YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN

Luke 5:17-26

If someone asked you, “What is the very best thing Jesus has done for you,” how would you answer?

Today we have read about a paralysed man who was brought to Jesus.  His friends climbed the stairs to the roof of the house.. made a hole in the roof.. and lowered the man.. on his mat.. into the room. 

 In Luke 5:17-19 we read..

One day as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there. And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick.    

Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 

When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.

 Mark gives us a little more information..

 He tells us the place was Capernaum.. mentions that the people had heard that Jesus had come home.. mentions that 4 men were carrying the man who was paralysed… and says.. in Mark 2:4..

 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 

 A typical Palestinian peasant's house.. was usually a small, one-room structure with a flat roof [Expositors BibleCommentary].Excavations.. largest span 18 feet [ IVP Bible Background on Mark.].

 Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there.

 I think they would have filled the whole house.  They were seated while Jesus was teaching.. and not just as interested listeners.. but as a sign of their authority.  That is what people in authority did at that time. They were sitting there not as people eager to learn.. but as critics and judges.

 A typical Palestinian house had an external stairway to the roof.. The roof was usually made of wooden beams with thatch and compacted earth in order to shed the rain. Sometimes tiles were laid between the beams and the thatch and earth placed over them [Expositors Bible Commentary].

 Picture yourself standing at the back of the room..  Behind you people are trying to get a glimpse through the door.. people are at the windows..

There is a commotion outside.. you sense people are going up the steps.. and next .. you hear noises on the flat roof.. and then pieces of mud and thatch.. begin dropping between the religious leaders and Jesus..  You see light through the roof.. the hole is getting bigger and bigger.. and then you see a man being lowered down on a mat...

 You watch as Jesus looks at the man.. You are wondering what He will do..  This man needs healing.. Jesus has healed many like him.. and his persistent friends have got him here.. what wonderful friends they are.. full of faith.. confident Jesus will heal him.. surely He will heal this man.. and then you are stunned when He says to the man.. “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

I think that if I had been there my mind would have been pounded by questions. First of all I would have been asking,,

·         WHY DOES HE SAY THAT?

This man obviously needs healing.  Jesus has been healing people.. and his friends brought him here to be healed.. and Jesus says, Friend, your sins are forgiven?  Why?

I believe that Jesus saw that this man’s biggest need was to be forgiven. Luke tells us that Jesus knew what the religious leaders were thinking. Obviously, Jesus can read minds! Jesus knew this man.. inside out.. read his heart and mind.. and knew.. that he needed forgiveness first of all.

What he needed most was to be relieved of his guilt.. what he needed most.. was peace with God

Let’s pause here for a moment..

Do we know peace with God?  Do we know the joy of forgiveness.. the joy David spoke about in Psalm 32:1..

Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

That is our biggest need!  The biggest need of any human being!

Now let’s return to the scene in the house.

If I had been there.. I would have been wondering why He said that.. and then another question would have hit me..

·         IS THIS MAN PARALYSED BECAUSE HE HAS SINNED?

Let’s probe that question for a few minutes.. 

There are three things we need to say…

In one sense.. all sickness is a result of sin.. the sin of Adam.. we live in a fallen world.. imperfect.. riddled with suffering of many kinds..

Some illness can be the result of a specific sin.

For example.. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11:29,30..

For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself. 

That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.  

But not all sickness is a result of a specific sin!  

In John 9:1-3 we read..

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. 

His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus..

Whenever we are faced with sickness.. and tempted to think that we.. or others.. are sick because of sin.. we need to remember these three things..

If we do.. we will not jump to conclusions about other people or ourselves.

Sometimes we may suspect that some sin has caused our own illness.  When we think like that.. talk it over with God.. a trusted friend.. confess the sin.. and ask God to remove any aspect of the illness related to that sin.. and ask Him for the strength to live with what persists..

Now.. back to what is happening in the house..

If had been there I would have been pondering these questions.. and then another question would have hit me. He says, Your sins are forgiven..

·         HOW CAN HE SAY THIS?

That was the question on the minds of the religious leaders..

In Luke 5:20,21 we read..

When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”   

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”  

Only God can forgive. Who does Jesus think he is?  Does He believe He can speak for God.. or does He believe He is God.

Before I can think this through.. Jesus takes my breath away again..

In Luke 5:22-24 we read..

Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 

Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 

But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. . .” He said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”

Picture it.  First Jesus looks at the religious men sitting in front of Him.. and says to them.. why are you thinking these things…

Which is easier.. to say.. Your sins are forgiven.. or to say.. Get up and walk..

And then He says.. but so that you may know that the I have authority to forgive sins… and turns from the religious leaders.. to the man.. and says to him.. “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 

And to our utter amazement.. the man does just that.. gets up.. rolls up his mat.. and makes his way through the people to the door..

Now I am hit by another question.. an even bigger question..

·         WHO IS THIS MAN?

I would have gone away that day.. utterly amazed.. wondering.. it appears He does have the authority to forgive sins.. He healed this man to prove it.. Who is this man?

Let’s imagine we were there.. and lived through the next three years..

We follow the movements of Jesus with keen interest.. then He is arrested.. tried.. and crucified..

And then we hear that He has risen from the dead!

We check it out.. and discover that is just what has happened.. Jesus is alive!

How would you react? 

I think I would have reacted like this.. 

This man is no ordinary man. He is the Son of God!

And He does have the authority to forgive sins!

Maybe you would have come to the same conclusion..

Certainly the Apostle Paul did..

In Romans 1:4 the Apostle tells us that Jesus was.. declared with power to be the Son of God  by his resurrection from the dead..

He was the Son of God. He is the Son of God.

In Acts 13 we read about Paul preaching in Turkey..

He spoke of Jesus.. His life.. death.. resurrection.. and then said..

Acts13:38,39..

“Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.

Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.   

Total.. complete.. forgiveness.

Justification.  It is just as if I’d never sinned!!

We began with the question, “What is the very best thing Jesus has done for you?”  This is the answer!

How are we to respond?

With awe! Ponder what it cost.  Jesus.. equal of God the Father.. co-creator of the universe.. became one of us.. taught us.. healed people.. was crucified.. buried.. rose again.. and as a result.. we can be totally forgiven.

With faith! He did it for me! Believe.. and be free!

With love! Jesus.. You did all this for me.. now I give myself to You.. to do whatever it is you want me to do.