Pastor’s Corner: “BLIND SPOTS” Missing Jesus
John 5:39-40 (MSG) – 39-40 “You have your heads in your Bibles constantly because you think you’ll find eternal life there. But you miss the forest for the trees. These Scriptures are all about me! And here I am, standing right before you, and you aren’t willing to receive from me the life you say you want.
I was re-reading the story of the paralyzed man that Jesus healed at the pool of Bethesda in John 5 this morning. Have you ever read something in the Bible that you have read before (maybe many times) and have it speak to you in a new and powerful way? I experienced that this morning.
I was reading this story it occurred to me that the Jewish leaders knew who this man was and that he had been paralyzed for 38 years. I want you to think about that, 38 years. They saw him every day sitting at the pool of Bethesda waiting against all odds for a healing. They knew he was always alone with no one to help him. If there was ever an opportunity to get down to the water first to receive a healing he would need someone to help him get down there, so the possibility and hope for this man to be healed was 0%. Everyone knew this. Yet the first words out of their mouth when they saw this man walking carrying his mat amazingly were: John 5:10 “You can’t work on the Sabbath! It’s illegal to carry that sleeping mat!” Wow. That’s all they had to say? 38 years of pain, suffering, hopelessness, despair and filth (how did this man to the bathroom all day if there was no one to help him?). They should have been jumping, dancing, shouting and praising God with this man and the miracle in his life. At the very least they should have been amazed. How detached, narrow-minded and selfish can they be? In the face of this beautiful miracle and restoration of someone’s life after 38 years, all they had to say was, “it’s illegal to carry your mat.” Where is the compassion? Where is the rejoicing? They knew this man and saw this miracle right in front of their own eyes and they completely missed it! They missed Jesus.
Before we get too self-righteous, we need to stop and take a moment of self-reflection. Where are we in this story? A few of us might be the paralyzed man. Some of us might be the Jewish leaders. But I think most of us fall into the category of the rest of the people in the crowd. They didn’t say anything against this man, but they were thinking it or they were dis-affected and did not care. They knew the paralyzed man and his story as well. They may have not accused this man in public, but they did not say anything at all. It reminds me of Jesus words in Revelation 3:15-16 (TLB) – 15 “I know you well—you are neither hot nor cold; I wish you were one or the other! 16 But since you are merely lukewarm, I will spit you out of my mouth! Indifferent, disconnected and selfish. Others may have recognized the miracle, but they were too afraid to speak up against the religious leaders because of what might happen to them. Again, the word selfish comes to mind – as well as lukewarm. They were allowing fear to rule their lives and they missed Jesus. We miss Jesus.
We can get so wrapped up in our own lives that we can absolutely miss the miracles and work of Jesus everyday around us. The religious leaders were so focused on the law (their expectations of how things were supposed to be done) that they missed this miracle of God and the rejoicing in the new life given to this man. We can get so stuck in our own ways and expectations of how our life should be and how other’s lives should be that we can miss healing, salvation and the beauty of God’s work through His Son Jesus here on earth. This can be through religious traditions. Or it can be a lack of knowledge of the Word and who Jesus is. It can be through selfishness and indifference or fear of what others may think. Just like the Jewish leaders, our Christianity can become more important than Jesus Himself (which is clear contradiction – Christianity is JESUS). Many in the church say that God is not working the miracles like He did in the New Testament and live their Christian lives with low expectations. God never changes. I believe God is working all around us in many beautiful and unexpected ways, we are just missing it. When we read this story, we can easily be outraged at the Jewish leader’s response and at the same time miss our own detachment and selfishness. Where are you struggling to see Jesus around you? Is your expectations of how and what things must be done more important than what Jesus is doing around you? Are you even looking?
Jesus, check our hearts and help us not to miss You!
In His Grace,
Pastor Hamilton & Family