Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Do You Want to Get Well?

"When Jesus saw him lying there and knew he had already been there a long time, He said to him, 'Do you want to get well?'" -John 5:6, HCSB

I was reading John 5 this morning, and I came across this verse in my reading. It comes from a story about a man who was sick. This sick man was living in an area around a pool that moved every now and then when an angel made the water stir. This stirring of the water announced that the angel had been there, and the first person into the pool after the angel would be healed of their ailment.

Not surprisingly, this pool was constantly surrounded by sick people. I mean, think about it: if a pond could cure what ails ya, wouldn't this pond be constantly surrounded by people?

This man was one of those people. Yet, he was so sick that he couldn't get up and go to the pool when the angel came. Thus, for 30+ years, he remained sick. That's when Jesus walked up and asked him the question that I quoted at the top of the post: "do you want to get well?"

This got me to thinking: does Jesus ask everyone this? Everyone in the world is a sinner, and we are all sick with sin. We walk about in the world, sinning, and Jesus asks "do you want to get well?"

If you do not know Christ, you can get well. Your sin can be removed. Your addictions, your sins, your bad habits; they can all be removed by Christ. Put your faith in Christ, and accept the gift of grace!

And you, Christian, don't think you're out of the woods. How many Christians are battling with sins? How many Christians are hiding a porn addiction? How many Christians are gossips? How many Christians walk around arrogant, lying, hating, cheating and lusting after the world?

If you are a Christian, you should know that Christ has called you to a different life. Put away the life of the flesh and let the grace of God work in your heart. You may feel trapped in a cycle of sin, but He can heal you of that. The question is: do you want to get well, or are you content to lay around, sick in sin and worldly desires?

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