6 Some of the teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this man say things like that? He is speaking as if he were God. Only God can forgive sins.” 8 Jesus knew immediately what these teachers of the law were thinking. So he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to tell this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to tell him, ‘Stand up. Take your mat and walk’? 10 But I will prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So Jesus said to the paralyzed man, 11 “I tell you, stand up, take your mat, and go home.” 12 Immediately the paralyzed man stood up, took his mat, and walked out while everyone was watching him. The people were amazed and praised God. They said, “We have never seen anything like this!” ~ Mark 2:6-12
Today, we return to our study of the gospel according to Mark. And, in today's passage, we return to the story of the paralyzed man whom the Lord Jesus did not initially heal. In fact, the Lord Jesus first addressed the source of all sickness which is sin. And, in order for this man to fully appreciate the physical healing the Lord Jesus was going to grant him, he needed to know first the healing of his soul. So, the Lord Jesus told him he was forgiven of his sins.
Notice that these "men of God" saw the Lord Jesus as a mere man. This is why they asked this question, they had limited knowledge of the Lord Jesus' identity. Graciously, on the heels of this miracle, the Lord Jesus employs the description of "Son of Man" to identify Himself.
We learn from Daniel 7:13-14, this description of "Son of Man" was a designation used for the coming Messiah. By using that title of Himself, the Lord Jesus clearly made a Messianic claim. And, as the Son of Man, He claimed authority to forgive sins. And only God can forgive sins.
The "religious leaders" questioned the claim of the Lord Jesus. This is the problem of all who live on this earth and are not forgiven of their sin: They go to the wrong place with their questions. And, even though you and I are "born again," we have been known to take our questions to the wrong place. Most lack the humility to ask the One who made all because sin has instilled in all of us such arrogance that blinds us to His reality.
All through my life, I have stumbled among many questions, as I am sure you have, as well. At a young age, I was reluctant to take those questions to God because I lacked a personal relationship with Him. We do not trust what we do not know.
As you probably know, I came to faith in the Lord Jesus just one month short of my eighteenth birthday through my dad's death. And, due to the fact that my mom died when I was five years of age, I knew I needed help. So, I cried out to God. Over time I learned God not only exists, He is involved in my life. And, I discovered that as I escorted the questions of life to Him, He answered. And, the more I did this, the more I got to know Him. I found myself, over many years, becoming more and more familiar with God, His way of thinking, and His culture. What kept me going all of these years has been God assuring me that I was on the right track. He let me know fairly shortly after I became a Christian that He had a plan for me and all I had to do was to respond to the revelation that He gave me.
In v.8-9 of today's passage we read, "8 Jesus knew immediately what these teachers of the law were thinking. So he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to tell this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to tell him, ‘Stand up. Take your mat and walk’?"
We live in a world that doesn’t attribute its problems to sin. Denial, however, doesn’t make sin go away. Many who deny the existence of sin think the problem is ignorance and the answer is education. They reason that if everyone were educated, the world’s problems would go away. But, some of the smartest people commit the most heinous crimes.
Some of us deal with sin with self-condemning thoughts. Nothing cripples like shame and guilt. We don’t trust the Lord Jesus to deal with our sins; therefore, we punish ourselves. All we succeed in doing this, however, is feeling bad about ourselves. There is a good aspect to guilt, though. Guilt is the nerve ending of the soul. It can serve to drive us to the Lord.
Some of us prefer self-help. We recognize some inadequacy in ourselves and resolve to do better. Or we are over inflated in our abilities and we discover, at some point, we do not know everything. Or, we brilliantly get to the place where we go to God with our questions.
It is only the Lord Jesus who can effectively address our real problems. The forgiveness that He offers works its way into our hearts to liberate us in the deepest parts of our being. Only the Lord Jesus can offer God’s forgiveness. Just as He exposed the flawed reasoning of these religious leaders, the Lord Jesus also challenges our faulty methods of dealing with sin. He shows us, through His Holy Spirit and His Word, the ineffectiveness of our solutions.
Oftentimes, God allows sin to do its life-wrecking work in us so that we might turn to Him. The real problem is that we’re sinners, and the real solution is His forgiveness.
In v.10-11 of today's passage we read, "10 But I will prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So Jesus said to the paralyzed man, 11 “I tell you, stand up, take your mat, and go home."
After addressing the religious leaders, the Lord Jesus resumes giving his full attention to the paralyzed man. In v.11, He commands him to get up and go home so that the religious leaders and everyone else can see that he has been healed. The man’s healing served as confirmation for all who could see that his sins had been forgiven.
After addressing the religious leaders, the Lord Jesus resumes giving his full attention to the paralyzed man. In v.11, He commands him to get up and go home so that the religious leaders and everyone else can see that he has been healed. The man’s healing served as confirmation for all who could see that his sins had been forgiven.
In v.12 of today's passage we read, "Immediately the paralyzed man stood up, took his mat, and walked out while everyone was watching him. The people were amazed and praised God. They said, “We have never seen anything like this!"
This paralyzed man pictures all of us. We were all dead in our sins, paralyzed by our sinful condition. Guilt, manifesting itself in the feeling that we’re not good enough, paralyzes us. It makes us think, “Why even try?” But we who believe in Christ have died with Him and have been raised to a new life through Him.
The Lord Jesus, through forgiveness and the gift of the Spirit, enables us to know the restorative love of God. The Lord Jesus said God would raise him from the dead. Those who doubt whether forgiveness of sins comes through Jesus Christ might investigate, with an open mind and heart, whether he rose from the dead. The resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ IS THE SURE SIGN that the Lord Jesus has dealt effectively with sin, and those who believe in him are the children of God.
