The truth about "“Now you are well; don’t sin as you did before, or something even worse may happen to you.”"

Believers, consider John 5 where Jesus healed the man that had been crippled for 38 years:

1 "After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches. 3 In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water. 4 For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had."

Notice the "blind, lame, paralyzed?" Whoever stepped into the water first would receive healing. But how can the blind step in first when they can't even see when the angel stirs up the water? How can the lame and the paralyzed step in first when some cannot even move, talk less of move fast enough, to get into the water?

I believe that the people who got their healing at that pool were those who could still see and walk- their trials and tests not as crushing as those who had been dealt cards of blindness, lameness and paralysis. For instance, a person afflicted with deafness or some other illness that does not limit mobility would definitely get into the water faster than a blind person who cannot even see when the water is being stirred up.

No matter how hard they tried, the best efforts of these “blind, lame, paralyzed” would never have been good enough because of their limitations. How cruel and ignorant it would be for the one who is afflicted with just deafness to accuse the paralyzed who cannot even move of not "at least trying their best" to get into the water when it was stirred up by the angel. But this is what we do when we point out the sins of others and threaten them with God's judgment without pointing the sinner to Christ who saves from sins the same way He saved the crippled man at the Pool of Bethesda- freely.

Believer, God sees the sinner who is struggling to live right so that he can enjoy His blessings the same way He saw the infirm people struggling to get into the Pool of Bethesda- in need of salvation, even salvation from sins.

Both sin and death (sickness, lack, poverty, etc are "death begun") are as a result of one thing- Adam's disobedience.

Adam's disobedience made all mankind sinners (Romans 5:19: "By one man's disobedience many were made sinners...") This sinful nature inherited from Adam is what makes people produce acts of sin. Everyone born of Adam that is tempted beyond what they can bear will fail. We are not committing particular sins because we have not been tempted beyond what we can bear in those areas.

Adam's offence is what caused death to reign (Romans 5:17- By one man's offence, death reigned through the one...") It is why people are subject to sickness and disease; this death that reigned through Adam is not just physical death. Sickness, lack, poverty, silly mistakes, depression are all "death begun." Remember Adam didn't drop dead physically on the same day his death sentence came into effect, even though God said he would die on the day he ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A thousand years is like a day in God's sight. Adam still lived for many years afterwards, even had children after his death sentence was passed. But he didn't hit 1000 years and his life was far from Edenic, filled with stress and earthly ills.

Sin and death (sickness, etc are "death begun") are from the same source- Adam's disobedience. These things would not exist without Adam's sin. By the same token, we get to reign over both sin and death because of what Christ has done and not by human striving at attaining righteousness. See this in Romans 5:17-

"For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one Man, Jesus Christ."

But the world makes a difference; the world tells you to look to Christ for Salvation from disease and lack but as for sins, you have to save yourself and reign over sin by your own power in order to be free. No Christ saving from sins in the equation. But this is what Christ came to do. See Matthew 1:21-

"She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Try as one might to suppress sin, the arm of flesh can only take one so far. When it fails, which it will, the result will be a volcanic eruption of suppressed sinful deeds which lead to death. But Christ redeems (buys back, pays the ransom, frees) the sinner who believes from every lawless deed that holds him captive. See Titus 2:14-

"He gave His life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us His very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds."

Telling sinners, many of whom are struggling to be free from sins and addictions, to "at least try" to stop sinning so they can get God's blessings and avoid His wrath or judging them for their inability to do things to free themselves is akin to judging the blind, lame and paralyzed for their inability to jump into the Pool of Bethesda first at the stirring of the water by the angel.

We think it is for lack of trying that these beloved of God are still paralyzed, blinded and unable to walk away from sin but like the infirm at the pool, many want out but are limited by unfavourable circumstances. What sinners need is a Saviour from sins, not more rules and regulations and lectures on how they should "at least try to get into the pool" so they can be healed of their sins.

Believer, know that the reason why we are not committing particular sins is because we have not been tempted beyond what we can bear in those areas. The potential to commit heinous crimes (sinful nature) was inherited from Adam by all mankind. His disobedience is what made mankind sinners. God sees this potential and how favourable circumstances can make some people think that some sins are beneath them and boast in how they are able to "make it into the water first." Same way Peter knew 100% and boasted in his own strength that he would never deny Jesus.

The one with the sinful nature depends on his ability to obey the law and "at least try" to get right with God or earn His blessings. This is death. For all who are in Christ, we have been circumcised of that sinful nature:

"When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature."

No longer striving to attain right-standing with God through the law but made right with God by the obedience of Christ. And this is how we overcome tests, trials and temptations: 1 Cor. 10:13-

"We all experience times of testing, which is normal for every human being. But God will be faithful to you. He will screen and filter the severity, nature, and timing of every test or trial you face so that you can bear it. And each test is an opportunity to trust Him more, for along with every trial God has provided for you a way of escape that will bring you out of it victoriously."

Someone needs to bring you out of your testing/temptation/trial, whether sickness or acts of sin, and that Someone is Jesus Christ.

See the response of the cripple that had been infirm for 38 years when Christ asked him if he wanted to be made whole in John 5-

5 "Now there was a man who had been disabled for thirty-eight years lying among the multitude of the sick.6 When Jesus saw him lying there, He knew that the man had been crippled for a long time. So Jesus said to him, “Do you truly long to be healed?”

7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, there’s no way I can get healed, for I have no one who will lower me into the water when the angel comes. As soon as I try to crawl to the edge of the pool, someone else jumps in ahead of me.”"

This man is a picture of those who are struggling to overcome their sins but are being told that they have to use their own human effort to get to a place where they are sin-free and thus position themselves for God's blessings.

8 "Then Jesus said to him, “Stand up! Pick up your sleeping mat and you will walk!” 9 Immediately he stood up—he was healed! So he rolled up his mat and walked again! Now this miracle took place on the Jewish Sabbath."

No striving to reach the pool at the right time, no "have you obeyed the Ten Commandments;" no fasting and no seed sown for this man whose sin put him in his crippled condition as we see in the next few verses:

14 "But afterwards Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, “Now you are well; don’t sin as you did before, or something even worse may happen to you.”"

Many people teach this as "if you commit any sin again, a worse fate will befall you." If this was the correct interpretation, the whole world would be physically crippled right now because God's word says:

"Not a single person on earth is always good and never sins." Ecclesiastes 7:20

Also, "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." 1 John 1:8

Also, "Who can say, “I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin”?" Proverbs 20:9

Even the Pharisees and teachers of religious law who prided themselves in their sinlessness and ability to obey the law could not cast the first stone when Christ posed that crucial question at them.

So many more bible verses to show that of ourselves, there is none righteous, no, not one. Jesus was talking to the formerly disabled man about a specific sin, a sin that the man was fully aware of as the cause of his disability. This is the same way a chain smoker who is healed of lung cancer or a promiscuous person who is healed of paralysis/insanity caused by syphillis or a chronic gambler whose debts were settled by a kind benefactor could get infected again if they go back to wallowing in their old sinful ways.

Believer, glory be to God that how to not go back to our vomit after we got saved is in the hands of our Saviour Jesus Christ and not our own arm of flesh that will fail. God gives Grace so that we are not tempted beyond what we can bear and with every temptation, Christ is the Way of escape. If it were up to us to "stop sinning" on our own, we would be doomed. In Christ, we GET TO live in triumph over sin and death (Romans 5:17.)

Not that we are perfect; this is what life in Christ is like: Philippians 3:

9 "and become one with Him, no longer counting on being saved by being good enough or by obeying God’s laws, but by trusting Christ to save me; for God’s way of making us right with Himself depends on faith—counting on Christ alone. 10 Now I have given up everything else—I have found it to be the only way to really know Christ and to experience the mighty power that brought Him back to life again, and to find out what it means to suffer and to die with Him. 11 So whatever it takes, I will be one who lives in the fresh newness of life of those who are alive from the dead.

12 I don’t mean to say I am perfect. I haven’t learned all I should even yet, but I keep working toward that day when I will finally be all that Christ saved me for and wants me to be." Christ does it all. Only believe in Him- this is the WORK of God that God wants us to WORK according to John 6:

28 They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?” 29 Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one He has sent.”

When your believing is right- when you believe that you are made right with God by Christ's obedience and not by human striving at obeying the law - right living will follow.

By grace, let's stop striving to "enter the Pool of Bethesda" in a bid to position ourselves to be saved from sin and death. By grace, "believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved..." even saved from sin and death, including "death begun."

Right believing always produces right living.