The 
ight House
Sunday School (Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man)
Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man
(Matthew 9:1:8)
1And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city. 2And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee. 3And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. 4And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 5For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 7And he arose, and departed to his house. 8But when the multitudes saw it, they marvelled, and glorified God, which had given such power unto men.
(Matthew 9:1-8)Notice in verse two that Jesus first declared this sick man’s sins would be forgiven BEFORE he spoke the words which brought healing to the man’s body. This accompaniment of forgiveness of sins with the healing of the sick is also illustrated in the well known scripture for which we base our practice of anointing the sick with oil when we pray for them.
14Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: 15And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.
James 5:14-15As it was stated in a previous lesson, a major purpose of Jesus healing the sick was to show his credibility in that he was who he claimed to be and therefore the people may recognize his authority and believe his teachings and prophecies. Jesus explains this fact in verses 4-6.
…Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 5For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.
Matthew 9:4-6Jesus’ greater mission was to be a sacrifice for the sins of the world for all who will believe and to teach men of all generations how to live in accordance with God’s will. The healings while certainly being a great and wonderful thing in themselves, served the greater purpose of showing his authority. In this particular case it showed that he did in fact have the authority to forgive sin.
Jesus’ role as a healer was prophesied in Isaiah 35:5-6.
5Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert.
Isaiah 35:5-6The prophecy of Jesus healing the sick and crippled was a means of identification. Having this prophecy given in advance would serve as proof that he was the true messiah. Unfortunately, many did not believe him in spite of the prophecy being fulfilled before their eyes.
Jesus pointed out that the greatest thing performed here was not the thing which could be seen (the healing of the man’s body), but that which could not be seen (the cleansing of the man’s soul by forgiveness of sin). Though he forgave the man’s sins first, the healing of his body shoed his authority to forgive the man’s sins.
The greatest blessings from God are those spiritual blessings which is personal for the individual because they can not be seen by others, but can be felt by the person blessed to receive them. The peace in our hearts, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the hope that we have of eternal life beyond this life are blessings that are far more precious to us than any material blessings we may receive. This is a difficult concept for the world to comprehend. It only makes sense to the ones who have experienced it. Notice that Jesus did not tell the man to be of good cheer because his body was going to be healed, but the cheer was to come from the fact that his sins would be forgiven.
This is a point that we as Children of God can hold close to our hearts and become a source of peace to us when sickness comes upon us. No matter how sick we may become; even if it should be a terminal disease, we can find peace in the fact that our sins are forgiven. You can see the truth of this when you see a person on their death bed, yet having a smile on ther face and praises to God on their lips.
There seemed to be a lot of sickness among the Jews during the time of Christ’s dwelling among them. The abundance of disease shows the low spiritual state that they were in because God had told them long ago that if they would live according to His will that he would not bring diseases upon them.
25And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD showed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, 26And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee.
Exodus 15:25-26Just like the Jews in those days, we sometimes fail to make the connection between our lack of commitment to God and our troubles and trials. It is true that even the best of Christians will suffer (the afflictions of the righteous are many). It is also true however that God will chastise his people for disobedience, and will also send us trials to test us, help us grow spiritually, and to draw us closer to Him. Some of our hardships we could avoid therefore by striving to grow, striving to have a close relationship with God, and being obedient to his word.
The scribes correctly understand that only God can forgive sins; but they are incorrect in assuming that Jesus is not God Himself, and that Jesus blasphemes by considering Himself God.
Jesus not only showed proof of his deity by the miracle of healing this man, but also in another way which may be often overlooked; he showed that he knew their heats when he addressed them concerning their thoughts!
These religious leaders failed to see the obvious even after seeing such miracles. They simply wanted to be right. If they had accepted Jesus for who he truly was, then they would also have to accept his teachings, many of which were contrary to their own. This is just another example of how powerful pride can be in blinding people from seeing the truth. Perhaps this is one reason why the bible speaks so often and, so strongly, and so positively on humility.
God Bless you,
Carl
I may not look like much, but I cost a bunch!
