John 5: Jesus, the Giver of Life and the Judge of All
"He said to him, 'Get up, pick up your mat and walk.' And at once the man was healed." (John 5:8–9)
Devotional Credit: Grace and Truth Study Bible (Zondervan)
Image Credit: Unsplash.com
John 5 opens a new section of escalating tension between Jesus and the Jewish leaders. It begins with a remarkable healing—Jesus restores a man who had been lame for 38 years. But instead of celebrating the miracle, the religious authorities accuse Jesus of breaking Sabbath laws, not only for healing, but for telling the man to carry his mat. This marks the first open hostility toward Jesus in John’s Gospel.
Jesus does not avoid the conflict. Instead, He doubles down—claiming equality with the Father, declaring that the Son does what the Father does, that He has been given authority to judge, and that He gives life. These are no small claims. They understood Him rightly: Jesus was declaring Himself divine. The reaction? They sought to kill Him.
Jesus builds His case like a courtroom defense, bringing forward witnesses: John the Baptist, His miraculous works, the Father Himself, and even the Scriptures that the leaders professed to know. Yet the leaders missed the One to whom those very Scriptures pointed.
Jesus reveals the reason—they sought honor from one another instead of from God. They gloried in their own knowledge and status, and so they could not believe. Their rejection was not because of insufficient evidence, but because of hardened hearts. And tragically, the very words of Moses—whom they revered—would be their accuser, since Moses wrote of Christ.
Through it all, we see Jesus as the Life-Giver, the Judge, the Beloved Son sent from the Father—not to condemn, but to save. He invites all to hear His voice and live.
Personalized Journal Entry — In the Voice of the Holy Spirit, Through Scripture
I am the One who gives life to the dead and calls what is not into being. The Father has entrusted Me with judgment and resurrection. As I speak, those who hear and believe pass from death to life, never to come under condemnation. I see what the Father is doing, and I do it—perfectly, lovingly, and in complete unity with Him. The Father loves Me and shows Me all He does, and even greater works are unfolding so that hearts may awaken in wonder.
To the man lying helpless for decades, I came not in response to his faith but because of My compassion. I told him to rise. I gave him legs. I gave him dignity. And I gave him freedom from the weight of years of despair. On the Sabbath, I gave him rest.
But those who cling to rules more than to love were enraged. They accused Me, not because they misunderstood—but because they saw clearly that I claimed to be equal with the Father. I am. They searched the Scriptures, thinking that knowledge would grant them life, but they refused to come to Me, the Life itself. They honored Moses but did not believe him, for he wrote about Me. They gloried in the approval of one another, but not in the glory that comes from God alone.
Yet even in the midst of their hatred, I desired their salvation. I spoke not to condemn but to awaken. Even now, the hour is coming and is now here when the dead will hear My voice—and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted Me also to have life in Myself. I do nothing on My own, but only as I hear I judge—and My judgment is just, because I seek not My own will but the will of Him who sent Me.
Let your heart rest in the assurance that you will not face the judgment of wrath. You have passed from death into life. And on the last day, when all who are in the tombs hear My voice, you will rise to life eternal—not because of your works, but because you are Mine.
(John 5:1–47, Romans 4:17, Isaiah 55:3, 2 Corinthians 4:6)
Prayer of Confidence and Trust
Lord Jesus, You are not only the Giver of life but the Judge who already bore the judgment on my behalf. How grateful I am that I do not have to fear the final resurrection, for I have already been raised with You spiritually and will one day be raised physically into the fullness of Your glory. You did not wait for me to understand before reaching out. Like the man at Bethesda, You came to me when I was stuck in a pattern of hopelessness, and You said, "Rise."
Thank You for making Your authority known—not as a threat, but as an invitation to live. You didn’t merely restore movement to the lame; You restored relationship to the outcast. You exposed the hollow religion that seeks approval from men and revealed the joy of receiving honor from God alone. Today, I rest in that honor—not because of anything I’ve done, but because I belong to You. I am alive in You, and I walk with You now and forever. Amen.