Mark 2:5-12

Believe! Jesus Christ has the power and the desire to heal you physically and mentally. In the socially dominated world that we live in it is easy to get caught up in the belief system of this world. Most of us don’t even realize the impact that society has on our understanding of right and wrong, God’s way or man’s way. The stress that we are under to conform and the values that we trade in order to succeed and to be accepted cause illness both emotionally and physically. When we admit our sin and inability to make it on our own asking Jesus for forgiveness He heals us. Precept upon precept, He teaches us through the Holy Spirit God’s way of attaining abundant life! Jesus takes away the original sin of the world and is the only way to the Father and eternal life.

Not only did the four men have faith, but the paralytic himself had it too. When Jesus announced to him, your sins are forgiven, He was implicitly acknowledging the paralytic’s trust that He was the Messiah. Mark notes the opposition of the scribes, who under their breath accused Jesus of blasphemy. In Christ’s day the scribes were commonly called lawyers. 

Jesus asked the which is easier question to demonstrate the truth of His claim to forgive the man’s sins—something only God can accomplish. Anyone could assert the ability to forgive sins, since there was no earthly way of confirming the statement. But to say arise, take up your bed and walk to a paralytic could be tested immediately by whether he walked or not. By healing the paralytic, Jesus made His pronouncement of forgiveness far more credible. Son of Man is a term regularly used for the Messiah

The crowd’s reaction showed that they understood the significance of Jesus’ miracle. It is possible that some scribes and Pharisees joined in the acclamation. But permanent, life-changing faith is what Christ sought, not temporary adoration from the crowd.

Mark 2:5-12

⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic,  “Son, your sins are forgiven you.” 

⁶ And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, ⁷ “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 

⁸ But immediately, when Jesus perceived in His spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves, He said to them,  “Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? ⁹ Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed and walk’? ¹⁰ But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—He said to the paralytic, ¹¹  “I say to you, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.” ¹² Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”