Excuses, Excuses, Excuses!

In my first entry I began with ταράσσω "to agitate". Which is the meaning of the word rendered "troubled" in John 14:1 "Don't let your heart be troubled".(NLTse) The header at the top of my blog spot shows the comprehensiveness of this word ταράσσω It is, according to Dr. Jesus, a heart problem. That's why I make appointments to go see Him.

Then in the second entry I attempted to explain why I chose (and choose daily) to go see Dr. Jesus for diagnosis and treatment of my heart which is agitated frequently. Using a case study from one of Dr. Jesus' patients in John 5:5-6 we see a man who has been sick for 38 years. Rather than prescribe anything, Dr. Jesus simply asks, "Do you want to get well." Studying the meaning of both words "want" and "well" as being the cure for this illness ἀσθένεια (physical, spiritual, emotional and cognitive infirmity and weakness)is Θέλεις ὑγιὴς γενέσθαι - to nurture a desire, an intent, to get well - to become/be made/to begin to be! I am beginning to imagine the impact of "wanting to be well" may have on a heart that is agitated.

As promised, now in this third entry, I want to look at the excuses I give to Dr. Jesus based on the man's response to Jesus in John 5:7 and how Dr. Jesus responds back to him in John 5:8.

What is the expected response? The man who has been weak with an infirmity for 38 years is asked the question, "Do you want to get well?" One would think the answer would be "Duh!"

But that's not how the man answers Jesus. In no way does his response to Jesus directly reflect a desire to get well. Instead he gives a round-about excuse. It may be a very reasonable excuse. Or it may be a pathetic excuse. You decide.

The man replies to Dr. Jesus, the psychiatrist, who has already read his heart, soul, and mind and knows how long he has had this infirmity, "Sir, I don't have anyone here to put me in the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am trying to get in, somebody else gets there first." John 5:7 (Good News Bible)

Really?? Are you saying that in a span of 38 years no one, not a single person, has ever helped you? Are you saying that over the course of 38 years whenever you have tried to get in by yourself somehow, somebody always beat you to it and got in first? Is the pool so small that only one or two people can get in at a time? Is that why you said "somebody else gets there first?" Or maybe it's just the timing. You said you didn't have anyone to put you in the pool when the water was stirred up? So if the water was stirred up all the time, are you saying that you would get the help you need?

Am I being too hard on this man? No. I have been that man. I can give multiple reasons in a moping tone of voice as to why the physical, spiritual, emotional and cognitive infirmity of ταράσσω is in my καρδία ...

*My heart is ταράσσω already - how can an agitated heart have the will to be well?
*Been there done that. I tried to get help, but it didn't help. So why bother?
*If I say "yes" I want to be well, there will all of sudden be expectations put on me to behave a certain way. (It would be better to just stay miserable than disappoint others, because not living up to their expectations would just cause a relapse in my infirmity - ταράσσω my heart).
*Maybe if I keep making excuses people will leave me alone. It's not true that misery loves company. Misery, as I have experienced it, only loves the company of Self - and even Self can be too much sometimes.

I understand this man at the pool. I have been there. And I am willing to admit that on a regular basis there is sort of battle to NOT ταράσσω the heart!

But here's the great thing about Dr. Jesus. Even though we may not answer Jesus' question "Do you want to be well?" Even though we make excuses. Even though we have suffered from this infirmity for 38 years. Even though we feel there is a constant battle to not let our hearts ταράσσω - be agitated ... Dr. Jesus said to him, "Get up, pick up your mat, and walk." John 5:8 (Good News Bible)

With the full authority of God dwelling in his person, Jesus cuts through the excuses and the circumstances with the command to get up, pick up and walk.

Let's not, however, turn this event into a carnival tent of healing. Why? Because Jesus did not command the infirmity to be gone. He commanded the man with the infirmity to get up, pick up and walk. The man chose to obey that command. He did what Jesus told him to do. That's a huge part of becoming well!

But let's not turn this event into a simple self-help infomercial either. Because the beginning of the next verse says, "Immediately the man got well; he picked up his mat and started walking." John 5:9 (Good News Bible)

The word for "well" here is the same word that Jesus used when he asked the man "Do you want to be well?" γενέσθαι - to nurture a desire, an intent, to get well - to become/be made/to begin to be! So apparently Jesus' command was powerful enough to infuse into that man a desire, an intent, to become/to be made/to begin to be well. But he still had to get up, pick up and walk. And he did.

A miracle? A healing? Obedience? Yes, Yes, and Yes.

So back to the whole purpose of this blog: "Don't let your heart be troubled" ταράσσω That's a command, not a suggestion, isn't it? In the next entry I want to explore how Dr. Jesus is specifically working in and on me regarding my ταράσσω heart and how it might be similar to this man who got up, picked up and walked. Maybe you'll find your self in all this as well.

Why I chose to go see Dr. Jesus

Have you ever had a nagging pain that sort of builds up over time? This build up of pain does not necessarily mean that it grows more painful. On the contrary, its nagging nature may actually lead to a numbness. It's still pain but it is pain that we are beginning to not feel anymore because it has been nagging for so long. We become used to it. And then every once in a while it gets bumped, scratched, jostled or agitated. As you know this is my big word for my blog - agitated - ταράσσω.

But this word applies not to the physical realm (although we definitely see the effects of ταράσσω in our bodies over time. ταράσσω applies to the spiritual realm, the emotional realm, the thinking realm. It is an agitation that causes us inward commotion. It takes away our calmness of mind and disturbs our equanimity. It disquiets us and makes us restless. It stirs up, troubles and strikes our spirit with fear and dread. It renders us anxious or distressed. It perplexes our mind by suggesting scruples or doubts. That's the full meaning of ταράσσω.

So this is more like an "inner pain" - a nagging inner pain. It is a pain, that if untreated over a long period of time, may result in a numbness. It is still agitating, but we have grown used to it. Until . . . until . . . an interior or exterior trigger is pulled reminding us that we are still agitated. And the pain comes back.

That's why I chose to go see Dr. Jesus.

In fact there have been several times in my adult life that I have had to go see Dr. Jesus about this "inner pain" which is ταράσσω. Very often I have had to be taken to Dr. Jesus because the pain was so great that I could not go to him on my own. Sometimes I have called or written a friend explaining my pain and agitation and they tell me, "Go see Dr. Jesus." Sometimes, albeit rarely, I will go to Dr. Jesus on my own. And, of course, I can always just call him, because Dr. Jesus still makes house calls.

In John 5:5-6 I find an physical problem that is an excellent parallel to the spiritual, emotional and cognitive ταράσσω. "A man was there who had been sick for thirty-eight years. Jesus saw him lying there, and he knew that the man had been sick for such a long time; so he asked him, "Do you want to get well?" (Good News Bible)















(Picture of the real pool Bethesda)

The word for "sick" (or in other translations "infirmity, ill, or an invalid") in the Greek is ἀσθένεια,n {as-then'-i-ah}
1) want of strength, weakness, infirmity 1a) of the body 1a1) its native weakness and frailty 1a2) feebleness of health or sickness 1b) of the soul 1b1) want of strength and capacity requisite 1b1a) to understand a thing 1b1b) to do things great and glorious 1b1c) to restrain corrupt desires 1b1d) to bear trials and troubles

Notice how the depth of this word not only includes the physical realm, but the spiritual, emotional, and cognitive realm as well.

Therefore, we should not be surprised that Jesus asked this man, "Do you WANT to get WELL?" Two words addressing both the physical and non-physical reality.

And what is "want" in Greek here? θέλω,v {thel'-o}
1) to will, have in mind, intend 1a) to be resolved or determined, to purpose 1b) to desire, to wish 1c) to love 1c1) to like to do a thing, be fond of doing 1d) to take delight in, have pleasure

And what is "well" in the Greek here? γίνομαι,v {ghin'-om-ahee}
1) to become, i.e. to come into existence, begin to be, receive being 2) to become, i.e. to come to pass, happen 2a) of events 3) to arise, appear in history, come upon the stage 3a) of men appearing in public 4) to be made, finished 4a) of miracles, to be performed, wrought 5) to become, be made

WHOA!! What a picture!!

Dr. Jesus is asking this man, me and all of us, "Is it your will, do you have it in mind, do you intend, are you resolved, determined, and purposed, do you desire and wish, and would love or like to take delight and pleasure in ... becoming, be made."

The answer to ταράσσω which is our ἀσθένεια is Θέλεις ὑγιὴς γενέσθαι
The answer to my being agitated which is my weakness and infirmity is nurturing a desire, an intent, to get well - to become/be made/to begin to be!

I think Dr. Jesus is a psychiatrist in this case more than a physician.

In my next blog we'll look at "good excuses I give to Dr. Jesus" based on the man's response to Jesus in John 5:7 and how Dr. Jesus responds back to him in John 5:8.

Getting My καρδία (heart) Checked

Have you ever been in a claustrophobic CT "tube" where there's about two inches between the tip of you nose and the top of the chamber? Personally, I've been in more than once. It's not fun. But that machine sure does produce clear pictures! I was having some strange heart problems a while back and they took a 64 slice picture of my heart. Talk about detail! It turned out that I had arrhythmia couplet - where my heart would skip two beats and not just one. Not really too much to worry about. Other than that they found my heart to be slightly enlarged with one of the main arteries being a bit contorted. But the doctors assured me there was nothing to worry about. The same old story: lose weight, exercise, blah, blah, blah.

Recently, I've had to take another look at my heart. Not the double skipping contorted one, but the one about which Jesus said, "Don't let your heart be troubled" John 14:1 (NLTse) As you can see on this blog the Greek word ταρασσέσθω that is translated as "troubled" is pretty comprehensive in description. I confess I have let my καρδία be ταρασσέσθω (my heart be agitated). But just recently I started making regular appointments to go see Dr. Jesus. From my very first appointment to my most recent one, I've been shown more and more of what's going on in my heart.

So this blog begins with getting my heart checked - particularly in the area of being "troubled" or "agitated". You are welcome to follow along with me and share your own results from your own check-ups as well.

Coming up in the next blog: Why I chose to go see Dr. Jesus