Jason & Susan

Today, we heard a good message at the Thanksgiving Church English Sunday school about the life of faith. The speaker shared the story from Mark 2, of the paralytic and his friends that brought him to see Jesus. These friends broke the roof of someone’s home just so they could bring this man to see Jesus and to be healed.

(Excerpts from Inspired by… the Bible Experience)

Luke 2

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 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. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins….” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

(Excerpts from Zondervan NIV Bible)

The message is summarized in the following four points.

1. The life of faith benefits others—Jesus saw their faith and because of their faith, the paralytic was healed.
2. The life of faith is focused on Christ—These friends knew who Jesus was and what He could do.
3. The life of faith is selfless—These friends came to Jesus for their friend, not for themselves.
4. The life of faith is persevering—Nothing stopped these friends from bringing the paralytic to Jesus. Their faith was tenacious.

The question for us is, what about our faith? Do we realize that our faith is integral to what God is doing in our community and in the lives of people around us?