What Will You Do? Monthly Summons Fast: Day 3
- Pastor Ayeisha Isidore
- Jul 1
- 3 min read
John 5 (NLT)
9 Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! But this miracle happened on the Sabbath,14 But afterward Jesus found him in the Temple and told him, “Now you are well; so stop sinning, or something even worse may happen to you.”15 Then the man went and told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who had healed him.
Congratulations! You made it to the final day of this consecration. I commend you for your consistency. My prayer is that the time you spent these past 3 days were enlightening, fulfilling, and empowering. It is not enough to simply hear good word, but it is about applying that word to produce fruit in your life. The record is clear from our time together: Jesus does miracles, but mostly for those who put in the work.
One definition for the Holy Spirit is the helper. The interesting this is, everybody aks for help in theory, but few really want true assistance. Helping someone is different than doing it for someone. This teaches us that what some people say from time to time, "God helps those who helps themselves". In other words, God can't help you unless you give Him something to help with.
The man was healed in this text because he obeyed a command God gave him. Your healing is truly on the other side of your obedience. Remember, a few days ago we learned that this man was MADE WHOLE. Wholeness is similiar to salvation. Salavation is free but it requires you to do something to obtain it. For example, Noah was made whole or salvaged from the flood, but it only came by his obedience to build the boat. If Naamaan never dunked in the Jordan, he would still have leprosy. The prophet Elisha asked him to do something disgusting and detestable, but he did it anyways because he was desperate. If you were truly passionate about your healing, your desperateness would cause you to obey, even when you don't feel like it.
Not only was the man healed, but he was given an admonishment on how to maintain his healing. The text says that he was commanded to "Go, and SIN NO MORE". That is a double edged sword. The first part of his healing required him to leave. Once God heals you from hurt, leave the place of the hurt. I am not telling you to cut people off or leave a church, I am saying leave the place of hurt in your mind and spirit. Make a conscious decision! I refuse to stay in depression, disappointment, etc. I am leaving brokeness because I have been healed. Going does not mean forgetting. Going means no longer dwelling. You have to take your mat to tell the testimony, but it no longer where I lie it is now what I carried away from where I used to be! Sha ta that is powerful!
The SIN NO MORE part is key. In other words, Jesus said healing must be maintained with a consecration. The reality is, sin creates spiritual distance between you and God according to Isaiah 59:2. In order to keep the healing, you have to stay close to the healer. This fast may have ended, but don't stop fasting. Don't stop consecrating. Don't stop praying. Don't stop believing. Stay in environments that keep you close to God. Including christian communities like us and your church.
God is a healer. His hand is not shortened. So if we don't get healed, we cannot blame Him. We have to ask ourselves what we are doing that we are not in positioned to recieve. We could be disobeying, but from now on, no more. What will you do?
What area of my life has God already instructed me to change, yet I continue to delay in obedience? What is keeping me from taking that next step?
What "mat" am I still lying on instead of carrying as a testimony? How can I begin living from a place of healing rather than a place of hurt?
Are there any habits, relationships, environments, or thought patterns that are pulling me away from the Healer? What must I leave behind to protect what God has restored?
As this consecration comes to an end, what specific commitment will I make to remain close to God? How will I continue pursuing Him through prayer, fasting, His Word, and Christian community long after these three days are over?
Comments