Was Jesus Rude?

Recently a family member of mine asked, “Why is healing important to you?”

I found this question interesting and important to reflect on.

In John 5:6, Jesus asks a man who has been ill for an exceptionally long time, “Do you want to be well?” At first, I thought the question was incredibly rude. Who would not want to get well? Who would not want to heal? Who would want to continue in suffering?

On further reflection, I realized Jesus is asking a valid and serious question.

And, if I’m honest, I did and still do not want to be fully well. My illness of anorexia distracts me from looking at truth I do not wish to see or know. By focusing on losing weight, I am not only able to distract myself from intrusive traumatic memories, I’m also able to gain a (false) sense of control over my body—a control that I did not have during the time of sexual abuse.

But this is still an irrational reason to not be healed. Jesus shows us many, many times in the Bible that healing is important to him. In fact, a vast majority of the Gospels tell of Jesus’ healing miracles.

This is not to say that Jesus does not turn our suffering into good. This is not to say that we cannot learn, grow, and offer up our suffering with Jesus on the cross. No. This is to say that we should not try or keep ourselves unnecessarily in our suffering. We should turn to Christ and others to help us heal.

So, why then is healing important? As I said before, the Gospels show us that Jesus not only desires to heal us, he will, with our permission, heal us so that we are better able to be all that we are made to be.

Genesis 1:27 says, “God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them.”

Jesus shows us in the Gospels through his miracles of healing, that sometimes, in order to fully participate as a member of the Body of Christ, as a creation made in his divine image as Genesis 1:27 reveals us to be, we must allow him to heal us.

In every single one of Jesus’ healing miracles, he calls the person to become more active in His will for them after they are healed. For example, in Mark 5:19 after Jesus heals the Gerasene Demoniac, He tells him, “Go home to your family and announce to them all that the Lord in his pity has done for you.” In John 5, after Jesus heals the man who was asked if he wanted to be healed, the man goes and tells the Jews that it was Jesus who healed him.

This shows that while Jesus can and will use our suffering to draw others near to him, he also uses our healing. He desires us to be well so that his glory may shine. He does not want us to suffer. He wants us to enjoy eternal happiness with him. That is why he healed during his life on Earth and why he died on the cross and rose again. He wants us to share in eternal joy and health with him. When we are healthy, we are closer to the way God created us to be.

That said, I want to go back to the question Jesus asks the sick man in John 5:6, “Do you want to be well?” I think this question is important because it shows us that Jesus respects our free will. If we do not want wellness and healing, if we do not want to do the work required to be well, he will not heal us. While God wants us to be healthy, he will not force health and healing upon us.

So, Do you want to be well? What is holding you back? Why is healing important to you? How might healing help you complete your calling to be a part of the Body of Christ?