1. Pick Up Your Mat And Walk John 5:1-9

2. “After this, a Jewish festival took place, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. By the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem there is a pool, called Bethesda in Hebrew, which has five colonnades. Within these lay a large number of the sick — blind, lame, and paralyzed — waiting for the moving of the water, because an angel would go down into the pool from time to time and stir up the water. Then the first one who got in after the water was stirred up recovered from whatever ailment he had. One man was there who had been sick for 38 years.

3. 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? ” “Sir,” the sick man answered, “I don’t have a man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I’m coming, someone goes down ahead of me.” “Get up,” Jesus told him, “pick up your mat and walk! ” Instantly the man got well, picked up his mat, and started to walk. Now that day was the Sabbath,” ‭‭John‬ ‭5:1-9‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

4. THE BIG IDEA: WILL YOU CHOOSE TO HAVE GOD HEAL YOU FROM WHAT IS CRIPPLING YOU SO THAT YOU CAN WALK IN THE FREEDOM HE HAS FOR YOU?

6. My question to each of us today is: What has you bound
My question to each of us today is: What has you bound? What has you stuck? It may not be a visible disability however, it can be something that keeps you locked in the tomb?

7. How many of us settle with our issues and decide to accept them as part of who we are?

8. See, the issue is not the disability that you deal with, the issue is the choice to accept it or not.

9. The question is do we want him to handle it
The question is do we want him to handle it? It took ONE DAY to get Israel out of Egypt. It took FORTY YEARS to get Egypt out of Israel.

10. JESUS asked the man the following question: “Do you want to be healed
How many people settle for laying down instead of daily walking out the destiny God has for you? The devil wants you to lay down instead of walking.....

11. Your desire must be bigger than your disability or issue or you will not experience the breakthrough God has for you. When you make your issue bigger than your desire than you settle to live life like this man. You settle to lay down.

12. How many of us settle for the porch experience rather than jump in the water for our healing, breakthrough, and freedom?

13. So JESUS asked the man, do you want to be healed. The man responds
So JESUS asked the man, do you want to be healed? The man responds. The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.”

14. You will never be healed or free until the action of others take a backseat to what God has in store for you.
The victim's mentality gets you nowhere and leaves you bound and captive.

15. Bethesda-HOUSE OF MERCY

16. Pick Up Your Mat And Walk John 5:1-9