Man By The Pool
John 5:1-15
Why Me? The Question That Changes Everything at the Pool of Bethesda
Have you ever asked yourself “Why me?” beneath the burdens of suffering, surprised to face hardship like you don’t deserve it? Or do you ask that question “under the safety of God’s mercy and grace” – knowing yourself too well and wondering why God would choose someone so undeserving?
Joseph Hart, born in London in 1712, was known for his “open hostility toward Christianity” until at age 45, “after being invited by a friend to come hear a sermon on the Holy Spirit, Mr. Hart and these were his own words, he said he was struck down and he was converted.” In his hymn “Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy,” Hart wrote words that “described himself, but it also describes our pitiful man by the pool”: “come ye sinners, poor and needy, weak and wounded, sick and sore, Jesus ready stands to save you, full of pity, love and power.”
The Depth of Human Helplessness
In John chapter 5, we encounter the third sign in John’s gospel – and remember, “a sign does not point to itself. A sign is there to point you somewhere else.” This miracle at the pool of Bethesda reveals something profound about both our condition and Christ’s character.
“Bethesda was a pool. Actually, it wasn’t one pool, it was two pools. And they were about the size of a football field together.” Surrounding these pools were “five colonnades, five porches” where “scholars think there may have been up to 300 people that were crowded under these porches.” These weren’t casual visitors – they were “blind and they were lame and they were paralyzed.”
Why were hundreds of desperate people gathered there? “There was a legend. And the legend was that unpredictably, an angel would come and would stir the waters. And if you were able to get into those waters, and be the first one. The legend was that you might be healed.” Picture it: “a multitude of souls, eyes fixed on a pool. That is the wrong solution. Eyes fixed on a pool, entirely unaware that the healer was among them.”
Chosen by Sovereign Grace Alone
Among these hundreds, John focuses on one man who “had been an invalid for 38 years.” The connection to Israel’s 38 years wandering in the wilderness as punishment for sin isn’t coincidental. As Jesus later tells this man in verse 14: “see, you are well, sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” This man’s “misery was self inflicted.”
But here’s what’s remarkable: “out of hundreds of people, Jesus chooses this one man. Why?” If you witnessed this miracle, “that is for sure the question that you would be asking, isn’t it? Why this man? What is it about him?”
The answer might surprise you. “This man was not chosen because of anything good in him.” In fact, “this man was not healed because he was more deserving or the most faithful or more likely to prove worthy of the gift. Quite the opposite. This man was chosen that the compassion and the grace of God might be on full display.”
Remember Jesus’s words in Luke 5:31: “those who are well have no need of a physician. But those who are sick, I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” This man, “perhaps more than any other man at the pool, likely known for his sin and the consequence of it, was the perfect man for Christ to set this example.”
The Ugliness of Legalism
Here’s where the story takes an interesting turn. John adds this “consequential detail” in verse 9: “Now, that day was the Sabbath.” Jesus deliberately chose to heal on the Sabbath, and “what Jesus does here is to pick a fight” with legalism.
The religious leaders’ response reveals the ugliness of their hearts. Instead of marveling at the miracle, “the Jews said to the man who had been healed, it is the Sabbath and it is not lawful for you to take up your bed.” They couldn’t even ask who healed him – only “who told you to break our rule?”
“A man has just been healed of paralysis. And the first response of the religious leaders is indignation over carrying friends.” This shows us that “legalism is not merely a cold system of rules. It is a heart so hardened by self righteousness that it cannot see or rejoice in the grace of God.”
The Call to Holiness
Jesus’s work wasn’t finished with the healing. Later, “Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, see, you are well. Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” We might ask, “what could be worse than 38 years of paralysis?” The answer: “There are worse consequences than any physical affliction. Consequences that outlast this life and extend into the next.”
“Those who are healed by God’s grace are not left in it. They are charged to leave their sin and walk in holiness.”
Putting It Into Practice
There are only “two kinds of people in this room right now… There are those who at this very moment are in Christ, and then there are those who are not in Christ.”
For those in Christ: “Would you meditate on God’s grace in your life and praise him for it?” You were “spiritually blind and lame and paralyzed, and you didn’t heal yourself. Jesus healed you.” The charge remains: “Sin no more. What sin do you need to turn from today?” Remember, “be killing sin or it will be killing you.”
For those not yet in Christ: The question Jesus posed to the paralyzed man applies to you: “Do you want to be healed?” This requires answering two deeper questions: “Can you admit your need?” and “Do you truly desire to change?”
“Come, ye sinners, poor and needy, weak and wounded, sick and sore. Jesus ready stands to save you Full of pity, full of love, full of power.”
When You Meet Jesus
When The Crowd Leaves
Where Are You Really Heading
Look to Christ and Live
What Angers Jesus
Jesus Pursues and Persuades
We hope you enjoyed the sermon and would love to see you in person. Plan your visit to Community Baptist Church in Spring Hill, Tennessee today!