The Hook
- How did God show you signs and wonders that you might believe last week?
- Was there ever a time that you faced an enormous challenge and felt like giving up?
Brooks is a character who has been in prison for over 50 years. He is paroled and doesn’t want to go to the outside. He is someone who doesn’t want to be well.
- Is there a time where you have felt that you didn’t want to get well? What was the situation? Why did you feel that way?
Community Rules for The Seven Signs – Explain and remind at each study
- Ask your questions and choose curiosity
- Be cool with each other
- Answer our questions from the text
- Be open to spiritual growth
Understanding the Message
Read John 5:1-9
- Describe the setting. What is a modern day analogy for this pool?
- Does everyone understand about the water and how the pool would provide healing?
- Describe the experience of the man having laid there for 38 years?
- Why would he stay in this position for so many years without relief?
- Why does Jesus ask him if he wants to be well?
- What might internally block him from wanting to be well?
- What are the reasons that this man gives for why he is not well?
Teaching Note – Irony: John is using the literary feature of irony in the man’s response. The two reasons he gives are exposed as foolishness when compared to Jesus’ person. There is no man because Jesus is the Son of God, not a mere man. He can’t be put into the pool. Yet, before him stands the very source of the Living Water that just gave life to the woman at the well and her entire Samaritan village. The man thinks of God as offering a Dixie cup of healing. God is offering an ocean of healing in the Source.
- What might it have felt like for the man to begin walking again?
- What is the unseen spiritual reality the healing of the lame man points to?
- God offers wholeness and healing in oceans, not small pools.
- Jesus, in whom is life, can come into any dark, despondent situation with his life.
- Another unseen reality?
- What are lessons we can learn from the Sign?
- Jesus will not take our excuses for why we are not well.
- Jesus gives us the power to get up and be well – if we are not it is our block.
- Change is scary and we often choose to stay in our brokenness rather than change.
- Another lesson?
Does It Work?
Tell a story about how Jesus helped you to “Get Up” and how the change brought you life.
Your Story
- Do you want to be well?
- Do you see patterns of growing comfort in patterns of brokenness?
- What is one area of your life when you can climb into the Ocean of Jesus’ healing?
- Would you consider allowing the GIG leader or an IV friend pray for you this week?
Index Cards
- What is a question about God or the Bible you are thinking about?
- What is an area of your life you are struggling with I can be praying for?
