Missing The Miracle

Missing the Miracle

Q: Why were the Pharisees angry that a crippled man had been healed?

• a. They wanted to be healed first.
• b. Jesus healed on the Sabbath.
• c. The crippled man was a sinner.

Tyrone, a middle school basketball player, was tripped during a game and broke his leg. He had to be in a cast for several weeks. Once the cast was off, Tyrone did hours of physical therapy in order to be able to use his leg again. The months of wearing a cast and going to physical therapy were tough, and Tyrone thought he’d never get back to the basketball court.

In Jesus’ time there was a man who couldn’t walk, not just for a few weeks or months, but for 38 years. Jesus saw the man’s need and told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!”

The man was instantly healed. He rolled up his mat and walked away carrying it. Instead of being joyful about the miracle, the Pharisees were angry because the man was healed on the Sabbath. They told the man it was against the law to work on the Sabbath and that carrying his mat was considered work.

Carrying the mat did not break a law, but it broke the Pharisees’ interpretation of the law. They believed that “remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy” meant the man could not carry his mat. The Pharisees were so busy enforcing their own interpretation of the law that they missed the greater thing—a man had been miraculously healed by Jesus.

Sometimes in trying to live by the strictest interpretation of rules or Scripture, people miss out on seeing or receiving God’s blessings.

For You

God wants us to follow his rules, but sometimes people try to live by rules meant for the people who lived in Old Testament times. Jesus’ death changed many of those laws. The important thing is to try to live like Jesus wants you to. Ask him to show you if you are doing things he doesn’t want you to do. You have the Holy Spirit and the Bible to guide you and point out what’s wrong in your life.

Answer: b

Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! But this miracle happened on the Sabbath, so the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, “You can’t work on the Sabbath! The law doesn’t allow you to carry that sleeping mat!”   John 5:9-10

(The Whole Story: John 5:1-16)