Chad Coley
The Gospel According to John
The Sign On The Sabbath
John 5:1 - 18
16 May 2021

People who don't trust in God inevitably turn to superstition or empty religion. Christ's fourth sign on the Sabbath proved that He was accepted by God, and that faith in Him is not empty religion.

There was a severe situation at the pool of Bethsaida. A paralytic man had been long waiting by the pool which was believed to have healing properties, but he was still not healed. Jesus came to him and cared enough to talk to him, although he was an outcast.

Jesus worked a sympathetic sign by asking the man if he wanted to be well, then healing him completely and instantly. Jesus told him to pick up his mat and walk. Instead of it carrying him, he was carrying it, a sign to everyone who saw.

There was a Sabbath scrutiny from the Pharisees. Instead of rejoicing that the man was healed, they criticized Jesus for healing on the Sabbath. But it was not God's law He was breaking, but the Pharisees' traditions that had become as important as Scripture itself.

There was a shattering sin. The man's physical ailment was because of his sin. Jesus found him, and told him to sin no more.

There was a synonymous son. The Jews persecuted Jesus because He was working on the Sabbath, just as His Father also was. He claimed to be the Son of God, and proved it by working His fourth sign.