2 Sam. 16-18
The lessons I am supposed to learn from some of these stories in the Bible are often lost on me. Maybe I am looking for too much. What I can see, however, is that God is true to His word. He made a covenant with David. So when David prayed that the good counsel of Ahithophel would be defeated by Hushai, God answered. But God also kept His word to David through Nathan the prophet that He would “rise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.” (2 Sam 12:11).
John 5:1-24
I wonder why Jesus chose to heal the man at the pool of Bethesda. The man did not ask for the healing and didn’t even know who Jesus was. When Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed, the man didn’t even answer, “yes”. Maybe when he told Jesus he had no one to put him into the pool, he was hoping Jesus would offer to help him with that. He really had no idea what Jesus could do.
When Jesus told the man to take up his bed and walk, he was healed instantly. No apparent action of faith was required from him. But he did obey. When he saw he was healed, he took up his bed and walked, as Jesus had told him to do, even disregarding the fact that it was the Sabbath and he was not supposed to be carrying his bed around (can’t say I would have cared about that either, had I been in his position!). He still didn’t know who Jesus was, but Jesus revealed Himself to him later. I think it was then that Jesus required a step of faith from him, when He told the man to sin no more (I healed you, will you now believe in me?).