What Is This Story About?

When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” [Mark 2.1-5]

What is this story about?

While certainly the paralyzed man and his friends have been the subject of countless sermons and teachings about faith, I think the main point of the story has been largely overlooked...

But first, let's talk about the paralyzed man and his friends. Perhaps someone somewhere has recognized this before, but I would be interested to know just how this man became paralyzed. All we know about this man is that he was paralyzed and that he had friends. Oh, and we know his friends let him down by ropes through the roof where Jesus was. As I thought about this scenario, I began to realize just how precarious a position this man was in at the hands of his friends by his own consent as he was obviously conscious. It makes me wonder, with friends like this, is it any surprise that the man was paralyzed? I grew up a boy in the country with brothers and nearby friends. As I recall some of our actions, I am amazed that at least one of us wasn't paralyzed!

Now, if I hold to Christian tradition, here is where I should begin to analyze the faith of the friends or the paralyzed man. But I am not. Instead, I am going to point out that Jesus is the subject of this story, and no one else. In fact, the story unfolds that no one really remarked about the faith or the healing of the paralyzed man, but rather took issue with Jesus because He "forgave the man."

So, if Jesus noted in John 5.39 that the Old Testament Scriptures (all they had at that time) pointed to Him, doesn't it make sense that the New Testament is about Jesus as well? Stay with me...

In that the "faith movement" has "naval-gazed" (been self-focused) on the subject of faith, it has missed the point that Jesus is the subject. Faith is merely a tool that Jesus and anyone who will please God works with.

The point of the story of the paralyzed man is not about faith as much as it is about obedience. Faith inspired the men to do what they did. Again, they all made the conscious decision that getting the paralyzed man in front of Jesus was a good idea and they acted upon it. They obeyed the prompting of faith.

So we keep on praying for you, asking our God to enable you to live a life worthy of his call. May he give you the power to accomplish all the good things your faith prompts you to do. [2 Thessalonians 1.11 underline mine]

As much as we are compelled to "muster" faith today, the Bible simply does not support such fallacy. Faith is a gift every man has been given a measure of from God. Faith is humble obedience, not a superpower. Consider this:

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. [Ephesians 2.8]

If faith were indeed something to be "mustered," then it would depend upon us to do everything in our power to muster faith (and we could take credit for it)! So, if that's the case, then grace is not enough for our salvation but instead depends on our work of faith! No, no, no.

However, if faith is indeed (as the scripture says) a gift given in measure by God, then its operation with grace remains "all God" and nothing of man's doing except to submit to and obey its promptings.

So, the story of the paralyzed man is not really about the paralyzed man, but about Jesus. Yes, the men obeyed the prompting of faith, but Jesus forgave the paralyzed man. The story is about Jesus forgiving as an act of submission to His Father's commission. "Forgiveness" is a much bigger headline than faith! 

We look much more like Jesus when we forgive than when we believe! Faith is a tool God gave us to do His work of forgiveness. It takes more faith to forgive than to move mountains. 

Every miracle known to man is the result of forgiveness. Nothing else breaks the curse of sin and death upon man.

If this story then is all about Jesus, where do we fit in? For years we have imagined the story from the position of the paralyzed man or his friends - a position of need - and we have consequently made it about faith. But I am challenged today to see this story from the position of Jesus, in Whom I am and Who is in me. When I understand that Jesus sent me as He was sent (John 20.21), then I see myself "as Jesus" in this story and I see that my responsibility is to forgive!

Father, help me to stop "naval-gazing" with the faith You gave me and instead be busy about Your work of forgiveness!