"The Man who Thought God Forgot Him" | John 5 | Pastor Keith

John chapter 5, please open your Bibles there to John chapter 5

John 5 · chapter mention John 5 · chapter mention

and we're going to read from verse one to verse 15.

After this there was a feast of the Jews and Jesus went up to

Jerusalem. Now there isn't Jerusalem by the

sheep gate, a pool. Now it's called the sheep Gate.

Just by the way we went there. It's near Saint Anne's Church

where we sing. That's where they would drive

all the the lambs that they would bring them in for the time

of the Passover. So they drive them all through

that way. And, and, and just a little ways

on, not far at all, probably from here to the old trees from

the sheep gate is the pool of Bethesda having five porches.

In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind lane,

paralysed, waiting for the movement of the water.

For an Angel went down at certain at a certain time into

the pool, stirred up the water. Then whoever stepped in first

after the stirring of the water was made well of whatever

disease he had. Now a certain man was there who

had an infirmity 38 years. When Jesus saw him lying there

and knew that he already had been in that condition a long

time, he said to him, Do you want to be made well?

The sick man answered him, Sir, I have no man to put me into the

pool when the water is stirred, but while I'm coming, another

steps down before me. Jesus said to him, Rise, take up

your bed and walk. And immediately the man was made

well, took up his bed and walked, and that day was the

Sabbath. The Jews therefore said to him

who was cured, it is the Sabbath.

It is not lawful for you to carry your bed.

Actually there was no problem in the law to carry the bed.

But what had happened is the Pharisees and the Sadducees had

added extra traditions to carrying the bed.

And so it was only the traditions of men that was in

breech here, not the word law of God.

Then they asked, who is the man who said to you, take up your

bed and walk? But the one who was healed did

not know who it was, but Jesus had withdrawn A multitude being

in that place. Verse 14 Afterward Jesus found

him, that is the man who'd been healed in the temple, said to

him, these words, see, you have been made well, sin no more,

lest a worse thing come upon you.

The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had

made him. Well, there are times in our

lives that we sometimes wonder if God knows we we even exist.

I remember coming out of Bible college and all I wanted to do

was go into the ministry and preach and, you know, and there

was no churches open at the time.

And, and I was rather frustrated, frustrated because I

was immature and not ready. And it wasn't God's time.

That's the truth of the matter. As I look back and I felt as if

God, you know, well, God, I've gone through this.

We've sold our house. We've moved up from Dunsra,

we've gone to Bible college. You know, we've changed our

lives. We're seriously about serving

you. We've studied, we've gone

through all this training. What's going on?

You know there are times, and maybe in your life, we seem to

be living in a situation where there appears to be no sign of

change. It's just the same.

We feel hopeless sometimes, friendless, unable to get out of

the hole we find ourselves in, and thus we are alone, even

though we know the Lord. That's the sense that we have.

And this describes a man Jesus met in our texts tonight.

It says after this there was a feast of the Jews.

The words after this tell us that Jesus was acting according

to a predetermined plan and purpose.

After this, I'll do this. So in God's plan, Jesus was to

visit this man. Remember Jesus said I don't say

or do anything other than which my father has commanded me.

I love that man I I pray for that in my life this year that I

would only say and do the things that God has asked me to do.

So after this, these words tell us that Jesus was acting

according to a predetermined plan and purpose.

Your life has a predetermined plan and purpose.

God has 2026 mapped out for you. There were no accidents in Jesus

ministry, His appointments that his Father had planned, He kept

each and every one of them and they had been set long before in

the councils of eternity past. We think of Nicodemus in John

John 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3, this religious man who comes and Jesus knew he was

coming and he spoke with Nicodemus about being born

again. He said you must be born again.

Nicodemus was a religious man. Jesus said you know the

scriptures, but you don't know the spirit and working of God.

There's the Samaritan woman, John chapter 4.

John 4 · chapter mention

Jesus sends his disciples off. Jesus waits at the well.

Sure enough, later the women collect their water.

Early in the morning, this woman turns up.

Jesus is there and he starts the discussion.

There's a noble man for Capone. And now this man by the pool in

Bethesda, I want to ask you, is it time for a miracle in your

life? You go miracle.

Well that would be amazing. Much of Jesus ministry was

occupied in the performance of miracles.

The gospels record a total of 35 separate miracles from the

turning of the water into wine. Remember the wedding to Jesus

wonderfully restoring back on the night of his betrayal

Malchus's ear, because Peter had sliced it off and he put it back

on in the Garden of Gethsemane. The miracles of Jesus.

And churches go on about miracles, don't they today?

Come to the miracle service. Come and there's a miracle

service of this and that. The miracles of Jesus were

demonstrations of the power of God, yes, but they were not

performed just to impress. Come out to the miracle service

a curious humanity. The miracles that Jesus did

testified to Christ's divinity. There was a purpose.

They testified of His omnipotence, His power.

They testified of Christ representing God, the revelation

of God and His compassion as He laid his hands actually on

lepers who were unclean, unclean and healed them, and testified

of his dominion over the works of Satan as he would drive out

demonic beings. The man that gathered Gadera,

remember, who lived naked in the tombs of Gadera, chained up,

screaming and cutting himself, and Jesus came and healed him.

What is a miracle? That's a good question.

What's the definition? Henry Thiessen defines a miracle

this way, a unique and extraordinary event, awakening,

wonder brought about by divine power, accomplishing some

practical and benevolent work, and authenticating a messenger

and his message as from God. Is it wrong to desire a miracle?

Well, now we're in the Scriptures and that's where we

get our answers to every question you have.

If you have a question, go to the Bible and look for the

answer. Nowhere in the scriptures do I

find it recorded of Jesus admonishing someone seeking a

miracle. Except to those who doubted his

divinity, Show us a sign. And he's just been doing all

these great Give us a sign. Show us a sign.

By what authority? Those who had already witnessed

miracles at the hand of Jesus this new year, 2026, are you

seeking a miracle from God? I pray you are seeking a miracle

from God. You know what a miracle is.

It's the impossible. If so, God tonight wants to

encourage you how to continue in your faith, to continue trusting

in the power, the wonder and the love of Almighty God.

The writer to Hebrews says this in Hebrews 11/6.

Without faith it is impossible to please Him.

What's the opposite of faith? Distrust, fear.

Without faith it's impossible to please Him.

That's God, for he who comes to God must believe that he is what

that he is almighty God, able, powerful, and that he is what a

rewarder, someone who responds of those who do what, who

diligently, not haphazardly once in a blue moon, seek him.

In Ephesians chapter 3 verse 20, Paul wrote now unto him Speaking

Ephesians 3:20

of the Lord that is able to do and I love the wording here

because it just takes us beyond everything we can imagine who is

able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask

beyond or we can even think according to the power that

works in US. In John chapter 14 verse 13,

John 14:13

Jesus said whatsoever you shall ask in my name, that will I do.

Now here's the reason in this verse because there's a reason

that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

There's a purpose and a reason seeking the miraculous God.

I want to see my husband come to Christ, not because I just want

to see him come to cry. Lord, it would demonstrate to

the rest of my family that you are the wonder, the glorious

God. John 1414 says Then if you ask

anything in my name and you're doing it, that the Father may be

glorified in the Son, Jesus says, I will do it.

It's been said that all the parables of Jesus are miracles

of wisdom, and we did a series on the parables and that all the

miracles of Jesus are parables of teaching tonight, this year,

2026. Maybe you're here tonight and

you think, well, God has forgotten me.

I mean, it's nice that you're saying, Keith, and I'm here

because I'm hanging in there. I know it's the right thing to

do, but I feel like God has forgotten me.

If you think you've committed, perhaps you think you and people

can come to church thinking that they've committed the

unforgivable sin. I don't take communion.

I don't stand, I don't worship the Lord.

I'm here because I know I need to be, but I think I've taken a

step one too many. I think I've I've committed the

unforgivable sin. Or maybe you're here tonight and

you've never received the forgiveness of God.

You know about God, you know the Word of God, you've been to

church, you've been to Sunday school, but you have never

personally accepted the forgiveness of God the Father of

all your sins through the death of his Son.

You're religious, you're a good person.

You try, but you've never really sensed unforgiven.

I have been forgiven. Maybe you need a miracle.

I pray that God's precious and powerful word tonight will

strengthen that desire in you, and you will see it come to

pass. There's a background to our

story tonight in John 5. Jesus had come to Jerusalem.

He's passing through the pool of Bethesda.

His father has a plan for him to meet a man, but there's the

means. By the way, House of Mercy,

there were five porches or like patios over the pool area.

Jesus comes across this multitude of people laying

everywhere in all distorted positions and ways and clothing,

helpless folk, many homeless, they're sick and maimed, and

they're laying around this pool. Because it's been heard that

every now and then. And I'm not going to talk about

that because that's not the theme of the story.

Did this really happen or what? But they've heard that there's a

stirring of the water and we can get in.

Well, maybe, you know, I can be healed.

But really, it was a scene of great hopelessness and tragedy.

Tradition said, as I said, that the first one in the pool after

the water I'd been stirred would be healed.

Tradition says that it's interesting that that's what the

law, religion, and man's philosophy always promotes.

Be the first, be the best. Try harder.

That's what religion says. Try harder.

I recommend that you all read Pilgrims Progress and Fox's

book. Book of Martyrs has two other

books in your annual reading this year, Pilgrim's Progress

and Fox's Book of Martyrs. Pilgrim's always trying.

He's trying. He's trying.

Fight your way to the top. And don't forget, God helps

those who help themselves. But here's the point.

That verse actually isn't in the Bible.

You know where it is? It's in the Koran.

Out of all this gathering of people, there's one man that got

the attention of Jesus, and I find this fascinating.

Was he the neediest? Possibly.

Why? Well, we know, John tells us,

that this man had been in the grip of his infirmity for 38

long, desperate years. That's a long time.

How long he'd been laying at the pool we don't know.

He was in himself, not strong enough to drag himself from the

place where he lay under the porches into the pool.

Because they go down these great steps.

There's these. You go to pull the Bethesda.

It's quite deep. You got, you're going to go down

quite a, a, a range of steps to get to the bottom.

He longed to reach the water, but it was always too late and

unable to persuade, because he had no money, he had no power,

no position. He was not not able to persuade

someone to help him, drag him, carry him.

So day after day, week after week, month after month, year

after year, he lay there. 38 years.

He'd been thinking, where's God and all this?

He's forgotten me. Jesus, we're told of verse 6,

sees him, walks over to him and looking down at him because he's

laying on the ground. Ask him this question.

Will you be made whole? That's a fascinating question.

On the surface. You and I, as we read this, we

think that's a strange question. You'd have to agree.

Jesus, out of all this, selects one man.

He didn't preach to everyone. Notice that he didn't say

everyone here, all of you. We're not told that he didn't

heal everyone. He didn't go around.

I'll go to you, to you, to you too.

But he goes to this one person, this one man.

And he asked him a question, which he didn't ask many people,

did he? You want to be made Well, I can

imagine the man's reaction. Put yourself in his shoes or

bed. The look in his face as he

looked up at this stranger. He doesn't know who this guy is.

Who wasn't behind this question? Who is it behind his voice?

He had no idea who it was speaking to him, standing over

him. He didn't know it was the Son of

God. His reply, his first words, Mark

his astonishment, Sir. As though he had said, What do

you mean by asking me a question like that, Sir?

He says. Then he responds, and he, Sir, I

have no man, and the water has troubled to put me in the pool.

While I'm dragging myself there, another steps down before me.

And Jesus just goes straight to this.

And he says this rise one, take up your bed 2.

Three, walk the site. Let me ask you tonight if you'd

been part of the crowd of onlookers and how often I think

we get things wrong when we see things going on.

How many of you would have stopped the widow when she went

to the great silver trumpets that were by the temple and

she's getting all that she had? Would you go?

Hey, stop. Come on, Missus Jones.

Come on. You can't.

You can't. You got no money.

You can't throw this in. Would you have stopped?

I think I would have. But the Bible says Jesus

watched. He didn't stop her.

He watched as she threw it in and he blessed her.

I think many times with these we see the not what's going on.

So if you've been part of the crowd of onlookers, would you

have protested what Jesus said? You've asked him would he be

made well? What do you think he's lying

here for? I mean seriously, how could you

say that? Are you cruel?

Why are you picking on him? Because he wants to go down

there. Because he wants to be made

well. He's laying here.

He's laying here well, What happened?

A miracle happened. God moved on.

A lost hope, helpless, hopeless soul.

So the first point is the question, Will you be made

whole? It's very important to

understand this. It's a simple question, it seems

easily dismissed by us as we read over this very glibly.

But the question wasn't so simple.

Jesus didn't ask it for fun, just to fill in a few words in

the Word of God and is indeed. It is in fact sublime.

There are a number of facts within this question that we

need to look at if we would understand a little of Jesus

methods with this man in need of a miracle.

Firstly, Jesus recognised the royalty, that is the sovereignty

of human will. In other words, God doesn't go

against your will. You've got a will and you, you

run it if you wish. Jesus said in the Garden of

Gethsemane. What what we all need to pray at

the end of every prayer, Father, Not my will, but your will be

done. It's probably a prayer.

You need to pray really at the end of every prayer.

Oh no, you shouldn't pray that. The faith preachers would tell

you because this is a lack of faith.

No, it's biblical truth. Jesus prayed it three times.

I reckon it's pretty important. What is God's will in the

matter? Well, I need this.

I want that person. I want to, you know, partner up.

I want to get this if it's your will, because otherwise you will

steer into 2026 and you'll crash, you'll bang into a dead

end. You'll be going somewhere and

God saying I'm not there, I'm not over there.

That's not where I want you to be.

I want you to be in my will. So that's why Jesus asked this

guy, do you want to be my whole for unless he does, Jesus can do

nothing for him. In Matthew chapter 13 verse 58,

Matthew 13:58

Jesus goes back to Nazareth. That's where he grew up.

That's where he did his apprenticeship as a Carpenter

with his dad at the carpenter's shop.

Everyone knew him and it says and he did not mighty many

mighty works there. Why?

Because of their unbelief. If you read in that passage, it

says this is Jesus, He's the son of Joe, he's the Carpenter, He's

the guy that fixed my door. You want me to believe what?

That is something special he did not.

Many works there because of their unbelief.

Sometimes people come to church week after week, they sit under

the word and they change not. And others come to church and

each week God speaks to them powerfully, wonderfully,

ministers to them. Why?

Because it's your will, you hear and you choose whether you're

going to be one of the four soils.

You choose whether I'm not taking anything else or you're

here. And each time the Bible is open

and I sit down the front when I'm not teaching, I'm listening.

I'm sorry, but the message is for me.

And by the way, don't ever say, oh, I wish you know, Bob and

Mary was here. No, they're not here.

You are. You're the one God wants to

speak to about this very topic. Don't worry about somebody who's

not here. And so the man's response back

to Jesus in fact revealed that he never expected to be made

well or whole that he had. In fact, he says, ah, what's he

used? He'd lost hope and heart for.

He said, Sir, I have no man. I'm alone.

There's no one with no one with me when the water is troubled,

no one to help me and others just go before me.

In other words, it's no use asking me such a question.

I've no chance of being made whole.

Jesus question revealed the fact he had lost hope.

But here's the beauty of it. Jesus question however, stirred

something in this man because no one had ever asked him this.

No one ever in the 38 years there.

Oh, do you want to be better? Of course I want to be better.

So no one would ask that. The fact that the man answered

shows that suddenly there was a stirring in this man's heart.

He said you. Yeah, I want to get better, but

I can't get down there. See, it starts.

Embers are being fanned. Stirring in the man's heart of

hope had had been dead. But why did he answer Jesus?

If only, if only I can get down there.

Why didn't this man ask? If I wanted to be made whole?

Why? Why are you asking?

Is something happening here? Who is this guy?

Is this man? Are you going to help me down

the stairs? Perhaps that's what he's

thinking. I think Jesus is fanning the

embers. It says in Matthew 1720 if you

have faith as what mustard seed, nothing will be impossible.

And as we have some of these and I'll give them out tonight if

anyone wants 1, the little canister and that canner

canister that's filled with all mustard seeds.

Jesus says if you have faith as the size of one of these little

seeds, I'll move mountains, mountains.

You see, when Jesus comes to one needing a miracle, maybe you, he

recognises the sovereignty, the royalty of your will.

He is aware in many of us times we sit there and go no use.

That hope is lost. I've prayed, I've tried.

He renews hope by the very fact of his coming, of his stirring

in your life, the very words that you're hearing tonight.

He says, I want to fan that which is dead in your life.

I want you to think about that again.

He requires, however, submission to whatever he shall say.

If the work of God is seeking to give, he is seeking to give is

to be obtained. OK, what's that got to do with

me? What do I need?

Well, in your situation, if you're bound, if you're looking

for a touch from God, Jesus asks you as he did this man.

Well, do you want to be made? Oh, do you want your miracle

answer? Do you want that very thing that

you desire? Pray for hopeful.

Do you want that to happen? Jesus asked that.

James says you have not Why? Because you don't ask for it.

Jesus asked this man a very legitimate question.

Why? Because as unusual as it may

seem, do you want to be made well?

Not everyone wants to be made well.

Did you know that there are people that come to church and

they bring their Ute load, their trail load of problems each week

They sit and they go well with me.

Well with me you pray for me. Well with me.

Thanks for that. Take them out, load them up and

they'll be back next week with the same load of stuff.

It's like the guy that went to the revival and he said, oh,

preacher, preacher, pray, pray for the web of, of sin and my

lie. Oh, H 90 came out.

Pray for the removal of the the web of sin in my life until the

finally the preacher said, shut up.

I'm going to pray for the spider to be killed.

I tell you, I've seen this. We used to witness, Helen would

tell you Saturday nights in Perth, like we'd be out St

witnessing. We used to do a lot of it.

That was part of our Bible training.

It was a an interesting place, streets of Perth.

We came across this character and he, he was a strange man.

He had no shoes and he had jeans and shirt and he would walk

around Perth and he would stop behind a, a rubbish bin, go

through it and then he'd look and he'd walk and rush to the

next bin, hide behind it and he'd go to the next bin and the

next bin. Anyway, he came to church

because we were, we were, we had a church in Perth at that time.

Helen and I was serving there. I was the worship leader there

and he came up the stairs. He came to the service because

we had an outreach put on a film.

I spotted him and someone did the worst thing ever.

They gave him 20 bucks. They said oh, it's the Holy

Spirit handshake. They called it anyway, wow this

is this is good. So next week he comes again.

What's he want 20 bucks? So me and another chap, we

spotted this guy and I said Nah. And we moved him over to a room

and I said to him, are you happy living the way you live?

You like having just what you've got, Dirty shoes and no shoes, I

think. And we said we'll, we'll, we'll

get a job for you. We'll find a place for you to

sleep. We'll get a place for you to

wash and clean. We'll provide the clothes for

you to have. Are you interested?

Would you like to? Would you like to change a lot?

And he took off, ran out of the building.

See, he didn't want that. He didn't want that.

And that's why Jesus asked the question.

And some of us, some of us, we sit in church and we go, Oh

yeah, do you really want to change?

Is that what you really want? What that miracle that you're

asking for? As long as we think we can work

it out on our own, as long as we think we'll figure it out,

figure it out someday, we will never get anywhere.

Because, and as it happens to many of us, God's getter get us

to our knees before we will surrender our will.

We have to be crushed, absolutely shattered, and then

we finally surrender and say, Lord help me now, I can do the

miracle. But this man did want to be made

well. Do you think this man might have

said, you think I'm not? I like laying here amongst these

folk, that I enjoy the fact that I'm crippled.

But he didn't say that, did he? He said it's no use to ask me.

I cannot be made whole. I've tried, can't get in the

water. No one helps me.

I want to be whole but I I never shall.

So it's time for a miracle. Maybe you tonight 2026 have

spoken or thought like this man, I want to live right.

God knows I want to live right. I want to live righteous, but I

cannot. Many a man or woman, young

woman, young man is in that condition.

You want to be right before God, but you've lost all hope.

You've lost all heart. No one can help me.

Don't talk to me about being whole or holy.

I've tried, and every time I trial, I'll fail again, as I've

done in the past. And that is hidden to everybody

else that knows you, except from Christ, who knows your heart.

Jesus says to you where you are right now.

Do you want to be made well? He wants to help you.

Is it appointment time? Jesus walks past everybody and

he's come to you. He's speaking to you tonight

past everybody else, and He's speaking to you.

He wants to help you. Is God stirring not the waters

but your heart tonight to believe, to take you right where

you are now in the quicksand of weakness, The fact that you are

willing to listen even at this moment to His voice, that God's

message is being delivered to you?

Do you want to be made whole? Secondly, then Jesus said to

him, now rise, take up your bed and walk.

Wow. Jesus now passes from the realm

of the mind and the will into the realm of action.

Jesus asked for the impossible. Jesus told this man to do what

he had not been able to do for 38 years.

He says to this man three things all together.

Rise, take up your bed and walk. He doesn't say walk, take up

your bed and rise. But sometimes that is exactly

what we're trying to do, trying to walk before or up.

You can't do it. It's like in the book of

Ephesians, Paul teaches us to be seated in Christ before he tells

us how to walk in Christ, the word rise.

This is the first thing a man must do if he's going to be made

whole. Would you have protested again

if you had been in the crowd? That's impossible, you asking

him to do that. It's unreasonable and I protest

that you have asked him because that's what the enemy does.

Each time you pray for a miracle, Jeremiah chapter 32

Jeremiah 32:17

verse 17, it says our Lord God, behold, you have made the

heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched

arm. There is nothing too hard for

you. We used to sing a chorus.

Nothing is too difficult for you.

Nothing is too difficult for you or great and mighty God.

When God tells you to live the Christian life, you go.

I've tried when God tells husbands to love their wives as

Christ loved the church. I've tried when God tells wives

to submit to their husbands is under the Lord.

I don't know about that. When God tells children to

submit to their parents and obey them, Oh no.

When God tells us to resist temptation.

When God tells us to go into the world and preach the gospel.

Here's the thing. It can all be done.

It all those things can be done otherwise.

And here's what you need to hear.

He would not have commanded us to do so.

He will not ask you to do something that he will not

enable you to do. You say that's impossible.

Yes, that's where he comes into it.

But the man is up. He stands while we're arguing

with Jesus. Man, that's a bit rough.

He's saying he's standing up. He's just, he's he's gone with

it. Was I wrong to say impossible?

Certainly not. Was I wrong to say it was

unreasonable? No.

But he is up and he has done the impossible, the unreasonable.

This is the miracle of Christianity.

This is the revelation of Jesus perpetual method with a man.

He is going to heal. I want to ask you tonight, are

you under the grip of some evil passion or some evil habit?

You don't want anyone to know about it.

There was a rich young rule that came to Jesus in Luke chapter

Luke 18 · chapter mention

18. He said, Jesus, I've done all

this, this and this. And, you know, I live by the

commandments and yeah, man, I just want to follow you.

And Jesus said one thing you lack, just one, one thing you

lack. Don't sell all that you have.

And then you can follow me. Oh, and he walked away.

What was it that he lacked? The man was an idolater.

He worshipped the love of money and material things more than he

loved God. Otherwise he would say not a

problem. And Jesus said you can keep it,

keep it. Jesus said to the young man,

follow me. What hindered the young man

between his life of self control and his life being controlled by

another? What lay between his wealth?

Jesus said get rid of that, sell it off, give it away.

Jesus brought him face to face with the impossibility.

At that moment, he's like the man on the ground.

I can't do that. Jesus says, yes, you can.

I'm, I'm, I'm allowing you right this moment.

I can't do that. If he'd been the man, he would

just, I can't get up. I just would have stayed lying.

In Luke chapter 6, there's a man in the synagogue.

Luke 6 · chapter mention

It's the Sabbath. He's got a withered hand.

Jesus calls him out to the front, tells him that withered

hand, Stretch it out, stretch it out and hold it out.

It's funny, you know the story. Jesus always brings us face to

face with the impossible thing. Why does he do that?

Because that's where miracles begin.

That's where faith begins. Otherwise you do it yourself.

Always this, always this. God asks you to do the

impossible thing. Then Jesus addressed this man's

will. First he says, will you?

Then Jesus said arise, that means that Jesus will is for

this man, then he should be made whole.

That's God's will to God's will was there.

The man had a choice enable God to do his will and miraculously

his life or just stay laying there.

Thirdly, Jesus expected and here's something important and

ongoing change. This is not a one off

experience. Whoa, a miracle here, everybody,

this guy is up. Wow, fantastic.

Who did that? That's Jesus guy.

Wow, that's incredible. So Jesus meets up with this man

later in the temple. Do you think that was like, oh,

bump in oh, are you the no Jesus spots him.

He goes the temple. Hey, Remember Me?

Jesus finds him and thankfully he's in the right place.

It says in John 5 verse 14. Afterward Jesus found him in the

John 5:14

temple and said to him, what? Oh, great to see him, mate.

Good on you. Great.

Good on you. Oh you Walker.

Oh, awesome, good job. No, he added.

See you have been made well then he says this like he said to the

woman caught in the act of adultery.

Forgiven sin no more. Why lest I worst thing come upon

you, which tells us in many Bible commentators saying that

it was the sin in this man's life that had led to this 38

years of infirmity. Jesus said don't go back, this

is more than just you being healed, this is a change of who

you are. Jesus previously had told the

man to take up his bed and walk, get on your feet and walk.

And some people say well I tried Christianity, it didn't work for

me. Listen, Christianity is Jesus

Christ and he will work in the life of any man, woman, boy or

girl who honestly receives him as their Lord and Saviour.

Because if you didn't, if you tried it and it didn't work for

you, there's a couple of things that Jesus would say to you,

like he said to the man and the that he found on the temple.

Did you read the Bible daily after you made your commitment

to Christ? Did you faithfully and regularly

attend church after that? Did you begin a life of prayer,

seeking God, speaking with God every day?

You see, you never tried anything, You just had a

religious experience. Helen and I have people contact

us at different times about certain things and say, well,

you know, I go to Calgary and we, we haven't seen them for

ages. We haven't seen them slotting

into serving at prayer, ministering to others.

As Christians, we need to be in regular, consistent fellowship

in a Bible teaching church and you know, the people that serve

and and and and and give their life to Christ in fellowship.

They never ask for counselling over the years.

It's a busy serving of the Lord. They're too busy in the presence

of the Lord. They don't need any help.

But those who here they're they're the ones that want much

time. Many times.

Let's meet. Oh, I got to meet.

It's urgent. Something's come up, haven't I?

Oh, yeah. But we need to meet.

Can we meet with you? The man who thought he'd been

forgotten by God changed to the man who knew he was forgiven.

From the forgotten man to the forgiven man.

You see, forgiveness is only found at the cross.

It never loses its power or wonder. 1 John 19 says if we

confess our sins, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

By the way, that's written to Christians tonight.

Tonight, grace, God's grace calls your name.

God's grace tells you to believe, to rise, and to do that

which appears to be impossible for you to do.

I can't listen to God's grace. God wants you to be a forgiven

man or woman tonight. But for that to happen, we need

to heed the call and we need to cry out to God and say, Lord, I

can't do it on my own just like this man did.

But I'm calling out to you, God, and I'm asking you to help me.

Yes, I'm asking God forgive me. You know what God will do.

He will, Matthew 1625 For whosoever will save his life

shall lose it. Whosoever will lose his life for

my sake shall find it. Jesus said Matthew 1128.

Come to me, all you that labour with what?

I can't do it, it's too hard. I've tried and I heavy laden.

I'll give you what rest, rest. If you call out the Jesus

Christ, then He will forgive you.

If you're willing to turn from your sins, make a clean break

with the past, and begin to follow Him, then you will see

things happen in your life that you never thought were possible.

Miracles, a marriage falling apart, restored.

An addiction that seems too powerful to break can be broken.

God can break it. A behaviour pattern can be

changed permanently by the power of God.

But you have to want it. Do you want to be made well

tonight? Forgiveness for all of us does

exist. It can be found for you.

And here's the deal. No matter what you have done, no

matter what you've done, question is as Jesus stood over

the man, Jesus says to you tonight, will you be made whole

tonight God says it's possible. Right now we are seated.

Make yourself available to God and we'll pray for you.

God has not forgotten you. And Isaiah 4915, the Lord says,

can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have

compassion on the son of a womb. Yeah, they may forget.

And here's the word the Lord says, Yet will I not forget you?

Behold, I have graven thee. Where?

On the palms of my hand. How did he graven you?

On the palm of his hand drove a great nail through it.

It's the same hand in John chapter 10 with the with the

John 10 · chapter mention

great hole and it says I will protect you.

No one will take you out of my my my clutches.

God's forgiveness can be received by you right now.

A man who thought he had no one had the very Son of God walk up

to him and tonight for you, God has spoken directly by the power

of your the Holy Spirit to your heart.

All right, Genesis chapter 8, the world had been flooded.

Genesis 8 · chapter mention

The waters had prevailed over the earth for now 150 days.

And then this beautiful verse in Genesis 81 says, and God

remembered Noah tonight. I'm going to pray for you.

Let's pray, Father in the in the seats here tonight.

We too at times we're like a scattered multitude at the pool

of Bethesda. We try, we fail.

We've injured ourselves through poor living.

We have no one. Or tonight, Will you visit each

person here tonight who wills to be made whole, who desires to be

forgiven? Will you walk up to them right

now? Will you speak to their heart

powerfully tonight Lord, and tell them you've come for them

to save them, to forgive them, to heal them and to do the

miraculous in their life. Hear our prayer, answer our

prayer tonight. This we pray in Jesus name and

everyone said Amen, Amen. So if you'd like to be reminded,

if God has spoken to you and something has really happened in

your heart tonight, I'd like to give you one of these little

canisters here that have the mustard seeds in and you can

look at that and go, man, that's the faith.

That's all. Yes, because God does the rest.

God will do the rest.