Mark 2:1-12
Jesus very often, if not always, demonstrated the significance of his words by the miracles that he performed. For example, his claim to be the bread of life was amply demonstrated by his feeding of the great multitude with just a few loaves and fishes. His claim to be the light of the world was amply demonstrated by his giving sight to the blind.
His claim to be the resurrection and the life was amply demonstrated by his raising of Lazarus from the dead. In many ways, by both words and deeds, Jesus demonstrated that his claims were valid. In Mark chapter two, we see a marvellous example of what I mean.
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
Mark 2:1 A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralysed man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, Son, your sins are forgiven. 6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 Why does this fellow talk like that? He's blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone? 8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat 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 tell you, get up, take your mat and go home. 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, We have never seen anything like this! (New International Version)
There was, and is, only one person who can legitimately say to anyone "Your sins are forgiven," and that is the son of God. He is the only one who has power on earth to forgive sins. But of course it was so easy for Jesus to say that a person's sins were forgiven, but how much more difficult to persuade people that what he said had in fact taken place.
How could he convince a person who needed forgiveness that he had in fact now been forgiven?
And more than that, how could he persuade the sceptical scribes and Pharisees that he had the authority to forgive sins? There was one thing that he could do. Having declared that he, and he alone, had authority to forgive, he proved it by performing a miracle in the man's body.
Jesus asked "Is it easier to say your sins are forgiven, or to say arise and take up your bed"? So that the assembled people could see that he was indeed the son of God, and had the power to forgive, he therefore said to the cripple "Arise, take up your bed. Go your way home." Mark tells us that immediately the man was completely healed. The healing in the man's body proved the validity of Christ's claim to be the forgiver of sins, and it also proved the reality of the fact that the man's sins had been forgiven.
Let us now turn our attention to the man in the story. He suffered from what was called palsy. He is a picture of broken down humanity, of men and women who are without Christ, without God, without hope in wither this world or the next. The palsy was a form of creeping paralysis, and that aptly describes the spiritual condition of men and women who are apart from God. We can no doubt see many examples around us of the insidious nature of sin. The man was impotent, humanly speaking he was an incurable invalid. No doctor or medic of the time could provide him with any hope of relief from his illness.
Some of the man's friends carried him to Jesus in the hope that he would perform one of his celebrated miracles. When they arrived, they found to their consternation that the crowd of people around the doorway of the house would not let them take their friend into the presence of Jesus. So, they uncovered part of the roof, and let him down at the master's feet.
Can we begin to imagine the scene? The crowds, hanging on every word of Jesus, suddenly disturbed by the intrusion. The householder concerned for the safety of his house after the men had removed part of the roof. The critical words of the scribes and Pharisees. The pardoning word of the master. The miracle which followed.
As we see the sick man carried into the presence of Jesus, can we notice three things?
1) Notice the many who hindered.
Mark tells us that there were many people stopping the friends from taking the sick man into the presence of Jesus. This was natural enough. If we had been in the village on that day we too would have been eager to hear the teacher from Nazareth. The very fact that the Lord was there was enough to draw a large crowd. But this large crowd was a hindrance to the sick man.
In the time of our Lord, the disciples hindered the mothers from bringing their children to Jesus. Another crowd hindered blind Bartimaus from reaching Jesus. There were also many who would have hindered the woman who anointed the feet of the master, claiming that such an action was a waste. But in this case the real hindrance to the sick man was not in fact the crowd, but the religious leaders, proud, critical people.
Unfortunately there are many people today who wither consciously or unconsciously hinder others from coming to the Lord. People who, in spite of their profession of Christianity, are really spiritually dead, or are lacking in discernment and sensitivity. It is not the atheists, agnostic, nor even the humanists who are the greater hinderers to the progress of the gospel message. It is the modern day scribes and Pharisees, those who are church-oriented, religious, denominationally proud, but who are not true Christians, that hinder. There are many people whose lives are characterised by religious respectability, but they are devoid of the love and life of God within them.
I think that story of the sick man has much to say to us, much to warn us against. If there is one thing above all others which we Christians must be trying to do, it is to help others to come to the Saviour so that they might know him for themselves. We must be on our guard that we do not either intentionally or unintentionally hinder the progress of the gospel message to lost, seeking souls.
The many who hindered.
2) Notice the few who helped.
It is lovely to read how the man's friends helped him into the presence of Jesus. If the sick man had to rely upon the scribes and Pharisees, he would never have been healed, either in body or spirit. But there were just a few friends who were willing to help him, a few people deeply concerned about him, willing to give up time in planning the venture, willing to expend energy to carry him to the house where Jesus talked, willing to use their ingenuity to overcome difficulties in order to realise their plan to place their friend at the feet of the master.
Of the many who come to know the Saviour, there must be very few indeed who have not been helped by some friend or acquaintance to come to Jesus. Of course, I know that the salvation of the soul belongs to God alone, but I am sure that his method is to use men and women, boys and girls for reaching out helping hands to seeking souls.
The men who brought their friend BELIEVED that Jesus could heal him. They had no doubts about the success of their mission, and Jesus saw their faith. Jesus also sees whether or not we have concern for others, whether we have faith that God can save them. Those men, with their limited knowledge, had faith to take the first steps towards getting their friend healed.
Have we faith to take that crucial first step in bringing others to Jesus? Are we willing to give of our time and energy to helping the Holy Spirit to reach souls? Are we willing to co-operate with others to bring people to Jesus? What amazing excuses we often make for not doing anything to help others. How easy it is to make real or imaginary obstacles to prevent us from getting on with the job. How impossible it would have been for the early church to spread if the first disciples had kept the goo news to themselves.
The many who hindered. The few who helped.
3) Notice the one who healed.
It is right that we should notice the crowd who hindered the sick man, it is right that we should notice the few friends who helped him, but best of all we should centre our thoughts on the one who healed him, The Lord Jesus himself,
Jesus is the searcher of hearts. He not only knew that the religious leaders were watching him, he knew quite well what they were thinking. He is, of course, the omniscient one, the all-knowing one from whom no thought is hidden. And he knows all there is to know about each one of us.
Jesus is the forgiver of sins. He did not just deal with the man's physical condition, he attacked the real root cause of the man's problems. He forgave him his sins. Only God can forgive sins. All our law keeping, all our religious activities cannot save us. Only God can.
Jesus is the conqueror of disease and death. After the Lord had granted pardon for sins, he said to the man "Arise, take up your bed and walk." And Mark tells us that immediately the man did just that. All the people were absolutely amazed.
That day Jesus conquered the disease of the sick man. Just a few short months later he was to die on calvary.Through his dying on calvary, our Lord finally conquered disease, death, and every kind of evil. We look forward with faith and hope to the day when "God shall wipe away every tear from our eyes, and there will be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain ... for the former things will pass away."
The many who hindered. The few who helped. The one who healed.
Let us take the message to heart. Let us make it our earnest prayer that we never, either through carelessness or thoughtlessness, by either word or deed, or in any other way, hinder a soul from coming to Christ the healer.
Let us pray that we may ever be conscious of the supreme importance of helping others to come to Christ the Healer. And above all, let us rejoice that we have such a wonderful Saviour who knows all about us, who loves us just the same, and who has made full provision for our pardon and deliverance from the power of sin and evil.
Let us remember the many who hindered, let us remember the few who helped, but, best of all, let us remember the one who healed.