at the Pool of Bethesda raises an issue. of the cost of discipleship. When blind Bartimaeus was healed, He praised God and he followed Jesus. He became a disciple. Immediately, he became a disciple of the Lord Jesus. When the man who was born blind was healed, as in John 9, he immediately sided with Jesus against the authorities, against the Jewish authorities, and he was thrown out of the synagogue. He paid a high price. for believing in Jesus. But this man, in John 5, sided with the authorities so as to avoid trouble. He left Jesus and went straight to the authorities and sided with them. Remember that Jesus warned would-be disciples. He said, if any would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. That is, be ready to die for it. Right from the start, right from the moment of conversion, be ready to die for it. I don't know if we know much about that kind of commitment. So I think we're going to learn more in days to come. All who turn to Jesus today can find themselves increasingly at odds with our culture. Believers find themselves in a war zone from the moment they are converted. In a war zone in which they have to take sides to stand with Jesus and pay the price, or stand with the majority and avoid persecution, which is what this man did in John 5. Now let's look at the full of Bethesda for a moment. This story has been used by those who hate God It's been used to discredit the Bible and to disgust Jesus. You've got the first two. There is a Jerusalem by the Sheep Lake, a pool, in Aramaic, or the words are actually Hebrew, in Aramaic, called Bethesda. And which has five roofed colonies. Well, that's an interesting statement. It's difficult to identify buildings in Jerusalem, because in the year 1870, Rome destroyed Jerusalem. And then they rebuilt another city on top of it, literally on top. So there are buildings underneath the buildings that the Romans built. And then, through the last 2,000 years, churches have been built on top again, and mosques have been built on top. So it's very hard to identify the archaeology of Jerusalem and identify the sites. And even by the 2nd century, by Catalan's day, they couldn't find the pools of Bethesda. So for most of church history, In the 19th century, a scholar, Dr. Alfred Loisy, declared a five-sided pool an unlikely construction. There wouldn't be such a thing anyhow. And he said, John was a Galilean. He was ignorant of the layout of Jerusalem. This whole story is fiction, it's been made up, and it demonstrates that the Bible is not inspired. He's a liberal theologian. And that was the way this story was used. It was used to discredit Jesus, to discredit the Bible. And then, in about 1888, they decided I mean, a lot of pools are a few metres deep, but nothing like a beach like that. 13 metres deep. And then in 1956, there's a separate fifth wall. This rectangular pool is divided in half. And so suddenly you have the fourth side, suddenly you have a fifth side. And it's divided into north and south. we had a channel taking water into the old city. Because when it was originally built, the pool was outside the city, it was included within the city. The water was taken from that very deep pool, that was really a reservoir for the city. And the south side of this pool, we found steps going down into it. So it was evident that it could be used by, was used by people. And I understand that it was only in 2005 that that site had been confirmed as the pool of Bethesda. Guess what? Tom got it right. Verse 2. Trust the Bible. If it is inspired of the Holy Spirit, if it is true, don't be ashamed of the Scripture. Now, the proof of the fact is that Paul backed this house. And it became an ascending point for disabled persons, the blind, the lame, and the paralyzed. Actually, the word is dry, like the wizard. Long-term indolence. And why did they go there? Well, according to verse 4, an angel travels the water, and the first to get in dies. Now, I believe that it's saying accurately why people went there. I'm not saying it's true. All right? It's accurate. It may not be true. That is, no one may actually have been healed by winning the race into the water. It doesn't sound like something that God would do to reward the man who jumped in the water first by healing him. That really doesn't sound as a sort of truth. things which the Lord would do. It's accurate. That is why the people were there. That is why the blind man in the paradise was taken there in hope of healing. But that doesn't necessarily mean that people would actually heal that way by jumping in the pool first. Now, let's look at some unusual features about this miracle. Generally speaking, Jesus healed people in response to a request, this man heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee. He went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, for his son was at the point of death. And so the man went to Jesus and asked for healing for his son. But in this account, John 5, the disabled man at the pool did not seek Jesus out, did not ask for his help. You know, after miracles like the woman coming into a flood, Jesus said, your faith is healed. Your faith is healed. He couldn't say that this time. There's no evidence that the man believed. But Jesus did go to him and ask him the question, do you wish to be healed? And all he did was he complained. I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is spurt. He was without help. He was without help. And for 38 years... The first six were told, Jesus saw him there and knew that he had already been there a long time. Just out of interest, the NIV used it to learn that he had been there a long time. Q. How did he know? He doesn't tell us how he knew, but it's left over the hypothesis he knew supernaturally. You don't have to ask anyone. He knew the man who had been ill for thirty-eight years. Here's the injunction, he was told that the man would be there a long time. That's not what the text says. The word in the Greek is to know. To know is good, to know. So let's stick to its translation. Jesus knew, and he knew supernaturally, and he took the initiative to heal this man. Jesus had compassion on this man. Jesus targeted this man for healing. The man didn't ask for it. That's my first point at this worth noting. Another thing worth noting is the man was healed as he obeyed the word of Jesus. And if you remember, the 10 lepers were also healed as they obeyed Jesus. Jesus told the lepers, go to the priest and show yourself. And as they went, they found that they were healed. And this man is healed as he obeys Jesus. And I think Jesus is here teaching that it's blessing in obedience. And we all want instantaneous answers to prayer, don't we? Instantaneous, I think that's the sort of answer to prayer we'd like. as we search, as we walk in the fear of God. You believe the blessing in obedience, the blessing as we obey God's Word. See this man, he's unable to get up, he's unable to carry anything, he's unable to walk. For 38 years, that's how I read this passage. He couldn't do it, and suddenly Jesus said, get up! That's why I said to the children, you know, just to wake up is a wonderful, to be able to get up is wonderful. immediately get up, get up, and this man called us, until Jesus said the word, and when he said the word, he would enable the purity. Get up, take up your bed, and walk, and nobody, not only was he conditioned here, He didn't need a physiotherapist to teach him to walk. He developed his muscles so that he could walk. And apparently, he was instantly enabled to walk. He was healed and enabled instantly at the word of Jesus. So don't ever underestimate the blessing of obeying the Lord Jesus. And then he feels in response to the word of God, the word of Jesus, that as he obeys, he can learn that, I can't, I can't. Jesus says, get up, but he says, I can't. He's trying to be good. He will yield as he obeys. It's very important for us to learn that lesson and obedient to that. And then the strangest thing of all is this, that Jesus healed this man without making Jesus did this deliberately. Now, the man who had been here did not know who it was that Jesus had withdrawn as there was a crowd in the street. At the end of it, Jesus slipped away. That's quite a good paraphrase. Jesus slipped away. He withdrew. He got lost in the crowd, and the man didn't know where he was. Jesus deliberately did not make himself known. identity from the man who killed. You see, later on, once the Jew, he faces the Jews, he immediately makes himself known. He says, the father worked at the temple. Why? And they were offended because he was making himself equal with God. He was claiming deity. And he went on to say to them that he had the power to give life, to raise the dead, to give life. And he has the power to judge, the authority to judge, that all men may honor the sons, they honor the father. He revealed Himself to the authorities. Who reveals Himself to this man? This man does nothing about it. And that is the vision. I'm going to ask you, is this the way God is seen in the Jews? It may well be the way God is seen in the Jews. He may be seen as He does in this man. You see, Jesus Christ makes Himself known He is good to us. The Lord Jesus was good to this man, to him, and then he refused to see how he would respond. And I think sometimes God hears it up in that way. He is good to us in some particular way, and he refused to see what are we going to do with the goodness of God. May I ask you the question, will you bless the God with good faith? Have you been blessed of God with good health? Have you? Some of us have been blessed of God with a happy marriage. Are you blessed of God with manageable children? Yes. Are you blessed of God with children? Are you blessed of God with a good job? Are you blessed of God with friends? Are you blessed of God with a home, and possessions, with a car, with, say, a computer, or an iPad, a smartphone, and these things? That's God being good to you. Did you have breakfast this morning? Have you been blessed of God in your life? If only the answer is that God has lavished his blessings upon us. I tried to make this point with the children. One of the things that has impressed me recently, if you offer me everyday things of life, I'll give it to God. And it's difficult. What do I thank God for? I heard, I talked, I was able to get up, I was able to stand, I was able to get to church, I was able to hear the Word of God. I am blessed of God. He lavishes His blessings upon me. And he stands back. You see, our response to the time has to be done, hasn't it? Is God dealing with you in that way right now? Jesus healed the man at the pool who slipped away. Let's watch for that. Let's see what he does. Will he praise God? Will he go and thank Jesus if ever he sees him again? Of the ten lepers, only one returned to the camp. He really smiled. Shade on the man. Will this man, like blind Bartimaeus, will he become a disciple of Jesus and follow Jesus? He escaped blind Bartimaeus' discipleship. So blind Bartimaeus followed Jesus. He went to Jerusalem and crucified Jesus. He became a disciple of Jesus. Will this man side with Jesus or with the authorities? And did the man go blind? God was good to this man. What will he do? Well, let's watch and see. And let's do it humbly. Let's look at ourselves. God has been good to us. What will he do with his disciples? After year, after year, after year. Have we ever seen any God in His face? Have we ever been in the glory of His name? Why is the praise of God in our hearts? Why, when we come to our family, aren't we bursting with praise for God? I ask myself, what more does God have to do for me to make me praise His name and be thankful to Him? The man is thrown into a water. The moment the man obeyed Jesus, got up, took up his bed, in an aggressive mood. He knew he was in deep trouble. Now, isn't it difficult for us to feel the pressure this man was put under? The Jerusalem authorities were men of wealth and power and authority. They received the temple tax from Jews worldwide. They were highly respected by Jews worldwide. They were used to getting their own way. They were an intimidating presence. If you fell out with them, it was bad news. They simply controlled access to the synagogues. They probably controlled the economic situation too. If they blacklisted you, you were probably on your own, you were probably not getting a job. People might not sell things to you in the shops. They might simply say, that man is an athlete. They're not going to have anything to do with athletes. They had power. And they said, it is the Sabbath. The law forbids you to carry your mask. What man? Who's man? God's man? But Jesus told him to carry his mass on his head. God told us it's for real. For a bit of good and good and bad. You know, carrying the mass that has carried him for 38 years is symbolic of the mighty power of Christ overcoming his sickness. He's laying on that mass for 38 years. Now he carries it. After thirty-eight years, he was able to carry it with him. It was forbidden law, tradition, that prohibited the carrying of anything on the saddle. What did you think? So we're going to put the head round the Lord. The head round the Lord. For instance, one of the things they did, they said, the Sabbath starts when the sun goes down, fortunately, on the Friday. So they said, you just keep the Sabbath an hour before the sun goes down, and an hour after the sun rises, on the Sunday. No, after the sun has gone down on the Saturday evening. Do you understand what I mean? You just add an hour to the Sabbath, both ends, to hedge the law, to make sure that you kept it, you haven't by mistake broken the saddle. They did that sort of thing, and they said what you were allowed to carry, and they didn't allow you to carry anything. I once went to a Jewish synagogue, Q. Sir, this is just a paper which I've been sent. One of the fathers has sent me some literature explaining what's going on, so I have this in my hand. The man replies, when he's asked what he's doing, he says, the man who healed me said to me, take up your bed and walk. So the adulterer wanted to know who had healed him, but he didn't know, because Jesus had withdrawn him from the bath. I think he stopped for a minute. He was in the water. Their methods are quite similar to what we said earlier. He was in trouble. He was in a crossfire between Jesus and the authorities. And he was intimidated, and he needed help. So help came. Verse 14, Jesus helped him. Jesus finds him. He would search him out and found him in the temple. Interestingly enough, a sick man, a disabled man, would not have been allowed into the temple. So for 38 years, this man had not been allowed into the temple. Suddenly, now, he's allowed into the temple. And that's where Jesus finds him. We don't know whether he was thanking God or, of course, if he liked what he was. There's no real evidence that he was. who now makes himself known and gives him advice. And let's look at verse 14, after which he responds in an attempt to say to him, see, you are well. Say no more, that nothing worse may happen to you. Let's look at this advice. First, see, see that you're well. Believe what Jesus said. See your worth. In effect, Jesus is saying, can't you see the goodness of God? Your worth. Have you got something to rejoice about? That's the fact that you must focus on the goodness of God towards you. Stop looking at religious authority. Don't listen to the threats of the authorities. Dwell on God's goodness, His kindness, His mercy, His generosity to us. We often may be afraid of what people think of us. Dwell on God's goodness. She was carrying some glasses in her house with her and she fell on her face and everything broke. And she broke her neck too. And she had to have an operation and her husband went to visit her. He saw her in Vermont that night and he said, typical day, he said, she's sitting up in bed, writing out But before she had an accident, she'd had an operation, and there she is, listing the goodness of God to her. And God, for that, in pain and discomfort, she had eyes for the goodness of God. Can I ask you, do you have eyes for the goodness of God? It makes it too fundamental, too basic a matter to teach on, certainly in a well-taught church. Surely, we know that the Jews, Do we meditate? Do we contemplate? Do we consider? Jesus said, look, look, you're well. Do we consider the goodness of God? I do, you know, car journeys in the car. Do we consider God has preserved me on the road? God has preserved me. The car has kept going. There hasn't been an accident. We haven't been hours on the motorway. God has been good to us. The mercies of God have bounced towards us. When will we do what Sanna said, consider what great things the Lord has done for us? Don't take God's gifts for granted. Don't take God's goodness for granted. You are able to walk, and talk, and eat, and drink, and write, and read, and throw, and do many awesome educations. You took God's generous gifts for you. Jesus' advice was to begin, look hard at God's goodness. Look, you are well. And of course, God's goodness, above all, depends on which son to die for. I'll say more about that in a few minutes. So that's the first thing Jesus said. Look, you're well. Consider the goodness of God. And then Jesus said something else to say. He's not saying, don't start sinning. He's saying, don't go on sinning. Do not go on sinning. He's saying, you are sinning, but don't go on sinning. Stop the sin in your life. Do something about the sin in your life. Deal with the sin in your life, man. Do you understand? If we do actually look at the sin in our lives, we do everything about it. Do we take it seriously? Do we do sin in our lives? And he said to this man, sin no more, sin no longer, don't go on sinning. Reminds me of what God said to Cain. Cain ignored the warning and murdered his brother Abel. because there's sin, and what stops sin is the cause of offense. It turns from the power of sin to the power of God. Because when the river is shaking powerfully, Jesus sees us, he leaves us ashamed, he applauds us, we not sin, we get gay mountains, we are proud that we are gay. But inside of God is sin. Sin is worse than an aggressive tactic. You cannot stop pornography, adultery, addiction. Beware the sin in your life. Beware the sin in your life. See, remember this man has been healed as he obeyed Jesus. Now he's enabling, or might be enabling, to deal with sin in his life. He obeyed to be healed. Would he obey in order to live before God? He obeyed, but within his own advantage. Would he obey in order to live before dying? Would he deal with sin in his life? Friends, before you die, are you going to deal with sin in your life? That's Jesus' advice, deal with sin in your life. All sins against God. God has been remarkably patient with each one of us. the first blessing in obedience, the first danger in going on sinning. Surely, because God has been good to us, in thankfulness to God for all His goodness, we should stop going on in sin, in disobedience, in self-sweeping. We should put away our forsaken sins, and Jesus will enable you to obey, because He commands. And when He commands, He enables obedience. asking for help. He will help us to put the race in, in our lives. Then Jesus asked him, he said, say no more, and this is what he asked, let a worse thing happen to you. Say no more, let nothing worse happen to you. What is worse? What is the worst thing that Jesus had in mind? The man would be ill for 38 years. Did Jesus think that the man might be ill for another 38 years? No. I think the Hebrew miracle stood. Jesus would be good to him. Jesus wasn't going to go back on the Hebrew miracle. He wasn't reversing that. What worse could happen to him? Well, he could be taken ill, he died, or enemies would persecute him and kill him. Is there a worse thing than death? Do we have something in mind here which is worse than sickness and death? Jesus said in Matthew 10, you know, we are those who kill the body, we are those who can destroy both body and soul in death. This man was afraid of what the mythical goddesses might do to him. He attempted to be far more afraid of her, so he could use her. He needed to be afraid of God, to be mindful of what he was showing to people. Dear God, not man. Dear God, not death. Dear God, not man. And he had it, the worst thing that Jesus has in mind. And can you see, it is clear, Jesus has already given the man positive motivation. He says, look, you're well-advanced. Look, God has been good to you. God's goodness should lead you to repentance to the praise of God as a willing servant. But if the man is not persuaded by God's goodness, Jesus adds the warning of the worst thing, eternal loss. Inheritance, development. and Jesus has watered it down. Why not? Because He loves us. We don't love people when we water down hell. Because He loves us, we experience it ourselves. On that day of death, He will say to those who don't believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, these words, depart from you, sir, into the eternal fire. I think that's what 1st Ephesians says. The man went away. The man departed from it. He went to Jesus. He signed a new covenant. But there is an eternal covenant. And which is no way out. Friends, there is a cost in following Jesus. Deny yourself. Take up your cross. Follow me. There is a cost. But there's a far greater cost in not following Jesus. If you take the easy option in this life and please the world so as to avoid persecution with Jesus, you will be part of God's Kingdom forever and ever and ever. That's the key to Jesus. And that's what seems to happen to this man for the rest of his life. He went away from Jesus, turning his back on Jesus. He reports to the Jewish authorities. that God sent his Son into the world to die for our sins in the goodness of God. Paul said in Romans 11, he said, Behold the goodness and the severity of God. That's what I hope you understand. I've spoken about the goodness of God. I mentioned just briefly, if you want to respond to the goodness of God, respond to the severity of God. Respond to the warning of hell. Behold the goodness and the severity of God. Provided you continue in this path, otherwise you too will be cut off, cut off forever. What do you think of the goodness of God? Have we honestly responded to the goodness of God in our life? Have we caught more than a glimpse of the goodness of God? And all I've said today, I've only just caught, Meditate on it, concentrate on it, think about it.