7 Signs - Lord Over Our Circumstance

John 20:30-31… Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

BIG IDEA: God may not change your circumstance, but He always wants to change you in the midst of it!

Philippians 4:12-13… I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

• God will STRETCH YOUR FAITH like it’s never been stretched before;
• God will FILL YOU WITH HOPE that you’ve never had before;
• You will TRUST HIM MORE than you’ve ever trusted Him before, regardless of what He does or does not do, because He is worthy of all of our trust.

The Pool… The Problem… The Possibility…

The Pool… the harbinger we seek

John 5:1–5… After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches. In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water. 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. Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.

As we talk about the miraculous wonders that Jesus performed, remember that these aren’t fables or fiction. These are actual events that took place in human history.

• Dogged Determination … I come every day

• Fortuitous Fate… baby needs a new pair of shoes

• Religious Repetition… if I just try a little harder, learn from my mistakes

Ephesians 2:8-10… For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

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The Problem… the help we want

John 5:6… When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?”

 Jesus was in the business of changing people, not circumstances. 

John 5:7… The sick man answered Him, “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; but while I am coming, another steps down before me.”

Door #1 - Make an excuse to rationalize indifference

Door #2 - Make the effort to restore expectation

John 5:8.. Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.”

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18… Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

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The Possibility… the hope we need

John 5:8-9… Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.” And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.

Pick it up and carry it with you in order to put your past behind you

1. It’s no longer an excuse.
2. It’s no longer a justification of your victimhood.
3. It’s no longer the thing you use to get attention or pity.

Pick it up and carry it with you in order to testify to what I have done for you.

1. It’s an admission of your need.
2. It’s an acknowledgment of His power.
3. Its an affirmation of His Lordship over all… even over human limitations

Psalm 40:1-3… I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.  

NEXT STEP: You can’t do anything to change the past… but God wants to do something in you to change your future.