Dear Luke,
Each of us has to decide who Jesus
is in our lives. He can be a great
teacher, a healer, even a miracle worker, and nothing more if we so
choose. We can admire the man for who he
is and choose to relegate the realm of the divine to the fantastical world, or
we can choose to confront the idea of his divinity and acknowledge him as a
Savior. Jesus doesn’t make it easy on
us, but I don’t know how comfortable I would be following Him if it was easy. He challenges me and what I understand to be
true, and I’m forced to wrestle with the fact that he had this power and
authority and chose to use it to tend to those around him in need, those who
were physically crippled as well as those in fetters to other types of sin. It’s probably radically different than what
most people would do with that kind of power, but in his life he displays a
different ethic. As I said, I think that
the spiritually curious have to deal with this—that Jesus is different than what
we might expect, and to follow him may never lead to riches, influence and
power, but that there is untold wealth and abundance that God pours out if we
are willing to acknowledge that what we think is important now may actually not
be that vital to life. Jesus is trying
to lead us down a different road, and those who choose to follow must be
willing to go, no matter the cost.
I know this sounds a bit
intimidating to you now, but be patient and let your anxieties go. All will be made clear in time, I assure
you. In the next chapter of Jesus’ life,
he reveals a little more about how he is not going to conform to everyone’s
expectations, how he has a different set of priorities, and how his power is
not restrained to healings and exorcisms.
Picture Jesus teaching in a house
one day, with Pharisees, teachers and other religious authorities crowded
near. They’ve come from near and far to
hear the man, to watch him heal and examine his religion. Word traveled to them, and they wanted to
come examine him, to know what to make of him and determine how much of what
they’ve heard is true. I would think
that many came with a healthy skepticism, wanting to get to the bottom of the
question of Jesus’ power and identity.
Jesus was filled with God’s power, and so he was healing those who came
before him, one miracle after another, and there was a surging crowd
surrounding the house, preventing many from entering because so many are in
need of his healing touch. I can almost
see people dangling from windows, just trying to catch a glimpse of the man they
have heard so much about.
Now picture a group approaching the
house, some young men carrying a litter with another paralyzed man on it. They can easily pick out the house because
it’s surrounded by so many just like them, friends bringing other ailing people
to Jesus. For a moment, their hearts
sink because there is no possible way to push through the crowd and wind up
within range of Jesus, but these are not your average young men, who might be
discouraged by the crowd. No, this is a
resourceful group, and one of them points to the back of the building, to a low
corner of the roof, and each suddenly has a twinkle in their eyes. The paralyzed man misses it, but the next
thing he knows he is being carried up onto the roof of the house, while other
curious eyes follow these developments, and then he is set down while the other
friends get to work pulling back some of the roof tile.
Jesus, inside the house, looks up
as some dust from the ceiling falls around his feet just in time to see
daylight piercing through a newly-created opening in the roof, and before
anyone knows what’s happening a very confused man is lowered down into the
center of the room, while those in the room somehow push back to make room for
this large addition to their congregation.
Everyone else is staring at the man on the litter, who seems as
bewildered as they, but Jesus keeps looking up at the faces staring down from
the hole in the ceiling, faces filled with faith that Jesus can heal their
friend. A sly smile starts at one corner
of Jesus’ mouth, and completes itself by the time he looks down at the man
lying at his feet.
“Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
The focus is torn from this
intimate scene by the immediate murmuring that begins in all parts of the
room. The teachers and religious elites
that have come to watch Jesus begin tearing apart that statement, wondering who
this man thinks he is if he believes he is able to forgive sins. Their shock is evident as they proclaim in
heightened whispers that only God can do this.
Jesus understood their anger, the
enraged and confused looks he was receiving as whispers tore across the
room. He spoke with quiet confidence as
the room hushed to hear him.
“Why are your hearts so filled with
questions? Which is easier—to forgive
sins or heal paralysis? Let me show you
proof of the authority that the Son of Man has, that you may believe that I can
forgive sins. Friend, stand up and
return home.”
The stares of everyone in the room
immediately transferred to the man, who slowly rose up, just as Jesus had
commanded, wonder wrapped across his face, and tested each limb as an untrusted
ally in the cause. His smile beamed, and
while it only found skepticism in the other faces in the room, Jesus met his
gaze and smiled gently. Then the man looked
up at his friends, the ones whose faith had led Jesus to heal the man, who were
laughing like children above the ceiling.
The crowd parted as this man carried his now unneeded mat through it,
and he soon found his voice and began glorifying God for the miracle that had
landed upon him. At the door to the
house he met his friends, who wrapped him in an embrace as they were amazed at
all that had happened. Soon the whole crowd
was glorifying God, and many were talking about the strange things they had
witnessed.
Luke, I know this is just another
healing story to many, but take note of how Jesus is teaching people and doing
more than just physical healing. He’s
addressing the soul, the heart, and urging people to look beyond the physical
realm. He’s pushing on the religious
authorities to ask questions of their own hearts, and he’s more interested in
healing this man’s soul than his body.
He heals the body, but he knows that there are different types of
healing. Jesus dwells in different
realms than we can grasp with our human minds, but he has come to us so that we
might be changed by him. I hope that
your big questions lead you into serious contemplation about who Jesus is,
about how he interacts—notice his intense focus on the people who are before
him, society’s elite and those that have been cast out—and be amazed by his
love. Everything Jesus does is rooted in
this love, and as we delve deeper into the story, our understanding of the
power and range and unplumbed depths of that love will only grow.
Sincerely,
Theophilus
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