WILT THOU BE MADE
WHOLE?
by: Pastor Max Solbrekken,
D.D.
"After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. 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.
“Jesus saith unto him, Rise take up thy bed, and walk. And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked..." (John 5:1-9)
Jesus Christ asked this question of a man who was sick and diseased; a man who had laid for thirty years, in a place where healings occurred supernaturally by God’s power! You may say that was a rather foolish question to ask one who was waiting for a miracle at the pool of Bethesda. You may think so, but I don't! After reading this message I am sure you will agree with me that it was a very good question to ask. I want to ask you that are sick and suffering, the same question, "Do you want to be healed? Do you really want to get well?”
MY MOTHER ANNE WAS HEALED!
In the early 1920s, my mother received a miracle from God at the Bethesda Healing Home on the shores of the North Sea, near Oslo Norway! After seven days of preparation and prayer, at an appointed hour, the sick and infirm folks were taken into the waters, while releasing their faith to God for a miracle.
There was no power in the water, but releasing their faith brought into operation the mighty power of God. Going into the water was their point of contact with God, at which moment they believed and received their miracle.
As those seeking healing stood outside the bath house, the nurse handed my mother the key to unlock the door. As she stood there, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder, and she was instantly healed. She took the train and walked 26 kilometers to her home! My mother passed away at 77 years of age and had never been sickly or suffered from her previous illness for those 44 years.
While preaching in the Norway Crusades in May-July 1968, I spent some time in Etnedal, Valdres where my mother and father grew up and lived until their departure to Canada in 1927. Many of my relatives remembered my mother's healing. They told about the tremendous stir that my mother's healing made in the community, and how she sang Gospel songs and played her guitar in the School in Valdres.
I had the privilege of preaching the Gospel to the precious people who gathered outside the same schoolhouse to hear the Word of God. The Lutheran Lay Reader was there and opened the service in prayer. He knew my mother and said, "We all knew Anne well and are overjoyed to see the fruit of her godly life in her son, Max Solbrekken".
I will never forget that meeting and the ones we conducted in the large new Lutheran Prayer House where 300 people (mostly my relatives) crowded in and around the Church to hear me preach the Gospel. More than one-half of those present stood to their feet to receive Christ as their personal Saviour in the final service. Hallelujah!
Let us go back to the account of, "The Healing of the Impotent Man" and learn a few lessons about Jesus and His great ministry. Jesus goes where the need is! Our story opens with Jesus going to Jerusalem for a special religious gathering and feast. The very next verse tells us that Jesus was at His Father's business of bringing healing and deliverance to an impotent man.
In my study of the Scriptures for many years, I have observed that Jesus Christ always went where the need was the greatest. Yes, my friend, you will always find Jesus amid human suffering, pain, trouble, and sorrow because He is touched with the feeling of our infirmities (Heb. 4:15), and He is acquainted with sorrow and grief. (Isa. 53:3-5)
No rich or influential person would live near a sheep market because of the smell and stench of that place. Only the poor and underprivileged would resort to such a place. (Have you ever driven by a packing house, feeder lot or turkey ranch on a hot, sultry day?) The Bible says, "In there lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.”
The discouraged, defeated, sick, suffering and dying had gathered to receive a touch from the Master. Wherever people are being helped supernaturally by the Spirit and power of God, there will be no shortage of people coming to receive help. Into this arena of human suffering walked the Son of God to bring deliverance, health, and healing to one who had no hope!
That was where Jesus went on that memorable day! The smell from the sheep market did not deter Him in His quest of blessing those in need; the religious people of His day were no doubt too preoccupied with the Religious Feast and the other traditions and ceremonials to think of walking down among the unwanted, unfortunate, and undesirable of Jerusalem, but Jesus found His way to the bedside of an incurable man.
AN ANGEL TROUBLED THE WATERS!
The reason the multitude of sick and impotent folks were gathered at the pool of Bethesda was because an angel would come down at a certain season and trouble the waters and when the people would see the angel or at least see the waters being troubled they all hurried to get into the pool because the first one in after the troubling of the waters was healed of whatsoever disease he had.
We learn several lessons here. God was so desirous to bring healing to the sick and since He couldn't get the Priests to do His will in the matter, (Micah 3:5-8) He sent an angel to bring healing to the sick. I wonder what some Gospel Ministers will do when they stand before God and try to give an excuse to why they haven't bound up the broken and healed the sick in His Name. (Ezek. 34:3-4)
It is the same with many of the great truths found in the Holy Scriptures. Some Ministers who stand behind the pulpits of our Churches and who call themselves Ministers of God are not preaching the entire Gospel or taking a clear-cut stand against sin and apostacy; rather they are compromising with the world so that they can gain prominence and acceptance from those who are the elite in the community. Approximately thirty years ago, a news report was released over a large Radio Network in the U.S.A. regarding mysterious happenings on a certain State Highway.
TWENTY-NINE PEOPLE GAVE SAME REPORT!
The news reporter made the statement that twenty-nine different people had called in to the State patrol within a period of a few hours declaring that they had seen a young, clean-cut, good-looking young man standing by the highway.
Every one of them had stopped and given him a ride and in each case the stranger said, "I have come to tell you that Jesus is coming soon," and he was gone. Twenty-nine different motorists had given the same testimony. There have been other recent, equally astounding accounts of angels appearing and telling people that Jesus is soon to return.
I believe that so very few of God's Ministers are preaching about the soon return of Christ and He is so desirous to get the message out that He is employing angels to do this task from time to time as the end approaches.
THE VERY STONES WOULD CRY OUT!
Sometimes I am criticized because we enjoy the liberty of the Spirit in our services and the people shout praises unto God and worship Him with a loud noise. When I am confronted with these accusations, I always let my accuser read Luke 19:37-40 to show them how wrong they are.
"And when He was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen; Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest. And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.
“And He answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out." This Scripture passage shows us the truth about the matter of emotionalism, worship, and praise in the House of God. There were a multitude (thousands) of disciples and followers of Jesus shouting and praising God with a loud voice for the mighty works that they had seen.
Can you imagine thousands of people praising God with loud voices at one time. That's what they did and the Pharisees, from among the multitude got nervous (and so did the devil) and said, "Master, stop thy disciples, they are making too much noise."
But Jesus told them that it was quite alright. As a matter of fact, He enjoyed it. Then He said, "If I tell these people to be quiet the stones would immediately cry out." Hallelujah! If you won't praise God, He'll find someone who will. God was so desirous of healing the sick that He had to use an angel to bring deliverance.
WHEN THE WATERS WERE TROUBLED!
"...Whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had." (Vs. 4) The time to make a move for the pool was when the waters were troubled. Not before and not after, but exactly at the time the angel was troubling the waters.
There is another great lesson to learn here as well. Even though God can heal the sick any hour of the day and any day of the week, there are certain times when His power is present to heal in a spectacular and astounding way.
"And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them." (Luke 5:17)
I am fully convinced that there are times that God's power is present in a meeting in a strong way to convict sinners or baptize with the Holy Ghost or to heal, at various times. We must move in the Spirit and so know the mind of God in these matters to receive all that He has for us.
WHATEVER DISEASE HE HAD!
"...Whosoever then first stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had." It didn't matter how serious the sickness, how nigh unto death the person was or how long they had been sick. They were healed if they met God's conditions. Whatsoever disease covers all diseases; there were none too big for God to look after.
JESUS stated, "With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible." (Mark 10:27): "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." (Mark 9:23): "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do..." (John 14:13)
There is nothing too hard for God. He cannot fail, and He will fulfill His Word! Remember no disease, sickness, problem, or difficulty is too hard for our wonderful Lord! He is able to forgive, cleanse, deliver, and liberate any and all who come to Him in prayer, believing.
The Bible says, "Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases..." (Ps. 103:1-3)
JESUS KNOWS EVERYTHING!
"And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years. And when Jesus saw him lie and knew that he had been now a long time in that case..." (Vs. 5-6) Jesus knows everything about you, my dear friend. He knows your troubles, difficulties, and successes.
Nothing escapes the all-seeing eye of God, and His ears are open to your cry. The Scripture tells us that even a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without God seeing it, (Matt. 10:29) and the very hairs of your head are numbered.
God looks after the lily of the field, (Matt. 6:28-30) and I am sure He will look after you and me. Jesus walked up to the bedside of a hopelessly sick man; a man who was incurable and had given up hope; a man who was filled with bitterness and resentment and who had waited in vain for thirty-eight years to receive his miracle. To this man Jesus asked a very pointed question. "Wilt thou be made whole?"
WILT THOU BE WHOLE?
Jesus looked down upon the sick man and asked him a question that pierced deep within his soul. Wilt thou be made whole? What Jesus was saying was, "Do you really want to get well" or "Are you really expecting to get healed?"
Jesus knew the man didn't expect to get well; he had given up and was filled with resentment and bitterness. It may surprise you to know that many people who are in hospitals do not expect to get well; many people who go through the prayer lines or ask the Pastor or Evangelist to pray for them do not expect to be healed; they just go to the hospital or into the prayer line for prayer because they feel it is the thing to do. They just go through the motions, but they are not believing; they do not have active faith.
They love to be waited on and the attention they receive is most gratifying to them. The article continued by saying that even in some instances the patient was able to desire hospitalization so much that the symptoms of certain diseases were manifested. These people want to be sick to receive attention and therefore couldn't desire healing even if they were sick.
On one occasion I was praying for the sick in a Revival Crusade; many were receiving miracles from the Lord and the great power of God was evidenced by all. A blind man stood before me for prayer; I asked him if he expected a miracle and he said he did; then I told him that I believed God would do it for him that night. Suddenly he backed up a bit and asked the question, "If I receive my sight will I lose my blind pension?"
I replied, "Yes" and added that he would gain much more than just a pension; he could get a job and support his family; then he backed off saying, "I don't think I want prayer tonight - perhaps some other time," and someone led him away. He was afraid that if I prayed and God healed him that he would lose his pension and have to work for a living. What a shame!
Some religious people who deny that the miraculous power of God today, would not dare come to our services for prayer because if they did get healed it would spoil their theology and they would have to deny their man-made doctrines.
These are few and far between, but there are fanatics who hate the Gospel and the power of God so much that they would sooner die than give in to Christ and the Full Gospel.
MY SON IS A PENTECOSTAL PREACHER!
I once had an experience that taught several people a good lesson - I was conducting a Revival Crusade in a certain city in the United States and God was blessing in a wonderful way.
A certain woman who had an inward goiter came for prayer one night; as I prayed for her in Jesus Name, I felt a real surge of God's power and my faith touched the Lord; I knew something was happening. I looked at her and said, "I believe God is healing you and making you whole!"
She disregarded what I had said and made the following statement, "Oral Roberts has prayed for me three times and my son is a Pentecostal Minister and I'm not healed!" I encouraged her to believe. The next night she was in the prayer line again and there was a repetition of the first night; the third night she came again and after I had prayed fervently for her to be healed, she said the same words, "Oral Roberts has prayed for me three times and I have a son who is a Pentecostal Minister and I know that I'm not healed."
I turned to her and said, "Lady I have just finished praying for your healing with faith in Christ and you tell me that you know you are not healed. I believe that if you will accept what I tell you and go home believing you will find that your goiter will leave. Furthermore, it wouldn't matter to me if Oral Roberts had prayed for you one hundred times and you had ten sons in the ministry, the thing that matters is: do you believe God's Word?"
She looked at me as though she was offended and walked off in a huff. The next night she returned to the meeting "shouting happy"' she had been perfectly healed and her goiter was gone. She testified that after I had rebuked her she had gone home, thought it over, repented of her sins and started to believe; suddenly she realized that her goiter which she had so lovingly pampered for many years was gone. Hallelujah!
Great joy filled my heart one night when I prayed for a man with a stiff arm in Vancouver, who had received prayer in Dr. Charles S. Price's crusade 35 years before. God hadn't seen fit to heal him but healed him in our meetings in 1964. Just because someone has prayed for you and you haven't been healed doesn't mean you shouldn't go for prayer again. Keep praying, keep believing and keep expecting and you will receive an answer to your prayer!
You will receive an answer from God if you don't give up. Faith holds on until the answer comes. When Jesus asked the man, "Wilt thou be made whole," He was asking, "Do you really want to get better?"
HE TRIED TO DECEIVE THE PREACHER!
In 1965 while conducting a
Revival Crusade in Winnipeg, a very
interesting incident took place. One night as I was praying for the sick a
young man stood before me, he had a crooked arm which was permanently bent at
the elbow, he could move it around in its "right angle" position, but
he could not straighten it in the least.
The young man was approximately 22 years of age and the accident had occurred when he was but a little child; proper attention had not been given to him so therefore this arm grew in that position. As he told me all this, the Lord began to speak to my heart about him. I looked him straight in the eyes and said, "You must realize that when I pray for you God's mighty power will come upon your body; are you ready to meet God's power? He answered in the affirmative.
I then felt impressed to ask him the same question the second time. He again said that he was, adding that he was a Christian. The mighty Spirit of God stirred my soul as I realized that he was not telling me the truth.
The third time I questioned him saying, "Are you ready to meet God's power?" He then began to cry and said, "No, I am not ready, I did not come here because I expected God to heal me. I only came so that I could receive your prayers and then go out to tell people that there is nothing to Divine Healing and that your prayers did not help me; our Minister has said that you are a fake and that God no longer heals the sick."
He was weeping and asking me to forgive him. I said, "Ask God to forgive you for this terrible thing you have done." After he cried out to God for mercy and forgiveness, I laid my hands upon him and began to pray. Before I was through praying. I heard hundreds of people shouting and praising God; I opened my eyes and saw a wonderful sight. George Goertzen was completely healed. His arm was normal, and tears of joy streamed down his face.
He ran out to show his wife and she came under the tent (she had remained in the car during the service) and stood in amazement as she beheld the miracle. This young man came into the prayer line for the wrong reason, but God had mercy on his soul and as he repented the Lord healed him. Praise God.
George Goertzen became a powerful preacher and spent some time ministering at the Cleansing Wave Gospel Church, Sprague, MB. Praise Jesus!
THE DISEASED MAN HAD GIVEN UP!
This man was going through the motions, but he didn't really believe. He had given up and Jesus knew it! That's why Jesus asked him the question, "Wilt thou be made whole?" He answered by giving excuses; you can just feel the note of resignation, failure, and bitterness in his answer.
He said, "Lord, 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." He was bitter and filled with resentment. He had been there for 38 years - without help; others had a friend or a relative to put them into the pool, but not him.
He was alone in this world. His relatives and friends had long ago deserted him and he was alone in this cruel world. Bitterness will destroy an individual; it will eat out your heart and life. Don't ever let it get a grip on you or you'll be doomed to failure. Regardless of what life has given you, regardless of the disappointments and heartaches. Keep believing and you will receive an answer and a solution to your problems!
JESUS DIDN'T GIVE HIM ANY PITY!
If you are sick, you do not need pity, but rather compassion. Pity has brought no healing miracle or no end to suffering, but Compassion brings an answer! Compassion realizes the need and brings with it a solution to the problem. Pity leaves you where you are in your sad plight, but Compassion sets the wheels in motion into the direction of deliverance for you!
Jesus could have agreed with him and said, "You poor man, I feel sorry for you; yes you have grounds for being bitter." No, a thousand times NO! Jesus looked upon the impotent man and issued a Command of Faith. He said, "Rise, and take up thy bed, and walk!"
A great lesson that we learn here is that when you're dealing with Jesus you don't need any human help if you will put your faith in Him and obey His Word. The second lesson we learn is that while we grumble, complain and murmur about our plight in life, Jesus isn't very far from anyone of us and stands ready to help us if we only acknowledge Him.
MAN IS A TRIUNE BEING!
Man was created in the image and likeness of God. Man is triune as God is triune. God is Father, Son and Holy Ghost and man is Spirit, Soul (Mind) and Body. Jesus spoke to the impotent man's Spirit first and said, "Rise."
Usually before you can receive a physical miracle something must happen to your spirit. You must receive a miracle within you. Your attitudes about God, His power and yourself, must change. Multitudes today are sick physically because they are sick Spiritually! They have no faith in anyone. Their hopes are gone, and their spirit is filled with resentment and bitterness.
This man was in this condition and so therefore Jesus spoke to his spirit and said, "Rise." Something within the man rose up; his spirit was healed, and hope and faith swept into his being. Secondly Jesus spoke to the impotent man's Soul or mind and said, "Take up thy bed." We believe with our hearts (spirits) but Faith without works is dead! (James 2:29)
The knowledge that creates faith (Rom. 10:17) is deep within your spirit but it must be in your mind as well or you will do nothing about what you believe. Your mind sends to your body orders to do certain things and your body obeys those orders.
However, the Spirit of man is the core or seat of his intelligence and understanding. It is difficult for some people to believe with their heads what their heart or spirit knows is possible.
Jesus spoke to the man's spirit or innermost being and a great transformation took place there. Then He spoke to his mind (soul) and the man realized that what Jesus said was physically possible by God's supernatural power.
The Word of God that creates faith, heals the mind, and renews it (John 5:5-9) the Scripture says, "And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked." (vs. 9). I ask you the same question that Jesus asked, "Wilt thou be made whole?" Don't hide behind excuses but let Jesus heal your spirit and mind and I'll guarantee your physical diseases and sicknesses will have to flee away. Hallelujah. Amen.
Max Solbrekken World Mission Box 44220 RPO Garside T5V 1N6. Email: [email protected]. comehometojesus.ca; My Facebook; Blog: powerful messages and testimonies; cds and dvds on YouTube. Agree with us for a miracle from Jesus Christ, the Great Physician! M.S.
