Tag: Bethesda

John 5:31-47: The World of Mystery and Miracles – Part III
John 5:31-47: The World of Mystery and Miracles – Part III

Thursday, March 9, 2023

Jesus tells us: 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.

We spend time with these words and we imagine that we, like the lame man at the Bethesda Pool, might be transformed so that we can find peace. We spend time with these verses and realize that . . . they are Christ himself in our hands. We spend time with John 5 and move from doubt to faith as Jesus asks.

We, like the crippled and lame who wait by the pool at Bethesda, have been freed . . . although we might not see it.

We, like those who plot to kill Jesus, have heard this good news . . . although we might not acknowledge it.

We, like those who sent emissaries to John, have heard further testimony about this new king and kingdom . . . although we might not admit it.

We, like those who do not believe the writings or the words, have experienced the healing hand of Christ . . . although we might not concede it.

We commit to believing in mystery and miracle in our lives and we call others to a transformation in peace with this week’s Lenten practice. Rather than thinking: “God’s generosity is sometimes not fair,” let us think instead, “When we put away the past and follow God’s example of enormous generosity, we are better able to welcome the lost back home into the kingdom . . . and to give thanks for our own part in God’s great rejoicing”.

Tomorrow, our unbelief.

A Favorite from Thursday, May 6, 2010.

For more about the Bethesda Pool, click on the pool image or visit: https://lostnowfoundk.wordpress.com/2013/06/15/the-paralysed-man-john-51-15/

Images from: https://lostnowfoundk.wordpress.com/2013/06/15/the-paralysed-man-john-51-15/
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March 9, 2023

Bethesda, healing, St. John the Evangelist
John 5:17-30: The World of Mystery and Miracles – Part II
John 5:17-30: The World of Mystery and Miracles – Part II

Wednesday, March 8, 2016

Jerusalem: The Bethesda Pool today

Don’t act so surprised at all this, Jesus tells us. And so we reflect on the mystery and miracles that surround us, seeking to better understand these verses.

We are pardoned and healed by God who is merciful and just.

We are given a clear sign of God’s eternal goodness and truth.

We receive additional testimony about the source of this goodness and truth.

We are shown a door to the life we all desire.

And we are given the option to enter into a new life or to strike out on our own.

We need not wait until the next world to experience peace and serenity or to take down the defenses we have so carefully built around us. The world of mystery and miracles is one in which we already live . . . we have only to be open to it.

We, like the crippled and lame who wait by the pool at Bethesda, have been freed . . . although we might not see it.

We, like those who plot to kill Jesus, have heard this good news . . . although we might not acknowledge it.

We, like those who sent emissaries to John, have heard further testimony about this new king and kingdom . . . although we might not admit it.

We, like those who do not believe the writings or the words, have experienced the healing hand of Christ . . . although we might not concede it.

As we discover our willingness to acknowledge mystery and miracle in our lives, we transform our thinking with this week’s Lenten practice. Rather than thinking: “God’s generosity is sometimes not fair,” let us think instead, “When we put away the past and follow God’s example of enormous generosity, we are better able to welcome the lost back home into the kingdom . . . and to give thanks for our own part in God’s great rejoicing”.

Tomorrow, a prayer to understand the mystery and miracle of Jesus in our lives.

A Favorite from May 6, 2010.

Explore a website that presents more information about the Bethesda Pool in Jerusalem.

Image from: http://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/daily/biblical-sites-places/jerusalem/the-bethesda-pool-site-of-one-of-jesus%E2%80%99-miracles/
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March 8, 2023

Bethesda, FAV, healing, St. John the Evangelist, WEB
John 5:1-16: The World of Mystery and Miracles – Part I
John 5:1-16: The World of Mystery and Miracles – Part I

Tuesday, March 7, 2023

Bethesda Pool

A cure on the Sabbath. The work of the Son. Some witnesses to Jesus. The unbelief of Jesus’ hearers.

This might be a microcosm of our own lives.

We receive a gift of the miracle of life. We are given an instruction by the giver of this gift about the nature of life and who governs it. We have the choice to believe or reject the mystery we experience.

When we read this chapter of John’s Gospel, we have the opportunity to examine our willingness to believe the miracles we have seen and experienced. We read again the promise from Jesus that we are so well-loved that there is already a place reserved for us God’s eternity. We are offered the invitation to be one with the divine for we have been cured of all that limits us.

Today we receive a call to see, to acknowledge, to admit, to concede and to declare the story of the mystery we live. If today we cannot share this story of miracles with others, let us determine why not, and then let us witness as the Gospel writer John the Evangelist does.

When we suspect that we are called to mystery and miracle, let us rejoice and give thanks with our Lenten practice this week. Rather than thinking: “God’s generosity is sometimes not fair,” let us think instead, “When we put away the past and follow God’s example of enormous generosity, we are better able to welcome the lost back home into the kingdom . . . and to give thanks for our own part in God’s great rejoicing”.

A Favorite from May 6, 2010.

Explore a website that presents a model of Jerusalem in Jesus’ time and photographs of Jerusalem today.

Image from: http://emp.byui.edu/satterfieldb/rel211/jerusalem.htm
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March 7, 2023

Bethesda, healing, St. John the Evangelist
Ezekiel 47: Healing Waters
Monday, January 31, 2022

Ezekiel 47

Healing Waters

Water can either drown or save, flood or quench. Mariners study charts of tidal patterns in order to make port or set sail at propitious times. Enormous damns force water into sluice ways, churning over mighty dynamos that produce electricity to power society. Creeks, rivers and bays move headlong to oceans while quiet backwaters and bayous create safe harbors for fish and fowl. Water gathers itself in small and large lakes; water roils little and big seas; salt water meets fresh as worlds and habitats collide. Water: the essential element for life, the basic building block of the human body, the curse and cure of humankind.

When we remember the story of the flood that overcame Noah’s world and John’s recounting of Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan, we witness water’s dichotomy. In chapter 47 of his prophecy, Ezekiel describes wading into the Wonderful Stream until it becomes a river that could not be crossed except by swimming (Ezekiel 47:5) This stream is the home of every sort of living creature that can multiply. This river does not destroy but instead nourishes every kind of tree whose fresh fruit serves as food and whose leaves heal and medicate; fishermen spread wide nets to haul in the bounty that feeds and sustains. This restorative stream nourishes the land and all those who live nearby, bringing fresh life and new beginnings . . . just as Christ nourishes and feeds each of us.

Mineral springs and mud flats have for centuries served humankind as a curative for physical ailments. When a crippled man cannot move quickly enough to enter the pool in Bethesda, Jesus heals him – and so Christ becomes the healing water this man so eagerly seeks. (John 5:1-15).

Each of us might look for our own Sheep Gate and Siloam Pool to wait on the life-giving presence of Christ. Each of us might embrace Ezekiel’s vision of waters that heal. As we go through our afternoon and evening, let us consider where and how we find the cleansing we need to survive. Let us consider who and why we follow as we wade into the healing waters of peace.

In his book THE BIG THIRST: THE SECRET LIFE AND TURBULENT FUTURE OF WATER, Charles Fishman tells us the story of our obsession with and neglect of this most important resource. He points out that civilizations will rise and fall with their ability to manage water. And he reminds us that this valuable resource must be preserved and used well if we hope to move into the future. To learn more, visit: http://www.thebigthirst.com/the-book/

Image from: http://wallpaperswide.com/water-desktop-wallpapers.html
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January 31, 2022

Bethesda, Charles Fishman, Jesus’ baptism, John 5:1-15, Noah, Siloam Pool
1 Timothy 4:6-16: Mourning into Dancing
1 Timothy 4:6-16: Mourning Into Dancing

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

At the Pool of Bethsaida

If ever we are in doubt as to how to serve as a role model when in community, Paul’s letters to Timothy are a mine of wealth. Regarding slavery, the rights of women and children, and respect due to non-heterosexuals, we understand the thinking of the times. We take all of this in its ancient context and shift it to the twenty-first century, adding all that has been revealed to us over the millennia about these topics. Despite the change in science and understanding, this is still good advice for us to consider . . . and it is the only way to build community . . . the only way to build Christ’s kingdom.

Call everyone to unity through diversity.

Remove contempt and profanity from our thinking.

Walk away from silly myths.

Demonstrate trustworthiness by our actions.

Express respect for all in everything we think, do and say.

Persevere, work on ourselves, mark progress.

Nurture the gift of self that we bring to the world.

Paul advises Timothy that the best way to form and build community is by persisting in performing these simple tasks which come together in such a big way. We are to look for the joy which awaits . . . usually hidden in some conflict.

This all reminds me of a verse from today’s Gospel (John 5:1-16) when Jesus asks the crippled man at the pool of Bethesda: Do you want to be well? Despite the fact that Jesus knows all our unspoken thoughts, he asks this man if he wishes to be new? This particular man replies in the affirmative, and he is healed. This having happened on a Sabbath, this man must work to defend his cure. This causes conflict. Usually, as Paul tells Timothy, celebration is accompanied by grief . . . and this is something we must expect; however, our sorrow may turn into dancing if we follow the advice given to Timothy. This is often difficult to understand.

Do you want to be well? Jesus asks us this frequently, yet are we prepared to take up our mat and walk, despite the pain? We, like Timothy with Paul and like the man in today’s Gospel . . . are free to answer either yes or no.

Do you want to be well? Paul calls Timothy to ask this question of his fledging congregation, despite the conflict.

Do you want to be well? We are likewise called to ask this question of one another, to seek common ground amidst our differences and look for unity, despite the barriers.

Do you want to be well? We are called to rise to this challenge, despite the fact that we often wish to wallow for awhile in our tears.

Today we pray: Paul describes to Timothy and to us how we might allow God to enter our lives in order that we become a beacon for the community. When we hear Christ’s voice how will we reply to his call?

Do we want to be well? Let us shed our paralysis and persist in outrageous dreams and hopes.

Do we want to be well? Let us transform our addictions and self-satisfaction through the fire of the conflicts we are willing to share.

Do we want to be well? Let us redeem broken promises with forgiveness.

Do we want to be well? Let us turn from our idols to the one true God.

Do we want to be well? Let us be willing to allow God to exchange our sorrow for joy.

Do we want to be well? Yes!

Amen.

Adapted from a reflection posted on March 26, 2019.

Image from http://home.comcast.net/~londonjr/artwork/atthepoolofbethesda.htm

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March 26, 2019

Bethesda, crippled man, Jesus cures