Posts
And again He entered Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that He was in the house. Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door. And He preached the word to them. Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who as carried by four men. And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus was their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you." And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, "Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?" But immediately, when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves, He said to the, "Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise, take up your bed and walk'? Bu that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins" -- He said to the paralytic, "I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!"
- Mark 2:1-12
Yesterday, we read that after Jesus and His disciples had come out of the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. But Simon's wife's mother lay sick with a fever, and they told Him about her at once. So He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and immediately the fever left her. And she served them. At evening, when the sun had set, they brought to Him all who were sick and those who were demon-possessed. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. Then He healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He did not allow the demons to speak, because they knew Him. Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed. And Simon and those who were with Him searched for Him. When they found Him, they said to Him, "Everyone is looking for You." But He said to them, "Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth." And He was preaching in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and casting out demons. Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, "If You are willing, You can make me clean." Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, "I am willing; be cleansed." As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. And He strictly warned him and sent him away at once, and said to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing those things which Moses commanded, as a testimony to them. However, he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the matter, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter the city, but was outside in deserted places; and they came to Him from every direction.
And again He entered Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that He was in the house. Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door. And He preached the word to them. My study bible points out that Jesus preached anywhere there were people who wanted to hear and learn: "in the synagogue, on the mountain, on the plain, and here in a house." It's an essential part of His ministry, and healing or any other sign is rarely outside the context of preaching the gospel of the Kingdom.
Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who as carried by four men. And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus was their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, your sins are forgiven you." My study bible also tells us that today's entire passage is read in the Eastern Church on the second Sunday of Lent, so its timing here for us is a good one. It notes a threefold symbolism in preparation for Easter: "(1) We must come to Christ in faith and let Him heal us of our spiritual paralysis. Sin is a paralysis of the soul. (2) We should let nothing deter us from getting to Christ, who alone can heal us, both in body and in soul. (3) We must help each other come to Christ."
And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, "Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?" In Scripture, the heart denotes consciousness, the center of who we are, including the will and reason. My study bible says that the scribes are correct in saying that only God can forgive sins; in this sense, they're unwittingly confirming Jesus' divine identity.
But immediately, when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves, He said to the, "Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Arise, take up your bed and walk'? Bu that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins" -- He said to the paralytic, "I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!" My study bible tells us that the point of Jesus' saying "Which is easier?" isn't to claim that one is easier than the other. Rather, the one who can, by mere verbal command, heal physical paralysis is also able to forgive sins.
What I'm most struck by in this passage is the reflection of the "help from friends" that it takes sometimes to get the kind of healing we need. Often this is likened to intercessory prayer, in which we pray for one another, and we help bring one another "closer to God." We can pray for one another, a group can pray for one person -- it really doesn't matter. But what prayer teaches us is how we are linked together, and the significance of the heart (as mentioned in the text) is critical here. Christ perceives what is in the heart of the scribes in today's reading, and He's also known as the "heart-knower." In Scripture, as my study bible pointed out, the heart is the center of consciousness, the epicenter, if you will, of who we are. In that kingdom of the heart, where we really dwell, is also the place where love is, and where we choose what we love. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21, Luke 12:34). The heart is the place where we allow the Kingdom to work in us, or where we hold ourselves back from this place of receiving. It seems to be an intersection, where time and space don't matter, and our prayers of the heart can link us both with Christ (and the Father and the Spirit) as well as with those for whom and with whom we pray. The communion of saints teaches us that this place of prayer also is one where time and space don't matter, as we pray for those far away, for those who have passed, and we call on the saints to pray with us and intercede for us as well. If we think about the heart, then, as the center of who we are, today's story reflects something more deep than meets the eye: what is it that we hold in our hearts? Today we read about friends who go even to the trouble of lowering their friend through the roof -- they do whatever it takes to get to Jesus. I think this reflects also the creativity and persistence the Lord asks of us in prayer, as we endeavor to do all we can, to find any ways, to get to Him, to make that effort and to use all of our resources, including our God-given creativity, to do so. If the heart contains all that we are, including "reason and will," as my study bible says, then His challenge as He draws us toward Him is to use every capacity we're given to do so. And, on the other hand, we see what blocks that action, and where paralysis can also be a part of the heart, something to overcome, or that keeps us from going forward and receiving. On the heart there really are no seeming limits to what can be done, how we are in communion and relationship to one another through Him. Let us take today's story with its creative and inventive perspective "to heart" and consider the ways in which we may be related to one another via this place of prayer in the heart, where He dwells with us and is also with the Father and the Spirit. If we go back to the prayer at the Last Supper, we remember His words: "That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us" and "That the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them." The intersection of all of these things: the Trinity, and those for whom and with whom we pray, is in the heart. But so are the roadblocks we put up, the paralysis we may find in ourselves. Let us consider how we are linked through prayer, the condition of the heart, and what we may do if we let nothing stop us from the fullness of God's love.
