Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] I'm going to have you turn in your Bibles to the Gospel of John. And we're in chapter five today. John, chapter five.
[00:00:10] In John five, we're going to look at the first 16 verses. We're going to find an amazing incident in the ministry of Jesus that reveals the true and underlying condition, not just of an individual, but I believe it's kind of a reflection, know a condition of the entire nation. This man that Jesus is going to come to, he's paralyzed. And I believe when Jesus came to the Nation of Israel in that hour, it was a nation in paralysis. And we're going to see that. We're going to talk about. What do you mean by. Well, we're going to even look at why is it that many people in the nation did not recognize Jesus as their Messiah? Why did they reject him? What's going on in the story? So John is writing. Let's take a look back. When John wrote this, many people thought this is the last Gospel written far later than the other three. And it's written with a purpose in mind. So we got to understand this is maybe the most theological gospel of the entire four that are presented to us. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. John has a reason for writing, and he's picking very select stories to make a point. That's what I'm trying to get at. And we're going to see that when we develop a distorted view of who God is. And I think we can do that as Christians. We can develop a wrong understanding. We can develop. I'm going to talk about two extremes that we can get to, even as Christians, and I've watched it, and it's very deadly, both of them. One extreme is that we become very rigid. We're very critical. We focus in on what the word of God says. We can almost become somewhat literalistic in every aspect, and it's got no heart to it. It becomes unloving, and it's very judgmental, and it actually kills. It's the letter of the law. And Paul talks about the letter of the law kills. It's the spirit of the law that brings life, not the letter. And then on the other side, there are people, I think, that are way over here, and they see God as loving and full of grace. And it doesn't matter what anybody does, that it's okay. They can continue to do those things, and that's okay with God. And I think those are two extremes, and they'll get you into trouble. We're going to take a look at the story because I think it's a beautiful story that's going to develop these ideas and show us what the problem is. So I think when we have that distorted view of who God is, actually we have a difficult time receiving what God wants to do and what God wants to bring into our lives. We're limiting what could happen inside of our souls. I believe that God wants to make a continuous reformation in our lives. God is interested in bringing about total transformation. God is interested in bringing about change in our lives. God is interested in continually developing us.
[00:03:04] That's a very powerful idea. How many say, I'm open to God changing me?
[00:03:10] I'm so thankful for God's grace and forgiveness, but I want to keep growing. I want to keep developing. I want to become more and more like God. I want to become more godly. I want to become more whole, more healthy, more vibrant, more dynamic. I want to see the life of God flowing into my life and flowing through my life. I hope that's your prayer, because if it isn't, I'm praying for you anyways, that it'll happen that way. How's that? So, in John, in telling the story of this man who was paralyzed for 38 years, we discover someone who, I believe had given into despair and hopelessness. Now, how many say, if you were paralyzed, and as we're going to read the story, there was a little measure of hope. If you went down to this pool of Bethesda, every once in a while the water would stir and the first person in would get healed. And so he was literally having people drag him down there anticipating and hoping that he would get healed. But 38 years had gone by and he was still paralyzed. Now how many know after a long period of time, you can get discouraged. You know what I'm saying? This is a long time. How may say 38 years is a long time. Some of you aren't even 38 years old yet, so you can get an idea that that would be a long time, right? Could you imagine waiting for something and nothing's happening, and you're hoping and you're hoping and you're hoping, and then just when you put everything into it, you try to get there, and then somebody beats you to it and they walk out whole and you're still in the same condition. You might wonder, is this fair? I don't know all that went on in his mind, but I have to say he probably was giving into a little despair.
[00:04:52] Yet no one is beyond a miracle. This is what I love in our society today. One of the things that happens is if we can't figure it out in our own human understanding, then we just give into it and we feel like there's no answer. But I want you to know, with God, there's always hope.
[00:05:10] There's always an answer. And there is.
[00:05:13] Ultimately, the ultimate answer is even if we don't get all the things we think we want in this life, if you and I are followers of Jesus, we're going to experience absolute, incredible eternity with God, where everything. I mean, your wildest imaginations can't come up with how great it's going to be, because there'll be no more sickness, no more sorrow, no more pain. Isn't that beautiful? And no more brokenness. No emotional brokenness. Sin will be eradicated from our inner being. It'll be eradicated around us. We'll be in a place of absolute peace and joy and absolute love, and everybody will be like that.
[00:05:51] No more insecurities, no more bickering, no more fighting, no more relational tensions and difficulties. How many go, hey, this sounds good. Well, that's what's going to be like. And we're moving towards that. And I love that. Now the response to this incredible healing by the religious leaders in Jerusalem toward the miracle was antagonism toward Jesus. That's kind of a shock, isn't it? People are upset he didn't do it on the right day.
[00:06:21] Locked in a little rigidity here. Okay, we'll talk about that. Their focus, I think, was on the wrong understanding of the purpose for Sabbath. They thought Jesus was a Sabbath breaker. They thought he was violating God's commandment and he could not be someone whom God would send. Actually, what I think is humorous is this is God himself, and they're all uptight.
[00:06:50] I think people do get upset with law. Meryl Tenney says the law was actually wholly righteous and good Romans tells us that and its requirements of the observance of the Sabbath was intended to provide man, people, humanity with a pause in the week's exhausting mean. You know, if we weren't told that there should be a day of rest, we probably wouldn't rest and we would wipe ourselves out. We're just not smart enough to know that there's a limitation to our humanity. Does anybody know? We're limited.
[00:07:22] I know about you, but if I don't get enough rest, I don't function very well. How many of you're like me? If you don't get enough rest, you're not going to function very well. Your body's going to break down eventually. That's the way it works, right? He says when the regulation became a barrier to the performance of that which is inherently right, revision was necessary. So what is God saying? You guys have totally taken what I've given you for good, and you're making it a barrier, a problem, a difficulty. I'm going to argue that sometimes we can be very religious. We mean, well, we can get very rigid. And we're actually becoming an impediment for people coming towards God. And that's what was exactly happening. That's why Jesus was really into these. Know, he was saying, look, you guys are problematic. You're keeping people from coming to know God with your wrong understanding of who God is. That's a scary thought, isn't it? So one of the key reasons for the hostility was they were fixated on oral law.
[00:08:28] Now, the Pharisees, this is a certain religious sect. And, you know, there was only so many of them in this country. They were a small minority, but they had undue influence. Okay?
[00:08:40] Sometimes a small group of people can have an undue influence on a culture. That's true of the Pharisees. And I want you to notice, like the Sadducees, those guys, they were usually the aristocratic people and they were the supposed leaders, but they did not have the same impact on the culture as the Pharisees did. And that's why they were becoming Jesus'Key opponent, because they were locked into this oral law, this tradition of the elders. And what it is is really simply their interpretation of law. Now, why would they would be following oral tradition of the law? Because the law only gives you so much. But when it was written during the days of Moses and you move 2000 years further up, some of the verses don't. How does that apply to today's situation? When you're reading certain texts of Scripture, you're going, well, how does that apply to now? So you have to make some sort of an interpretive understanding of how this applies to today. And that's what they were doing with this oral law. But now, regarding the Sabbath, this was really interesting.
[00:09:44] FF. Bruce says they had distinguished 39 categories of work which might not be undertaken on the Sabbath, the 39th of which was the carrying of a load from one dwelling to another. In other words, you can't move anything.
[00:10:00] So when Jesus tells this guy to pick up his mat and walk, guess what's happening? He's telling them to go to work. And they're thinking, all right, by this Standard, the man's action in carrying his Pallet home was a violation. In their minds of Sabbath law. Now, that was in their mind, right?
[00:10:19] What Jesus embarks on is a challenge to the unhealthy religious patterns that had developed over time. And the nature of a healthy spiritual life is one of continued renewal and growth in our relationship to God.
[00:10:32] Now, the pool of Bethesda, it says here Jesus is going to show up to the pool of Bethesda. It's near the temple by the sheep gate, and there are many people who were gathered there, mainly sick people. And you can see why, because they're all hoping that maybe that water would be stirred and they could get in there and get whole.
[00:10:50] Now, the healing and response that transpired really, I think, reflected a nation that was paralyzed and needing God's touch from its rigid institutionalism and externalized faith. Now, I've seen a lot of externalized faith in my day. I grew up in a very externalized faith, very ritualistic. And a lot of times there were people there that I think had an emotional connection. But a lot of people, they're just going through the outward motions. And, you know, that can happen in any congregation, can happen in anybody's life. You're just going through the motions, you're going through the external things, but you're kind of divorced inwardly from a connection with God. It's not intimate.
[00:11:32] It's not an inner and personalized relationship with God. God wants to get us to know him on a personal level, you see. How does that happen, Pastor? Well, I don't think it can just happen on a Sunday morning. I'm being honest with you. I think it has to happen when you and I cultivate this relationship on a daily basis. If you really want to get to know God well, you got to get to spend time with him. And it's like a marriage. If you don't communicate with your spouse, you're going to start drifting. You got to spend time together. And I believe as Christians, we need to spend time in God's presence. I'm going to challenge us this year.
[00:12:09] Patty and I are so different. I'm far more focused on. I can read books and everything else. She's actually found a way to do a devotional life, and it's helped other people. And I'm going to try to get our whole church to maybe try it her way. Okay. Because if it doesn't work, trying it my way, let's try it her way. And it's simply, there's a, you, version app in your phone. You could download it, it's the Bible. And then you go in, and you hit plans on the U version, and they give you plans to have a daily devotional with God. And I'm going to challenge our whole church in 2024 that we'll all do it together. We're going to do that a year in the Bible together, and we're going to read the little commentaries by Nikki Gumble. So when you're reading the scripture, you go, I don't get this. Then you're going to have somebody make a little comment to bring those Old and New Testament passages together. And I think it'll be good for all of us. And then this is the fun part. We get to comment on it, and if a bunch of us are on there, we get a little idea from it. We can write our comments, and then we can read each other's comments. So I'm going to invite people to join. Patty and I, we're going to do this. We're going to invite you to join us to do this together. How does that sound? Oh, that's not sound good. Yeah, because we want it to be real in our lives together. We want to have it. We're going to all do this together. I like this idea. We're going to do it together.
[00:13:28] I want to do everything I can to help you. That's my goal and my plan here. So how do we find healing and wholeness when we're experiencing despair and darkness in our soul? That's the premise of the sermon. How do we get there from, my life's a mess, it's falling apart. I'm in despair, I'm frustrated. Nothing's happening. God's not answering all that kind of stuff. How do I get to this place where the places in my life where they need to be touched by God? I know I'm broken in these places. There's barrenness there. How do I get there from this bad state to this wonderful relationship with God that even though sometimes outwardly, my conditions may not change, but inwardly I have a whole new attitude. I'm full of joy, and I'm walking with intensity and purpose, and I'm watching God begin to change the nature, the course, and the direction of my soul? I think this is great. I think we often find ourselves trapped in an unhealthy context, and we need to be delivered from it. So we have, I think, a fixed view of how God works, but I think God's. When we do that, we're limiting God. I want you to open your minds a little bit today and say, I want to let God out of the box.
[00:14:37] I want to let God out of my box today. I want to say that God is probably bigger than how I perceive him. And he might do things just a little different than what I think. How many think that's possible? That God just could be a little bit bigger than what you think. And he probably is going to do something maybe a little differently than what you may think. And maybe 2024 if I let him out of his box that I have him in, not that he's in that box, but in my mind, he's in that box, I just say, God, would you please expand my thinking about who you are so I can let you out of my limitations of what I think you can do and allow you to do something really exciting and dynamic in my life? Anybody open for that? Okay, that's good. I figured you'd be open for that. That's great. All right. So in John five, we discover that, as I said, people just had a wrong understanding of God in a lot of ways. And that led to a lot of spiritual and physical bondage in their life. So I'm going to look at two issues today that'll help us to move to real freedom. And the first one is just, I think we need to understand that our current problem as we perceive it, that's generating despair. I think God can address that. So whatever your current issue is that's creating despair in your life. I believe God wants to address it today. He wants to speak into that. Okay, let's take up the story.
[00:16:02] He's giving us the background. He's telling us how Jesus gets to Jerusalem. He's just been in Galilee here in chapter four. Now he moves us in the story to Jerusalem in chapter five, verse one. Sometime later. That's a good way to move you in the story. Little book on writing. This is how you do it. Sometime later. So we know he's not in Galilee. It says, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And here's the reason for one of the Jewish festivals. Now we know from Scripture that Jewish males were required to attend three festivals in Jerusalem annually. They were know simply the Festival of Passover, Pentecost and the Feast of Tabernacles. Now, nobody knows which one it was at this moment in the story. Because it's not that important to the story itself. It's just getting you into why Jesus was in Jerusalem. He was there for a festival. And while he's there, we see this amazing little story.
[00:17:01] Now, R. V. Tasker wants to point something out to us about John's gospel. He says it was very natural, therefore, that John should have been at pains to record in greater detail than the earlier evangelists, Matthew, Mark and Luke, those writers, the reason for this great rejection, as he had found expression during the early life of Jesus. In other words, why did the Jewish people, many of them, reject Christ? Why was know what's going on here in the story? And so John is trying to explain to us why they missed Jesus. How do you miss him?
[00:17:39] And the reason being is because they had preconceived ideas of what God was going to do.
[00:17:46] I think it's possible in our lives we can miss God because we're so locked into our vision of what should happen that we can't see what God is actually doing. How many think that's possible?
[00:17:57] Anybody say that's probably possible? How many say that's true? Amen. Any amens that could probably happen? I miss some things because I'm locked into a certain view. But God may be doing something, but I'm not seeing it because I'm so locked into what I think God should be doing that I'm missing what God is actually doing.
[00:18:14] And that's what he's trying to tell us here. He says his gospel has, in consequence, sometimes been called the Gospel of rejection. So John is explaining why they missed it. He says, now there is in Jerusalem, near the sheep gate, a pool, which in the Aramaic is called Bethesda, which is surrounded by five colored colonnades. And some of you that went to Israel with us, we went to this place. This is by the Church of St. Anne. Remember, we were climbing down those stairs. That was actually the pool of Bethesda, where the five colonnades were. Now it's on a lower level because when you go to, you know, how many know, you've actually. It's piled up. You're not walking exactly where Jesus walked. You're walking on a level higher. But when you go down, there are parts in the City, when you go down, you're actually walking at that level. This was one of those places, PulaphesdA. And it actually means Beth in Hebrew is House. It was a house of mercy or House of Compassion. And why was it? Because probably because some people were receiving mercy, not only from the fact that the Water was troubled, but it was near the Temple. And a lot of people begged at this location. And in the Jewish Religious teaching, giving of Alms was considered a Religious Action. And people gave alms. And so you could actually make a fairly decent living begging. And I think that's probably true today. There are some people that are pretty proficient at begging, and they probably make a decent living at begging. That may be shocking to some of us, but I think that's interesting as we're going to look at the story.
[00:19:52] And they were waiting for the moving.
[00:19:55] That's just a description. It says they were waiting for the Moving of the Waters.
[00:20:02] And from time to time, an angel of the Lord would come down and stir up the Waters. And the first one in the pool after each such disturbance would be cured of whatever disease they, you know, Craig Keener is a commentator, and he says this regarding this incident. He said, the water of the pool of Bethesda, like the ritual Water in most of the preceding chapters, is actually seen to be relatively ineffectual. He's making a comparison, leaving a man paralyzed for 38 years until Jesus comes on the scene. What he's basically saying is, he said, the old wine. The way people were relating to God had become so ritualized and ritualistic that a lot of them, it was becoming so ineffectual. It was just going through the motions and not a lot was happening.
[00:20:50] They knew, but there was not a real deep connection going on here. But when Jesus shows up on the scene, he only has to speak a word and Boom, the guy's healed. Isn't that amazing?
[00:21:01] What couldn't happen over 38 years happens in a moment. When Jesus came on the scene, he was about ready to transform the relationship the nation of Israel had with their God. He was actually going to fulfill what Jeremiah had said. I'm going to create a new covenant. I'm going to give you a new heart. I'm going to write my laws inside of you. They've been on the outside when it hasn't really helped you. I'm going to put my spirit inside of you. I'm going to give you my presence inside of you so that wherever you go, I will be with you. It won't be just God's spirit coming on us to do a specific act for a specific purpose, but that God would actually dwell within his people and his laws would be within us. I mean, this is really superior how many see that? And that's what it was all about. And this was actually that promise. Now, FF Bruce says a contrast may be set.
[00:21:56] Well, let me go back. And Keener says this. While the water of such a pool would not be used in official Jewish ritual, its significance on the popular level must have been great. In other words, while the Religious leaders kind of looked down on what was going on, there, he said the reality was the people were grasping for some hope. I think that's what he's trying to communicate to us. And then he goes, FF. Bruce says a contrast may be seen between the precarious chance of healing in a pool and the efficacious or the effective word of Christ.
[00:22:29] Big difference. Maybe this will happen for me. Jesus speaks, and it does happen. How many see the big difference? He's making a contrast between what the old was offering, what the new was bringing. Now Jesus asks a very interesting question.
[00:22:45] Of all the people lying around the pool, and there was a lot of people there, why did Jesus go up to this guy?
[00:22:51] Do you ever ask yourself questions like that? Why is he picking on this guy? And when he had learned. So obviously, he either asked the man or he asked people, or some scholars said he probably, maybe intuitively knew because he's God. And at moments, Jesus even knows what people are thinking. But it says he learned. So I think he maybe approached the man. He probably felt directed to go to him. He probably asked him, he said, well, how long have you been like this? The man told him, I've been paralyzed like this for 38 years. And then Jesus has a very interesting question. He said, the one who had been there as an invalid for 38 years, when Jesus saw him lying there and he learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, do you want to get well? That's an interesting question, isn't it?
[00:23:37] I mean, it seems like you'd want to get well and you're hanging out here, but, you know, let me remind us that this was a great location to make a living because they were begging, right?
[00:23:48] Remember the guy at the gate? Beautiful. When Peter and John came by? He had been there a long time. He was lame from birth. They just dropped him off at the temple because people are going up to do their sacrificing, and these are the most apt people to give you money. So that's part of their religious requirement. So Jesus asked the question for the paralytic man, Jesus'query had economic significance. J. A. Finley tells us that in the Middle east, in Jesus'time and now a man who was healed would lose a good living from begging. It's true. Have to get a job, have to do something different. What about us? It may not be a physical healing we need, but it may be an emotional one or a relational one or a spiritual one. And sometimes we say, we want to be whole, but we really want to remain where we are in our lives. It's true.
[00:24:42] I'm noticing a trend.
[00:24:45] A lot of people have been wounded by someone, and rather than forgiving them and moving forward, we walk in pain and unforgiveness.
[00:24:54] How many say, it's probably true?
[00:24:57] I deal with this a lot in people's lives.
[00:25:00] You know, it's easier to blame people than it is to forgive. And I'm watching our culture today.
[00:25:06] Everybody's offended today, and everybody's blaming today. How many say, that's what's happening?
[00:25:11] Come on. Is that not happening?
[00:25:15] Okay, so here's the point. The further we've gotten away from our Christian roots as a society because we had strong Judeo Christian roots, the further we're moving away from this value system and we're embracing secular humanism, the more we're walking in offense and anger and blame, and we're upset about the past, and we're upset about the present, and we're upset about people that should be doing things, and everybody's to blame. And we're all in a state of distress and despair.
[00:25:46] That's where we're living. And you know what the answer is?
[00:25:50] Forgiveness.
[00:25:53] We need to learn how to forgive. We can't remain in a state of unforgiveness because we stay imprisoned in hurt and bitterness and sorrow and despair. We need to let go of these things.
[00:26:06] But the moment you forgive someone, it doesn't mean what you're doing is releasing yourself as their judge and saying, god, you decide what should be done. There's something freeing about that. Because what I notice is when people are upset with people, they don't want justice, they want revenge.
[00:26:27] That's what they want. Not justice, revenge. But the problem is that we no longer live with joy and have no, not. And it's acting like we're not experiencing God's grace and power for a long time in our lives. And I think we have to evaluate ourselves and say, if I don't have joy in my life and if I don't have power in my life, and if I don't have freedom in my life, the question is, what's choking it out?
[00:26:53] And maybe we need to get on our knees and say, god, there's something wrong inside of me, and maybe there's unresolved hurt in my past, and I've held onto this thing and it's so far down now that I can't even remember it anymore because it's now become subconscious.
[00:27:10] But if you say, Lord, search me and see if there be any wicked way in me. And God says, yeah, there's this unforgiving spirit inside of you, this heart that was wounded. Somebody hurt you deeply and you've held onto this thing and it's terrorizing you and you don't even know why you're so broken and hurting in so much pain. That's why you're paralyzed. See, I've moved the message from this guy who's paralyzed 2000 years ago to the people today who are paralyzed not necessarily by a physical malady, but they're paralyzed emotionally.
[00:27:41] They're paralyzed spiritually. They're paralyzed mentally.
[00:27:45] I think there's a lot of that. Unfortunately, Ken Hughes says we don't feel authentic. We don't have an inner peace. The unresolved sin or hurt in our lives is submerged into our unconsciousness.
[00:27:59] I think that's true.
[00:28:02] If we want to be restored, we need to open our hearts and let cleansing and renewal bring hope back into our lives. And I believe God wants to do that. So there has to be a recognition of our need.
[00:28:11] You never come to Jesus unless you're needy. You got to come to that place where you recognize I have a need and I'm not capable of meeting this need. That's what this man said, sir.
[00:28:22] The invalid replied, I have no one to help me into the pool. When the water stirred while I'm trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.
[00:28:30] So the fact that Jesus took time to single them out and asked about his situation, I think this man probably felt a little hope at that point because Jesus seems to be taking an interest in him. He seems to be a caring person. He's asking if you want to get well. He said, yeah, if somebody could just help me when the water stirs, I'd be so thankful you get in there and be healed. And he's probably thinking, I'm hoping Jesus, you'll hang around till this happens, maybe help me into the pool. He's got it figured out. This is how God has got to work in my situation. But how many know Jesus got a better plan?
[00:29:04] Jesus doesn't need the stirring of water.
[00:29:08] Jesus is the answer to all of our problems. He really is.
[00:29:14] So like the nation of Israel, this man had framed God's ways and means into a preconceived pattern. This is how God's got to do it. Jesus is the answer to our inability, I think, to save and heal ourselves.
[00:29:34] Jesus has only to speak the word. And when we act on it, there's the thing. When he says it and we obey it, we do it. There's power released to save, to heal, to deliver us from sin, sickness and even demonic torment.
[00:29:49] Then Jesus said to him, it's interesting, you know, Jesus could have done anything there to heal him. How many say that's true?
[00:29:55] How many agree? Jesus could have said, behold, he didn't say that. What did he say? Get up, pick up your mat and walk.
[00:30:08] Now, wait a minute. Why did Jesus tell him to do all of that?
[00:30:12] Well, how many know that? Jesus knows that the Pharisees think that the man carrying the mat is going to be thinking that he's working and that he's breaking the Sabbath law. Don't you think Jesus knows this and he intentionally says to do that?
[00:30:28] It seems like he's taking his hands and poking the bear in the eyeball.
[00:30:35] It looks like Jesus is picking a fight with the Pharisees. How many pick up on this? He's actually doing this intentionally?
[00:30:44] I think he is. He's telling them, this is what you got to do. Once the man was cured, he picked up his mat, he started walking. I want to just argue that when you and I act on God's word, something happens.
[00:30:57] The moment you and I start obeying the word of God, not just hearing it, not just listening, not just intellectually getting and understanding it. But the moment you and I begin to do it, something happens in our lives. There has to be application.
[00:31:12] We have to do it.
[00:31:15] Let me go to the second point. The only two points, the significant underlying issue. Jesus is healing this guy.
[00:31:26] I wonder if he sees this guy. He's got a mat, he's laying there, he sees that he's got a problem. I think Jesus knows exactly what he's doing. How many think Jesus knows what he's doing?
[00:31:36] I think he picked this guy for a reason. Oh, yeah, there's a guy with a mat. I'm going to take on the Pharisees. I think there's something far deeper going on.
[00:31:45] You know, just like this guy was paralyzed, the whole nation was paralyzed.
[00:31:49] That's what I'm getting at. This was a bigger problem than just one individual. The whole nation was paralyzed.
[00:31:57] So why did he heal on the Sabbath? This is not the only occasion. As a matter of fact, the more I read in the New Testament, I'm going, boy, how many healings did Jesus do On the Sabbath? And it was almost like he just kept hitting the same know. And he was just ticking these guys off.
[00:32:15] Anybody pick up on that? You see, one of the problems of legalism is that it's a form of godliness, but it's denying the power of God.
[00:32:27] We can get very rigid.
[00:32:29] Oh, this is what we should be doing. Bless God. I'm gone.
[00:32:35] Well, they'll say, this is wrong. I'll go, yeah, you're right. It is wrong. But how do we respond to wrong things? By being self righteous?
[00:32:45] Do we become the judge?
[00:32:47] I don't want to play that game. That's God's job. Let God deal with those guys. My job is to communicate a message to the people that are doing the wrong thing. How many say, that's right? We should just be telling them, hey, this is God's love, his grace. This is God's ways. This is what you need to do. Hey, it's up to them. I can't make them do the right thing.
[00:33:11] We need to help people cultivate a personal, loving relationship with a personal, loving God so that you and I become personal and know.
[00:33:22] How does John define love? Well, let's go to his epistle. This is what he says. This is how we know what love is. Jesus laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. You can tell me you love me.
[00:33:37] I can know. I can tell my wife I love you, or I can demonstrate it by my actions. It's really easy to tell people verbally you love them, but how about when it's costing you something to love them?
[00:33:52] You see, I'm going to say something you can't even really fellowship unless you're involved in relationship.
[00:34:03] You got to be in relationship, and you know all the one another's in the Bible. You get to practice those when you're relating to people.
[00:34:10] Love one another, put up with one another, forgive one another, pray for one another.
[00:34:16] That's what it's all about.
[00:34:19] We need to practice it. That's how you grow. He goes on to say, if anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need, but has no pity in them, how can the love of God be in that person? In other words, if you see that people are Hurting around you and you're just totally indifferent to it and don't care about what's going on and not involved somehow in helping alleviate the pain in their life, he's saying, do you really have God's love in you?
[00:34:45] We do something about it. That's true. Love means I learn to love a person regardless of what's going on inside of them. I have to love this person. That doesn't mean I agree with them. It doesn't mean I think that you say, well, when is enough here. Pastor, I think when people break their covenant, that's a big issue.
[00:35:11] But, you know, we got to be committed. We've lost that sense of it.
[00:35:16] My job isn't to change people. You may be shocked. You may think, well, Pastor's job is to change people. No, it's not. My job is to communicate God's message. It's the work of the spirit that speaks to your heart, and it's your will that connects with God's word. And when you act on it, something happens inside of you. I can't create all of that. You can resist it. You can tell me to go jump in the lake and tell me anything you want to, but you know what the end result is? I have to be obedient to sharing the message God is sharing with me to pass on to you. And then what are you going to do with it? I don't know any better. Yeah, you do. I've been telling you this stuff. Some of you just shut it off. You don't want to hear it. Look at the response of the miracle. How did the Jewish religious establishment handle what transpired? You know what's really amazing? It says the day on which this took place was the Sabbath. Oh, by the way, that's when it happened, because we're going to lead into what the real issue is here. So the Jewish leader said to the man who had been healed, it is the Sabbath. The law forbid you to carry your mat. No, your interpretation of the law forbid you to carry your mat.
[00:36:21] God didn't do that. God was telling them to pick up his mat and walk. Isn't Jesus God? Of course he is. So their understanding of the law was wrong.
[00:36:31] The law did not forbid this action. It was their interpretation. It was the tradition of the elders. That's the nature of legalism, which makes religion a burden rather than the freedom that it should be producing in coming to know God. Craig Keener says, from Jesus'perspective, he's not undermining the Sabbath, but he's challenging the Jews'interpretation of it. FBF Bruce says, in Jesus'eyes, the Sabbath was given to be a blessing, not a burden to human beings, and it was most worthily kept when the purpose for which God gave it was most actively promoted. He therefore regarded acts of healing and relief not as permitted exceptions to the prohibition of work on the Sabbath, but as deeds which should be done by preference on that day, because they so signally fulfill the divine purpose in its institution, which is what giving people rest, not making it a burden, but releasing them from burdens. That's what the purpose is. God wants to bless us.
[00:37:35] And when we get religious, we want to make everybody's life miserable.
[00:37:41] It's true.
[00:37:42] So here's what I'm going to tell you. When a person gives their life to Jesus, we know we all mean well. You got to do this. Don't do that, do this, do, don't do that. Pretty soon it becomes do's, don'ts, do's, don'ts, do's, don'ts. Come on, let's be honest.
[00:37:57] Brand new Christian. It's really confusing, you know? I'm a brand new Christian now. What am I supposed to do? You gotta do this. You can't do this. You gotta do this, you can't do that. And, boy, that list can really get long. I'm gonna simplify it for you. One thing you have to do. Okay, just one thing. Here comes. Follow Jesus.
[00:38:15] Follow Jesus. One thing. One thing you do not do.
[00:38:20] Stop sinning.
[00:38:23] Follow Jesus, stop sinning.
[00:38:26] Hey, that's pretty simple. Did I help you? I've just eliminated all the lists, so we'll get there. I'll show you in this text of Scripture where I'm coming up with this idea. So what is amazing is that these leaders were so focused on their incorrect understanding and application of the Sabbath principle, they missed the most significant aspect.
[00:38:47] Here was a guy who hadn't been able to walk for 38 years walking around. They should have been rejoicing right now. They were criticizing.
[00:38:55] Interesting. If they were mindful of the biblical promises the prophets had declared of the coming of the Lord, surely this was a powerful demonstration of Isaiah's prophecy and promise. Listen to what Isaiah says. They will see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our God.
[00:39:11] Say to those with fearful hearts, be strong. Do not fear. Your God will come. Hey. Their God had come. Jesus is God. He had come. He will come with vengeance, with divine retribution. He will come to save you.
[00:39:26] Then will the eyes of the blind be open, the ears of the deaf unstop. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. What was going on? Look at Jesus'life. What was he doing all of these things. As a matter of fact, when John the Baptist was in prison, he says, are you the Messiah? Been a little know. I'm not seeing what I thought I would see. Remember he had the Messiah concept in a box, too. Jesus says, go back and tell him. And this is what Jesus told him. This is what I'm doing. When your God comes. This is what he'll do, the blind will see, the deaf will hear, the lame will walk. Isn't that what Jesus was doing?
[00:40:02] Yeah, isn't that great?
[00:40:04] But now we have opposition. Can I tell you? We're going to have opposition in this world. You're going to have opposition. You're going to have persecution. So, having experienced a miracle, how should this man move forward? How do we move forward when something amazing happens in our lives? Well, number one, expect opposition, verse eleven. But he replied, the man who made me, well, said to me, pick up your mat and walk. I was just doing what he told me to do. Actually, it was part of the reason why I'm walking today. If I hadn't had done it, I wouldn't have been healed. Okay, so they asked him, well, then, who is this fellow who told you to pick up your mat and walk? Basically, who told you this? And the man who was healed had no idea who it was for. Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there.
[00:40:48] You know what this guy does? He defends himself by saying, hey, it's not my fault. It's the God that told me to heal me, that told me to do it. I'm just doing what he told me to do. Now they go, who's that? They want to know who's telling you to do this. You see, unlike the blind man in chapter nine, which we'll eventually get to, he actually says, I don't know about you guys. I was once blind, but now I see. I've told you once, I've told you twice. I don't know who he is. He can't be a sinner. Sinners don't do this kind of stuff. At least he had more of an understanding of Isaiah 35. They excommunicated him.
[00:41:23] And then Jesus found him and he said, I'm the man that healed you. And he said, who are you? He said, I'm the man that healed you. He said, jesus said, come follow me. And he started following Jesus. Now, this guy's response is totally different. This is amazing to me. So what does this guy do? The man went away and told the religious leaders that it was Jesus who had made him. Well, in other words, he wants to ingratiate himself with the religious leaders and throw Jesus under the bus.
[00:41:52] That's what he's know.
[00:41:56] He's basically saying, jesus made me do it.
[00:42:00] Jesus made me do it.
[00:42:02] He's the problem, right? Well, then Jesus shows up and says to him, this is great, because this is the verse I skipped over on purpose. You go, well, how did he know it was Jesus now? Well, Jesus has a word to him. He says, listen, later Jesus found him in the temple and he said to him, see, you're well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you. Whoa, I thought about that.
[00:42:26] Now Jesus is saying, stop sinning. That's where I gave you the two points, right? Follow Jesus, stop sinning. This is a command. Stop sinning. You can't follow Jesus in continuum and sin.
[00:42:39] It's real simple. Stop sinning. Hey, if you've been paralyzed for 38 years and Jesus says, you better stop sinning or something worse is going to happen to you, I'm thinking to myself, what could be worse than that? Well, the only thought I had was in eternity apart from God.
[00:42:55] That's worse.
[00:42:57] Stop sinning or you'll be cut off from God for eternity. That's a problem, right?
[00:43:03] Well, run out of time, so we're going to close the service. Let's stand.
[00:43:08] It's okay, I have no problem.
[00:43:11] You know what's nice about being a pastor? I get to preach again and again and again so I can stop at any point. I think I made the point.
[00:43:20] I made a point.
[00:43:23] What's the point, Pastor? Follow Jesus and stop sinning. Right?
[00:43:29] What's the point?
[00:43:30] Let's not walk in legalism and religious outward behavior and be full of criticism and frustration.
[00:43:40] Maybe we're walking through life right now and we're going, man, I just feel so broken, so empty, so shallow. I'm a Christian, but where's the joy in my life? Why don't we ask God? Why don't we get down to the bottom of this? Maybe we got things like hurt and unforgiveness in our life.
[00:43:58] Is that a possibility? Folks, let's be honest. I think sometimes in our lives we don't even know why we're where we're at in our lives, because it's so far down there, we've lost sight of it. It's happened so long ago, we lost sight of it. We've never addressed it. And it's affecting how we're relating to people in the here now. The past is defining your present and you're in distress.
[00:44:23] I'm saying Jesus wants to set you free today.
[00:44:27] Some of you don't know. I'm gonna say it again. Jesus is here and he wants to set you free.
[00:44:32] But you and I have to say, I want to be free. Do you want to be. Well, he says to the man, do you want to be free today? Do you want to be free today. If you say, yes, I want to be free, Jesus will say, I want you to forgive. Yeah, but they don't deserve it. I go right on. That's exactly right. That's the nature of forgiveness.
[00:44:53] Let me ask you a question. Do you deserve to be forgiven by God?
[00:44:58] No.
[00:45:00] Yeah, but, you know, I don't trust this person. Well, that's a different story. But, you know, God could say, I don't trust you guys, come on.
[00:45:13] But he forgives us. Do you see when you really experience forgiveness, I'm going to say this right now, and you continue sInning, that's problematic.
[00:45:27] You're going to perish in your sin.
[00:45:30] See, you and I have to take responsibility. Jesus said, I healed you, I forgive you, I save you, but stop sinning. Are you hearing it? You can't keep doing it because you know what? It's destroying you and other people. You got to stop and you got to let go.
[00:45:52] In this room, I believe right now, with every head bow, there's people. Right now, you can, you know, Pastor, this is really making sense to me. This is connecting with my soul right now.
[00:46:02] I need to let go.
[00:46:04] Spirit of God, I've just been praying, Holy Spirit, just start revealing to people right now there's someone they need to forgive. I just ask right now, person comes to your mind right now, I believe God's saying, I want you to let go of that. You need to forgive that. You need to let go of that.
[00:46:23] You need to do it now.
[00:46:25] There's some of you in the room right now. You're going, yeah, I'm a Christian, but I'm sinning.
[00:46:30] And Jesus is saying, stop sinning or something worse is going to happen to you. And, you know, we fool around sometimes. We go, yeah, nothing's happening to me. I'm doing my thing and I'm just continuing, and nothing bad's gonna happen. Stop sinning.
[00:46:47] Stop sinning or something worse will happen to you.
[00:46:52] It's a warning. Jesus warned this guy and you know what he did? He ran off to the religious authorities and know he didn't start following Jesus. He continued on. You know what? I think something worse happened to him. He's unlike the man in chapter nine. I think John tells us these two stories for a reason. You know, Jesus reaches out to everyone. It's a powerful thing. He reaches out to people who he knows ultimately will never follow him. He still reaches out. It's amazing to me how loving God is.
[00:47:26] We have to choose, and we're here today. Let's make a choice.
[00:47:32] So, Father, we pray today that you would give us the grace to forgive. Because we've received your forgiveness.
[00:47:39] We want to forgive those who have sinned against us. We just decide right now. We're choosing. I choose to forgive and put that person's name in your heart and mind. I just choose to forgive them, Lord, because I know how much you have forgiven me. I know I need forgiveness. I choose to forgive. It's an act of my will. I'm choosing to forgive this person. And even, every time, even if I have a negative emotion toward that person in the days to come, remind me I've chosen to forgive them. I'm going to keep forgiving until there is no emotion left. I'm going to peel back every layer of this unforgiveness until there's nothing left.
[00:48:19] I've forgiven.
[00:48:21] And for those right now that are struggling with sin, I just pray right now, Father, that you would give us the grace. When you say, now, that's enough. I'm warning you today. This is the last warning. Stop it or something worse will happen to you. I pray that we will take you at your word and we'll take it seriously.
[00:48:40] You have the power, Father, to. You've given us the power to stop. If we're a child of God today, we can say no to sin. We can say no to sin, and we can choose to do the right thing. It's a choice we make.
[00:48:56] I pray that we will choose to do the right thing, and that's to follow you and do what you say rather than continuing in sin. And we thank you for that. In Jesus name, amen. God bless you as you leave this morning.
