD S JOHN 5:1-17 HEALING POWER

2 Part One: Waiting on God s Provision - God s Protection over the Prophet - God s Provision for the Prophet - God s Power through the Prophet. Part Two: Waiting on God s Promise - The Promise Foretold - The Promise Fulfilled - The Promise Forfeited - The Promise Fortified

3 Guinness World Records The Longest Time Spent Living Underwater Richard Presley spent 69 days 19 min in a module underwater at a lagoon in Key Largo, Florida, USA from 6 May to 14 July 1992.

4 Guinness World Records The Longest Living Reigning Queen Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II (b. 21 April 1926). Succeeded the throne on 6 February 1952 on the death of her father, King George VI. 2012: The Queen's Diamond Jubilee. She have been reigning for 61 years.

5 Guinness World Records The Longest Driven Journey Emil and Liliana Schmid (Switzerland) Have covered 665,712 km (413,653 miles) in their Toyota Land Cruiser, since 16 October 1984, crossing 172 countries and territories in the process. They have no permanent home and have not worked or paid taxes.

6 Guinness World Records The Longest Flight Duration for a Hand- Launched Paper Aircraft 27.9 sec by Takuo Toda (Japan) at the Fukuyama Big Rose in Hiroshima, Japan, on 11 April 2009.

7 Guinness World Records The Longest Duration Living with Scorpions Kanchana Ketkaew (Thailand) lived in a glass room measuring 12 m² (130 ft²) containing 5,320 scorpions for 33 days and nights at the Royal Garden Plaza, in Pattaya, Thailand, from 22 December 2008 to 24 January Over the 33 days, she was stung thirteen times.

8 Biblical Records Longest Time with A Hemorrhage Luke 8:40-48 A woman had a hemorrhage for 12 years.

9 Biblical Records Longest Time Unable to Straighten Up Luke 13:10-13 A woman was crippled for 18 long years, was bent over and could not straighten up whatsoever.

10 WAITING ON THE LORD, PART 3: Biblical Records Longest Time Waiting to Enter the Pool of Bethesda John 5:1-17 A man was paralyzed for 38 years waiting to get in the pool at a specific time to receive healing.

11 Jewish Feasts: - Passover - The Feast of Unleavened Bread - The Feast of Firstfruits - The Feast of Weeks - The Feast of Trumpets - The Day of Atonement - The Feast of Tabernacles.

12 Jews were obligated to go up to Jerusalem for 3 major annual feasts: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. If the first is probably ruled out because of the time of year, we may also suppose that the last is not as likely because it forms the central setting for chapter 7 This leaves the feast of Pentecost, which at some point prior to this time in Jewish tradition became identified with the giving of the Law to Moses on Mount Sinai. Such an association might explain Jesus reference to Moses in 5: W. Hall Harris III

13 Jesus came to a pool of water near the Sheep Gate, called Bethesda. Bethesda is a combination of two Hebrew words: beit which means home of and hesed which means "grace. Bethesda could mean, House of Grace/ Mercy, or also Shame or Disgrace.

14 Those who were gathered there, were those who sick, blind, lame, and withered (paralyzed). The Jews thought were under the judgment of God for their sin. These kinds of people were not allowed to enter into the temple (Cf. Acts 3).

15 A multitude of people would come to the pool of Bethesda seeking to rid themselves of their shame and disgrace and receive the grace and mercy of God. Many of them wanted not only to be healed, but to have their sins forgiven, for their understanding of their situation was much the same of everyone else.

16 The Sheep Gate John 5:2, 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. The only other mention in the Word of God of the Sheep Gate is in the Book of Nehemiah.

17 Nehemiah 3:1, Then Eliashib the high priest arose with his brothers the priests and built the Sheep Gate; they consecrated it and hung its doors. Nehemiah 3:28, Between the upper room of the corner and the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and the merchants carried out repairs. Nehemiah 12:39, And above the Gate of Ephraim, by the Old Gate, by the Fish Gate, the Tower of Hananel and the Tower of the Hundred, as far as the Sheep Gate; and they stopped as the Gate of the Guard.

18 At first glance Nehemiah 3 does not seem to be very interesting reading, and yet there is much in it that is precious. It describes the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem in the days when a remnant of Israel returned from the Babylonian captivity. Various portions in the work of reconstruction were allotted to different individuals and companies. These portions or sections were from gate to gate. Ten gates are mentioned in the chapter. The first is the sheep gate and the last is "The gate Miphkad" which

19 means "judgment," and speaks, perhaps, of the judgment-seat of Christ; and then the chapter concludes by saying, "And between the going up of the corner unto the sheep gate repaired the goldsmiths and the merchants." Thus the circle is completed, and at the close we are brought back to the point from which we started "The sheep gate." This is the gate through which the sacrificial animals were brought to the temple the "lamb" predominating, hence its name. The sheep gate, then, points us at once to Christ,

20 and tells of His Cross. how exceedingly significant and blessed to note that we are here told the pool which was called Bethesda, meaning mercy, was by the "sheep" (gate). It is only in Christ that the poor sinner can find mercy, and it is only through His sacrifice on the Cross that this mercy is now obtainable for us in Him. - A.W. Pink John 1:29, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

21 An Angel of the Lord Troubling the Waters? John 5:4, For an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.

22 Unusual Healings in the Word of God - The purified pot of stew (2 Kings 4:38-41). - The healing of Naaman by washing in the Jordan River (2 Kings 5:10-14). - The healing of the man who touched the bones of Elisha in (2 Kings 13:20-21). - The healing of those who have the shadow of Peter upon them (Acts 5:14-16). - The healing of those who have Paul s handkerchiefs upon them (Acts 19:11-12) God can and does do things in unexpected ways. David Guzik

23 This man was waiting for 38 long years to get into the pool first and be delivered from his infirmity. But the problem was that he was unable to get in when the waters were troubled. Jesus asked him, Do you wish to get well? Instead of saying yes, he gave excuses why he was not healed.

24 Maybe he didn t want to be healed because his identity was found in his infirmity for some people, a change in identity is more difficult to handle than a change in infirmity. Year and year, he remained in that depressing cycle. The length of the man s plight underscores the hopelessness of his situation. - Andreas. J. Kostenberger

25 Like nation of Israel, he was caught in inescapable cycle for 38 years. Deuteronomy 2:14, Now the time that it took for us to come over from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed over the brook Zered was thirtyeight years, until all the generation of the men of war perished from within the camp, as the Lord had sworn to them.

26 WAITING ON THE LORD, PART 3: John 5:8, Get up, pick up your pallet and walk. John 5:9, Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk.

27 As usual, the religious leaders were not pleased with the outcome of this story. It is not the actual healing that is the Jews primary concern. Rather, offense is taken at Jesus telling the man to pick up his mat and walk; for oral tradition (though not the OT) forbade the carrying of a mat on the Sabbath. - Andreas. J. Kostenberger

28 John 5:17, My Father is working until now, and I Myself and working. Be encouraged, the Lord is still working today!

29 Psalm 31:24, Be strong and let your heart take courage, All you who hope in the Lord. Psalm 38:15, For I hope in You, O Lord; You will answer, O Lord my God. Psalm 27:14, Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, Wait for the Lord. Psalm 40:1, I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined to me and heard my cry.

30 WAITING ON THE LORD, PART THREE: WAITING ON GOD S JOHN 5:1-17 HEALING POWER