Scripture Reference: Mark 2:1-12

There are several interesting things about this episode in the life and ministry of Jesus. One is the characters around whom the drama unfolds. You will observe the crowd of people packed tightly in the house, some of whom were friendly toward Jesus, while others were unfriendly . . . namely the scribes.

There is the paralytic himself, helpless and without hope, in whom Jesus performs a miracle of healing. Then, there are the four philanthropists, committed, compassionate, and creative in their efforts at bringing the paralyzed man to Jesus. Any one of these characters or groups of persons: the people, paralytic, or philanthropists, invites careful study.

Before we examine the characters of the story and what each may mean to us, however, take a look at the conversations which took place. You will notice that much of the dialogue is below the surface, so to speak. For example, the philanthropists never say a word but Jesus looks into their hearts and responds to their faith.

The crowd of people in the story say nothing until the end; amazed at the healing of the paralytic, they glorify God saying, “We never say anything like this!” The scribes do speak but not aloud. They complain in their hearts, and Jesus carries on a dialogue with their nonverbal complaints (see verses 6-8). If you think about it, all of the characters and conversations are important to the interpretation and application of the story to our lives. Given that fact, the most significant conversation is the one between Jesus and the paralytic. Again, you will notice the conversation takes place beneath the surface of consciousness. Jesus looked beyond the paralytic’s most obvious need, his need for physical healing, and speaks to the paralytic’s greatest need, the need for spiritual healing. “Son, your sins are forgiven you,” Jesus said.

Both the characters in the story and their conversations with Jesus remind me of how often each of us comes to church, and on the surface, we look as if we have it all together, yet deep down we each have needs . . . needs which may not be so apparent to the casual observer but needs which Christ alone can meet.

To me the whole point of the miracle story is that each of us must let Christ meet our deepest needs and those needs are represented in the three groups of persons found in the story: the paralytic, philanthropists, and people.

To Be Continued

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