you want to be healed?” And the sick man answered, “Sir, I have no one to put me into
the pool when the water is disturbed; so while I am still on my way, another steps down
before me.” Jesus then said to him, “Stand up, take your mat and walk!” And at once the
man was healed, and he took up his mat and walked. Now that day happened to be the
Sabbath. So the Jews said to the man who had just been healed, “It is the Sabbath, and
the law doesn’t allow you to carry your mat.” He answered them, “The one who healed
me said to me, ‘Take up your mat and walk!’” They asked him, “Who is the one who said
to you: Take up your mat and walk?” But the sick man had no idea who it was who had
cured him, for Jesus had slipped away among the crowd that filled the place.
Reflect
The African American spiritual song “Wade in the Water” is based on today’s Gospel.
It’s my very favorite spiritual song. I even find myself humming it as I write. The lyrics
invite us to wade into the water because God is going to “trouble the water.” Just like the
pool of Bethzatha, God stirs things up, creating good trouble.
God asks us to be part of this good trouble, challenging injustice and prejudice wherever we
see it. We can lend our hearts, hands, and voice in support and defense of people on the margin.
Being part of this good trouble can upset the people around us whose privilege and comfort might
be threatened. Speaking on behalf of the unheard and unrepresented in order to create a more
just world is the kind of good trouble Jesus came to make. As Jesus did for the sick man in today’s
Gospel, by reaching out to those at the margins and bringing them into the heart of communities,
we can help to restore them to health and wholeness.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2023