The man Jesus healed at the pool of Beth-zatha by the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem had been sick for 38 years. It is the same number of years the people of Israel had to wander from Kadesh to the threshold of Canaan. Those 38 years of wandering in the Sinai Desert were the consequences of Israel’s unbelief and disobedience. It seems that Jesus had perceived certain sins of the man for he said at the end, “Do not sin anymore.” Those 38 years of suffering might have been the consequence of his sin.
When we have misfortunes such as diseases and accidents, we wonder if they are God’s punishments. I do not think that is how God punishes people. Certainly, God corrects, chastises, and disciplines his beloved ones. Sometimes God strikes even an innocent child with sickness due to the sins of its parents. David’s first child from the wife of Uriah was stricken with illness and died because of David’s murder and adultery.
However, I think most of what we suffer in this life is the consequences of our sins. Sins always bring consequences in this life. Purely spiritual sins do not exist, for sins always manifest their evil fruit in the world. Before blaming God, we should examine whose sins caused our calamities. Most times, I find that my sins result in my unhappiness and unnecessary suffering. God does not find joy in our sufferings. It is why Jesus tells the man whom he has just healed, “Do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.”
Moreover, very often, our sins also affect people around us, especially our families. Not only sins of commission but also sins of omission bring about unfortunate consequences. Many parents wonder why younger generations are less and less religious. It is because Catholic parents neglect their duty to guard their children against the harmful influence of the mass media and popular culture. Many of us let TV sets raise our children. Then, we cannot expect them to grow into faithful Christians, or chaste husbands and wives, because these are not whom they encounter in TV shows and movies.
In today’s Mass readings, we find images of water. Now, water is the source of life. Without water, no life can sustain itself. And this life-giving water is the Lord. Without him around, we cannot sustain our life without falling into sins. The only way to maintain life is to stay close to water. Not to sin, we need to learn to stay close to Jesus. And it is also how we can avoid the unhappiness and misfortunes of life.
