Yet there was something about the way Jesus looked at him, something about the way he asked the question, that made it not so foolish a question after all. The answer was not as obvious as it must have seemed. Jesus wanted to know. Did the man really want to be made well or not?

He had waited in this condition for 38 years and it might have been that all hope had died. The man might have been content to remain an invalid. After all, if he was cured he would have to bear all the responsibilities of making a living for himself. There are people who find a sense of security in sickness, and for them, suffering isn't that unpleasant because someone else does the work and worry for them.

"Do you want to be made well?" Maybe it wasn't such a dumb question after all. The man failed to give a direct answer. Why not a simple "yes"? 38 years is a long time to be able to settle into a kind of comfort and safety even in misery. Being well holds more responsibilities. Being well holds more accountability.

But the man did respond quickly. He wanted to be healed, but he didn't see how since he had no one to help him up when the waters stirred within the pool. Besides, someone else always managed beat him to the punch when he did try to make his way down to those magical waters.

Still, Jesus had to know if the man really wanted to receive the gift of healing. So he quickly cut right to the heart of the matter: "Stand up, take your mat and walk."

The Question Behind the Question

Jesus spoke the word, but God's healing power could not be let loose until the man assumed the responsibility of choosing life and risking the possibility of transformation! What's true then is still true for us.

The deeper question Jesus asks is, "Do you really want to be changed?" If we are content to stay as we are -- no matter how miserable that may be -- there can be no change, no possibility of healing for us. It is almost as if Jesus said to the man: "Bend your will to it and you and I will do this thing together!" (William Barclay, The Gospel of John: 178-79)

The gospel truth is that we all must recognize our own utter helplessness apart from God. That is our shared human condition. But then we must realize it is also true that miracles can happen when our will cooperates with God's power to make them possible. (Barclay, 180) The question Jesus asks is the ultimate question each of us must answer, "Do you really want to be made well?"

Even God himself can do little for us if we are comfortable with our place in life. Too often we plod along in our debilitating condition, craving to be healed, yet resisting any change whatsoever. Carl Sandburg once said: "There is an eagle in me that wants to soar, and there is a hippopotamus in me that wants to wallow in the mud."

A part of me wants to fly like an eagle, but I get too accustomed to wallowing in the mud. We all have our dreams and visions, but then as we get older, life's realities convince us to settle for less -- or to forget them altogether. We get the message, "This is just the way the system works," and eventually we get sucked into the system while our dreams fade away.