Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man
1 When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. 2 Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, 3 four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. 4 They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. 5 Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.”
6 But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, 7 “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!”
8 Jesus knew immediately what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you question this in your hearts? 9 Is it easier to say to the paralyzed man ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk’? 10 So I will prove to you that the Son of Man[a] has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, 11 “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”
12 And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, “We’ve never seen anything like this before!”
Jesus Calls Levi (Matthew)
13 Then Jesus went out to the lakeshore again and taught the crowds that were coming to him. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Levi got up and followed him.
15 Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were many people of this kind among Jesus’ followers.) 16 But when the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees[b] saw him eating with tax collectors and other sinners, they asked his disciples, “Why does he eat with such scum?[c]”
17 When Jesus heard this, he told them, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”
To think about:
Mark and Matthew indicate that Jesus called Capernaum home. It lies on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. It could have been Jesus' the base of operations after leaving Nazareth, a small town in the mountains. Capernaum is reported to have been the home of Peter, Andrew, James and John, and the tax collector called Levi or Matthew.
Jesus forgives the paralytic his sins and then tells him to, "Stand up and walk!" The ancients believed that all sickness was caused by sin. Sin burdens us to the point of physical and mental pain and disability. Have you ever witnessed anyone miraculously healed?
Jesus calls Levi, a notorious tax collector and sinner to be his disciple. None of the 12 disciples were the "type" that were typically chosen to be the disciples of Rabbis. What does this say about Jesus and the his relationship he has with you? Go to http://www.faithlovestheworld.blogspot.com/ to add your comments on this scripture and to read what others have written.
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When I read the 1st story I am always so impressed that the paralyzed man had such good friends that they would go to that much trouble to help him!! That alone, it would seem, would help the man.
ReplyDeleteAs to your comment about Jesus choosing a different type of follower...Thank God that is the way He is! Through His love and grace He sees us...there is never a need to pretend or to show off to God. His love is complete and unconditional. What a blessing!
Thank God Jesus hangs out with "scum" like me.
ReplyDeleteThank God he has a heart that thinks like Jesus
ReplyDeleteactions and attitudes.
Carole
I wonder what binds us more: our sin or our inability to accept forgiveness...or is that the same thing?
ReplyDeleteJim, I think our sin puts us in the same boat. The inability to accept forgiveness is what keeps us apart b/c we begin jockeying for position, esteem, respect, dignity, whatever - to hold other people down. Brennan Manning says in Ragamuffin Gospel, "The poor in spirit are the most nonjudgmental of peoples; they get along well with sinners." That's not an approval of a lifestyle but an acceptance of the reality that each of us are addicted to something that controls us - be it alcohol, power, sex, revenge, food, gossip, or whatever. I am working on this idea that the power of sin in someone's life stops only when they are "permitted" to do it within a relationship and they see the strain that it presents in the relationship by doing it. I have more thoughts on that but that's the basic thought. Stay tuned for my book...lol.
ReplyDeleteI really get the messages about healing, the relationship of pain, faith and healing through faith. I understand this at many levels and recognize it in my daily life often. I have lots of hurts stuck in me. Hanging out with Jesus helps heal them. Many wounds have been healed becasue friends have dropped me down thru the ceiling. OK, sometimes I fell flat on my face. But that was because I was squirming around on the matt or hanging on too tight or too busy whining and not listening to directions. I'm a lousy patient. Sometimes a Tylonel just isn't enough.
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