Yesterday, you tore the lid off a box. Today's Faith Builder is about what happens when the door has been open the whole time.
The Man Who Waited
In John 5, Jesus goes to a pool in Jerusalem surrounded by people who are blind, lame, or paralyzed. They gather there because of a belief that when the water stirs, the first person in is healed.
One man had been there thirty-eight years. Jesus saw him, knew how long he'd been in that condition, and asked a question that seems almost insensitive: "Do you want to get well?"
The Answer That Wasn't Yes
The man didn't say yes. He said: "Sir, I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me."
Look closely at that. It isn't a wish. It's an explanation. After thirty-eight years, the man has built his whole understanding of his life around why it hasn't happened yet: the wrong place, the wrong helpers, the wrong timing. He's waiting for the system to work, and the system has never worked.
Many of us live there. We know the verses on freedom. We could give you ten reasons why it hasn't happened for us yet. The right season. The right leader. The right breakthrough. We're lying next to the pool, waiting for the water to stir.
The Words That Unlocked Him
Jesus doesn't argue with the explanation. He doesn't offer a better way into the pool. He says: "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." And verse 9 says, "At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked."
Thirty-eight years. And the answer was never the pool. It was the One standing next to him, asking a question.
What You're Waiting On
Think about what you've been waiting on to feel free. The right moment. The right person. A feeling you're sure should come first. Now picture Jesus standing beside you, asking the same question. Not what's stopping you? but do you want it?
The door is open. The question is standing next to you.
Tomorrow: the Experiential Activity, a phone audit for anyone who's been hiding what He did.
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