Healing the paralytic

 Healing the paralytic

 

In Mark 2:3-12, we see Jesus healing a paralytic patient. However, Jesus said to the patient, “When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” And then, in chapter 2 verses 9-12, “Whether it is easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house. And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.』

In Luke 5:21, “And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaks blasphemies? The thought is, “Who can forgive sins, but God alone?” Jesus said to the paralytic, “thy sins be forgiven thee.” The paralyzed man came to be cured. Why did Jesus say this? The Jews thought that Jesus' words were 『this man speaks blasphemies』. The Jews believe that the only one who can forgive sins is God, but when a man named Jesus comes and says he has the power to forgive sins, the Jews think that he is insulting God.

『When Jesus saw their faith.』 The church people think that because the paralyzed man came with earnest faith, he was healed of his illness. So, the interpretation is expanded to say, “If we pray earnestly, the problem will be solved.” Jesus saw the faith that the paralyzed man had. So Jesus was well aware of the faith of the paralyzed patient. There is a difference between the faith of the paralytic that Jesus saw and the faith that church people think of today.

Jesus was the Messiah the Israelites had been waiting for. Because they had been waiting for the Messiah for a long time, they had expectations about Jesus. The expectation is for Israel to realize and welcome Jesus, the Messiah. However, Israel does not realize the Messiah. Although they were waiting for the Messiah, they did not have earnest faith in the Messiah.

The paralyzed person was unable to move on his own, so he was in such a state that he could not move without the help of another person. Likewise, the spiritual meaning of a paralytic patient means a person who cannot enter the kingdom of God without the help of Jesus Christ. The paralyzed person did not just come to receive healing for his body that was unable to move. He came to cure a paralytic, but his greater purpose was to meet the Messiah whom he had heard about for a long time. The paralyzed man discovered the Messiah in the law, and finally met the Messiah in the field because of his paralysis.

Jesus saw their faith. The name “Jesus” means the one who will save his people from their sins. Jesus knew that “the paralyzed man came to confirm that Jesus, the Messiah, was the one who fulfilled God’s promise.” Jesus said to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven.” Jesus said this because he saw the paralyzed man's faith.

Luke 5:22-26 『But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, rise up and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things. to day.

『thy sins be forgiven thee..』 In this scene, the scribes did not think that the paralyzed man had been forgiven of his sins. They cannot believe in the forgiveness of sins. So, to them, saying, “Your sins are forgiven,” seemed more difficult than saying, “Get up and walk.” The reason Jesus said this was to let people know that the Son of Man has the power to forgive sins in the world. As soon as Jesus spoke, “I say to thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house..” Then the scribes and the people gathered there became afraid of Jesus, and they began to fear God. He realized that the power of came to Jesus. The saying, 『that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins』 means that the Son of Man came to the world to forgive sins.