When Hope has gone out John 5:1-15
DAY 1 - Helplessly hoping and hopelessly hoping Helplessly hoping and hopelessly hoping. Is this only a complicated phrase? Yes and no. There is a truth behind this phrase. Sometimese we find ourselves in a helplessly hoping state. It is a condition "when hope has gone out." Let us see from John 5:1-15 about a man at the pool. This is a man in such a condition, a man in a helplessly hoping state. Verse 3-7 "Here is a great number of disabled people used to lie - the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?" "Sir", the invalid replied, "I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone lese goes down ahead of me."" At that time, it was believed that when the water in the pool was stirred up, then the first one to jump into the pool would get healed. Here in this text we saw a man that had been invalid for the last 38 years. How did he get sick? Most probably he got sick due to his sin. Verse 14 states "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you." Some sickness and some problems happen due to our own sin. It is just purely a consequence of sin. On the other hand, there are some sickness and some problems that happen because God wants us to go through them for His own purpose, for example the sufferings that came upon Job. How did Jesus deal with this man that was sick due to his sin? Verse 8 states "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. Jesus chose to heal this man. In addition, Jesus says in verse 14, "Stop sinning." Jesus did not heal everybody. He heals according to His sovereign choice. Jesus chooses to heal this man most probably he was in the most impossible situation. He had been sick for 38 years. Jesus delights in taking the impossible and made it to be possible. Therefore, if you are in a helpless situation, whether it is due to your own sin or God's divine purpose, then you are a perfect candidate for God to show His power.
DAY 2 - "Do you want to get well?" Jesus asked one question that sounds redundant. Jesus asked the invalid man in verse 5, "Do you want to get well?" What a question, in a split second, this question sounds useless. Of course the man wanted to be healed. But, let us look at this question a little bit deeper. A. "Do you want to get well?" Some people do not want to be made well. Some people are content with their half abundance, half happiness, and half hope. Some people are perfectly content with half assurance, some level of anxiety in their life. In fact, they have learnt to live that way and they have learnt to accept those as just simply part of life. Do you know that life do not have to be that way? Life in Christ is full of abundance, full of happiness and full of hope. There is assurance that is much greater than any kind of insurance. Yes, many people thought that it life can not be fulfilling. If you do think that way, then maybe it is time to turn your eyes to Jesus and you'll find satisfaction beyond what you can imagine. B. "Do you want to get well?" Some people may respond by saying that they have been so bad that they can not be made well. They feel like they do not deserve to be well. Since there is no way for them to change, there is no way for them to be better and to be well. "I am the way I am and I can't change that." Do you know that Christ offers forgiveness and acceptance. "He loved us when we are still sinners." Romans 5:8. By the power of Jesus Christ, God can transform our lives. He loves us and "He who begin a good work in you will carry it to completion." Because God loves us, He wants us to change and transform our lives to a life that is honorable, holy and godly. C. "Do you want to get well?" Jesus gives that invalid man a chance and an opportunity to grow in faith. The invalid man can choose to believe Jesus or not to believe Jesus. Jesus told him to pick up his mat and walk. He chose to believe Jesus. With every commands that Jesus give, there is an empowerment to carry the commands. Jesus gave him the strength that he needed to believe Him, picked up his mat and walked. Jesus also gave him the power to "stop sinning." Yes, that's what Jesus offers to each one of us. Have you been wondering if this is all that life can offer? Do you need a miracle in your life? Maybe this is the time to just simply believe Him and ask Him to start working in your life and start changing your life. Before you know it, you'll have the most abundant, happy and satisfying life. Jesus offers a MIRACLE for you and me. All that we have to do is to choose to believe or not to believe!
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Disclaimer This material is a summary of the message that was preached by Pastor Jack Graham at Prestonwood Baptist Church. The writer of this EBS (Electronic Bible Study) made some changes and added some personal notes that is necessary to customize this material into an electronic media, a daily reading material and to better fit the audience. The Prestonwood Baptist Church is not affiliated in anyway with the Indonesian Christian Fellowship of Fort Worth.