John 3:5, 5:2-3, 5:30

“Jesus answered, ‘Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit’” (John 3:5).

“Now in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate there is a pool, called in Hebrew Beth-zatha, which has five porticoes. In these lay many invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed” (John 5:2-3).

“I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I seek to do not my own will but the will of him who sent me” (John 5:30).

Question:

About one year ago, I had open-heart surgery at age 35 as result of a childhood illness. In the days leading up to the procedure, I had begun to reflect on my faith and ask questions like, “What would happen to my soul should I not survive?” A couple of days before surgery, I awoke from a dream in which my deceased grandfather had communicated a Bible verse to me. All I could remember was John and the numbers five and three. I couldn’t remember the order of the numbers, and I’m not entirely sure an order was given—I just had a vague sense of these numbers immediately when I awoke. I had never read the Bible other than a passage here and there, and I am not at all familiar with the Book of John. Also, the Sunday before my surgery, I attended my Unity church and the verse John 5:30 was discussed at the opening of the sermon. I am not a religious person, but I am spiritual, and I feel I was being sent a message. I’ve since researched these Bible passages and, amazingly, they seem related to health and healing, and having faith. What a timely message that was! ... I would be interested in your thoughts on these passages. Thanks!

Comment:

It’s quite remarkable, I think, how these three disparate passages link together to define the healing process Jesus taught and demonstrated. It’s a process available to each of us when we fully understand the spiritual truth that we are the Christ of God in expression. It begins with faith. ‘Water’ metaphysically represents the realm of infinite possibility, and ‘Spirit’ is the Christ Presence that acts upon those possibilities. When we have faith in our Oneness with the divine, we enter the ‘kingdom of God’ in which we can choose to create the healing of physical form we seek. The second passage begins the story of Jesus’ healing of the paralytic who had been waiting for healing for 38 years. Jesus tells him his healing will require not only faith, but action: “Take your mat and walk” (John 5:8). That action may involve seeing doctors or others who can help us with the healing, or it may involve a process of affirmative prayer in which we align ourselves with the Power of the divine. And finally, we must always know—as Jesus always knew—that nothing happens “on our own authority”—that is, according to our limited physical abilities. Healing is always an expression of the infinite Love that is our true identity.

Blessings!

Rev. Ed