Scripture Reference: Mark 2:1-3:6

Who Is He to Forgive Sins? – Continued

Please read Mark 2:1-12 for the background to this section.

From Last Lesson: Jesus is not actually healing today. Time and again He makes it clear that His priority is to declare this message: the Kingdom of God is near.

But then, suddenly, here come some new arrivals: a group of five men, four of them struggling along supporting the four corners of a simple mattress on which lies their paralyzed friend. Maybe they missed their chance when Jesus was here before, or maybe his disease is very recent, but they are not going to miss Him again. They haul their friend up the steps onto the flat roof and then, in desperation they begin to dismantle the roof of the house, which probably consists of wooden rafters, straw and clay. They use their bare hands. Imagine how you would feel if you had a house full of visitors, and suddenly there was a noise overhead, a few lumps of plaster came crashing down and, the next thing you knew, a cheery face appears through a fresh hole in the ceiling! I think you would remember that day for sure! In all likelihood, this is Simon Peter’s own house and this is his own eyewitness account.

Fortunately for them, the four friends have chosen just the right spot at which to dig, because now here comes the man on his mattress dangling and swaying until he lands right in front of Jesus. It is fortunate because there are some people in the room who certainly wouldn’t be impressed if a loaded mattress were to land in their laps! These men are the teachers of the law, the scribes who first appeared in Mark 1:22. They are the professionals, legal experts, as it were, theologically trained to sniff out error. They are not here by accident. It seems that they are on a fact-finding mission, a commission of inquiry sent down from religious headquarters in Jerusalem to track down the rumors about a man called Jesus who is operating around Galilee. Undoubtedly, as they sit there like judges, they are very suspicious.

So the mat reaches the floor. The crowded room falls silent. The man lies rigid; he can’t move. The law teachers pick crumbs of clay off their white robes. Four faces peer expectantly down from above. What will Jesus say? “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” If it was quiet before, you could hear a pin drop now. The shock arises not for the reason we might have thought: we might be surprised because we would think a paralyzed man needs healing, not forgiving. But these people understand that there could be a link between the sin in someone’s life and his physical condition. They understand what many do not, that sin means rebellion against God, and only God can set us free from the prison it creates by forgiving us. Nothing can be more urgent than that. It’s not the idea of forgiveness that shocks them, but the fact that Jesus claims to be handing it out in His own right. They know there is only One who can forgive sins, and that’s God Himself!

Thus far at least, the law teachers are right to think as they do. The Jews were very clear on this: one God; one authority; one place to deal with sins . . . the judgement seat of God. They were right. What Jesus has just said is blasphemy, in their eyes: He is claiming to hold the authority of God.

To Be Continued

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved