Desperate times call for desperate measures. What do you do in times of desperation? Where do you turn? In our text today we see a man that was desperate. In his desperation, he and his friends resorted to desperate measures.
As I’ve said previously, Mark is building the case for his readers that Jesus has authority. Jesus is the authoritative Son of God.
- 1:14-15 – Jesus preaches that the kingdom of God has come near.
- 1:16-20 – Jesus calls his first disciples.
- 1:21-28 – Jesus teaches with authority.
- 1:29-34 – Jesus heals the sick and delivers the demonized.
- 1:35-39 – Jesus was sent to preach by the Father.
- 1:40-45 – Jesus cleanses a leper without being made unclean.
Mark 2 begins a section of five controversies between Jesus and the Jewish religious leaders (Mark 2:1-3:6).
Sermon Text: Mark 2:1-12
1
And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home.
Jesus is back in Capernaum after preaching throughout the region of Galilee (1:39). See this map.
2
And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them.
The house was filled to capacity. The crowd gathered around Jesus like Black Friday shoppers trying to get in Walmart. They were gathered because Jesus was “preaching the word to them.” As I mentioned last week, Jesus came to preach the gospel (Mark 1:38, 15). While Jesus healed the sick and exorcised demons, his primary purpose was to save people from their sins through his preaching and his death on the cross.
Luke 19:10
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.
Mark 10:45
For even the Son of Man came…to give his life as a ransom for many.
Jesus’ miracles served as evidence that he had authority to forgive sin, as we will see in v. 10. In other words, Jesus’ miracles were not the focus of his ministry. Rather, they reinforced his preaching ministry.
Jesus’ miracles were not the focus of his ministry. Rather, they reinforced his preaching ministry.
So, Jesus is in the house preaching the word and people are hanging on every word.
3-4
And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 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.
Four men show up carrying a paralytic so that the man can be healed by Jesus, but they cannot enter through the door (v. 2). So, they climb up on the roof by using the stairs on the side of the house. The roof was made from wood beams and cross laid with branches and packed with a thick layer of grass, mud, and clay. Such roofs were stable enough for walking, but one could break through them by digging. These men literally dug through the roof and showered those under the hole with dirt and sticks. Then they lowered him through the roof.
This man was desperate. The paralytic was desperate because he recognized the seriousness of his physical condition.
Many people today recognize have physical conditions and they are often defined by them (paralysis, blindness, deafness, cancer, chronic pain).
Oftentimes, however, people fail to recognize the seriousness of their spiritual condition. While physical problems are not to be minimized or ignored, our biggest problem is that in our natural condition our hearts are desperately wicked, and we are spiritually dead. We are all sinfully sick and we need heart surgery; what we need most is a new heart.
In verse 5, Jesus addresses the paralytic’s greatest need.
5
And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
When Jesus saw the faith of the paralytic and his friends, he forgave the paralytic’s sin. This man needed physical healing, but Jesus saw the bigger need – spiritual healing. As I’ve already said, Jesus came first and foremost to preach the gospel and to forgive sin. That was his primary mission (Mark 1:15, 38).
As you read this, if you’re not a Christian, that is, you’re not a follower of Jesus, then any physical condition that you have doesn’t come close to your grim spiritual condition. While your physical condition may bother you the rest of your life, your spiritual condition will affect you for eternity.
Physical maladies are not as important as spiritual ones. Physical maladies make for a difficult life. An unrepentant heart makes for a difficult eternity in hell.
When Jesus said, “your sins are forgiven,” this would’ve shocked his listeners. And we see that in vv. 6-7.
The religious leaders knew that only God could forgive sin (6-7)
6-7
Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
The scribes (Mark 2:16) are of course right that only God can forgive sins. We know this because when we sin it’s God’s law that we’ve broken. We have violated his perfect standard. Even when we do something that hurts another person, ultimately, it’s God we’ve sinned against. It is his law that has been transgressed.
In Psalm 51, David penned a psalm of repentance after his adultery with Bathsheba and subsequent murder of her husband, Uriah. He wrote in Psalm 51:4, “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” Of course, David had sinned against Bathsheba and Uriah, but this verse shows us that sin is first and foremost against God.
Mark 2:7 is a verse to remember when considering the Catholic idea of the priesthood. Priests have no authority to forgive sin. Only God can do that, and he does it based on what Christ has done for us on the cross and our response to Christ’s atoning work.
The scribes assert that Jesus is guilty of blasphemy, which was punishable by death (Lev 24:16). They are correct when they said that only God could forgive sin, but they are in error when they assert that Jesus is blaspheming. Of course, if Jesus wasn’t God, then they would be correct. But, as they did not realize yet, Jesus is God and thus has the authority to forgive sins.
John 5:27
And he [the Father] has given him [Jesus] authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.
Jesus demonstrated his authority to forgive sin (8-11)
8
And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts?
Jesus knows the thoughts of the scribes (v. 6) and asked them why they are questioning these things in their hearts. To know someone’s thoughts is itself an act of God. I rarely know what my wife is thinking much less a total stranger. Friends, this is a frightening thought—that God knows our hearts. God doesn’t just know what we do or say. God knows our very thoughts and we will be judged for them. You can fool your spouse and family. You can fool the preacher. But you will not fool God. If you have not trusted in Jesus and submitted to his authority, then you need to do that.
The scribes believe Jesus is guilty of blasphemy and Jesus knows what they are thinking. Look at verses 9-11.
9-11
Jesus said to the scribes:
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed 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 say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.”
To prove he has authority, Jesus asks the scribes, “Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? He then proves his divinity and thus his authority to forgive sins by showing his authority over paralysis and disease. He tells the paralytic to “rise, pick up your bed, and go home.”
Jesus is showing the scribes that because he can do the visible miracle of healing the paralytics that this is evidence that he also has the power to do the invisible miracle of forgiving sins.
Jesus is showing the scribes that because he can do the visible miracle of healing the paralytics that this is evidence that he also has the power to do the invisible miracle of forgiving sins.
Also notice a phrase in v. 10. Jesus says that he has authority “on earth” to forgive sins. When we believe in Jesus, we have forgiveness here and now. Our forgiveness is based on what Jesus accomplished through his death and resurrection. There is nothing for us to do to earn our salvation. We don’t have to be anxious about losing our salvation. Jesus’ death on the cross and our faith in his completed work is all that is necessary for salvation. Yes, should take up our crosses and follow Christ, but that is a result of salvation, not the cause. If you have trusted in the person and work of Jesus, then you can have full assurance this morning.[1]Robin Sydserff, Teaching Mark: From Text to Message, 158.
In verse 12, we see the response of those present.
12
And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”
“We never saw anything like this.”
That’s because there was never anyone like Jesus before and there hasn’t been anyone like him since. Jesus is the Son of God who came in the flesh, lived a perfect life of obedience to God’s commands, and died a substitutionary death on the cross. We respond by repenting of our sin and trusting in the finished work of Christ (John 19:30).
Conclusion
In Mark 1, we saw Jesus’ authority in his teaching, Jesus’ authority over demons, and Jesus’ authority over disease. In our passage today, we have seen we see Jesus’ authority to forgive sins. Soon, we’ll see Jesus’ authority over nature (Mark 4:35-41).
We should do four things in response to our text today:
- We should recognize that only Jesus has the authority to forgive sin (Mark 2:5).
- We should submit to Jesus’ authority in all of life.
- We should seek to bring desperate people to Jesus who can forgive their sins and make them clean (Mark 2:5; 1:41).
- We should bring people to Jesus in faith, believing he can make them clean. (Mark 2:3-5).
BIG IDEA: In your desperation, trust in Jesus, the one who has authority to forgive your sins.
References
| ↑1 | Robin Sydserff, Teaching Mark: From Text to Message, 158. |
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