Watch Pastor Lauderdale’s message titled Do You Want To Get Better? on YouTube.
Part of our year-long series: Fixing What’s Broken to Build Back Better
Scripture: John 5:1–9 (KJV)
On April 14, 1935, a massive dust storm swallowed the Great Plains in what history remembers as Black Sunday. Families clung to one another as winds ripped across the land, dirt piled against doors and windows, and daylight disappeared in an instant. Many had already lost their farms, their savings, even their sense of purpose. In Boise City, Oklahoma, a reporter wrote, “This is the end of the world.”
Yet even in that choking darkness, some held onto the promise of Psalm 30:5 — “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”
In John 5:1–9, we meet a man who had been lying by the pool of Bethesda for thirty-eight years — waiting, hoping, hurting. When Jesus approached him, He asked a question that almost sounds harsh: “Wilt thou be made whole?”
This wasn’t cruelty — it was compassion. Because sometimes the most loving thing God can ask us is:
At Mt. Zion Missionary Baptist Church, as we walk through our year-long journey of Fixing What’s Broken to Build Back Better, this is the question in front of us: not just can we get better, but do we really want to?
Before healing can begin, we must recognize our true condition.
This man from John 5, lying by the pool of Bethesda, had been sick for nearly four decades — but he also had decades of excuses, decades of misplaced hopes, decades of listening to voices that discouraged his faith.
Imagine the conversations he heard year after year by that pool:
Thirty-eight years of voices manipulating his mind and clouding his hope.
Sound familiar?
Some of us have been told:
Like this man, we’ve learned to blame our circumstances, the people around us, or even God — instead of facing the truth:
We are broken, and only Jesus can make us whole.
Romans 3:23 reminds us, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.”
I was talking to a college student once who complained about everyone around him — his classmates, his professors, even the people at church. Finally, he shared that his mentor said, “If everyone around you seems to be the problem, maybe you need to look in the mirror.”
That was the moment he realized he’d been using criticism as a shield to avoid confronting his own pride and brokenness.
Jesus didn’t walk up to the man at the pool to offer sympathy — He came to offer supernatural transformation.
He commanded, “Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.” To receive that miracle, the man had to believe Jesus could do what seemed impossible.
Isaiah 40:31 declares, “They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles.”
Receiving Christ’s power unfolds in three phases — and every believer must move through all three.
Faith begins with hearing.
Romans 10:17 tells us, “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”
The man at the pool had likely heard stories about Jesus — rumors of His miracles, whispers of His power. That’s how it starts for many of us. We hear sermons, testimonies, and Scripture. We hear that Jesus saves.
Matthew 13:16 says, “Blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.” Acts 28:28 declares that the salvation of God is sent “and that they will hear it.”
But hearing alone isn’t enough.
At some point, hearing must turn into believing.
When Jesus asked, “Wilt thou be made whole?” the man had to move from hearing about Jesus to believing in Jesus.
Mark 9:23 declares, “All things are possible to him that believeth.”
John 3:16 reminds us, “Whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Acts 16:31 promises, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.”
I think of a young woman I met who was trapped in a cycle of anxiety and perfectionism, scrolling social media for hours comparing herself to others. At a youth retreat, she heard about God’s love — but it wasn’t until she personally believed that Jesus could heal her mind that breakthrough came. She experienced the truth of Philippians 4:7 — “the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
This is where faith becomes testimony.
The man at the pool didn’t just hear about healing or believe in healing — he knew he was healed because he experienced it.
1 John 5:13 — “that ye may know that ye have eternal life.”
2 Timothy 1:12 — “I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able…”
You know you’re forgiven.
You know you’re changed.
You know He’s real.
2 Corinthians 5:17 promises, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
Child of God, move beyond just hearing about Jesus — believe in Him, and experience the life-changing power that only He can give.
John 5:9 tells us, “Immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked.”
He didn’t wait until he “felt different.” He didn’t wait to test the waters. He responded to Jesus right away.
James 1:22 warns us, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”
I think of a recent graduate who felt called to missions, but kept saying, “I need to pay off student loans first, get more experience, save more money.” His pastor challenged him with Isaiah 6:8 — “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” God was calling him now, not when his bank account was perfect.
Within a month, he’d applied for a mission trip and started taking steps toward his calling.
Hebrews 3:15 urges us, “Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”
Getting better requires an immediate response to God’s call on your life. Not “next year.” Not “after things calm down.” Now.
The same question Jesus asked the man at Bethesda is the question He is asking us at Mt. Zion today:
If you truly want to get better — as a person, as a family, as a church — then:
This is what our year-long theme, “Fixing What’s Broken to Build Back Better,” is all about. We’re not just talking about change — we’re taking steps to live it.
Here at Mt. Zion, we’re declaring together: Yes, we really do want to get better. We want our faith stronger, our families healthier, our relationships restored, and our witness brighter.
Join us this Sunday — in person or online — as we continue our journey through “Fixing What’s Broken to Build Back Better.” Come hear the Word, experience God’s presence, and take your next step toward wholeness.
You don’t have to stay stuck where you’ve been. By God’s grace, you can get better — and at Mt. Zion, we’re committed to walking that journey together.
Watch Pastor Lauderdale’s message titled Do You Want To Get Better? on YouTube.
Scripture References: John 5:1–9 • Psalm 30:5 • Romans 3:23 • Isaiah 40:31 • Romans 10:17 • Matthew 13:16 • Acts 28:28 • Mark 9:23 • John 3:16 • Acts 16:31 • Philippians 4:7 • 1 John 5:13 • 2 Timothy 1:12 • 2 Corinthians 5:17 • James 1:22 • Isaiah 6:8 • Hebrews 3:15
