How To Not Make Excuses

In today’s Live Inspired message, we look at How To Not Make Excuses, especially when Jesus calls us to be brave and courageous, in John 5:1-18.

Today’s Reading Passage

John 5:1-18

“Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. ² Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda^[a] and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. ³ Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. ^[4] [b] 5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. ⁶ When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

⁷ “Sir,” the invalid replied, “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.”

⁸ Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” ⁹ At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.

The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, ¹⁰ and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.”

¹¹ But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ”

¹² So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?”

¹³ The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there.

¹⁴ Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” ¹⁵ The man went away and told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who had made him well.

The Authority of the Son

¹⁶ So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him. ¹⁷ In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” ¹⁸ For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.

An Excuse Is Made

Jesus visits Jerusalem and finds a man who had been disabled for 38 years, lying by the Pool of Bethesda. When Jesus asks, “Do you want to get well?” the man doesn’t answer directly. Instead, he makes an excuse and explains that he has no one to help him into the pool when the water is stirred. This response reveals his hopelessness, after so many years, he believes healing is out of reach.

God And Excuses

But Jesus doesn’t need the pool to heal him. He simply says, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” Instantly, the man is healed. God doesn’t care about our excuses, He wants us to have faith in what He can do. When He gives us an opportunity, we are to be “brave and courageous,’ doing what He asked us to do.

It Happened On A Sabbath

However, because this happened on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders accuse Jesus of breaking the law. When Jesus explains that His Father is always working, they become even angrier, realizing that He is claiming equality with God. This moment marks the growing opposition against Jesus, as the religious leaders refuse to accept His divine authority.

Our Excuses Don’t take Away God’s Power

Our excuses don’t take away God’s power. No matter what we are going through, God still commands that we have faith, that we obey Him, and that we are brave and courageous in all situations. Mainly because He is in CONTROL.

This passage highlights Jesus’ power over sickness, His authority above legalistic traditions, and His identity as the Son of God. It also reminds us that sometimes, like the man at the pool, we become so focused on our limitations that we miss the real solution, Jesus Himself!

Time To Reflect

• What did Jesus tell the healed man to do, and what was the significance of doing it on the Sabbath?
• Why did Jesus ask the disabled man, “Do you want to get well?”

Join us in the Gospel of John!

As we read the Book of John, let’s keep our eyes open to see Jesus in new ways. He’s not just a part of history—He’s alive and working in our lives today!

 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

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Exploring The Great and Epic Gospel of John

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Salvation Plan

Today, if you have not received Salvation or you would like to rededicate your life back to Christ, say this prayer:

God, I know that I am a sinner. Right now, Lord, I turn from my sins, and I ask you to forgive me. Jesus, I believe that you died on the cross and rose from the grave, for me. I open my heart and life for You to come in, and I receive You as my Lord and Savior. Thank You, God for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Read the Book of John in the Bible. Find out who Christ is, and how He loves you, yes you!

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Love,

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