THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF PEOPLE IN JOHN 5

We all hear poeple say that there are two or three different kinds of people in this world depending on which way they are viewing things. For instance there are two types of people. Those who are Michigan fans and those that are not. There are two types of people. Those that love the Lord and those that do not. We have all heard people say this in different ways before. I can see three different types of people in John 5:1-16.

1. Sick. We have here a man that for thirty-eight years has been bed ridden. He has been sitting beside this pool of Bethesda for a long time. Every thime the stirring of the waters comes someone else beats him into the water. I am sure that this man was discouraged yet he stayed by the pool. I believe that this man is a perfect picture of the sinner that is lost and has not yet met the great physician. He represents the man that is sick in his sins. He has no man to guide him along. He is all alone in the world. Most people today that are lost will not admit that they are alone, but spiritually they are alone. No one really cares for each other when it comes right down to it. Every man is out for themselves. This man is sick spiritually in his sins and all alone.

2. Soulwinner. Our Lord and Savior represents the soulwinner here. He sought this man out. He did not sit at home saying that God will providentially bring people to Him. He went out and found this man. Now we will not have the capabilities of knowing the things that God knows, but we do go out as a soulwinner in the power of the Holy Spirit. Soulwinning requires work and action. It is not just a once a week action either. Soulwinning is a daily all day process. We are bringing those that are sick to the Great Physician to be healed of their sins and to be made whole. That is our job that all of us know, but how many of us live the life of a soulwinner. Soulwinning ought to consume us and we ought to be aware of all the oppurtunities that the Lord brings our way.

3. Scoffers/Skeptics. The third type of people here are the scoffers. We have a man that was healed after thirty-eight years of this illness and you would think that people would rejoice with him and applaud our Lord and Savior. In verse 10 they said, "It is the sabbath day." Why do some people want to throw water on the fire? They see that a miracle just happened and instead of rejoicing they are rebuking. We get upset at these Jews, but how people in our churches and our circles are scoffing and being skeptical of the evangelistic things that are done. Why do Christians as well as lost people try to put water on the fire of a new convert? The devil has a way of trying to discourage those that have seen the miracle of salvation. Lets not be the scoffers or skeptics. Instead lets be the soulwinners that the Lord wants us to be.

2 Corinthians 5:20 -- Now then we are ambassadors for Christ...

Wow this will be my first real post!

I was reading today in John 14 and a few thoughts hit me that I would like to share to be a blessing to those around me also. It is a familiar passage in that we always focus on the first few verses to show people the way to heaven. This is really good, but I would like to look at a few other verses that spoke to me. In verse 15 it says "If ye love me, keep my commanments." This is a short, but very strong verse. Love is a word that gets thrown around so much today that it has lost its meaning. We cringe when teenagers tell each other that they love them. I know that I have not been married long, but I do know that I never knew what love was. The longer I am married I will realize that I never really knew what love is. I think that ever older male knows what I am talking about. Here are a few thoughts from this verse:

1. This is a commandment. You say that is a no brainer. Right, but how many of us actually do it? I think we have lost a lot of the "simple" things of Christianity to dwell on the deep knowledge and intellectual thinking. Love is an inward emotion with an outward action. How do we know that our spouse loves us? By the things that they say and do.

2. Love gives. We can see this especially in John 3:16 where it says, "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son..." Love will always give. In a marriage it is full of giving to the other person. Love is not selfish as is the consensus of people today. They say that they love, but it is for selfish reasons. When we truly love someone then we will do whatever it takes to give to them and to make them happy.


3. Love obeys. Keep my commandments. Liberty lovers should hate this verse because it is means that there are laws and commandments that need to be followed. I think that we try to be so free from everything that we forget what Matthew 6:24 says. It is impossible as a human to not serve or be under someone. Since we want to be under Christ, then we need to obey his commandments that He has established. How do we know if you love God? By your outward actions and words. I like what one preacher once said, "Don't just talk the talk, but walk the walk." So as we go about our lives, we need to remember that people do judge us by our actions and they need to be actions that obey God's commandments and principles.


YOU LIVE WHAT YOU LOVE!!!

Greetings to all,

This is my first blog and I just thought that I would just type something in and see if it works. I hope to do more later. Have a great day.