“Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. 3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, ‘Do you want to get well?’ 7 ‘Sir,’ the invalid replied, ‘I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.’ 8 Then Jesus said to him, ‘Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.’ 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.” (John 5:1-9, NIV)
We have all found ourselves in seasons where we just feel stuck — in need of a breakthrough. And while we know that the God of the Bible is a God of breakthrough (if you haven’t had a chance to read about it yet, check it out “
Barriers to Breakthrough“), sometimes we prevent our own breakthrough that God wants to bring in our lives. There are a variety of ways that this happens. While the list we will look at is non-exhaustive, the story in John 5:1-9 shows us a few examples.
Sometimes, the process we are choosing to follow may be hindering our own breakthrough. (If you haven’t gotten a chance to read it yet, check it out here: “Is your process hindering your breakthrough?” The Bible is very clear that there is one way that works, and that is His way.
For others of us, it is not our process, but the people we are choosing to surround ourselves with that are hindering our breakthrough.
“Here a great number of disabled people used to lie — the blind, the lame, the paralyzed.” John 5:3
Not only was this man stuck in the same situation for a large majority of his life, he was surrounded by a multitude of people who were in the same position he was. In the same rut, with the same mindset, trying to follow the same unsuccessful process, and still stuck. Its a cliche old saying, but it is so true…
Misery Loves Company.
There are many situations in life where it is good to know you are not alone. That is one of the most comforting things about hearing other people’s testimonies — you realize that we are all broken, in need of a savior, and you are not alone. However, comfort can also be dangerous if begins to be used as a crutch- validation for refusing to do the hard work required to pursue true and lasting change.
Finding yourself in the crowd is dangerous because…
Crowds create cultures, and cultures create norms.
Study any group of people in history and you will find this. The problem is, what a culture defines as a norm might not actually be NORMAL when filtered through God’s Word. But if you spend long enough surrounded by it, you may not even recognize it. If you spend long enough in the wrong crowd, you may start to blind yourself into thinking that sin and dysfunction are normal.
Have you ever been in a group that can’t seem to function without drama? Gossip? Can’t have fun without substance abuse? And because this crowd has defined this standard as their norm, the culture only continues to perpetuate it.
If you are not careful, before you know it, you will think its normal to live in bondage.
And you find yourself surrounded by a group who makes you feel comforted, but in reality you are being held back from your own freedom. This might seem counterintuitive, but it’s something that we all need to remember and reflect on.
Friends don’t let friends stay bound.
True friends don’t allow us to stay in our own dysfunction. They don’t enable our bad habits. They don’t hinder us from being all that God has called us to be. True friends grab you by the hand, and no matter how uncomfortable it may be, they walk with you to the feet of Jesus. They, in love, lead you to truth. They encourage you to be ALL that you are called to be. They sift through the lies of the enemy, and don’t let you stay bound.
If you take inventory and find yourself surrounded by people who are consistently IN what you are trying to get OUT of… Maybe God is waiting on you to find a new circle before He does what He wants to do in your life.
God calls us to steward everything in our lives, and he will not bring us what we are not ready to steward.
God loves us too much to release breakthrough, knowing that we will go right back to our old crowd, with our old culture and old norms. Is God waiting on you immerse yourself in a new culture, with norms that follow His will and His ways, before he brings the power of breakthrough in your life?
Reflection: Do the people that I spend majority of my time with lead me closer to Christ?
Application: How can I be a friend that leads other people to Christ, and help propel the people I am surrounded by into their God given destiny? Take the time to thank the friends in your life who have done the same for you!
So so good!!