Sermon for 02/19/06

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Sermon for 02/19/06
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The Community By the Pool
[Guest Sermon by Diane Nelson]

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

We are looking specifically at the John and Romans text this morning, so you may want to have your bulletin handy for reference.

Let’s paint the scene.

In Jerusalem we find this pool surrounded by 5 covered colonnades. It is not just a muddy hole in the ground – it was a hot spring. They have taken the time to build up this area into a place of beauty.

Then we have the picture of an angel stirring or troubling the waters. The first one into the pool after this disturbance would be healed of whatever disease he had. We don’t know how often the angel came, but it was often enough that in verse 3 we find “a great number of disabled people lie” there. This “great number of people” had placed their bets on this method of healing. I imagine them lying there day after day waiting in anticipation of the next stirring of the waters. This became the hang out for the blind, the lame and the paralyzed – to name a few!

And here we find this one man. He has been an invalid for 38 years. We learn from verse 14 when Jesus says to him “See you are made well AGAIN” that he was not born in this condition. He knew what it meant to be whole. He could remember what it was like. So, back to verse 6, Jesus saw this man and learned he had been in this condition for a LONG time. So Jesus asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

Jesus meets us where we are! That may be hard to believe. At times we can feel so alone. But Jesus is there. In our place of brokenness Christ comes to us asking each of us the same question, “Do you want to get well?”

I LOVE chocolate! I love it so much it affected by attitude if I didn’t have it. Chocolate is an addiction for me and I expected other people to feed that addiction... Valentine’s Day, birthdays, Christmas, Easter, even kid’s birthday parties I would go to with my daughter. Chocolate is sin for me – it may not be for you, but it is for me. Sin separates us from God. But you know what drew me near to God. I wanted to get well. I prayed and prayed to God about it. “God remove this desire from me – give me strength. I just opened the pantry. Help me close the door.” God gave me victory! When you are serious about healing, God is there to give you the strength to overcome.

When Jesus asks this man “Do you want to get well?” He knows this man is in this place for healing. We can read about other stories in the Bible where people sat outside the temple gates, begging for money. But that is not where this man is. He is waiting by this pool with hopes of being the first one in! But still Jesus asks, because he was not going to force healing upon this man, if we was not ready to receive it! I love this comment out of my Companions book... “Divine grace cooperates with human will. Grace is offered to us in many forms, extended but not imposed. God does not beat us down with unconditional love until we cry “uncle!” God will not force us into wholeness against our will.”

So here is his response. I can relate to this because this is how I answer questions. Rarely do I answer “yes” or “no” to a question. It drives Kurt crazy. Here he says in verse 7, “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.” To me this answer is YES and Jesus took it that way, too. I want to take some time to focus on his answer... this man had been in this condition for 38 years! In his response, he said he had NO ONE to help him. In 38 years he found no one who would help him into the waters when they were stirred. We don’t know how long he had been lying there either, but in his response, I can hear his disappointment time and time again of the people who went ahead of him and were healed in his place. Who were these people and why weren’t they sticking around to help the next person in when the waters were stirred?

This society did NOT have the medical technology that we have today to bring about healing, nor did they have medical insurance to pay for their care. We see no order of who comes next, no seniority, and no teamwork. This community by the pool did not have a fair system to assess each situation and determine who should come next. Instead, it was for the survival of the fittest. Yet, the irony is... the pool existed for those who had no other hope.

So, where are you? Do you see yourself sitting by the pool waiting for that healing to take place in your life? Have you lost all hope – has your job filled you with despair, do finances have you burdened, are you struggling in a relationship, or are you one who literally has that need for physical healing?

Or, possibly could you be the one to come and help others into the waters? Our Romans passage today tells us, (Romans 12:6-8) “We have different gifts according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.” If any of these describe you. Take that step of faith and use this gift God has given you.

In verse 8, Jesus tells him... “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” Jesus performs a miracle here. Jesus performs a miracle because the community around this man has failed in their care for him. We read in verse 9, AT ONCE this man is cured, he picks up his mat and walks. He has faith in Jesus’ command and in obedience he stands, he has the strength to bend over pick up his mat and the strength and the energy to walk. For 38 years he has waited for this. Yet, he doesn’t know who it was that cured him!

Imagine the excitement of this man! He goes down in history as being a man cured by the command of Jesus. He doesn’t even need his mat anymore. He could have given it to someone else that lied there. But, Jesus told him to pick up his mat and walk and that is what he was going to do! He trusted Jesus. He obeyed Jesus! So, carrying his mat, he sets off ... toward home? ... or, toward the temple? Possibly to worship and praise God for his healing? All we know is the Jews see him.

These Jewish leaders are so wrapped up in themselves. They miss out on the joy of this one man. In fact, they attempt to take that joy away from him. In verse 10 we read, “the law forbids you to carry your mat on the Sabbath.” Does anyone ever do that to you? You have the best news to share and people react as if it were nothing. They have the ability to see the negative in everything! I hate that! Why can’t these people rejoice in his happiness? The Jews were so wrapped up in their laws they could not celebrate this miracle that had taken place. Again, I see the community failing in the care of this man.

So I ask you, what hurdles do you need to get over to see Jesus and experience his healing power?

A few years ago, Pastor did a sermon on bitterness. This sermon made a huge difference in my life. I was a very bitter person about several issues and I needed to change. At the beginning of the sermon, Darcy came out of the nursery to get a diaper from us. Our daughter seemed to do her dirty work when she was in there. With the diaper bag in the car, I bent down to get my keys out of my purse. Only to find Kurt stand up and step over me to go and take care of it. To me his actions said, “Stay here! I’ll change the poopy diaper. You need to hear this.” What an eye opener that was! But it’s true. I not only needed to hear what Pastor had to say... I needed to apply it. I needed to change. Ohhhh, it’s hard to change behavior. Getting over that hurdle was tough, I know! I had to pray and pray about it. “Lord, change my thinking. Help remove these feelings of bitterness.” Again, God answered prayer. In removing bitterness, I found JOY!

In verse 13 we learn that this man has NO IDEA who healed him. Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there. Possibly Jesus stood there long enough to see that the man was going to get up and trust in His words. We read He didn’t know who it was but he sure was grateful! Jesus helped this man and then he was gone. Do you need to receive credit when you help someone?

We are called to be just like Jesus. As God’s son, he came to us. He grew up and lived here among us in this world to point us to God. His earthly example in caring for others was perfect. Our call is to be just like Jesus. We are called by the grace of God to be His disciples. We are to treat others just like Jesus does. Jesus didn’t need credit – and neither do we! All glory goes to God.

Here we see that faith in Jesus was NOT a prerequisite for healing as so many other Bible stories indicate, but... Jesus came back. In this story, healing was only the first step.

In verse 14 we get a glimpse again of the healing power of the pool. In verse 4 it tells us that people were healed of whatever disease he/she had. I want you to notice, the power of this pool could only heal their physical needs. In our day of instant gratification, too many of us look at how this man was healed and expect God to zap us our of our problems. His healing did not end his struggle in life. Jesus finds this man at the temple and tells him, “See you are well again, stop sinning, or something worse may happen to you.”

Our outer appearance is no sign of our inner self. We are UNABLE to physically see the Holy Spirit living inside us. We may look like we have it altogether on the outside, but maybe we are falling apart on the inside. What is your response to God’s grace and healing? Does it change you? How much time do you spend working on your physical appearance in comparison to your “spiritual appearance”, meaning how much time you spend studying God’s word and being in prayer and meditation with Him?

When Jesus came it wasn’t His purpose to release us from the pains of this world. I’m going to refer to our Romans passage again. (Romans 12:2) “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.” Jesus came to give us hope. Hope of a brighter future lived in eternity with Him. My last question for you this morning is, when something bad happens to you does it cause you to bend your knee or shake your fist?

We see this man was healed in the physical sense but in the spiritual he still needed the grace of God at work in his life. Jesus healed this man physically, but it took the cross and the sacrificial blood of Jesus to cleanse him from his sin and that is also true for us. We all need Jesus and through God’s grace and mercy He is always there for us!

Praise God!

Amen!

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