Read John 5:1-7 NIV
Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
“Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”
This week we’ll be reflecting together on what “the Sabbath” really means, and why Jesus’ example and teachings about it are still meaningful for us today.
In John 5, at the pool of Bethesda, Jesus heals a man who had been an invalid for 38 years — and He does it on the Sabbath, which triggers confrontation with the religious leaders, who considered healing on Sabbath as breaking God’s law about keeping the Sabbath holy.
“In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.”” John 5:17 NIV
This is a powerful response. He’s declaring that just as God’s sustaining work never stops (even on the Sabbath), neither does His. In other words, acts of mercy and healing are not interruptions of Sabbath rest — they are part of God’s continuous, life-giving work.
Through the rest of the week, along with our continued reading in the Book of John, we’re going to be looking at other stories of Jesus healing on the Sabbath. It’s a good practice to “read around” the scripture references on your own to help provide context and perspective.
With the added perspective, prayerfully invest some time answering the reflection questions to understand why Jesus healing on the Sabbath was so controversial and personally challenging to the religious people of the day.
But more than anything this week I hope you can personally answer this question:
“What does Jesus healing on the Sabbath mean to my life and walk with Him?
“Then he said to them, ‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.’” — Mark 2:27
Jesus reminds us that the Sabbath is not a rigid rule, but a gift designed for our restoration. Healing on the Sabbath was not a violation — it was the fulfillment of its purpose. How often do we turn God’s gifts into burdens? The Sabbath invites us to stop, breathe, and allow God to heal what busyness conceals.
Reflection Questions:
Who around me needs compassion more than correction this week?
Am I clinging to religious habits that restrict rather than restore?
How can I make the Sabbath a time for spiritual healing rather than a checklist of going to church?
