In this sermon, we looked at the fullness of Jesus’ grace displayed in an unusual occurrence of healing, leading to a confrontation with the Jewish religious leaders over His identity as the Son of God. In John 5:1-18, Jesus went to the Pool of Bethesda, where there was a crowd of people in need of healing. After Jesus sought out and healed an invalid man, the Jews’ persecution of Jesus turned from disgruntled opposition into a plot to kill Him. Not only did Jesus heal a man who didn’t have faith, He chose to heal him on the Sabbath, and He didn’t use the Pool of Bethesda for the healing. While the persecution began because Jesus had healed the man outside of Jewish religious customs and cultural superstitions, the persecution quickly intensified into a death-plot because Jesus claimed to be the Son of God as He announced, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” Through this healing encounter, we see the grace of Jesus fully displayed and we’re reminded that God still works far beyond our own religious practices and cultural expectations.
