A Call to Leave the Pool of Familiar Pain - “Wilt Thou Be Made Whole?”
John 5:1–15
There are some stories in Scripture that seem familiar on the surface but are far deeper when examined through the Spirit. John chapter 5 is one such passage. It’s a story of healing, but also a divine mirror revealing the spiritual paralysis that so many live with. As I meditated on this chapter, the Lord showed me that this passage is not just about a man at a pool in Jerusalem it’s about us.
The Pool of Bethesda: A Congregation of Dysfunction
“Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches.
In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.”
John 5:2–3 (KJV)
The pool of Bethesda had become a gathering place for the sick, the blind, the crippled, and the paralyzed. It was not proximity to Christ that drew them together, but shared brokenness. They weren’t gathered in strength or purpose they were united by mutual dysfunction. How many of us can relate to that?
Too often, we surround ourselves with people not because we are building each other up, but because we are broken in the same way. Spiritual blindness (no vision), emotional lameness (paralyzed by past wounds), and moral stagnation (no growth) become the glue that holds relationships together. And when healing is delayed, that dysfunction becomes the culture.
38 Years in the Same Spot: Time Moves, But He Doesn’t
“And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.”
John 5:5 (KJV)
This man wasn’t new to the pool. He had been in the same condition for 38 years. Think about that. Generations were born, grew up, and moved on yet he remained stuck. It is entirely possible to live a long life while being spiritually stagnant. The years move, but the soul stands still.
The Question That Confronts Comfort
“When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?”
John 5:6 (KJV)
Jesus asked him a question that pierced deeper than the man’s legs. It went to the core of his will: Do you want to be made whole? Not healed in body only, but whole in heart, mind, and spirit.
Why would Jesus ask such an obvious question? Because not everyone who is in pain wants change. Some have grown more comfortable in dysfunction than in freedom. Some have built their identity around their wounds and wouldn’t know who they were without them.
Excuses in the Face of Opportunity
“The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.”
John 5:7 (KJV)
Jesus asked a yes or no question, but the man gave an excuse. How often do we do the same? God asks if we’re ready to obey, and instead of answering in faith, we respond with the reasons we haven’t yet. Blame becomes our theology. Delay becomes our identity.
The Command to Rise: A New Method, A New Miracle
“Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.”
John 5:8 (KJV)
The man was expecting a move in the water. But Jesus didn’t need water to heal. He is Living Water (John 7:38). This healing didn’t come through the system the man had been depending on. It came through a Word. God is not limited by human traditions or structures. He can and often does move outside of expected patterns to glorify His name.
The command to "Rise" was also a command to leave behind the culture of complacency he had known for nearly four decades.
Modern-Day Bethesda: Our World Today
This isn’t just about a man and a pool. It’s about us in 2025. Today, millions are spiritually paralyzed by trauma, disappointment, or dependence on broken systems. They gather in echo chambers, online or in life, where everyone is hurting the same, struggling the same, and failing the same. No one rises. They just wait. For something. For someone.
But Jesus still walks through the porches of Bethesda. And He’s still asking, Wilt thou be made whole?
A Call to Repentance: Let Go of the Excuses
It’s time to stop waiting on a system or a person to pull you up. Jesus is here. His Word is sufficient. The power that healed the lame man is still active today, and the same Spirit is calling you out of the place of stagnation.
“Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near.”
Isaiah 55:6 (KJV)
Let this be the moment where you stop rehearsing your reasons and start receiving His command. Rise. Walk. Leave the bed behind.
The Gospel Message: Salvation Is the First Step Toward Wholeness
All have sinned.
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
Romans 3:23 (KJV)
Sin brings death.
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Romans 6:23 (KJV)
Jesus paid the price.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8 (KJV)
Confess and believe.
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.”
Romans 10:9 (KJV)
Conclusion: You’re Not Meant to Stay Down
Jesus didn't come just to forgive you. He came to raise you. Out of your excuses. Out of your sorrow. Out of your spiritual paralysis. If you're surrounded by people who only affirm your brokenness, it's time to move. If you're tired of rehearsing the same reasons why you can't, it's time to answer His question.
Do you want to be made whole?
If so, your healing won’t begin when the waters are stirred it begins the moment you believe His Word and rise.
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