Thorny Issue Pt 3

Let's look at two separate acts.  One in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament.  

And David said unto him, Fear not: for I will surely shew thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.  2 Samuel 9:7.  

Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up they bed, and walk.  St. John 5:8.  

Both are acts of mercy.  David loved Jonathan very deeply and this act was done with the purest of motives I am sure, or it would not be included in the Bible.  God's purpose was served through this incident.   

Suppose however Jesus came and healed the man by the pool (John 5).  The man got up and walked and went about his business.  Incontrovertible proof that Jesus Christ heals the lame and the sick.  Fully recovered.  

Then suppose that one day David came along and saw the man and said, "Hey man, come sit at my table.  I'll take care of you from now on.  You don't need to walk.  Just sit at my table and I'll give you bread."

At first that might seem like a pretty good idea.  But in reality the only person who would benefit would be David.  Before long the man would start to doubt whether he was really healed or not.  He would be depending on David's generosity and not the Lord's Word.  Essentially he would doubt the very authority of Jesus Christ.  He would in essence go from worshiping Jesus to worshiping David.  

The reason it's such a thorny issue is that David could have the purest motives in the world, but in this instance the result would be disastrous.  

I think that's why Jesus told the man at the pool to get up and walk.  He didn't take the man and put Him in the pool.  He told the man to get as far away from the pool as possible.  Jesus knew that if the man hung out at the pool after his healing he eventually would end up in the same condition or worse.  

That's all folks.  

By Grace,

Travis P. Dickerson