Reflection: Use Somebody
"When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "son, your sins are forgiven."" Mark 2:5
Denny spoke on the story of the paralytic whose friends brought him to Jesus for healing. The man's community gathered around him to see to his ailment cured; and what did Christ do, but forgive his sins first, and then his body.
This man was carried on a mat, lowered down through a destroyed ceiling, and what does Jesus do? He recognizes the faith that the paralytic and his friends have, and forgives the paralytic's sin. That strikes me in a couple ways:
- As Denny said, the fact that Jesus said the man's sins are forgiven is blasphemous. Any Pharisee knows that sins can be covered, but only God Himself can forgive sins.
- Did Jesus see "their faith" because of the actions they took? Was it because of the combined effort that this man's sins were forgiven? Look again. In verse 8, it says that Jesus "knew what [the Pharisees] were thinking in their hearts."
"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond all cure. Who can understand it? 'I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct,
according to what his deeds deserve.'" Jeremiah 17:9-10
God sees into the hearts of his followers, and recognizes our faith. It is not because of the actions we take, because so often our prideful nature motivates us instead of true conviction. It is the spirit in which we move which causes God to smile down upon us.
This is why Denny chose conviction as the first characteristic to effectively lead others to Jesus. It takes the conviction from the Holy Spirit to pick up the first corner of the mat. Once the first man acted out of conviction, the second man saw the brokenness of his friend, and acted out of compassion. His heart was weighted with the sight of a dear friend's suffering. And when it came to getting their friend to Jesus, it took creativity to think of digging a hole in the roof. I mean honestly, that's totally MacGyver. In the spirit of cooperation, this community of believers was able to work together to bring their friend to Christ.
So, what's it gonna be? When you walk across the campus, around the houses and apartment complexes, and through the PCL, do you see the brokenness? Do you see the disabled souls dragging their sins behind them? The truth will set them free! Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to this earth to forgive our sins, and liberate us from death. He desires for all to know him: "How, then can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!'" Romans 10:14-15
It first takes a sower to plant the seeds of the gospel. Bring the good news!
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