The Faith of Friends. Mark 2:1-5.
And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
Dear Heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven,
There was no way Jesus could stay away from the towns completely. He seems to have made Capernaum his base and he came there after his forays to desolate places.
Crowd (vv. 1-2). Jesus was in a house, most probably a private residence or even Simon’s house. As soon as it was known that he was in town, a crowd gathered and simply choked the space. Jesus took the opportunity to teach the word.
Creativity (vv. 3-4). While the majority may have come out of curiosity, a small group of men was more focused. They carried a paralytic and brought him to the place where Jesus was, but the crowd was thick and they could not get to Jesus. Rather than give up, the men climbed onto the roof and made removed enough of it to make space for their task. They lowered the paralytic to where Jesus was. The lengths they went to demonstrated the determination in Their faith.
Consolation (v. 5). Jesus’ response was unexpected. He declared the man’s sins forgiven. This hints at the cause of the man’s paralysis. Some illnesses are caused by sin and in such a case, forgiveness is more important than simple healing. But Jesus is also declaring his authority to forgive sins. This is a revolutionary idea that is about to set off a dispute, but we are dealing with the heavenly King here. Things will change, because it is up to the world to face the reality before it – the man before it is divine.
Your Loving Pastor Chris.