Hello, I’m Daniel Westfall on the channel “Pray With Me”.

We’ve been looking at Mark’s gospel and its stories about Jesus the Messiah (Mark 1:1). To date, Jesus has become Galilee’s most famous healer and exorcist. 

In Mark 2, the story gets weird. Goes like this. Jesus was preaching to a full house and four men show up with a paralyzed friend on a stretcher. Unable to get through the crowd, they hoist the stretcher to the roof, dig an opening, and lower the man to Jesus. 

Jesus saw the friends’ faith and said to the paralyzed man, “Your sins are forgiven.”  

Question. Who said anything about sin? Why would sin be on Jesus’ mind? 

The Bible scholars in the crowd also had a question. Only God can forgive sins, they said. Who does this poser think he is? 

Jesus, sensing their displeasure, asked, “What’s easier? To say ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?” 

Then Jesus said, “I am the Son of Man. I have authority to forgive sins. Watch me prove it.” He turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Get up and walk.” To the crowd’s amazement and the consternation of the scholars, that’s exactly what the man did.

Here are four comments on this story: 

1. Mark doesn’t say the paralyzed man had faith. He says Jesus saw the faith of the stretcher-bearing friends. I need friends like that if. If your faith is strong, maybe you can put in a good word for me. 

2. This is the first time in Mark’s gospel that Jesus talks about sin. John, who preceded Jesus, told people to confess their sins and be baptized. Jesus’ procedure? Different. He doesn’t ask the man to confess anything. He just forgives him.

Forgiveness created a problem for the scholars. God can forgive sins. But why does Jesus, who is obviously not God, offer forgiveness? The scholars don’t buy his line. To them, he’s overreaching. He’s a fraud. 

3. This is the first hint in Mark that Jesus’ popularity has limits. People who need healing love him. Bible scholars, not so much. 

4. This is the first of 13 times in Mark’s gospel where Jesus calls himself “the Son of Man”. In the Old Testament, God addressed the prophet Ezekiel 93 times as “son of man”. By borrowing Ezekiel’s name, Jesus positions himself as a prophet, someone who speaks God’s message to the local population. 

Let’s pray. 

O father, this passage introduces new words to us. The word faith, which we and our modern Bible scholars have complicated almost beyond belief. But in this story, faith is just four people who bring their paralyzed friend to Jesus. 

And the passage introduces the term Son of Man, which recalls Ezekiel’s special relationship with you, God, and which Jesus associated with his ability to forgive sins. But Jesus didn’t explain his relationship with you. He just lived it out as he traveled and preached and healed. And forgave sins.

O human Jesus, Son of Man, bring to our lives and our churches your human presence. Bring good news and healing to our friends and forgiveness for our sins. 

Amen. 

I’m Daniel, on the channel “Pray with Me”.  

YouTube channel: Pray with Me – YouTube