1A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4Since 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 paralyzed man was lying on. 5When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
6Now 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?"
8Immediately 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? 9Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, take your mat and walk'? 10But 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." 12He 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!"
Mark 2:1-12 (suggested reading in The Mag, June Issue, pg. 27)
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I don't know about you, but I find it pretty amazing that the paralytic's friends cared for him enough to go to extreme measures to get him to Jesus.
Imagine carrying a paralyzed adult, which amounts to around 150 pounds of dead weight, any distance. Now imagine figuring out a way to get him onto the roof of a house. Then imagine figuring out how to create a large opening in the roof of the house (albeit it a much less durable roof than today's American homes). And finally imagine having to lower him into the house in such a way that no one got hurt! That's pretty remarkable focus and determination...for a friend.
While it's safe to assume that most of us will never be faced with a situation such as the one in this story, it's also safe to assume that all of us will be met with circumstances in which we are compelled to go to extreme measures for our friends (or family members).
A friend may lose a parent to divorce, sickness, death, or disease and may be very angry with God. Another friend may haphazardly experiment with drugs or alcohol and suddenly find herself addicted. Yet another friend may feel lonely and doubt that she is loved or may see the injustices of this world and rage against them. Or another may live in an abusive home and see no ray of hope for the future.
Jesus Christ, Prince of Peace, Repairer of Broken Walls, is that hope that all of us need.
Jesus Christ, God with us, shows us in this passage that he has the power to work in our lives even when we cannot see. Can we literally see when sins have been forgiven? Can we literally see the moment when attitudes and hearts change? No! But we can see when someone is physically healed. And that's what Jesus did. Through physical healing, he demonstrated, or made manifest, his ability to heal the soul. He made clear the power of his being!
So I guess the question for us becomes: 1) Do we believe in Christ's power to transform lives? and 2) Will we go to extraordinary efforts to introduce our friends to Christ--not just in words--but in steady, patient, present, life-changing action?
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