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The Gospel of John: John 4.1-15
Read and meditate on John 5.6-9a.
Jesus performs a powerful miracle, satisfying the hope, and filling with relief and joy one man. What about the multitudes of the sick?
6When Jesus saw
him lying there, and knew that he had for
those many years been ill, He said unto
him, “Do you want to be made well?” 7“I do,”
he said, “but I have no one who can set
me in the stirred-up pool. Someone will step
down in the pool before me.” 8Jesus said
to him, “Rise now, my friend. Take up your bed
and walk.” 9And suddenly, the man was well!
- John 5.6-9a
Reflect
1. How would you describe the work Jesus performed for this man? Was it a good work? Should we admire Jesus for this? What should we learn from Him in this matter? Complete this prayer: Lord, You did many good works such as this, and, as Your disciple, I…
2. How did Jesus accomplish the man’s healing? Did He touch him? What power of Jesus made this man well? Lord, You tell me that Your Word is living and powerful (Heb. 4.12). Today I need that power for…
3. In selecting this man to be healed, Jesus was fulfilling His mission to bring near the Kingdom of God to the world (cf. Matt. 4.17). Does the fact that only one man was healed lessen the enormity of Jesus’ grace or the reality of His Kingdom? Explain. Lord, I can’t do everything to advance Your Kingdom, but today…
4. Jesus’ healing of one man was an act of unqualified grace. It signaled a new era and power had come among men. One man was chosen for healing, but multitudes were passed by. Why do you suppose Jesus didn’t heal all the sick people at that pool? Even today, Lord, we don’t expect everyone to be saved. But that doesn’t mean that I…
5. This vignette illustrates the nature of God’s electing grace. They will be saved whom God has chosen for salvation, and to whom Jesus brings His healing Word. But can we know who will and who will not be saved? We have been given the Word of the Gospel. What are we supposed to do with it? Bring together into one prayer the prayers you wrote for questions 1-4.
Summary
“What can be more pitiable than these words? What more sad than these circumstances? Do you see a heart crushed through an extended illness? Do you see all the pain and violence he suffered subdued? He utters no blasphemy. He does not curse the day of his birth or get angry at the question, ‘Will you be healed?’ … Instead, he replies gently and with great mildness, ‘Yes, Lord.’ And yet, he did not know who it was that asked him, let alone that he would heal him.” John Chrysostom (344-407 AD)
The Good News of the Kingdom comes to those who are helpless to obtain it apart from the grace of Jesus Christ. We who are the recipients of that grace, and to whom the secrets of the Kingdom have been entrusted, must follow the example of Jesus, and seek the lost. What will this mean for you today?
Closing Prayer
My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And Your salvation all the day,
For I do not know their limits.
I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD;
I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only.
O God, You have taught me from my youth;
And to this day I declare Your wondrous works.
Psalm 71.15-17
Psalm 71.12-16, 3 (Solid Rock: My Hope is Built on Nothing Less)
O God, be not too far from me; my ever-present Helper be!
Consume and shame my enemies; let them reproached and humbled be.
A Rock of habitation be; command Your Word to rescue me;
My Rock and Fortress ever be!
But as for me, my voice I raise to sing in hope and constant praise!
With saving grace my voice will swell Your never-ending grace to tell.
A Rock of habitation be; command Your Word to rescue me;
My Rock and Fortress ever be!
T. M. Moore
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We are happy to offer each week’s Scriptorium studies in a free weekly PDF, suitable for personal or group use. You can download all the studies in our series on the Gospel of John by clicking here. Please prayerfully consider sharing with The Fellowship of Ailbe through your giving. You can contribute to The Fellowship by clicking the Contribute button at the website or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.
Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series IV a and b: John, edited by Joel C. Elowsky, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006. Verse translation of John by T. M. Moore.