11/29/2024
Happy Friday Everyone,
Sharing A Word From Our Preacher.
Bro. William H. Bush, Minister
Willow Oaks Church of Christ
660 Willow Oaks Dr.
Ozark, Al 36360
Things Are About To Turn Around (Jn. 5:1-15)
Its the time of the feast & Jesus has come to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast & in this text we are introduce to a pool call Bethesda. Bethesda is translated scholars say to mean the house of mercy. They are at the house of mercy & ain't nobody look like they had any mercy !! Sounds familiar, We go to the house of mercy & all of us is a mess. Our mess may not all be the same, but everybody has got a mess in some kind of way !! Not only does the place sounds familiar, but the practice. Because the text says, they all gather with some kind of mystical understanding that & angel trouble the water & when the water was trouble if you got to the water first you would be heal. So, they came to the house of mercy looking for a trick to make them feel better. Sometimes I feel like I'm at Bethesda because some of us are looking for a trick. When difficulties invade their life they coming running to Bethesda thinking that they can get a quick trick & all of a sudden their problems are going to disappear !! How sad it is that people every now & then will use the church as a trick & try to turn the house of mercy into the house of ill repute !! The reality is, they're not looking for mercy, but manipulation. If they could just get the trick to work for them then my life is going to be better. Jesus ask the man a question (verse 6) Do you want to get well? He gives nothing but excuses. So instead of Jesus dealing with with your excuses He moves on to your blessing. Which means, don't spend your life empowering your excuses !! If Jesus heals you, you got to get out the bed & on the ball, if Jesus heals you then you got to go back to school get your degree since you know that you need a degree to get a job other than slinging french fries at McDonald's !! Jesus said to the man rise, take up & carry your mat. Walk out of here carrying what is the evidence of the condition you been living with & don't throw it away carry it. The reason some of us can shout is because the evidences that you hold is that you're walking, but you're carrying some stuff & with everything you're carrying you look better than the hell you're catching !!! The man goes to church carrying the evidences of his previous condition. May I suggest to you, when you go to church carry your mat with you. I get so tired of these stuck up I ain't never did nothing, sitting on their blessed assurance church folks !!! With everything Jesus brought me thru it becomes a testimony of where He brought me to!! Don't leave your mat in the house. Yes I was addicted, yes I was a ho**er, yes I was a drunk & a player, but since I met Jesus Thing Are About To Turn Around & what a wonderful change in my life has been wroth !!! In Hope, The Preacher