₦airaland Forum

Capsule of liberty.
Daily devotional.

Date Sunday,14-06-2020.

*Theme :Empowered for progress*.

*Read : John 5 vs 1-9*.

*5:1 After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem*.

*5:2 Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches*.

*5:3 In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water*.

*5:4 For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had*.

*5:5 And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years*.

*5:6 When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole*?

*5:7 The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me*.

*5:8 Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk*.

*5:9 And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath*.


*Memory*:
" _And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath_ " - John 5 vs 9.

*Meditate on this* : *If any man is thirsty for power to make progress let him come to Jesus(John 7 vs 37)*.



Power is a vital factor, in the journey of a believer to his destination. In John 5 vs 7, the man by the pool of bethsaida was described as an impotent man. The word impotent simply means lacking power,lacking strength ,barren ,fruitless,lame and inability to influence. And for thirty eight years, he kept on making effort to reach his destination. Even though the distance was very short ,but he couldn't make progress.

To make progress simply means ,the power moving you forward must be greater than the forces resisting you. For the man by the pool of bethsaida, and the man by the beautiful gate, they couldn't make progress because they lack power and there was no external power that could move them forward. On the day they met Peter and Jesus respectively, then they became potent so as to make speedy progress( Act 3 vs .

The meaning of bethsaida in Hebrew ,simply means the house of mercy. The impotent man received mercy,out of the multitude by the pool. In order to make progress,let us keep asking for mercy. The verse below proves it .

*Romans 9 vs 16*: *So then it is not him that willeth,nor of him that runneth,but of God that showeth mercy*.

Another lesson we could learn from this story is that someone ,could be by the house of mercy for 38 years , without receiving mercy. Why?

*Prov 28 vs 13*: _He that covereth his sins shall not prosper,but whoso confesseth and forsake them shall obtain mercy_.

In the verse above the word prosper, in Hebrew means to push forward in all areas. No wonder Jesus gave the man a warning later in John 5 vs 14: ...sin no more lest a worse thing come upon thee.

In conclusion, wherever sin abound, progress will be lacking.

*Assignment* :
1. Ensure you abstain from all appearance of evil.

*Prayer point*.
1. Father please empower me to make speedy progress in Jesus name.

*© Oluwaleye Akinboyewa*.