John 5 - 3.12.26

‍SCRIPTURE: John 5:8-9 - The man replies and Jesus heals him.

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“The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am 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.”

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OBSERVATION

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Here’s a summary of John 5 from this link: https://christianityiq.com/john-5-summary/

“John 5, the narrative unfolds around a miraculous healing at the Pool of Bethesda, where Jesus encounters a man who has been invalid for 38 years. ‍ This interaction not only highlights Jesus’ compassion but also raises profound questions about belief and healing. ‍The man’s hesitancy to seek help from Jesus underscores a broader human struggle with faith and despair. ‍The very act of Jesus asking, “Do you want to be made well?” invites readers to reflect on their own desires for change — are we truly ready to embrace the transformation ‍that comes with divine intervention?”

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The following shows us how the New Testament describes many different ways people may be healed

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· The elders of the church may anoint someone with oil and pray for them, and they may be healed (James 5:14-16).‍ ‍

· God’s people can lay hands on each other in prayer, ask God for healing, and people may be healed (Mark 16:17-18).‍ ‍

· God may grant someone a gift of healing – either that they are directly healed, or have the power to bring healing to another (1 Corinthians 12:9).‍ ‍

· God may grant healing in response to the faith of the person who desires to be healed (Matthew 9:22).‍ ‍

· God may grant healing in response to the faith of another on behalf of the person who is healed (Mark 2:4-5, Matthew 8:13).‍ ‍

· God may heal through medical treatment (1 Timothy 5:23, James 5:14 with Luke 10:34).

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APPLICATION

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When I read John 5: 1-9 above, I was reminded of when we began the, Be Refreshed Sermon Series, and Pastor Levi referred to John 7:37-39

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“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.”  By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.”

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And the pool of Bethesda is an example of water flowing into a pool and likened to the holy spirit flowing in us when we repent and we are refreshed in HIM and IN HIS WORD through FAITH.  AND each of us have faith when we pray and ask HIM to heal us or our family, our friends. AND when we ask others to pray for our needs.

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There are two parts to these scriptures in John 5: 1-9.

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1.     BE refreshed in HIM when we believe in him and RECEIVE the Holy Spirit.

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2.     PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER with FAITH in the HOLY SPIRIT that HE WILL bring healing and He WILL answer our prayers.

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But how do you get the gift of healing? 

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The Bible commissions all believers to be involved in the healing and deliverance ministry, but there are special gifts of healing given to some believers by the Holy Spirit. To receive the gifts of healings, one must receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit, grow in their knowledge of God, and step out in faith believing that when they pray for the sick, they will be healed. ‍

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PRAYER

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LORD GOD, I humbly come to you in FAITH that each day I AM refreshed in the newness of your word and that you WILL HEAL those I pray for. AND for those my family prays for and my church family prays for. 

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Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”

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Thank YOU for this blessed assurance.  ALWAYS IN YOUR NAME WITH FAITH!  Amen.

- Charleen Zakarian ‍

John 4 - 3.11.26

Scripture: John 4:9-10

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

Observation

As I was reading John 4, this conversation caught my attention. The woman is talking about a drink of physical water and Jesus points out that if she knew him, she could ask for and receive so much more. And it made me wonder, how many times do we ask for small things when we serve a big God who has so much more in store for us? Then she continues to focus on the minutia - you don’t have anything to draw the water with, I want this (physical) water you speak of so I won’t have to return to the well everyday, we believe we should worship on this mountain instead of the one the Jews tell us to. Eventually Jesus makes her understand that he has more than water from the well to offer her - he will change her entire life. And then, because she believed, many more came to believe in Him.

Application

Sometimes we get so focused on the physical and the immediate that we forget that God wants so much more for us. We get caught up in the worries of today and we forget to ask God about His plan: What is He teaching us in this moment? What area does He want to grow us in? Where does He want to use us? What does He have in store for our future? We need to ask God to reveal Himself to us. We need to ask Him to use us for His plans and purposes. We serve a big God and we need to trust Him for big things.

Prayer

God, help me to become dissatisfied with a complacent life. I need more than a drink of water today - I need to be filled to overflowing with the living water so that it pours out on those around me. Thank You for the repeated reminders to put my focus on You instead of circumstances around me. Help me not to miss out on Your plans.

- Debbie Dunn

Amos 5 - 3.10.26

Scripture: Amos 5:4 - 5

This is what the Lord says to Israel:

“Seek me and live;

    do not seek Bethel,
do not go to Gilgal,
    do not journey to Beersheba.
For Gilgal will surely go into exile,
    and Bethel will be reduced to nothing.”

Observation

As a prophet prophesying during the time of great prosperity for the people of God, Amos was delivering a message of warning to God’s people of how far they had strayed from relationship with Him. Though prosperous in worldly things, they were forsaking the covenant with God, and He was speaking of their impending doom if they didn’t return. In this passage, we see the Lord telling His people how to return to Him. 

Verse 5 says “do not seek Bethel” - Bethel is a place of strong significance to the Israelites. It literally means ‘house of God’ and was a place of divine encounter. The verse ‘Do not go to Gilgal"‘ is another place of significance to them. It is the site where God rolled away the reproach of the Egyptians. The verse‘ Do not journey to Beersheba’ was a patriarchal site for them, a sacred place of covenant. Gilgal was going to go into exile though it was once a place they found refuge. Bethel was going to be reduced to nothing though it was the very house of God they had chosen to worship their idols. When the places of worship and covenant become places of vanity, idol worship and empty worship to our King, we must learn to look inward and fix our relationship with Him.

Application

Seek God who is Spirit - not places where you once met Him. True worship is a heart postured to God not just the songs we sing at church on a Sunday morning during a worship set. When we only worship God in church or through religiosity passed through generations, worship becomes empty and more about our traditions than God. We should be careful not to make worshipping God formulaic or dull our hearts to truly seeking Him and giving Him our all. I myself have met God in many places in my life, in unexpected ways, and during moments I never thought He would meet me. I have walked out of church services during panic attacks and felt the presence of God rest next to me as I lost control of myself on the hard concrete of a church parking lot while in the midst of shame, debilitating loneliness and fear. He came to me and I was able to worship and praise Him in that moment. God has brought me to worship locked behind the heavy metal doors of mental hospitals, on a run outside, under a tree in the park, in a grocery store, a dentist office and in my car. True worship doesn’t require a place, it requires a heart that is seeking God no matter where you are. We can seek the places we once found Him, or where our parents found Him, and remain comfortable or we can lace up our spiritual shoes, and move with Him wherever He goes, and worship Him on the way to our destination.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for your open invitation to worship you in spirit and in truth. As temples of God, we seek to fill our bodies with your praise. Our bodies are instruments of worship. Help us to use them for what you created them for. Jesus came in the flesh, not only to redeem humanity but to redeem the very bodies we live in. These earthen vessels need to be filled with your glory Father. Help us to seek you with our whole heart and not give lip service. As the song says “shake up the ground of all my religion and break down the walls of all my tradition” because your way is indeed better than anything! Amen

- Shanese Hamilton