Once again Christ had traveled a long way from Galilee to Jerusalem. One Sabbath day He was going to the Temple when He stopped at the Pool of Bethesda. Human need drew Christ like a magnet. The scene which met His eyes must have been tragic. In five small overcrowded rooms there were many handicapped or seriously ill people with almost no one to help them. The pool itself was not a clean swimming area. It is thought to have been the place where the blood and the washings from the Temple drained. There were blind who could not see, lame who could not walk, and paralytics who could not move. One man had been ill for 38 years waiting to be cured somehow. His reply to Christ's question tells us so much. "I have no one to help me. Everyone else gets along all right but not me." He was well down in the pit of despondency. Christ's command must have sounded amazing. But as he looked into the eyes of Christ, faith came to him and he acted. He was healed immediately and completely. How? It is certainly not by work. He did not earn it. He simply believed, obeyed, and was healed. The cure was a miracle and the work of a moment but he entered into the benefits of it more and more as the days went by. He went to places he had possibly not seen for 38 years. He did things he hadn't done for a long time. All because in one moment he believed Christ and stepped out at His word. It is the same today. We are saved in a moment but ever since, we have been discovering new things, new treasures, new blessings as we have learned to walk with Christ. A little later Christ found him in the Temple. Was he there to give thanks to God? We would like to think so. But Christ gave him a further word, "Watch your life. Stay away from sin. You have been healed. Now live as a man who has been given a new start in life." Those words could have a message for us today. Since Christ has saved us, let us make sure that we seek to live for Him and do only those things which will please Him. |
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