Do you want to get well?

When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”  -John 5:6 (NIV)
 
It seems like an obvious question with an obvious answer, yes? What are you up to, Jesus? Of course the man wanted to get well! He had been crippled nearly four decades! But the man did not give a direct answer, at least not one that is recorded in Scripture. Instead, he gave the reasons that he had been unable to help himself for all those years. I imagine the script was well-rehearsed. And that got me thinking….
 
The man did not ask for healing because he had no expectation of being healed. He was a beggar, begging. He had calibrated his vision to survival mode. “I just need to get through this day, get enough shekels for my next meal.” Maybe a family member was scheduled to stop by at the end of the workday to pick him up. The possibility of walking away under his own power was not even on his radar.
 
This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”  -Ephesians 5:14 (NIV)
 
But the question Jesus asked is really for all of us, isn’t it? Do I want to get well? Getting well is only the beginning, you know. If this man got well, his entire life would be turned upside down. He had no job, no skills, too old to begin an apprenticeship. All his relationships would change. People would have expectations of him that he never had to worry about before. Would his life be better? In many ways, yes, but better doesn’t always mean easier.
 
I ask for forgiveness but still catch my mind strolling in neighborhoods where temptation hangs out. I ask for opportunity but find myself far too comfortable in my well-worn ruts of mediocrity. I ask for wisdom but spend way too much time binge-watching an endless stream of mind-numbing YouTube videos. Taking a step back to see it from a different level, our country wrings its collective hands over the fact that we’re “going to hell in a hand-basket”, but can't seem to figure out why. All the while, the Healer stands before us and asks: “Do you want to get well?” It’s time to raise our sights and re-calibrate our vision.
 
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.  -2 Chronicles 7:14 (KJV)
 
Jesus healed that man. At Jesus’ word, the man stood up, rolled up the mat he’d been lying on, and walked out of there. Suppose for a moment that he found the going tough in his new life. Suppose he tried it for a few weeks, then decided he would fake some ailment and resume his occupation as a beggar. How would we feel about that? God help us. It’s time to quit explaining to Jesus why I haven’t been able to do what He has called me to do and fully embrace His invitation. “Do you want to get well?”