Power Source

Photo by Thomas Kelley on Unsplash
"My phone died."

I never say, "My phone is out of power," but I say, "My phone died."

 It's not outta juice, Paul? You don't just need to plug it in, Paul? It died?

 I'll never understand why I say that my phone died when it runs out of power, but I'm also not going to stop phrasing it that way. I know it just needs to get plugged in, that it isn't actually dead. It's just the way I say it, and I don't think that makes me more weird than I already am.

We do have a definite attachment to how charged our devices are. I keep the little percentage sign showing at all times, so I know just how much battery I have left. And I'm always aware of where the nearest outlet is. Far be it from me that I would have my phone be rendered powerless, and not have an outlet nearby with my charger, so that I could revive it!

If I'm being honest, I know there are parts of my life that need to be revived, that need life. Where do I find my power source? In John 5, Jesus demonstrates his unique power to heal.

"After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades. In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed. One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.” Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked." Now that day was the Sabbath." (John 5:1-9 ESV)

 Jesus sees a man who has been an invalid for thirty-eight years. Jesus is looking upon a man with no strength in his body, no ability to help himself. This feeble man has spent the majority of his life in frailty. The man is impotent and incapable of being healed on his own.

Now we see an amazing scene transpire. The impotent invalid is approached by Jesus, who simply asks him, "Do you want to be healed?"

What is going through this man's mind? I might have thought, "Of course I want to be healed! Who are you, stranger, to approach me and ask if I want to be healed? Why would I be sitting by this healing pool?"

 The man instead responds with respect, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me." These pools would have been considered healing pools, but only while the water is stirred up. It was likely that the people believed that only the first person into the pool would have been able to be healed.

The man's condition is starting to impact his attitude. For thirty-eight years, he has tried to find healing, and been unable. He is starting to feel beaten down and hopeless. Can you imagine thirty-eight years of living in abject helplessness? This man is beyond desperate and has drifted into hopelessness. He says things like, "I have no one," and "While I am going another steps down before me."

This man is saying to Jesus, "I have no one to help me, and I can't do it on my own."

Then we see the response of Jesus:

Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” 

 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

 That's it! Thirty-eight years of helplessness and frailty erased by EIGHT words from the mouth of the Son of God.

The lesson here: Jesus Christ gives power to the powerless by the word of his mouth. 

 What is your power source? Are you running on empty?

The question that the gospel begs of us, that Jesus asks of each and every one of us is this:

Do you want to be healed?

 The gospel teaches us to see ourselves as the helpless invalid. The gospel shows us that we are in desperate need of healing because our sin has separated us from the Holy God. God has designed us to find life in Him, and we have rejected Him to try and find life in the things of this world.

We are by nature, given over to sin. We are helpless to restore our relationship to God. Things are broken, and they need to be fixed. We need a mediator. 

Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen. (Romans 1:24–25 ESV)

The whole of the Bible story, and the fallen world we live remind us constantly that we need help. In order to be healed, we have to seek the Great Physician. Jesus is the one who brings the healing in our relationship with God.

Jesus has made peace for us with God by the blood of his cross, taking upon himself the punishment for our sins. Because of the cross, a great exchange can happen. Jesus takes our sins and gives us his life. He takes our brokenness and gives us his wholeness. He takes our rejection and gives us his acceptance. On the cross, Jesus takes our weakness and gives us his power.

When people place their faith in Jesus Christ, they receive the forgiveness of their sins for all time. Jesus' perfection before God is imputed to sinners, which means that for all eternity, God will look upon you with the fulness of His delight! What grace the blood of Jesus spilled on the cross makes possible for us! This allows us to be restored in relationship, reconciled to God our Creator. This grace changes everything in our lives, because God becomes our power source once again!

It isn't magical pools, and it isn't our own power that saves us. We are saved when we realize our own inability to save ourselves, and place our trust in Jesus. The gospel shows us that God sees us in our weakness, helplessness and hopelessness, and gives his Son to draw us near once again.

If you are feeling hopeless, helpless or powerless, the gospel says that God sees you and desires a life-giving relationship with you. The blood of Jesus has been poured out for you, and the risen Jesus is drawing near to you. Jesus is asking you to trust him for the forgiveness of your sins, reconciliation to God, the promise of eternal life, and the hope and power to overcome the struggles of this life.

You simply have to receive Christ by faith.

Do you want to be healed?

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