When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be healed?" - John 5:6
As a kid reading that verse I remember thinking Jesus to be horribly insensitive. Of course the guy wants to be healed, he's sick and he's laying at the pool where healing happens. But Jesus never wastes his words. He never says things simply to offend. His words are a pickax to break up the ground of our heart so seeds of life can grow. The older I get the more I understand the importance and weight of that stark question.
"Do you want to be well?"
There's a cost to being made whole. Now I think it's a much smaller cost than not being made whole. But there is a cost. For the man in the story it meant learning to walk again and finding a new way to make a living, which at his age was no small matter. For me it means laying down habits of hurry and surrendering scruples I substitute for genuine Spirit-led life. It means admitting that I can't, despite all my efforts, heal myself.
What would you say if Jesus asked you that question? Our seven year old answered, "Yes!" I'm a little slower to respond. Today I'm sitting with the question again, not just for me but for our family.
Jesus, please grant us the courage to take you up on your offer and walk out the healing you offer.
A few years ago I wrote a song about this...
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