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Pastor Chad Wood — John 5:1–17

• God’s Word is living and continually speaks fresh truth each time we read it.

• Context: The Pool of Bethesda near the Sheep Gate — a place where the sick waited for the waters to stir, hoping for healing.

• A man had been disabled for 38 years, lying near the pool but unable to reach the water.

• Jesus approaches the man, asks: “Do you want to be healed?” — a direct, personal question aimed at willingness, not ability.

• The man responds with excuses instead of a simple “yes,” illustrating how people can become comfortable in long-term brokenness.

• Jesus heals him with a simple command: “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.”

• The man obeys immediately and is healed.

• Religious leaders criticize the miracle because it happened on the Sabbath, showing how legalism blinds people to God’s work.

• Jesus later finds the man in the temple and warns: “Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.”

• Physical healing came first, but Jesus then addressed the spiritual need behind the man’s condition.

• Key applications:

  • Don’t become comfortable in sin or spiritual weakness.

  • When Jesus tells you to get up and walk, stop making excuses.

  • Obey immediately.

  • Don’t return to what Jesus saved you from.

  • Beware of unforgiveness, bitterness, and backward-looking living — they keep you spiritually paralyzed.

  • God knows every detail of your life; none of your struggles surprise Him.

  • A relationship with Jesus is daily, not once or twice a week.

  • Jesus is always working — not just on Sundays.

  • Baptism is an outward sign of inward transformation; Jesus alone saves.