The Gospel of John | Healing on The Sabbath – John 5:1-18
At the outset of this passage, John references the previous supposed tension that exists between the disciples of Jesus and the disciples of John. Where the Pharisees viewed John’s teaching as dangerous to their system of governance, Jesus’ teaching brought with them the claims of authority and divinity. Yet, Jesus had no patience for the challenges that would only seek to cause rivalry and division. So, with no need to further division among the believers, he left. On his journey, He came to Samaria (whether the journey dictated this out of the way path or was merely the divine providence and plan of God is a matter of much academic debate). As the disciples went off to find food, Jesus approached the well and a woman at the well looking for water with no means of obtaining it.