Written by Tom Giles
Mark 2:1-12
1 And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. 3 And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. 5 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12 And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”
Desperate times can cause one to take desperate measures. After the “9/11” attacks, we learned that millions of people began praying and attending church. People when overwhelmed with despair will often resort to a “higher power” to give them hope. We see in this passage from the book of Mark, four men, and their paralytic friend took desperate measures; climbing a house, cutting a hole in the roof, and lowering the paralytic down to Jesus by rope, with the hope that Jesus would heal this man. When Jesus saw the men’s genuine faith, He said to the paralytic; ‘Son, your sins are forgiven’(v5). It is amazing to see how Jesus recognizes and blesses genuine faith. However, it is even more amazing that Jesus addressed this man’s spiritual condition before addressing his physical condition. This can be quite convicting to us, as we often neglect our unrepentant, or ungrateful, hearts when we seek Jesus’ favor. In Psalm 51:17b it states, “a broken and contrite spirit, O God, you will not despise”
This passage in Mark also emphasizes Jesus’ desire to reveal and establish His divine authority, particularly over sin. However, this was resisted by the vengeful Pharisees who rebuked Jesus, claiming; “He is blaspheming, only God can forgive sins” (v7). Unfortunately, this type of rebuke is still seen in our world, and especially our culture today. We are being taught that all religions worship “the same god”, and that Jesus was just a good man, a wise teacher, but had no godly authority. We are also being taught that sin is “relative” and defined by one’s own moral standards.
Thankfully, those who know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, know that” All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom.3:23), and that, “His name is Jesus, and He will save the people from their sins” (Matt.1:21). We as Christ followers know that the God of the universe gave Jesus “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matt.28:18). We know that through Jesus’ death and resurrection “we have redemption through His blood for the forgiveness of our sins” (Eph.1:7). Jesus confirmed this truth to the Pharisees when He told them, “so that you may know that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins” (v10). Jesus finally demonstrated His divine authority to all the crowd when He healed the man’s paralysis while saying “I say to you, get up, pick up your bed, and go home” (12). Needless to say, “they were all amazed, and were glorifying God” (12).
The forgiveness of sins is Jesus’ greatest miracle to all humanity. A healed body will eventually perish upon death. However, a restored soul through Jesus Christ will live in eternity.
Prayer Prompts:
Ask God to remove obstacles in your life that hinder your faith from being expressed into action.
Worship and praise Jesus for His forgiveness of your sins, then ask for His power and grace to forgive others.
