This miracle focuses more on faith than some other events. Faith is important in every aspect of our lives, but in this account it becomes the focus more so because of the audience and the events taking place. In reading this story, I get stuck on these words about Jesus.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. (Mark 2:5)
Faith is not merely believing that God can work things out, but that God is the only solution. Because of this, we must have the attitude to do whatever it takes to gain access to him so that his miraculous work can be performed. For these men, the crowd and building needed to be overcome in order for access be made to Jesus. For us and the trials that we face, the obstacles may be drastically different. Nonetheless, we must overcome obstacles to our faith so that our faith may be seen and the petitions of it may be experienced.
Did you ever wonder why Jesus, who knew that these men were bringing a crippled person to him for healing, did not meet and teach in a different location so that they could more easily access him? I guess the answer to that may be that he wanted others to see their faith and recognize the results that their faith brought.
Many years ago while working in the steel mill, I was sitting in the shop waiting for an assignment. The men were talking around the table and the term "born again Christian" came up. At that time I did not know Christ and everybody around me knew that my life was as vile as they come. I asked, "What's a born again Christian?" I was told that it is a person who gives all of his money to the church. Well, I was taken back and thought that I would have gotten a better answer than that. I wrote it off that they didn't really know what they were talking about. Needless to say, less than a year later I would become a Christian. My transformed life would be on display for all who knew me before. Just as the lost sat in the house, saw Jesus recognize people's faith and then perform a miracle, the lost men in the shop saw the same. They didn't like it, but they couldn't get away from it. They may have despised Jesus, but they could not explain away what he had done in my life.
Several years later, I sat and talked with a man who was my foreman at that previous time. In conversation he remarked that back at that time, I was basically worthless as a worker, but had somehow turned into a good one."
Remember, Jesus sees your faith and he wants others to see it too. When this happens, he gets lifted up before men. Jesus said, "And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me." (John 12:32). So, live a life for God and allow all to see your faith.
If you would like to read more of these thoughts in a hard copy format, my new book is now available at the link below.
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