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!"

 

 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 was 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 saw 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 them, "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'?  But 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 as soon as Jesus and his first 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.  Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was 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 saw 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 them, "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'?  But 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 comments that this healing shows us that faith is an indispensable condition for salvation.  It says that faith is collective as well as personal, for the faith of the paralytic's friends helped in his healing.  There are three signs shown here which indicate Christ's divinity:  first, He knows the secrets of hearts (see 1 Samuel 16:7, 2 Chronicles 6:30); second, He forgives sins, which is a power that belongs to God alone; and finally, He heals by the power of His word.  In addition, we see clearly that one purpose of Christ's coming into the world is to forgive sins, freeing humanity from this bondage.  My study Bible says that forgiving sins is a greater power than physical healing, for, as is correctly noted by the scribes, God alone can forgive sins.  Therefore, the easier task is to grant physical healing.  Although Christ is fully God, and holds the authority to forgive, He condescends to those who are gathered here and heals this man in order to draw people to God, whom they subsequently glorified.  

 

My study bible notes that because of the healing which Jesus condescends to perform, the people glorified God.   Of course, the healings in the Gospels as performed by Jesus are described as immediate, and astonishing.    But from a modern perspective, we might imagine a very difficult healing of paralysis, even one seemingly miraculous as it beats all odds of healing, as performed by doctors.  The question that arises for me is how often we think to glorify or to thank God for the things that happen, and for which we are grateful, in a modern context.  Clearly in this scene of the healing of the paralytic, it is Jesus who performs the healing.  But we are often tempted in a modern mindset to see nothing as coming from God or through the help of God.  In today's reading, it is the paralytic's friends who help him to come to Jesus.  These friends are often pictured as analogous to those who pray for us, friends who help us to come closer to God when we are incapable -- for whatever reason -- of praying for or helping ourselves.  We might be blind to our own problems, or possibly lost in a trap of addiction or some other malaise we don't even want to recognize.  But it is the prayers of others that help to free us from that bondage, and to come to healing.  It is surprising how effective prayer can be to help to bring someone to a new place where they can be healed.  Despite the development of medical progress, scientific endeavor, psychological help, and programs for all kinds of modern ailments, prayer is still at work helping us through it all, and it is still effective.  We are always going to be tempted to attribute every success story to some sort of modern material innovation, but we forget where hope, love, and care originate.  Twelve-step programs, which so frequently form the basis for healing from all kinds of addictions and work for recovery, are rooted in faith and stem from programs founded specifically through Christian faith.  If we look at the Twelve Steps, they are effectively a plan for putting repentance into action.  Our first hospitals and universities in the West began as institutions of the Church.  Walk into any hospital, and there will be a chapel for prayer.  While skilled surgeons and compassionate doctors and caregivers work to help heal without a doubt, we tend to forget how God works through people and through events, and that the power of prayer reaches into every endeavor.  Moreover, we know that God ministers to us through invisible means at all times, that "great cloud of witnesses" that is present with us in prayer.  Having been through several serious episodes with elderly family members in hospitals, I can only testify that it was the power of prayer which helped to renew and restore my energy so that I could petition doctors for what was necessary:  to take another look, to try another way.  It was prayer that gave me the peace to find the right time and the right way to say good-bye when that time came.  It was prayer that helped me make a connection with caregivers and medical specialists; and my prayer life helped me to discern when I needed to seek new help, and which help.  Through all this, there must be glory to God, and gratitude for all things in our lives.  In a modern world, it is quite tempting to see God as absent from the picture.  Possibly God is seen as the Master who winds up a clock that sets the universe in motion, and we human beings do the rest through our industriousness.  But the Gospels teach us something quite different, and our personal prayer lives will also teach us something quite other than that.  For ours is the personal God who became one of us, as close to us as we are to one another, experiencing all the joys and heartaches, and the pain and suffering, of our lives.  Our God is with us; let us always give God glory through all things.  As today's reading teaches, our God is closer to us than we know -- for God knows our hearts in places we don't even know ourselves.   It is this intimate personal God upon whom we rely, and who seeks to dwell with us and within us (Revelation 3:20).