The incident we hear in the gospel today can also be interpreted differently, indicating to us that the Lord expects us to take responsibility for ourselves. Not merely wait for help to arrive and do all the work. We are expected to do the heavy lifting ourselves, for ourselves!
The man at the pool of Bethesda, is shown as waiting for healing. Unfortunately there is always - always?- someone who enters into the stirred miraculous waters before he could. Now this could be the case of a couple of days or months. But it cannot be so for ages! Unless, the man himself is not keen to get healed! He is comfortable in his misery. Perhaps, he is used to earning a living 'showcasing' his physical condition of paralysis.
To such a man shirking his responsibility, Jesus says: 'Pick up your bed!'
While God's grace and peoples generosity requires no additional support or reason, one cannot escape one's own responsibility towards oneself. Healing, change, growth are matters - among many others - which require one's own consent and will.
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