`“A Lame Excuse”
John 5:1-15
Jesus has now come up from the city of Cana to the city of Jerusalem to celebrate one of the religious feasts. In Jerusalem there were different gates to enter and they were used for a variety of purposes. One of these gates was called the Sheep gate. This was the entrance through which the sheep they were using for sacrifices would enter. It’s interesting that as Jesus the lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world; Jesus entered through the same gate.
Now once He was inside the city, He comes to the pool of Bethesda. There lying all around the pool are sick and paralyzed people. They have come to this spot because there was a legend that an angel would on occasion come and stir up the waters of the pool and the first one to get into the water would be healed. This was of course just a superstition.
Now Jesus moves into the midst of this group but we notice that He does not heal everyone at the pool that day but as He moved among the blind and the lame, he is drawn to one particular man who had been ill for 38 years. It’s puzzling why out of all of these very needy people that Jesus would choose to heal only one man. It could have been that Jesus knew that the man had been lying there for 38 years.....could have been other reasons. One thing we do know is that it was not because the man was asking for Jesus’ help. He didn’t even know who Jesus was. Jesus encounters this man and then Jesus asks him a very strange question. Here it is: do you want to get well. I mean if a man was starving would you say would like some food? This man, paralyzed for 38 years and Jesus says do you want to get well?
There are 3 things I want us to see in this passage this morning. Here is the first one. (1) Before you can change you must decide if you want to be changed. Look at v. 6. “When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time He said to him, ‘Do you want to be made well?’” Now again this is a strong question but Jesus would often ask questions for the simply purpose of making us think. It’s a lot like a question parents often ask their children: “Do you want a spanking?” Hmm...NO! In the past 38 years this man had been a beggar so he lived his life off of the donations of others. If he were healed he would lose these donations. He would lose the pity of others. Today in some 3rd world countries parents are guilty of injuring their children, crippling them perhaps, so that they can earn a living by begging. If this man were healed he would then have to be responsible for himself. He would have to find work. It would be a whole new world for him. It would be the equivalent today of offering this to a person who had lived on welfare if they were willing to give that up in order to get well. Now there would be risk. Now he would be responsible for himself.
I see in this man many people like this in our day. Their lives are sick. Their lives are dysfunctional, but they have never considered that God might have something new for them. They don’t know there is something more to life. They have become satisfied with just getting by. We see this in churches...we see it here. I see it in people all the time. They hear the gospel. They even seem excited about it But there comes a time when they realize they really do not want to be changed so they leave. You and I must decide if we want to be changed.
(2) If we do want to be changed we must decide to stop making excuses. V.7 “The sick man answered Him, ‘Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.’” Notice the man avoids the question. He doesn’t answer it. He doesn’t say whether or not he wants to be well. He just complains. Tells us how unfortunate he is. Gives us a long list of his troubles. Has it ever occurred to you that there are some people who just really enjoy complaining? In today’s language we would say that he sees himself as a victim. When a person always sees themselves as a victim of society, as a victim of their upbringing, then they convince themselves that everything that happens to them is somebody else’s fault. It has to be their wife’s fault or their husband’s fault or their parent’s fault or society’s fault. Anybody but themselves! We can’t help but feel sorry for the man: all alone, his family is gone, he’s lame, he’s lonely and he says, “Sir, I have no one to help me.” In other words, I can’t do anything for myself and God’s not doing anything for me either. If we want to be changed we must decide that we will stop making excuses.
(3) We must decide whether we are ready to take action. Vv. 8-9. Now understand when this man was healed, he was not healed by the water. Jesus said to him, “Get up. Pick up your mat and walk.” Obviously the man now had a choice. He could listen and just ignore, or he could listen and wish something would happen or he could listen and obey. Trust and obey. It’s a choice all of us have. I have that choice. You have that choice. Do you want Jesus to heal the parts of your life where you’ve been hurt or is it easier to hold on to the hurt? When Jesus says to “take up his mat” He is telling him and all of those who truly want to change, he is telling us something very important! If you truly want to change then don’t make any provision to go back. Burn your bridges. Cut off any possibility of going back. According to v.14 later Jesus found this man in the temple and He said to him, “See you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a cursed thing come upon you.” If you want to get well; if you want things to get better in your life, then you may have to make an effort.
This man is a lot like us or we are a lot like him. He made mistakes. There was sin in his life, no doubt, just as there is in ours. I don’t believe that Jesus was saying that the sin was the cause of his illness, but I do believe Jesus was warning him that the results of sin in our lives are always worse than the results of any physical illness.
In John chapter 9 there is a man who was born blind. Jesus heals him but before He does the disciples ask Him, “Jesus, who sinned - this man or his parents - to cause him to be blind?” Jesus replies, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God could be displayed in his life.” So from this we see that sin was not the cause of the illness. So this man wasn’t perfect but I don’t see sin as the cause of his illness. This man no doubt did many things wrong but let me show you 4 things he did that were right.
1. He identified what he wanted. There are those who, if given an opportunity for healing, will actually choose to remain sick. The first step to gaining something is to want it. We must determine what we really want and then we must say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
2. He quit blaming others for his problem. He was complaining. Every time the water bubbles up, no one is here to help me into the pool. The stronger ones always get to the water first. The ones who need help can’t get it and it’s been that way for 38 years. We have been blaming others for our problems since the beginning of time.
* When God asked Adam why he disobeyed Him, Adam said, “The woman you have to me...she persuaded me to eat!”
* When Moses asked his brother Aaron why he let the Israelites worship a golden calf, Aaron said, “Well you were gone and the people made me. I didn’t really do anything. I just threw their jewelry into the fire and poof! Out came a golden calf! So blame them! Blame the fire. The fire did it. But don’t blame me.”
* Students do it when they say, “I would do better in school, but my teacher doesn’t like me.” “I would go further in life but you don’t understand how I was raised.” We have a hard time saying these words: I was wrong. I’m actually responsible. Stop blaming others.
(3) Jesus motivated the lame man to stretch himself. V.8 Jesus often told people that in order to be healed they must do something.
*He said to the man with a withered hand, “Stretch out your hand.” When he did, he was healed.
*Jesus put dirt on the eyes of a blind man and said, “Now go wash in the pool of Siloam” and when he did, suddenly he could see.
* Jesus said to this man, “Pick up your mat and walk.”
We have to stretch ourselves. We have to do something.
(4) He gave credit where credit was due: He gave it to Jesus.
V.13 Jesus came back to reveal himself to this man. Jesus wanted him to have more than just a healthy body. He was also concerned about his spiritual health.
V.14 says later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See? You are well again.” Stop sinning or something else may happen to you. Notice he was well “again.” Apparently there had been a time when he could walk. And Jesus didn’t want him to fall into this condition again.
If ever there was a person who could have offered Jesus an excuse, Robert Reed would be that person. His hands are twisted and His feet are useless. He can’t bathe himself. He can’t feed himself. He can brush his teeth, comb his hair or put on his clothes by himself. His shirts are held together by velcro. He has cerebral palsy. This disease keeps him from driving a car, riding a bike and just going for a walk. But it didn’t keep him from graduating from high school and then from college with a degree in Latin. It didn’t keep him from eventually teaching at the college level. And it didn’t keep him from going on 5 overseas mission trips. And it didn’t keep him from becoming a missionary to the country of Portugal. He moved there, rented a hotel room and began to study Portuguese. He found a restaurant owner who would feed him after the crowd was gone and he found someone who would tutor him in the language there. Then he stationed himself daily in a park where he gave out brochures about Jesus. Within 6 years he led 70 people to the Lord. Why? Because he chose not to offer any excuses. In kindness I would ask you, what’s your excuse today?
Have you been crippled from the past? If so, do you want to hold on to it? It’s the choice of being a victor or a victim.
If you have secret sin in your life, do you want to be freed from it?
If you have an addiction, do you want to overcome it?
If you need healing in ANY area of your life, do you want to get well?
You just have to say, yes Lord I am ready to put these things behind me. Can you imagine what a different life this man had? You can too.
