John 5:3-6(NLT)
“3 Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches.[a] 5 One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?””
In the Gospel of John, Chapter 5, Jesus Christ had gone to Jerusalem for the Passover. He came to a pool called Bethesda, and it had five porches. On certain occasions, an angel went down and would trouble the water. Whoever stepped into the pool first after the troubling of the water would be healed of their affliction. Large multitudes of those who were sick, diseased, blind or afflicted would wait on the porches for the opportunity to be healed. John 5:5-6 tells us that Jesus saw a man lying there near the pool. This man had been sick for 38 years, and Jesus, knowing he had been sick a long time, asked him, “Would you like to get well?” This certainly seems like a simple enough question for this man to answer but answering it correctly would be the difference between being healed or remaining sick. This man would need to nullify all his excuses to make way for the miracle he wanted, and this is exactly what you and I must do as well.
The question Jesus Christ asked the disabled man may have seemed like a foregone conclusion to some of us. This man had been sick a very long time, and he had been coming to the pool hoping to be healed. He didn’t have the physical strength that many of us take for granted today. Having been sick for thirty-eight long years, one can imagine that he was very feeble. After hearing our Master’s question, the man responded to Jesus by explaining what he thought had prevented him for accessing the healing he desperately wanted. The sick man said to Jesus in John 5:7(NKJV), “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.” His summation of his dilemma was simply spoken, and it tells us all we need to know about his mindset and faith.
Typically, when we want something that we haven’t yet obtained, there are two factors that come into play. These two factors are the building blocks of every single detail surrounding our attempt to acquire what we desire. They are availability and access. No one will go through the steps of trying to acquire a blessing that they don’t believe is available. The sick man knew about healing, and his knowledge of healing set up the desire in his heart to be healed. But knowing about healing and deliverance isn’t the same as having knowledge and confidence that it’s available to you specifically. Therefore, it is our due diligence as believers and good stewards of God’s blessings to find out from His Word what is available for us to receive. Then we must go into prayer, seeking God for His plan for our individual lives.
How long had the sick man been waiting? He had been waiting thirty-eight years. That’s a long time! So, this tells us that something about his desire and his approach to being healed had been missing. Again, the sick man had no doubt in his mind that healing was available, just as you have no doubt in your mind that marriage is available, but you must find out from God what is available according to your purpose within His plan. Many single women are praying to marry a man with certain characteristics and qualities, and although these men may exist in the world, they may not be available when it comes to what Heavenly Father has in store for the woman’s life. She has an opinion about what she feels entitled to receive. She may think, “God wants me to have the best, and I will not lower my standards!” This sounds like a very healthy attitude of self-worth, but we have to ask ourselves, “Who determines our worth, us or God?” When it comes to the Father’s love, God has no respect of person. He doesn’t love you more than He loves anyone else. He loves us all the same. He even loves those who do not love Him, because He gave His only begotten Son to die for the sins of everyone, not just for those who have accepted Christ.
If we are esteeming one person over another based on the trivial things of money, power, or looks, we may be nullifying what is available to us, because we are not seeing others as God sees them. This is a problem, because it will mess with your faith. We don’t get to judge people in this manner, because it’s not the way of Christ. Isaiah 64:6 (NLT) tells us, “We are all infected and impure with sin. When we display our righteous deeds, they are nothing but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves, we wither and fall, and our sins sweep us away like the wind.” All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. It’s only because of Christ that we are saved and can be transformed into what God would have us to be.
The sick man let it be known to Jesus Christ that his problem was not one of understanding what is available, he believed his problem was one of access. He couldn’t get to the pool quick enough and would end up missing the opportunity to be healed from the troubled water. Most single women desiring marriage believe their problem is one of access as well. They’ve summed up the kind of man they’d like to meet, and believe it is available to meet him. In their minds, the divine connection is all that is left. They need to be at the right place at the right time to meet. But what if they meet and the man does not respond? What if he doesn’t recognize her as his future wife and has no interest in connecting with her at all?
Jesus Christ makes it clear to us in this record that he is both the availability and the access! He’s the way to God’s miracle working power! Whether it is a missed opportunity, poor judgment, bad choices, or wrong behavior that holds us back, there can be no doubt in our minds that Christ is the answer. He is the door, and in order to walk into our destinies, we must be led by him. This man no doubt looked into our Savior’s face and had an encounter like no other. He understood that there was no excuse or reason that could contradict the power of Christ to deliver, bless, and make whole. Jesus Christ said to him in John 5:8(NKJV), “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” Be assured that this is what we all need to bridge the gap between not having and receiving the great blessings of our hearts. God doesn’t need our help when it comes to deciding what and who is best for us. We are way too busy making arrangements for the ‘what ifs’ when all we need to do is trust our Master Jesus.■
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“How Long Have You Been Waiting?”, written by Kim Times, edited by Reverend Fran Mack, for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2021. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.