TWO MEN

TWO MEN

 

I have been impressed with the stories in the scriptures of two men that Jesus healed, who were very different. One was the "certain man" mentioned in (John 5:1-15), who had been lying by the pool of Bethesda apparently for 38 years waiting to be healed. The other man was Blind Bartimaeus, mentioned in (Mark 10:46-52) who was actively seeking healing. Jesus asked both men a very similar question, to the one "Do you want to be made well?", and to the other "What do you want me to do for you?". Let us look briefly at these two men, and their different attitudes toward healing.

 

The certain man in John 5, started to offer excuses to the question of Jesus. Apparently he had become discouraged and had really given up hope of ever being healed. As a result he had learned to accept life as it was, and because Jesus knows what is in the heart of every man, He asks him that question. How many people today who are in need of healing or deliverance have come to the same place as this man? They have become accustomed to their condition, and couldn't imagine what life would be like otherwise! Therefore Jesus comes to us all at certain times with this same question "do you want to be made whole?" If we are completely honest, I believe none of us can say we are as whole as Jesus wants us to be! Thank God He is not finished with any of us yet, and is still working on us, little by little to bring us to the place of spiritual maturity! The scriptural term for this process is "sanctification" resulting in "holiness", a term not heard very often in the modern day church, but quite often in the pages of scripture. (1 Peter 1:16)

 

In the case of Bartimeaus, he was actively seeking healing from his blindness. Before Jesus ever asked him what he wanted, he was crying out to Jesus for mercy. This indicates to me a much different attitude from the certain man in John 5. We might say his was a very "passive" attitude, whereas Bartimaeus had a very "proactive" attitude. Jesus healed them both because of his mercy and compassion, but can you see the difference in the two men? Which of these two attitudes towards being made whole would you say you have? I think it is easy to fall into the "passive" mindset of the certain man, especially if your condition has persisted for many years. Let us ask God for a "proactive" attitude towards the needed deliverance or healing we need to become perfectly "whole"!!

Sincerely submitted.

Dave Jamer