The Bible tells of an incident in John chapter 5 where Jesus saw a disabled man, and Jesus had a conversation with the man about healing. When you have a moment go and read it cause I’m going to do some paraphrasing as I accentuate certain points.
Jesus knew that the man had been in his helpless condition for a long time. I’m not just talking about his physical ailment, but his mental state of helplessness.
Jesus stopped and asked the man a question. He said to Him “Do you wanna get well?” (John 5:6). The man responded to Jesus with excuses saying that he didn’t have any help and every time he attempted to get in the water to be healed, someone else would step over him.
Jesus didn’t even ask the man all of that, he asked him a direct questions, “do you wanna be healed?”
That was a yes or no question. In essence Jesus was asking the man, what do you want for your life? We know Jesus wanted to see the man healed but He asked the man what He wanted.
Why is this? First of all, God don’t override wills. Second of all, this shows us that it doesn't matter what someone else may want for you or you many want for someone else, until they want it nothing is gonna happen. You will wear yourself out trying to make someone move who doesn't wanna move. You can want to see someone healed, whole, delivered and set free but that’s not going to change anything.
They have to want healing for themselves.
So the man himself had to make a decision. He had to come outta self-pity.
Sidebar: God honors humility not self-pity. Humility is essential for healing.
Self-pity is a strategy that doesn’t work. God is not going to feel sorry for you. The bible reports that the man was like this for 38 years, that’s a long time. So basically for 38 years this man failed to make a decision. For 38 years he was waiting for someone to feel sorry for him. For 38 years he was waiting for something to happen.
You’ll see in the text that the man’s self-pity didn’t work with Jesus either because Jesus didn’t entertain the man’s response. Jesus ignored all of his excuses and said to the man, “pick up your bed and walk!”
Wayment, hold up. You mean to tell me that you are not gonna do it for me? Nope! You gotta do it for yourself.
Jesus didn’t say let me help you with your bed. No, the man had to pursue healing for himself. He had to do something. You have to do something! Your Passa (Pastor) can’t do it for you. Your parents can’t do it for you. Your best friend or spouse can’t do it for you. No family member can do it for you. You have to take up your own bed.
Once the man made a decision and did something, his healing manifested. He was made whole.
You must decide what is more important to you—healing or having a reason to say, “Woe is me, I’m helpless.”
Some people won’t heal because they want attention.
Because most people haven't healed, they end up dealing with the same type of person, just in a different body. They find themselves dealing with the same stuff. If they are honest with themselves, they probably have had thoughts that they might as well have stayed in a relationship with the previous person.
You have to deal with yourself so you can heal. Deal with the roots of childhood trauma, deal with bitterness and unforgiveness, you gotta deal with areas of brokenness in your life. If that means sitting on somebody’s coach for counseling and therapy, do what you gotta do to heal.
God will highlight areas within yourself because He wants you to deal with it so that you can heal.
His revealing is for healing.
Jesus could have easily just walked past the man but He highlighted his helplessness so the man could heal. As long as you stay in a state of helplessness, you won’t heal. Whatever is not healed will hinder you from having a healthy relationship. The man was hindered for 38 years.
You gotta heal for real so you won’t hinder healthiness in your relationship.
Hell will try to convince you that you can't be healed. But the devil is a liar, God is a healer! The only prerequisite is desire.
You have to wanna heal for real!
