The gospel of Mark is one of the biographies of Jesus’ life. Mark gets straight to the ministry of Jesus and here in chapter 2, we see that Jesus is preaching the words of life to a packed house as the place was filled to overflowing. Jesus was gaining a lot of attention as people were being healed everywhere he went.
They knew
that Jesus was the only hope, He had a ministry of healing and they needed a
miracle
(The following is comprised with thoughts from Josh Monen)
What happens
when you or someone very close to you has a need. A need that only Jesus can meet? A need
that can only be met by a miracle?
Without oversimplifying, I've discovered that there are two basically different mindsets on this as it relates to people who call themselves Christians.
Without oversimplifying, I've discovered that there are two basically different mindsets on this as it relates to people who call themselves Christians.
The first
teaches that you can, and should, press in for breakthroughs. And even if
circumstances seem really dire and bleak, you still contend for it and believe
in God’s power to overcome and see the breakthrough.
The second
is more of a passive approach. This belief system teaches that God will move in
His own time and there is nothing we can do to influence Him to move. And really, the
breakthrough is not what’s important anyway, what’s more important is
“accepting” that God has ordained these circumstances and that they are all
part of a bigger plan...
Now, I have
a real problem with the second mindset. I believe it’s this kind of
thinking that has hurt a lot in Christian circles. Why is this? Well, when we are not allowed to press
in for breakthrough we are sentenced to a life where circumstances become our
lord instead of the Lord.
OK, let's look at this amazing story in Mark 2
2 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.”
Four friends bring their paralyzed friend to
the meeting where Jesus was. They could not get in through the front door so
they dug a hole in the roof and then let down their friend through the hole.
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. Mark 2:3-4
And what did
Jesus say when He saw this?
When Jesus
saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” Mark 2:5
First of all, he admires the boldness of the friends and He rewards their faith. It is amazing to see that our collective faith makes a huge difference.
So, here is what He didn't do... Jesus didn't rebuke them for their “works”.
Did He remind them it is God alone who has the power to heal and in “His time” He would do it, “if He was willing”? Did He stop the meeting and point to the men and teach everyone that man can do nothing and these presumptuous men should learn to “wait on God” instead of taking matters into their own hands?
First of all, he admires the boldness of the friends and He rewards their faith. It is amazing to see that our collective faith makes a huge difference.
So, here is what He didn't do... Jesus didn't rebuke them for their “works”.
Did He remind them it is God alone who has the power to heal and in “His time” He would do it, “if He was willing”? Did He stop the meeting and point to the men and teach everyone that man can do nothing and these presumptuous men should learn to “wait on God” instead of taking matters into their own hands?
No. He did
none of that.
Instead the
Bible says, “When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your
sins are forgiven you.”
Why are we
afraid of being bold?
Wow! What these four friends did was
considered an act of faith and Jesus honored them and healed the man. Where is
this kind of teaching in the church today? Why are we so fearful of being
accused of “taking matters into our own hands” and approaching God?
The Bible
teaches us to approach His throne with confidence and boldness in Hebrews 4:19 This does not
mean we are arrogant or full of pride. We desperately need to understand the
difference between arrogance and boldness.
We need to understand faith and works.
We need to understand faith and works.
Of course we
cannot perform miracles on our own. Nor can human will power take the place of
God’s power. But we can exercise our will and our faith so that we can achieve
breakthroughs with God.
Does that
make sense?
Those men
believed something and that belief led them to overcome any obstacles in their
way. They did not look at the problem of a full meeting and say, “God must have
other plans for our friend.” No, they said, “We will get our friend to Jesus
and we’ll do whatever it takes.”
Whatever it
takes
Jesus Christ
is perfect theology. He is a perfect representation of Father God. If He
commended these men for their faith this should encourage us not to back down
when we are seeking breakthroughs of our own and for those we love.
Josh Monen
Josh Monen
TAKEAWAY
Let’s BE BOLD and really trust God for the
miracles, believe that He still heals, He still speaks and wants to be involved
in our lives, in the big things and little things.
