We all know God works in mysterious ways! I feel that way many weeks when I see the message God gives me to share with you. For whatever reason, God has pointed me to the message I sent you exactly a year ago on October 22, 2021. So I am sending you that message again. I hope you enjoy it ….. again!
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Max Lucado is one of my favorite Christian authors. I recently found a book he wrote about 25 years ago on my bookshelf titled He Still Moves Stones and have been reading it again. I came across an interesting chapter in the book and God told me to share it with you. The title of the chapter is The Hardest Thing God Ever Did with the subheadingUnderstanding God’s Priority. The story is based on the following scripture:
Mark 2:1-12 – A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
In this story, crowds are gathering because they heard Jesus is coming. They had all heard of the miracles Jesus had already done, so a group of men brought a paralyzed man to Him for healing. They had to go to great extremes to get him through the crowd to be in the presence of Jesus but were successful by lowering him down through the roof of the building where Jesus was going to preach. Imagine their excitement when they were able to get this man in the presence of Jesus!
Then imagine their disappointment when Jesus said to the man “Son, your sins are forgiven.” They brought this man for physical healing which they knew Jesus could do. But only God could forgive their sins. So Jesus responded to their questioning hearts with a question in verse 9 – Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?
It is certainly easier for someone to claim to forgive your sins than to actually heal a paralyzed person. But it is much more important to have your eternal soul healed than your decaying body. So when the crowd is questioning Jesus’ claim to forgiveness for the man, the crowd is disappointed. Then Jesus also tells the man to take up his mat and walk, and he amazes the crowd when he does just that, and they are astonished.
Max then says The request of the friends is valid – but timid. The expectations of the crowd are high – but not high enough. They expect Jesus to say, “I heal you.” Instead he says, “I forgive you.” They expect Him to treat the body, for that is what they see. He chooses to treat not only the body, but also the spiritual, for that is what He sees. They want Jesus to give the man a new body so he can walk. Jesus gives grace so the man can live. Remarkable. Sometimes God is so touched by what He sees that He gives us what we need and not simply that for which we ask.
Max continues to show that the command to heal was actually the simpler command. Max says To heal the man’s body took a simple command. To forgive the man’s sins took Jesus’ blood. The first was done in the house of friends; the second on a hill with thieves. One took a word; the other took His body. One took a moment; the other took His life. Which was easier?
He is here today for us just as He was there in Capernaum. He looks at all of us just as he looked at the paralyzed man just waiting for us to ask Him for help … to any person anywhere who dares to come into the presence of God and ask for help. And though we can’t hear it here, the angels can hear Him there. All of heaven must pause as another burst of love declares the only words that really matter: “Your sins are forgiven.”