Through the Roof

​Mark 2:4-5 ~ “And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’”
 
Oh, what friendships can do when they care enough to deliver a man to Jesus! Let’s be honest, much of what passes as friendships today can be nothing more than familiar acquaintances that have common goals or enjoyments. But true friendship will go that extra step, carry that extra load and do more than expected in order that those who are hurting and struggling can find themselves before the LORD. Proverbs 17:17 teaches, “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Today, as we consider this text, it is my prayer that you have such friendships in your life—and that you are also willing to be such a friend in the life of another. Let me encourage you to read the whole story in Mark 2:1-12.
 
As we consider our text today, we encounter a great barrier: “and when they could not get near him because of the crowd.” Capernaum was home base for the LORD Jesus, and He had recently returned home. We don’t know if the house was owned by one of His disciples or if it was a rented dwelling for their own place of rest, but the LORD was home and His work was in full effect. A great crowd had gathered, and no possibility existed to carry a paralyzed man through such a horde of people. It would have been the simplest thing to merely surrender to the difficulty and take the man away from Jesus. They could have given up and told their paralyzed friend, “We tried.” Or, like we read in James 2:15-16, “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?” Not everyone has the means of rendering assistance to another. But, if you have the means of providing aid, do not give up merely because the way is difficult.
 
As we look upon the second part of our text today, we find great friendships don’t give up, but look for another way in: “they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay.” What determination! These four friends tore through the ceiling and lowered the paralyzed man down. They were willing to incur the cost of fixing the roof later if only they could get their friend to Jesus that moment. Consider what it says in 1 John 3:16-18, “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.” These four men may have not had the riches of the world, but they had strong hands and a willingness to put to use what they had for the sake of their friend. Dear ones, let us do what we can with what we have in order to bring those whom we love to encounter the LORD Jesus Christ.
 
And now we come to the richness of the text, the encounter of the man before the LORD. “And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’” When it says “their faith” it may refer to just the four men, but more probably refers to the faith of all five: the paralyzed man needing to get to Jesus and the four men purposed to get him there. At this point, Jesus proclaims the most comforting words that any man could hear from the lips of his Judge and King: “your sins are forgiven.” What tremendous peace must have washed over the man in that moment to know that, before God, his sins no longer would be counted against him (see Psalm 32:1).
 
Many think he came to Jesus to be healed of his paralysis, and it could be true. Yet Jesus dove deeper into the greater need that this man had. We can know nothing of the backstory, but it is possible that the man knew his transgressions like David did in Psalm 51:3, “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.” Perhaps the paralyzed man had heard John the Baptist declare Jesus was the one to take away the sins of the world, “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’” (John 1:29). It just may be that he pleaded with his friends to get him to Jesus that his sins would be washed away. One thing we do know, the man—like all of us—needed to be forgiven and Jesus is the only One who can.
 
So, beloved, let us be as those four friends and do all we can to bring people to Jesus.
 
In His Grace,
Pastor Michael

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