It Can Get Better From Here — Sermon Recap | The Bridge Church Hampton, VA
Series: The Answer Scripture: John 5:1–9 Preacher: Pastor Edwin Jones
Thirty-eight years is a long time to be stuck.
That's how long the man at the Pool of Bethesda had been lying there — waiting, hoping, watching others get what he couldn't seem to get for himself. Whatever he had tried, it hadn't worked. Whatever help he needed, it hadn't come. And at some point, being stuck stops feeling like a season and starts feeling like just the way things are.
That was the backdrop for this week's message at The Bridge Church in Hampton, VA, as Pastor Edwin Jones kicked off our new series, The Answer, with a word from John 5:1–9 titled "It Can Get Better From Here."
The Question Nobody Expected
When Jesus arrives at the pool, He doesn't walk past the man. He stops. And the first thing He says isn't an offer of healing — it's a question: "Do you want to get well?"
On the surface it sounds almost insensitive. Of course the man wants to get well. He's been lying here for 38 years. But the question is doing something important. Jesus isn't asking about his condition — He already knows the condition. He's asking about the man's will. His orientation. Whether some part of him, after almost four decades of this, still believes that things could be different.
It's a question worth sitting with. Not just for the man at the pool, but for anyone who has been in the same hard place long enough that they've stopped expecting a way out.
The Man's Answer Says Everything
The man doesn't say yes. He gives Jesus an explanation — the reason things haven't worked out, the people who weren't there when he needed them, the way others always seemed to get ahead of him. It's not a bad answer. It's an honest one. It's what happens when hope has been deferred long enough that you've replaced it with a story about why things can't change.
Jesus doesn't argue with the explanation. He doesn't try to fix the man's perspective first. He just speaks: "Get up. Pick up your mat and walk."
And the man does.
What This Means for the Rest of Us
The healing at Bethesda is remarkable not just because of what Jesus did, but because of who He did it for. The man wasn't expecting Jesus. He wasn't pursuing Him. He wasn't even in a position to follow Him into the pool. He was just lying there — stuck, honest about his circumstances, and not particularly hopeful.
And Jesus came to him anyway.
That's the thread running through this new series. Whatever question you're carrying — about your life, your circumstances, your faith — Jesus is The Answer. Not an answer to be discovered after you've cleaned yourself up or figured out how to have enough faith. The Answer that meets you exactly where you are.
Thirty-eight years wasn't too long. Your situation isn't too far gone. It can get better from here.
Watch the Full Message
Catch "It Can Get Better From Here" on our Messages page or on YouTube.
Join us this Sunday as we continue The Answer series. We meet every Sunday at 8:15, 10:00, and 11:45 AM at 35 Tide Mill Lane, Hampton, VA 23666. Plan your visit here.