Strange Question?

In John chapter 5, Jesus asks what might seem like a strange question — but it’s one that cuts to the heart of why we seek healing, growth, and change in our lives.

The Scene at the Pool of Bethesda

The Gospel of John describes a pool in Jerusalem called Bethesda, surrounded by five porches filled with a “great multitude of impotent folk — blind, halt, and withered.” They were all waiting for a miraculous moment: an angel would descend and stir the waters, and whoever stepped in first would be healed of whatever disease they had.

Picture the chaos. Despite their ailments, people competed desperately to be first into the water — a kind of ancient Black Friday rush, where the prize wasn’t a discounted TV but wholeness itself. In that frantic crowd was one man who had suffered from his infirmity for 38 years. Thirty-eight years of watching others get healed. Thirty-eight years of needing help that no one could give him in time.

The Question That Changes Everything

When Jesus saw this man and knew how long he had been waiting, He didn’t immediately heal him. He asked a question:

“Wilt thou be made whole?” (John 5:6)

On the surface, it seems almost absurd. Why would someone be at the pool if they didn’t want to be healed? But the question is far more profound than it appears.

People attend church, open their Bibles, and bow their heads in prayer — all without any genuine desire to be changed. The question Jesus asks isn’t about physical presence. It’s about intention. It’s about willingness.

For 38 years, this man’s condition had become his identity — his story, his life. Being made whole would mean letting go of all of that. And that’s not always easy.

What It Means to Respond

The Lord’s message is always the same: “If you want to be made whole — in any area of your life — just let me know. I’m ready, willing, and able.”

But receiving that wholeness requires a response. Not excuses. Not deflection. The man at the pool initially tried to explain why he couldn’t get into the water. Jesus wasn’t interested in the excuses. He was interested in the man’s willingness.

The moment the man responded, “immediately he was made whole” (John 5:9).

A Question for Each of Us

Every time you pray, every time you open the Word, every time you walk through the doors of a church — the Lord is asking you the same question:

Do you want to be made whole?

What that means looks different for everyone. It might be a broken relationship, a destructive habit, a wound you’ve carried for years — maybe even 38 of them. Whatever it is, the answer isn’t found in waiting for the right moment or the right circumstances.

The answer is simply to respond.

He’ll make you whole. He always does.

Our hope at Irvington Bible Baptist Church is that this podcast has provided some encouragement and helped you develop a closer relationship with the LORD Jesus Christ.