Daily Devotions
John
The reality of the power of sin
Text: John 5:16-47
THE REALITY OF THE POWER OF SIN
As Jesus ministered to people, He knew that many struggled with the messages that He preached. One of the themes that He touched upon was the subject of sin. This subject seemed so simple to understand. Surely people can see that they were sinners in their own eyes, and certainly in God’s eyes! Yet the fact was that most couldn’t see or didn’t see how sinful they really were!
Jesus had just met and healed a man who was paralyzed for 38 years. Yes, his condition was pitiful and merits compassion. Nothing mattered more to this man than being made well! But after Jesus made him well and spoke to him even as he worshipped in the Temple, he was told,
“See, you have been made well.
Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.”
John 5:14
It was possible to forget that the pitiful state of affairs in life could be caused by sin! The paralysis of the man may not have been caused by disease. He could well have been a robber who finally found his match. He might well have been beaten badly, so much so that he became paralyzed. Perhaps it was because of his notoriety that he had no friends to help him. Whatever the case, his plight highlighted the problem and the power of sin.
The words of Jesus were to be taken seriously. One must not take sin lightly. The punishment inflicted need not originate from God personally. Sin has its own law. It would as soon inflict punishment upon the individual as invade the life of the sinner! A person can forget the power of sin all too easily. He has to be warned that he must not walk the path of sin or face even potentially worse consequences!
The history of the man who was paralyzed was probably well known to all in the vicinity. How could this man who was a sinner be healed? Surely he was a sinner still, for he had just broken the Sabbath law by taking up his bed! Jesus used this occasion to deal with the subject of sin.
THE SIN OF PERSECUTING JESUS
The Jews were conscious of the sin of breaking the Sabbath. But why were they not conscious of an even “worse thing” when they persecuted the Son of God and plotted His death? Surely, they must realize that it was the gravest of sin to plot someone’s death!
Jesus spoke directly to the man who was healed. It was sin that had caused him to be paralyzed. He had been healed, and that symbolized Jesus’ power to give life to a person! Had The Jews not understood who Jesus was? Then He must try and explain to them even more clearly just who He was! He must, in the process, tell them to cease and desist. Their sin of plotting against Him was so grave that they would be condemned when judged!
MAKING A VITAL ATTEMPT TO SEE JESUS FOR WHO HE REALLY WAS!
Jesus sought to impress upon The Jews that they were hearing none other than the Son of God Himself. His words were decidedly cryptic. However, they were also designed to cause the interested enquirer to consider carefully the truth and the power behind His words. Let us consider again what Jesus said,
“Most assuredly, I say to you,
The hour is coming and now is,
When the dead will hear the voice
Of the Son of God;
And those who hear will live.”
John 5:25
There has to be a double reference when Jesus said what He did. There was a future reference, and this was captured in the phrase, “The hour is coming”. here was also a present reference, “And now is”. What could Jesus mean?
We need to look at a further word that Jesus spoke. Those words would shed some light as to what Jesus meant.
“Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming
in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice
And come forth – those who have done good,
To the resurrection of life;
And those who have done evil,
To the resurrection of condemnation.”
John 5:28
The future reference is very clear. One day, in the future, represented by the phrase, “The hour is coming…” all who have died will hear the voice of none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. He would summon all to appear before Him. He would be the Judge. He would determine the eternity of everyone.
Those who hear His voice will be given “The resurrection of Life”. These would be the ones who recognized and loved His voice on earth. These would be the people who became His disciples. They did not just claim to have faith in Him. They demonstrated their faith by the good things they did in their life on earth!
There were those who rejected Jesus on earth. Not only did they reject the Word that He preached, they also chose the way of evil. They did as they pleased. They loved darkness more than they loved the Light. Their condemnation would be just!
What about the reference to the present? What does it mean when He spoke about the dead hearing His voice? Even as Jesus spoke, did the dead, a symbolic reference to those slain by sin, hear His voice? The man who was paralyzed might as well have been dead, living as he did – without friends, without any hope of being well again. But he responded to Jesus and His message. He found life. There was now hope for the present, and hope for the future too.
This hope of life, here and now and for all eternity is still to be found in Jesus. Do we have faith to understand and appreciate Him for Who He really is?