In John 5, we are told of a man who was paralyzed for 38 years. We are not given his age nor any of the details of his time at the pool of Bethesda. What we are told is all we need to know.
Jesus not only saw this man, but He sees us right where we are and He knows how long we have been in our situation. The man knows that there is nothing he can do for himself to fix his condition. We see that the man’s faith in Jesus is what healed him.
We can learn from this illustration that God knows, God is able, God has a plan, and God has perfect timing.
John 5:2-3 (ESV)
2 Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Aramaic called Bethesda, which has five roofed colonnades.
3 In these lay a multitude of invalids—blind, lame, and paralyzed.
John 5:5-9 (ESV)
5 One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.
6 When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be healed?”
7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.”
8 Jesus said to him, “Get up, take up your bed, and walk.”
9 And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked. Now that day was the Sabbath.