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?"

 

 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 the others 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 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 the 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."   My study Bible comments that what we can observe here is that faith is an indispensable condition for salvation.  This scene teaches us that faith is collective as well as personal, as the faith of the paralytic's friends helped in his healing. 

 

 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!"  One of the purposes of Christ's coming into the world is to forgive sins, my study Bible notes, thus freeing humanity from its bondage.  It notes that to forgive sins is a greater power than physical healing.  As the scribes correctly note here, God alone can forgive sins.  Therefore the easier task is to grant physical healing.  Although Christ is fully God an holds the authority to forgive, He condescends to those who are gathered in this crowded house and heals the man in order to draw people to God, whom they all glorified God.   Additionally my study Bible also comments on three signs of Jesus' divinity shown here.  First, He knows the secrets of hearts (see 1 Samuel 16:7; 2 Chronicles 6:30).  Second, He forgive sins, which is a power that belongs to God alone.  And finally, He heals here by the power of His word.

 

 One of the notable comments on today's reading in my study Bible mentions a sign that Christ is divine, in the fact that He knows what is in people's hearts.  It cites 1 Samuel 16:7 as a Scriptural reference to this, which describes the time when the Prophet Samuel went to anoint a new king, guided by God's instructions.  The verse reads, "But the Lord said to Samuel, 'Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.'"  Jesus knows what is in the hearts of the scribes, for the text tells us that He perceived it in His spirit.  Of course, as Christ is the Lord, there are none who can claim an equal capacity for perception of the heart.  But this attribute of knowing in His spirit on the part of Christ is one that sometimes attributed to saints, and this is particularly so in Orthodox tradition.   It is a gift of grace, a gift of the Spirit, shared as other spiritual graces are shared -- but of course, not to the extent of Christ's understanding.  And yet, we can observe in some traditions this "knowing" on the part of older and experienced saints in particular, often those who are called "elders" and to whom many are drawn for help and advice.  Especially within the monastic tradition, the ascetics of this type of life are designed to reveal the truth of one's own heart.  This means, in particular to find the places where we are spiritually vulnerable, given more or less easily to temptation.  Fasting practices teach one about vulnerability to various desires.  This does not simply apply to food, but we should keep in mind that during traditional fasts (such as the forty-day period of Lent before Easter, in imitation of Christ's time of fasting and temptation; see Matthew 4:1-11), we are also guided to fast from many other things and passions, such as, for example, gossip and backbiting.  In modern times, it has become a common practice to refrain in whole or in part from social media as a Lenten practice, and we can each name a number of harmful things we're tempted to by social media.  The true purpose of all forms of spiritual discipline is to come to know the self, so that we may practice repentance or "change of mind" as the word literally means in Greek (metanoia/μετανοια).  But perhaps even more importantly in this context, we can't possibly understand others without first coming to understand ourselves -- especially in this sense of knowing our flaws and seeking to change more toward the image and likeness of God in which we are created, and which is modeled for us in the life of Jesus.  In Matthew 7 (part of the Sermon on the Mount), Jesus teaches, "Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.  And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye?  Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye" (Matthew 7:1-5).  These words of Christ to His disciples clearly allude to this principle of coming to know oneself and wrestling with our own weaknesses and vulnerabilities to temptation and sin of all kinds.  For how else could they become teachers of others without first removing the "plank" in their own eye, in order to know and help remove the "speck" in another's?  What results from a blindness to our own hearts and our own flaws is the phenomenon known as "projection."  In our own blindness to ourselves, we project our flaws onto others, and see the "evil" we carry in those other people.  We can see this happening all around us, and one only has to take a look at social media to understand modern forms of the kind of hypocrisy and false judgment condemned by Christ.  When we observe such things, it tells about the failure to value humility and the capacity to come to know our own flaws -- and especially to practice compassion in the light of such truths.  When we fail to follow Christ's teachings, such flawed and socially harmful behavior -- this harsh judgment -- becomes a part of our currency.  We run the danger of it becoming "normal" to us, and something in which we willingly participate and introduce to others through our own flawed behavior.  When the world loses track of the "better yardstick" which faith gives us by which to measure ourselves, then the whole of the community and society loses, for sin works this way.  Let us consider the importance of our own awareness of ourselves, and the practices designed to lead us toward better self-knowledge and spiritual growth in the light of Christ, and the grace He brings to us.  For it is only in this sort of humility that we can become "great."  It is there we find ourselves as we need to be, and the road toward the life to which He calls us, and the spiritual fruit that is ours to produce.