Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. John 5:2-3 NIV
For an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted. A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. John 5:4-5 NASB
Thirty eight years is a long time to suffer. Day after day, this man laid on his mat, close to the pool that offered some kind of hope, waiting for something to change. I wonder how many times he watched others step into the water and be made well, never quite making it in himself. For his condition made it hard to move. Can you relate to this man? Though we may not be lame, there are all kinds of ways to be paralyzed. Fear, grief, addiction, depression, hopelessness – so many things can make it hard for us to move forward.
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?” John 5:6 NIV
When I first read this story I thought that was a silly question. I mean, of course he wanted to get well, right? But did he really, really want to get well? Jesus’ question challenges me. There are things in my life that I “want,” goals that I’d like to attain, but they aren’t the driving motivation behind the decisions I make. In other words, I don’t want them bad enough to make the changes necessary to get them because I’ve learned to live without them.
“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 else goes down ahead of me.” John 5:17 NIV
“Do you want to get well?” Jesus asked. Could it be that this man had lived with his pain so long that he had accepted his condition and resigned himself to it? After all, God made us to be resilient. The strongest, the survivors, learn to accommodate, to make the best of tough situations. And if we’re being honest, we tend to admire that ability in one another. But listen to what Jesus said next.
Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” John 5:18 NIV
Let those words sink in.
“Get up!“ What has you paralyzed today? Whatever it is that has kept you down, Jesus can help you get up again! But getting up has to be the goal. Accommodating and finding ways to survive on your mat can’t be the goal. “Do you want to get well?”
“Pick up your mat.” For 38 years, this man had laid on his mat. It kept him off the hard, dirty floor. It was familiar, and we like familiar. He had grown accustomed to it, and like an old friend, it brought him some comfort. But Jesus had something better for him! To find freedom from his paralysis, he could no longer be content on his mat! We all have a mat. Will you pick yours up? “Do you want to get well?”
“Walk.” Freedom and healing always begins with a walk. It’s a journey we take, one step at a time, in obedience to Jesus. It involves action. As we pursue the path God places us on we get to know Him intimately and we find strength to keep going. “Do you want to get well?” Will you get up, pick up your mat and take the first step toward freedom today?
At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ” John 5:9-11 NIV
When you decide you want to get well, and you start pursuing that end with all your might, there will always be voices to tell you to stop! The enemy will shout, “You can’t do this!” “You’re not strong enough!” “You are paralyzed!” The enemy does not go down without a fight, and he never goes down quietly!
Let the voice of Jesus drown out the sound of the enemy. He sees your paralysis and says to you, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.”
There’s just one question that remains….
“Do you want to get well?”
