Sermon Tone Analysis

OPENING

Do you remember the TV show Gilligan’s Island?

Seven people set sail aboard the S.S. Minnow on a three-hour tour (a three hour tour).

There was Gilligan, the Skipper, Mr. and Mrs. Howell, Ginger, the Professor, and Mary Ann.

But during their three-hour tour they ran into a storm and were shipwrecked on an uncharted island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.

They tried their best to get someone’s attention to rescue them or to make something to help them get off the island.

In fact, the Professor could make almost anything with random stuff they had on the boat and he found on island.

In one episode he made a battery charger from a coconut shell and a helium balloon made from raincoats sealed with tree sap.

I mean this guy was MacGyver before MacGyver was cool.

But the Professor’s best efforts couldn’t get them off the island.

They even had random visitors who showed up on the island, but they were never rescued, because Gilligan always seemed to find a way to mess things up.

Unfortunately, the original show ended after three seasons and they never got off the island.

They were still waiting to be rescued.

We are going to read a story in the Bible this morning about a man who had been waiting for something a lot longer than three TV seasons.

This man had an infirmity for 38 years and he had spent every day desperately hoping for the possibility of being healed.

John Chapter 5 gives us the account of his encounter one day with Jesus that changed his life forever.

SCRIPTURE

INTRODUCTION

The Bible teaches us that there are times when we are to wait on God.

But there are also times when we say we are waiting on God to do something, when in reality God is waiting on us to make a move.

He is waiting on us to step forward in faith.

Waiting on us to submit completely to His will.

Waiting on us to pray and seek His face.

Waiting on us to depend completely on Him for what we need.

We say we believe that Jesus Christ is more than enough to meet our needs.

We say we have faith.

We say that we believe that God can still move mountains.

We say we believe that God still answers prayers.

Well if that’s true, then what are you waiting for?

MESSAGE

The story that we read in John Chapter 5 is a beautiful example of the compassionate ministry of Jesus Christ.

Here is the Living Water standing beside a natural pool of water.

Here is the Great Shepherd coming to one of the lost sheep of Israel.

Here is the Great Physician coming to the man who had an infirmity for 38 years and desired to be healed.

Jesus Went Up to Jerusalem

One of the Major Feast Days

Jesus walked into Jerusalem that day on one of the feast days of the Jews.

In other words, it was a Sabbath.

But it was probably one of the three major annual feasts (either Passover, Pentecost, or Tabernacles) when the men of Israel were required to travel to the Temple to present themselves before God and offer sacrifices.

Jesus Never Went Anywhere by Accident

How many know that Jesus never went anywhere by accident?

Just like many times during Jesus’ earthly ministry, He often took a detour or took an unexpected path because there was someone who needed Him.

The Pool of Bethesda

The Meaning of the Sheep Market and the Pool of Bethesda

Jesus passed through the area of the Sheep Market where the Pool of Bethesda was located.

The Sheep Market was where the sheep were bought to be used as a sacrifice at the Temple.

One of the purposes of the Pool of Bethesda was likely to wash and cleanse the animals before taking them to the Temple.

What is also interesting is that the word “Bethesda” means “House of Mercy” or “House of Grace.”

This Was Probably Passover

Many scholars believe this day was Passover.

Passover was the feast that the Jews kept to remember how God brought them out of Egypt.

The 10th and final plague in Egypt was the death of the firstborn.

The firstborn of every person and animal in Egypt died that night except for those in Israel who kept the Passover.

God instructed them to sacrifice a lamb and take the blood and apply it to the doorposts of their houses.

And God said, “when I see the blood, I will pass over you.”

In other words, the blood would be their protection and the death angel would pass over their home and their families.

All This Represented Jesus

So I just want you to picture with me for just a moment if you will on this day as Jesus, the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world, walked into Jerusalem, passed through the Sheep Market as the perfect and eternal sacrifice for sins, and stopped by the Pool of Bethesda as the One whose blood can wash away the sins of the world through His Mercy and His Grace!

They Were Waiting on Something

The Stirring of the Water

But not only was the Pool of Bethesda a place of ritual cleansing, but it was also a place where many who were sick with various diseases and who suffered from various disabilities were gathered.

They believed that every so often, an angel would come down and stir the water in the Pool of Bethesda.

And the first person who stepped into the water was immediately healed of whatever disease or disability they had.

As a result, many people waited at the Pool of Bethesda every day.

They were waiting for the stirring of the water and for their opportunity to be healed.

A Lot of People Today are Waiting on Something

There are a lot of broken people.

There are a lot of hurting people.

There are a lot of people who are searching for something to fill the emptiness and the void that is in their lives.

The Missing Puzzle Piece

As I’ve told you before, there is a Jesus-sized and Jesus-shaped puzzle piece in the very center of our hearts.

When Jesus is missing from our lives, it leaves a massive void.

We can try to fill that void with something else, but it will never satisfy our hearts because the piece doesn’t fit.

It is only when we have Jesus situated at the center of our lives that we can truly be complete and whole.

That is why so many people today who are broken and hurting.

They are missing the one thing, the one person, Jesus Christ, who can fill the void and fit the rest of the pieces of their life together.

The Man Disabled for 38 Years

38 Years is a Long Time to Suffer

To put it in perspective, this man had been disabled for longer than Jesus had been alive.

He had suffered for a long time and he came to the Pool of Bethesda every day hoping that it would be the day of his miracle.

Jesus Showed Up for One Man

Notice that the Bible says there was a “certain man.”

Jesus came into Jerusalem that day for the day of the feast and Sabbath, but Jesus also had another reason for coming to Jerusalem that day.

He traveled through the Sheep Market for a reason.

He made his way to the Pool of Bethesda for a reason.

And that reason was to meet a certain man, on a certain day, who had a certain need.

Out of all the people who were in Jerusalem and were at the Pool of Bethesda that day, Jesus picked out this one man who had an infirmity for 38 years.

Jesus Will Show Up Just for You

Isn’t it wonderful to know that Jesus can pick you out of a lineup?

That out of some nearly 8 billion people on planet Earth, Jesus cares about you?

That no matter how big or how small your problem may be, Jesus will take time to minister to your needs?

That even today, right now, as you listen to this sermon, Jesus is with you?

That He showed up today just for you?

That He will take care of your need right now?

Wilt Thou Be Made Whole?

The Meaning of Wilt Thou?

Jesus asked him a very simple, yet very profound, question: “Wilt thou be made whole?”

Some of the other Bible translations say, “Do you want to be made well?”

But those translations miss some of the nuance of the KJV.

The question wasn’t if the man “wanted” to be healed.