The Paralysed Man

The following program is a first person narrative using authors'license to tell stories drawn from the Bible and the books of Ellen White. Welcome to Family Storytime with Karlie Fraser. Join us as we step back in time to hear about the paralysed. Man I would have given my life for him. I'd known Judah since forever. Our families were close even before we were born, so growing up it felt like we were brother and sister. I can still hear our shouts of joy as we splashed and mucked around in the waves on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. And I'm fairly certain that the image of Judah's face after he got dumped by a wave I may have failed to warn him about will be imprinted on my mind forever. I can remember the smell of the spices wafting into the branches of the old fig tree at the market where we sat hidden as I listened to him ramble on and on about the latest girl that he liked. I can still picture him as a young teenager, straight and tall, next to his father in the synagogue, eager to become a man he could be proud of. But then things started to change. He began to spend time with some other young people in our town, so he didn't visit as much anymore. And while I tried to pretend that I didn't care and was too busy to hang out with him anyway, the rejection went deep, and I missed our friendship. Who we were as kids was lost in who we were becoming, and it hurt my heart. I still remember the day my mum told me about his sickness. She said Judah made some choices that had begun to impact his health, and he wasn't able to go to work anymore. Part of me felt that he deserved it. But then I remembered it was Judah who used to be my best friend, and I wanted to cry no matter what we did. He just kept getting sicker until finally he wasn't even able to walk anymore. We tried everything, including carrying him to the Pharisees to beg for mercy and plead for healing. They gave us as much help as the doctors had none. They said his condition was a punishment from God for the life he had lived, and there was no chance that he could be healed. I think the look of judgment and disgust the final Pharisee threw in Judah's face broke his spirit as he mumbled, just take me home. It was late afternoon when we arrived back at Judah's compound, and after helping carry him to his place by the wall, I slumped down next to him, my back against the hard packed mud. The utter despair I felt reflected back at me from his eyes, and I thought, this is it. There is no hope left. Stuck in a body that no longer obeyed his commands, judah was left to grovel in the dust of the marketplace and live off the scraps of mercy that fell from those passing by. It broke my heart, and there was nothing that I could do about it. A leper. Never before had we heard of such things. A leper had been healed. Apparently, he had walked straight through a crowd of people, right up to a man called Jesus, and said, lord, if you want to, you can make me well again. And then, right there in front of everyone, jesus said, I want to be healed. And he was. As far as I knew, lepers hadn't been healed since the time of Elisha the prophet. Who was this man? Jesus leprosy was a dreaded disease, horrific enough to strike fear in the heart of the strongest warrior. It was seen as a judgment from God for the sins someone committed and meant. They were forced to leave life as they knew it to scrounge for survival in the nearby hills, locked away from all other human touch forever. So there I stood, frozen next to the pomegranate stall in the marketplace, listening to someone speak of a man who had healed a leper. Hope born of desperation began to grow inside me. Maybe, just maybe, this man Jesus would look on Judah with the same love and compassion he had shown the leper. While the pharisees looked with judgment and turned away. Jesus had shown mercy and reached out, touching the leper and restoring life to his decaying body. Restoring life to a decaying body. Judah needed to meet this man. I didn't care what it took. I was going to do whatever I could to ensure it happened. Spinning around, I forgot all about the shopping list I had in my hands as I raced to find Judah. Seeing him against the wall, I rushed over and nearly fell on top of him in my haste to share the news. After asking around, we discovered that Jesus had left for the hills to be alone for a while. Anxiously, I waited for news of his return. He was back. He was back and headed for Simon Peter's house. With no time to spare, I sent for the others, and we ran to pick up Judah from the marketplace. As quickly as we could. We carried him through the streets of capernaum, unable to contain our excitement. We were laughing about nearly tipping Judah out as we ran around the final corner. The laughter died in our throats as we saw the crowd of people surrounding Peter's house. They spilled out the door and onto the streets, almost swallowing the house itself. Determined to get Judah to Jesus, we headed towards them and tried to shoulder our way through. We managed to push past those on the fringes, but try as we might, we couldn't seem to make it any further. I looked down at Judah, and seeing the tears in his eyes, I nearly broke down myself. So close, and yet so far. He had almost not even wanted to come because he was afraid. Once Jesus knew who he was and what he had done, then he wouldn't want to see him. But beyond the despair in his eyes, I saw a new determination as he pointed to the roof of Peter's house. There. You want us to go on the roof? How's that supposed to help? Jesus is in the house, right? He said we can't get in through the door, so let's try the roof. It's made of mud, and there's four of you, so it should be pretty easy to dig a hole. Then you can lower me down through the roof. Please take me to Jesus. He is my only chance. With no other ideas ourselves, we decided to do exactly as he said. Looking back on it now, it was probably one of the more embarrassing moments of my life. The first part was fine, but once we had a hole big enough to see through, it got more awkward, because soon the larger clumps of dirt started to fall down into the middle of Peter's lounge room. I was mortified at what we were doing, and if it wasn't for the twinkle I saw in Jesus'eye as he watched us, I might have stopped altogether. Once we had a hole large enough to lower Judah through, we began to slowly let him down. No one was joking about him tipping out now. Soon he landed at the feet of Jesus, and the room went deathly still, as I lay there on Peter's roof with my head hanging down through the hole, I heard Jesus say, son, your sins are forgiven. Clutching at the edge of the hole, I struggled to keep myself from falling in as I tried to contain my excitement. We had brought Judah to be healed, but Jesus took it a step further and said his sins were forgiven. Judah's face was glowing with a beautiful light, and everyone was frozen in stunned silence. Looking around the room, I could see the faces of the Pharisees who had condemned Judah, saying there was no way he could ever be healed. They were so angry, they looked ready to kill Jesus because only God could forgive sins. Jesus knew what they were thinking and said, why do you think this is blasphemy? Is it easier to say your sins are forgiven or get up and walk? I will prove that I, the Son of man, have the authority to forgive sins. Then he looked down at Judah and said with a smile, stand up, take your mat and go home because you are healed. Because you are healed. The words rang in my ears. I lay there, unable to move, and I watched as Judah quickly stood up, rolled up his mat and made his way through the throng of people towards the door. Then the moment broke, and I rolled over, jumped to my feet and ran down the outside stairs to meet him at the door. I couldn't believe my eyes. Of course, this was what we had hoped and prayed for. But to actually see it happen was almost more than I could take in. You couldn't wipe the smile of Judah's face and as he weaved through the crowd, you could hear people whisper. We have seen amazing things today. We ran all the way to his house, and his mother, hearing our shout, dropped the clay bowls she was carrying in fright. But as soon as she saw us, her now empty arms enveloped Judah as he picked her up. And he laughed as his strong, healthy body spun her around and around amidst the shards of broken pottery scattered on the ground. Soon tears of joy were flowing from all our eyes as we praised God for bringing new life into our lives. We were never the same again. I would have given my life for him. Jesus Christ had healed my best friend and I couldn't help but want to give everything to him in return. In fact, each one of us would have gladly given our lives for Jesus. That day changed us forever, and we became his followers. A year or so passed and everything returned to some semblance of normality. Then we heard the news from Jerusalem. We were devastated. How could they do that to someone who only lived to serve others? Someone who loved so extravagantly, with no thought for himself. How could they arrest Jesus and have him killed like that? We didn't understand until one day a traveler came through town sharing what he called the Good News. He told us that while Jesus had died on the Friday he had risen on the Sunday what? Jesus was alive? The traveler shared many things with us that day. He explained how Jesus had died so that we could live forever with him. Because we had sinned and deserved death. That was the only way for us to be saved. While we had been willing to lay down our lives for Jesus it was Jesus who went ahead and laid down his life for us. One particular thing this traveler said has stuck in my mind ever since. I can't seem to get it out. He said that at the last meal Jesus had with his disciples, he told them something very important. He said to them that they needed to love each other just as he loved them. They should love each other. I've been thinking and I'm pretty sure he was talking to more than just the disciples. I think he was speaking to you and me. You see, he also said your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples. Jesus gave his life for us, and each day he is asking us to give our lives for others. If I really love Jesus like I say I do, then that will show in the way I love those around me. Jesus is asking me to love the way he loved. How did he love? Jesus saw Judah and he treated him kindly and with compassion. He stopped what he was doing so that he could help the person in front of him who needed love. He continually gave of his time and energy to serve those around him. How do we love? We look up from whatever is stealing our attention. And we do more than just look at those around us. We see them and their needs, and we try to help however we can with whatever we have. We look at who is right in front of us and we love them. We may not be able to carry our friends to Jesus like my friends and I carried Judah, but we can share what we have. We can pray for each other and we can listen to one another. Maybe you haven't heard much about Jesus. Maybe you have never had someone love you unconditionally and accept you as you are. If that is the case, you need to know right now that you are enough just as you are, because you are a child of God. And as such, there is nothing you can do to make God love you more. There is also nothing you can do to make Him love you less. The words Jesus spoke to my friend Judah are the same. He longs to say to you, son, your sins are forgiven. Daughter, your sins are forgiven. All you need to do is ask him. Jesus died so that we can live. It's time for us to realize we are forgiven. It's time to stand up, take our mats and go. Jesus lived a life of selfless dedication to those around Him. He saw people and loved them as they were helping with whatever they needed. His willingness to put others first and serve my friend with complete selflessness changed Judah's life and mine too. And now he's asking us to do the same. Who will you serve? Whose life will God change through you? We love because he first loved us. It's time for us to live love. Will you pray with me? Dear Father, thank you so much for the love that you have demonstrated to us through Jesus coming and giving his life for us. Lord, I just pray that each day we will realize more and more how much you love us and that through Your Holy Spirit, you will help us to live a life that demonstrates Your love to those around us. Please use us, Lord. Thank you so much. We love you. Amen. Thank you, Karlie, for that touching story about forgiveness and healing and restoration. Let's join Christopher and Jesse as they open the Bible to discuss today's story. Thanks, Karlie, for that uplifting story about Jesus healing the paralyzed man. It really made me think of all the times in my life where people have helped or forgiven me. Oh, yeah, I could think of plenty of times where I've needed forgiveness from someone else. I remember there was that time I spilt milk all through the fridge and it got in all of the food and my mum still forgave me. Or what about that time I broke one of my younger brother's birthday gifts five minutes after he'd opened it up and he still managed to forgive me? Yeah, there have been so many times where I've needed forgiveness as well. But I can also think of a few times when I've had to forgive others, and it wasn't always easy. For example, I remember one time a friend of mine damaged one of my most prized possessions. I love music, and one of my hobbies is playing the guitar. So my friend wanted to test out his musical abilities one day, taking my guitar and strumming away. Let's just say what he lacked in skill, he made up for in passion. But he was so passionate that the guitar left his hands and smashed onto the concrete. The screams of the steel strings resonated with my distraught disbelief as I watched my musical companion gradually fade into the sound of silence. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Wow, that must have been really hard to have forgiven him when he'd broken one of your most prized possessions. Well, it was certainly difficult to maintain a friendly demeanor and forgive him when inside I was distressed and frustrated. But we are all called to follow Jesus example, which we see him demonstrate in Mark chapter two. Let's all open the word to discover a deeper understanding of Jesus forgiveness and how it can transform lives. Let's begin by starting in verse one, and then we'll discuss and focus more in verses four and five in Mark chapter two. In verse one, we read and again. Jesus entered Capernaum after some days and it was heard that he was in the house immediately. Many gathered together so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even in the door, and he preached the word to them. Then they came to him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men. And when they could not come near him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where he was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, son, your sins are forgiven. You wait. Why does Jesus say your sins are forgiven? The paralytic is asking to be healed, not to be forgiven. True, but remember what the religious leaders taught about people who suffered from sickness and disease and were considered unclean. They believed that it was a punishment from God resulting from either the sins of their parents or their own. AHA, so Jesus knew that the paralytic had been raised to believe this misconception, and he would only have faith to be healed if he first knew that his sins were forgiven. So Jesus works within the cultural norms, not necessarily because they are true, but because of the collective state of mind of the people. Then in doing so, he subverts the accepted cultural norms as only God could forgive sins. And yet here, in the eyes of the Pharisees, was an ordinary man offering forgiveness to a reject of society. Exactly. In fact, the same word for healed and saved is used in the original Greek text. So when Jesus heals the paralytic, it was both a physical healing and a spiritual restoration, as Jesus forgives the man of his sins. Hang on, this sounds pretty familiar. It reminds me of the Levitical law in the Old Testament. The Israelites were instructed by God not to touch anything unclean because the impurity would infect them. This included dead animals, mold, and anything sick or diseased. Yeah, that's right. I like to think of it as giving someone a handshake. When your hand is all muddy and covered in dirt, when we shake hands, Jesse, are your hands going to get dirty or are my hands going to become clean? It worked the exact same way. If anyone ever touched something unclean, the impurity would transfer to them. And we see this law all throughout the Old Testament until we reach Isaiah, chapter six. Let's all turn there together and explore this new phenomenon. In this chapter, Isaiah is taken up to heaven in a vision where he is standing in the very presence of God. He's shaking in his boots, as he knows that he is a man of unclean lips and is in the presence of a pure God. But what happens next is unlike anything else in the entire Old Testament. We read in verses six and seven, then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a live coal which he had taken with the tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth with it and said, behold, this has touched your lips, your iniquity is taken away and your sin purged. Isaiah is unclean and the hot coal is clean. Levitical law states that the uncleanliness should infect the hot coal, but instead Isaiah'sin is purified by the fire and he is made clean. This was a prophetic foretelling of someone to come who would take away the sins of the world without becoming unclean himself. And then we see a similar picture in Ezekiel 47, where a cleansing river flows from God's temple, restoring the earth to its original beauty in the Garden of Eden. Again, we see it's another prophetic foretelling of someone to come. Yeah. And it's not until the New Testament that we see the fiery coal and the living water incarnate through Jesus Christ. All throughout Jesus'ministry, we see him touching the dead, the sick and the diseased. And instead of their uncleanliness blemishing him, we see his hands purify them of their maladies and their iniquities. And remember, it's deeper than Jesus just healing people physically he is also spiritually restoring their souls. That's awesome that Jesus could do that for the paralytic. But what about me? What about now? How am I supposed to experience the same spiritual healing? Well, just like the paralytic, we are invited to experience the touch of the fiery coal and the living water. We are all beckoned to be baptized in Christ, buried with him and raised into glory and newness of life. And then daily we are asked to die, to self and to sin, and be baptized and cleansed with the Holy Spirit and fire. So now that we have Christ in us and have been purified, it's almost like we have a small hot coal in us. Therefore, just as Jesus said, a city on a hill cannot be hidden. We, as children of light, are called to illuminate a dark world by touching those in our lives and allowing the transformative power of the Holy Spirit to purify their unclean hearts and unclean lips. Two Corinthians, chapter four, verse six reads for it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who is shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. When the paralyzed man had been healed both physically and spiritually, he picked up his mat, returned home and told everyone the transformative miracle. Jesus had performed every step that he took as a testament to the glory of God. So each one of us is invited into the presence of God to be healed, purified and saved. Only then can we be a child of light, bearing test ceremony to the restoration of our impure hearts and unclean lips. You have been listening to Family Storytime, a production of Three ABN, Australia radio.