John 5

Jesus went to Jerusalem to a pool called Bethesda where sick people waited to be healed. Jesus saw a man who had an infirmity lying by the pool, waiting. He asked him if he wanted to be made well, and the man said there was no one to put him into the water. Jesus told him to, "Rise, take up your bed and walk." Immediately, the man was made well and took up his bed and walked. 

It was the Sabbath, and the Jews said it was unlawful for the man to carry his bed. The man told them that He who made him well told him to take up his bed and walk. When the Jews asked the man to point him out, Jesus was already gone. 

Later, Jesus found the man in the temple and told him to sin no more lest a worse thing come upon him. Now the man was able to point Jesus out to the Jews, and the Jews, from then on, sought to kill Jesus because He had "done these things" on the Sabbath.

Jesus responded to the Jews that He was working with His Father. Not only had Jesus broken the Sabbath, but now He made Himself equal to God. 

Jesus told them He does His Father's work; He has power as His Father has power; His Father has committed all judgment to Him; that the Jews should honor the Son as they honor the Father; if they hear His word and believe in God who sent Him they would have everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment; the judgment He exercised was dependent upon the Father's word and will; there were witnesses of the identity of Jesus -- the miracles He did were evidence of His deity and messiahship; also the Scriptures bore witness to who Jesus was.

But the Jewish rulers failed to see the truth. They wanted the miracles, food, and political and military power to overthrow the Roman government, but they did not care about a Messiah who only did the will of God the Father -- to save people from their sins. 

Do not think that I ashall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?

COMMENTARY

John 5 is a turning point in Jesus' ministry. The Jewish rulers now turned their sights on Jesus because He made Himself equal with God the Father. Their excuse was that Jesus broke the Sabbath. How ironic that this caused them to have hatred in their hearts, enough to want to kill him. Which is worse: breaking the Sabbath or murder? Obviously, making arguments that you are equal with God is a clear claim of One's deity. 

Now, the sick man at the pool was just waiting to be made well, and he was staring at the waters. Jesus approached him and wanted to get his eyes off the pool waters and onto the Man with Living Water. As McGee explains, so many people have their eyes fixated on the material things or other people, just waiting, waiting for something to happen. They are blinded and have no sight of Jesus. 

McGee also made a point to show that even on the Sabbath, God is working. He cannot rest because there are lost sheep, and even on a rest day a shepherd will save his one lost sheep. 

Therefore, when Jesus told the man to get up and walk, the man was accused of carrying his bed on the Sabbath. Stupid man-made religious rules! Then he put the blame on Jesus, but he could not find him in the crowd. Not until he saw Jesus in the temple again was he able to point him out, and that is when the Jews approached Jesus for breaking the Sabbath. 

Next, Jesus made numerous claims to being equal with God:

• He is God
• He can do what God does
• He does not contradict the Father, nor the Father contradict the Son
• He can forgive sins
• They share a personal, intimate relationship
• He gives life to whom He will
• He can raise the dead
• The Father gave the Son power to judge man

Jesus told them that NOW is the time when He will give spiritual life; but the hour is coming when He will raise the dead out of the grave. Jesus talked about the two resurrections. One is the resurrection of the saved, which we call the Rapture of the church. Rapture comes from the Greek word harpazo, which means "caught up." The Rapture is in the future at an unknown moment. Jesus will call His own out of the world, both living and the dead. 

After the Tribulation, the dead believers that come out of this seven-year period, together with Old Testament saints, will finish up the first resurrection . They will be raised to live on the earth. This first resurrection is the resurrection of life. 

The second resurrection will be of judgment, called the Great White Throne, when all of the unsaved, of all time, will be raised. They wanted to stand on their works, and they will have the opportunity to be judged by them alone. This will take place after the end of the Millennial period. They had been warned that no one can be saved by his works, but they didn't want to believe. 

Finally, Jesus told the Jews about His witnesses. John the Baptist did bare witness to Him, but there are higher witnesses: His miracles and the Scriptures. The miracles were evidence of His works that He had been sent by the Father, and the Old Testament Scriptures spoke of Jesus as the coming Messiah.