Quote for the Day
“Who is this fellow who told you to pick [up your mat] and walk?”
Today's Prayer
This week pray for those you know who are struggling with their relationship with the Father. Pray that God’s revelation be seen by their eyes. Ask God to reveal His will to them in their lives.
John 5:8-15
John 5:8-15 (NIV)8 Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, 10 and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.”11 But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ”12 So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?”13 The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there.14 Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
Message
Last week we discussed the question, this week let’s chat about the follow up. The man who was healed had very little concern about who healed him; he was simply joyful that he had been healed. The religious rulers of the day had a slightly different agenda. They did want to know who had healed him, not so that they too could be healed, but so they could find out who had authorized someone to work on the Sabbath. Now carrying a simple bedroll was not exactly what God intended when He asked the Israelites to not work on the Sabbath. His intention was to allow for His people to rest in Him; to remember that their lives were in His full control, if they so allowed. The rulers of the day began to think up many minor rules and infractions to “show” whether a person was working or not. What was the reason for this? The bottom line was so that with the power of the flesh (man) they could believe (and feel) like they were righteous. They had forgotten that God alone was righteous, and they simply needed to submit the flesh to God. The Sabbath was to be a reminder of God’s perfect provision, not a set of rules. Christ knew this and also knew healing (or even carrying your bedroll) on the Sabbath was not an affront to God.