Comments on: John 5:1-18 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/11/john-51-18-2/ A Community of People Discussing the Bible Sat, 11 Feb 2012 10:38:58 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7 hourly 1 By: Tim Thomas http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/2009/03/11/john-51-18-2/comment-page-1/#comment-220 Tim Thomas Wed, 11 Mar 2009 12:31:38 +0000 http://rtbt.bostonvineyard.org/?p=1683#comment-220 I thought it was interesting that the lame man did not answer Jesus' question with "Of course I want to get well" or "Yes, Yes, Yes!" but rather spoke in unbelief. The NLT has him saying "I can't" (v7). On other occasions Jesus reprimanded his disciples for their little faith or lack of faith. And often when he healed people he said "Your faith has made you well." And yet here He heals the man instantly in spite of his unbelief. I noticed that Jesus did have something still to say to him (v14) but was apparently distracted until later. I could imagine Him seeing the Pharisees coming His way. It says He had disappeared into the crowd. Later He found the man in the Temple. That implies to me that He sought him out so He could tell Him to "stop sinning." That reminds me of the thought that many people talk of their salvation experience as having "found God", but that actually God had found them, since it wasn't God who was lost. I thought it was interesting that the lame man did not answer Jesus’ question with “Of course I want to get well” or “Yes, Yes, Yes!” but rather spoke in unbelief. The NLT has him saying “I can’t” (v7). On other occasions Jesus reprimanded his disciples for their little faith or lack of faith. And often when he healed people he said “Your faith has made you well.” And yet here He heals the man instantly in spite of his unbelief.

I noticed that Jesus did have something still to say to him (v14) but was apparently distracted until later. I could imagine Him seeing the Pharisees coming His way. It says He had disappeared into the crowd. Later He found the man in the Temple. That implies to me that He sought him out so He could tell Him to “stop sinning.”

That reminds me of the thought that many people talk of their salvation experience as having “found God”, but that actually God had found them, since it wasn’t God who was lost.

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