Barely Living

When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?”

John 5:6

THE MAN IN JOHN 5 WHO HAD been an invalid for thirty-eight years was alive, no doubt, but you might argue whether he was really living. Not only was he sick, but he also didn’t have any friends to help him (John 5:7). Finding the man in this state, Jesus asked him what might seem to be an obvious question: “Would you like to get well?” Notice that Jesus asked whether the man wanted to get well rather than be well. Jesus healed the man immediately (so he could be well physically), but His greater concern was for the man’s spiritual condition. That’s why Jesus sought the man out later and found him in the Temple. We read there that Jesus addressed the man’s sin problem so that he could get well spiritually.

Don’t misunderstand—we don’t earn our salvation. If we could reconcile ourselves to God on our own, it wouldn’t have been necessary for Jesus to leave His home in heaven the first time. But we can’t, so He came, and now we have a choice of how to live. If you’ve been feeling down-and-out, by God’s grace it’s time to get up. He provides everything we need to be free of what holds us in bondage. Picking up your mat means taking responsibility for your life and working to remove those things in your life that have crippled you spiritually. It also means walking with God again in the freedom and power that He provides.

BOTTOM LINE

Don’t settle for barely being alive when God’s will for you is to thrive abundantly in the new life you have in Christ. What’s holding you back?

Moment of Strength: John 10:10