John 5:1-15 - Paralyzed Mindsets

An area that frustrates me is my ability to limit God. Yes, I look back on countless times in my life that God has come through in significant ways, ways that were entirely beyond my imagination. This honestly has happened so much that it has to lead me to claim Eph 3:20-21 as my favorite passage of Scripture. 

“Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.” - ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭3:20-21‬ ‭NLT‬‬

These verses I have seen, been a part of and been blessed with countless times. Glory to God! But, at the exact same time, my humanness leads to me so often continue to limit God. I still think too small and struggle to continually believe in His ongoing and daily powers that are at work within me. It’s frustrating. 

So, as I read John 5 and Jesus healing the lame man lying at the pool at Bethesda, I see the story through those eyes. Here we have an account on the surface that at first, I can not relate to. 

“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. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 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 ‭5:2-3, 5-6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I say I can not relate to this at first because on the surface; I just can not get myself to understand or connect with being sick and unable to walk for thirty-eight years. It’s hard for me to really relate to how challenging this would be, to be paralyzed, or completely disabled, this is not my condition. But, as I sit here and process this, this morning, I now see this story a bit differently. No, I am not physically paralyzed or disabled, but some of my mindsets and ways of thinking can lead to being paralyzed and even disabling at times. I sit here and wonder, how many times do I need to see Jesus deliver, and far exceed my expectations before I believe? 

What is so powerful with this interaction is this, Jesus asked him, “Would you like to get well?” This is a question that Jesus is offering all of us today, right at this moment. A strange question again on the surface, why would the man say no? Why would you or I say no to this question? This was very interesting;

In this man’s particular case, it was reasonable to wonder if he really wanted to be healed. “An eastern beggar often loses a good living by being cured of his disease.” (Barclay) As bad as his current situation was, at least he was familiar with it.

Jesus posed a question that would radically alter this man's life. But at the same time, healing like this would also push this man outside of something he had become comfortable with, something he was familiar with and has built a lifestyle around. Woah! Let that sit in for a moment. Are there areas in our lives that we have accepted less than God’s best, areas where we have allowed ourselves to become paralyzed, and we are so familiar with it that we have found ourselves in a state of bondage to this limitation? This is how mindsets work, and they can be such a limiter in our lives. 

Observe how the man responds to Jesus question;

““I can’t, sir,” the sick man said, “for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me.”” - ‭‭John‬ ‭5:7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Jesus stands ready to do infinitely more than this man can hope, dream, or imagine, and he avoids the question. This man goes to his limitations, gives excuses for why he can not be healed and why he can not be well. This is our God, this is our Savior, this is the creator of the universe, and He stands before us in this very moment offering the same to us. What is our response, are we going to list all the reason why we are stuck? Are we going to walk through our past, our baggage, our issues, and all our situations that we are justifying our mindest and our inaction? Jesus said, “Would you like to get well?” 

We can often go right to our ability, and the fact of the matter God does not care about our ability, God is interested in our desire and our faith. Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” 

God stands ready to do infinitely more than we can hope, dream, or imagine. Jesus is asking us if we would like to get well. Do we desire to be healed? If so, stand up, pick up your mat, and walk. What often seems impossible in our lives just needs the appropriate faith and focus on Jesus. I love what Levi Lesko said: “Jesus never calls you to do something He is not prepared to enable you to do.”

Lord reveal to me all the areas I am limiting you. The mindsets I am carrying, the areas I am paralyzed and sick. Lord, I would like to get well. Lord, I desire to see as you want me to see and think as you desire me to think. Lord, I believe that through your mighty power at work within me, you can accomplish infinitely more than I might ask or think. Help me believe in my unbelief.