“It’s All About Jesus!”“If you love me, obey my commandments.” (John 14:15 NLT)“A Simple Way to Say, ‘I Love You!’” That seems like such a simple statement. But it’s not. It’s actually quite powerful and profound. It’s like when you get married and say, “I do.” It means you WILL. Not just for the wedding day, not just for the honeymoon, and not just for the first few months of your new life togeth...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Jewish Leaders (John 5:16-47)“I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.” – John 5:24 (NLT)“Phantom Shame Pain” I was reading recently about a phenomenon that is not fully understood. It’s called “Phantom Li...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Jewish Leaders (John 5:16-47)So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does.” – John 5:19 (NLT)“Get In Sync” Have you ever felt out of sync with God? Maybe the times when you are crazy busy and getting pulled in a million directions. You find y...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Jewish Leaders (John 5:16-47)So the Jewish leaders tried all the harder to find a way to kill him. For he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God. – John 5:18 (NLT)“Until Jesus” Jesus didn’t pull any punches when it came to revealing His identity. He was God in the flesh. He said it several times in many diffe...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Jewish Leaders (John 5:16-47)So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.” – John 5:16-17 (NLT)“God Is Always Working” There was a great story in the news a year or two ago about an amazing principal in South Carolina named Henry Darby. Henry came from a life of poverty...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)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.” Then the man went and told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who had healed him. – John 5:14-15 (NLT)“The Miracle After the Miracle” I was talking with a friend today at lunch about the miracle...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! But this miracle happened on the Sabbath, so the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, “You can’t work on the Sabbath! The law doesn’t allow you to carry that sleeping mat!” – John 5:9-10 (NLT)“God Is Bigger Than Your Box” I rememb...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! – John 5:8-9 (NLT)“Goodness, Grace, & Sovereignty” Goodness, grace, and sovereignty. Sometimes the reasons why God does what He does lie in those three attributes. Not because of OUR goodness. Not b...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” “I can’t, sir,” the sick man said, “for I have no one to put me into the pool when the water bubbles up. Someone else always gets there ahead of me.” – John 5:6-7 (NLT)“God Can!” Negativity and despair have a way of overtaking yo...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” – John 4:3-6 (NLT)“Would You Like to Get Well?” In 2018, a 68-year-old man by the name of Willia...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” – John 4:3-6 (NLT)“Not Your Turn Yet” I want to take one more look at this moment in our story. ...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” – John 4:3-6 (NLT)“Why Me?” I think my favorite musical is “Fiddler on the Roof.” Just saying th...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him and knew he had been ill for a long time, he asked him, “Would you like to get well?” – John 5:3-6 (NLT)“The Star of the Show” Have you ever seen or been to a major concert event or ...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15)Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches. – John 5:2-3 (NLT)“Our Common Pool” Last Sunday, when I came to church, I was tired, and my heart was heavy. It had been an exhausting week, and I was mentally, physically, em...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)Afterward Jesus returned to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish holy days. – John 5:1 (NLT)“Worship the Maker, Not the Method!” It’s funny to me how we often get so carried away in our thinking. For example, we think of Jesus as being a Revolutionary. And in many ways, He is. But taking that to the extreme means we think Jesus came to t...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)While the man was on his way, some of his servants met him with the news that his son was alive and well. He asked them when the boy had begun to get better, and they replied, “Yesterday afternoon at one o’clock his fever suddenly disappeared!” Then the father realized that that was the very time Jesus had told him, “Your son will l...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)The official pleaded, “Lord, please come now before my little boy dies.” Then Jesus told him, “Go back home. Your son will live!” And the man believed what Jesus said and started home. – John 4:49-50 (NLT)“Faith Walks” Are you a waiter or a walker? That’s my question for you today. Fear and doubt have a paralytic quality about them....

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die. Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?” – John 4:48 (NLT)“The Question Behind the Question” Jesus’ response to the man’s request for healing fo...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)As he traveled through Galilee, he came to Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. There was a government official in nearby Capernaum whose son was very sick. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die. – John 4:46-47 (NLT)“The ...

“It’s All About Jesus!”Jesus and the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, for they also had been there. – John 4:45 (NLT)“Special Place or Special God?” I’m preaching at two campmeetings this summer. One is in Northeast Ohio (July 21-28), and the other is in Southern Illinois (...