Last Sunday we discussed the 5th chapter of the gospel of John. In it
we meet a man sitting by a pool for 38 years hoping to be cured of an
infirmity. Every so often, the story goes, an angel would trouble the
waters, and the first one in would be the one cured. As this man was
not ambulatory, he needed to wait for someone to carry him in. In the
meantime, he would always be beaten to the punch by one less
debilitated than he.

Jesus comes along, and asks the man what he is doing. The man
replies, and Jesus instructs him to rise, take up his stretcher, a go
on his way. The man complies.

Of course, it's the sabbath, so the Jewish leaders get in a snit. The
man is adamant - he will follow the instructions of the one who healed
him.

It appears that one purpose of the gospel of John was to reconcile the
ministry of Jesus with that of Moses, while at the same time
demonstrating an enmity between the then rulers of the Jews and the
teachings of the law Moses represented. This story appears to be
something of a "redemption of Moses" as well as critical of the rulers.

We know from the Jewish scripture that Moses was not allowed to enter
the promised land. After 38 years of aimless wandering (although the
most common number is 40, Deuteronomy 2:14 reports 38), all were
allowed in except for Moses. According to the story, he died and was
buried outside of the promise, beyond the river Jordan (represented
by the "troubled water" in our story).

The symbolism of this account in John restores Moses to the promise,
not on the power of ancient beliefs (the angel troubled the water) but
on the action of his own faith.

What we can learn from this lesson is that archaic superstitions and
outdated restrictions can do little for us. As we depend on
rationality and rely on our abilities, we can fulfill our aspirations
more effectively.

Jack