Luke 5:17-26 Jesus Heals a Paralytic
Good morning! Turn with me in your Bibles to Luke 5, we are going to look at verse 17-26 and that’s on page 861 in the pew Bibles.
Let’s read the Word of the Lord.
17 On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal. 18 And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, 19 but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. 20 And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” 21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 22 When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? 23 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 24 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” 25 And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God. 26 And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen extraordinary things today.”
Let’s pray.
This is one of my favorite accounts in Scripture, there is so much for us here and the flannelgraph was so cool!
Jesus was teaching in a crowded house in Capernaum, and this didn’t happen directly after the last account of Jesus healing the man with leprosy but Luke organized these accounts with a purpose, and that purpose was to reinforce Jesus’ authority.
Jesus was very popular at this time and word had reached Jerusalem, people came from all over to hear Him teach and to see His miracles. The Pharisees, at that time, were the shepherds of Israel tasked with making sure everybody was living by their rules so it is no wonder that a group of them were sent to Galilee to hear this new teacher and judge His message. Boy, were they in for it…
Regardless of our preconceived notions of the Pharisees as the bad guys of the New Testament, we can still learn from them. The Lord has lessons for us to learn through them.
In verse 20 Jesus said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.” 21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 22 When Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts? 23 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’?
The Scribes and the Pharisees put all their stock in outward displays of righteousness, their emphasis was on empty, outward religion. They were the epitome of “Do as I say, not as I do.” Their hypocrisy was well known but their authority and influence made it impossible for anyone to do anything about it. That is until Jesus came around…
The scribes and the Pharisees didn’t question Jesus out loud, they didn’t say anything at all. I can’t help but wonder if what they were thinking wasn’t written on their faces, but either way, Jesus knew their hearts.
There’s a lot we can learn about the example of the Pharisees, and from this particular instance we can learn that Jesus sees through the outward appearance straight to the heart. The Pharisees put all their effort into outward appearances while neglecting true faith, but this is the opposite of the kingdom of God.
For far too long the church has given the impression that people have to clean up their acts before they can come to Jesus, that they have to change first in order to come to faith.
How often do we, those that know and love the Lord Jesus, let shame and regret keep us from fellowship with the Lord and His people?
This may not be our conscious effort, but how much effort do we expend doing the opposite, showing people that Jesus loves them regardless of the outward appearance of their lives, of our lives?
How much effort do we put in to making sure the outward appearance of our own lives is at an acceptable standard all the while neglecting our own hearts and relationship with Jesus?
We could talk about this all day… But let’s move on, there’s more to learn from Jesus.
While there is a lot we can learn from the Pharisees there is also a lot we can learn from Jesus here.
The scribes and Pharisees questioned Jesus in their hearts, saying, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
To claim to be God was blasphemy, that is, unless you really are God.
The Pharisees were right, no one can forgive sins but God alone, and here is how Jesus responds:
“Why do you question in your hearts? 23 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 24 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the man who was paralyzed—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.” 25 And immediately he rose up before them and picked up what he had been lying on and went home, glorifying God.
If anyone has ever said to you that Jesus never claimed to be God, or if you have ever read that anywhere, here is your proof that Jesus is God and He never denied it.
The Pharisees were right, no one can forgive sins but God alone, and by forgiving this man’s sins Jesus shows that He is in fact God and that He has the power and the authority to forgive sins.
The other thing that we can learn from Jesus here is that He always works miracles with a purpose. I’ve said it here before about the eight miraculous signs that the Gospel of John is framed around. Jesus performs these signs, these miracles, to demonstrate that He is the Son of God and He has the power to cancel sin.
That is why He healed this man, not just to make for a cool flannelgraph, but to prove His authority.
Jesus said that it was easier to say to the man that his sins were forgiven than to say to him, “rise up and walk,” because no one would see the inward healing of his soul, but they would certainly see the outward sign, they would see whether or not the man actually got up off his bed. But the truth of the matter is that the unseen healing was the greater miracle.
Being paralyzed was certainly an issue for this man but his sin was a greater issue, and the same is true for the rest of us, sin is our main issue!
We need to change our mindsets to reflect the truth of which of these things is the greater miracle.
Have you ever thanked God for the blessing of sickness?
Or do your prayers sound more like, “Jesus please solve my problems?”
Jesus is most glorified when His people are most dependant on Him and that’s a matter of perspective.
We could talk about that all day… But let’s move on, there’s more to learn from the paralytic and his four friends.
17 On one of those days, as he was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with him to heal. 18 And behold, some men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they were seeking to bring him in and lay him before Jesus, 19 but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus. 20 And when he saw their faith, he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”
The paralytic and his friends are not the heroes of this story, Jesus is, but we can still learn from their example.
I said a couple weeks ago how much I valued cleverness, I think that’s why I like this story so much.
These guys were undeterred by the obstacles that came between them and Jesus, they were clever enough to find another way. No crowd was going to stop them, no roof would keep them from laying their friend before the Lord.
What great faith they had, and what great love they had for their friend, they quite literally bore his burden, they carried him on his bed and they stopped at nothing.
Are we willing to exercise the same faith? Are we willing to bear one another’s burdens in this way?
What does that really look like in real life? I’ll close with a story by William R. White adapted from his book, “Stories For The Journey.”
“What is your favorite Bible story, papa?” a little girl asked her father as he tucked her under the sheets.
“Let me see,” he said as he sat on the edge of the bed. “There are so many that I love. The story we read tonight at supper of the four men who carried their paralyzed friend to Jesus, lowering him through the roof, is one of my favorites because it reminds me so much of how your uncle Hans was healed.”
“I don’t know that story,” the little girl said hopefully. “Please tell it to me, papa.”
“Many years ago,” the father began, “Hans and his wife, Enid, escaped the war in Europe so that he could continue his life of teaching in the seminary. At first things were difficult because his English was not good, but soon he became one of our seminary’s most beloved teachers. The students loved him because he was warm and gentle and when he spoke the Scriptures came alive.
“Hans and Enid were very much in love. Nearly every day they took long walks together, holding hands. It warmed the hearts of students and faculty alike to see them sitting close to each other in church.
“Then one day Enid died. Hans was struck with sorrow. For weeks he would not eat or take walks. The seminary president, along with three other friends, visited him regularly, but he felt lonely and depressed. He was experiencing the dark night of the soul.
“On one of their visits, Hans said to his friends, ‘I am no longer able to pray to God. In fact, I am not certain I believe in God.’
“After a moment of silence, the seminary president said, ‘Then we will believe for you. We will make your confession for you. We will pray for you.’
“The other friends looked bewildered by their president’s words, but not knowing what else to say, they agreed.
“In the days ahead the four men met daily for prayer. They made confession on behalf of Uncle Hans. They asked God to restore the gift of faith to their dear friend and they continued to visit him in his home.
“Then, after many months, the four men all gathered in Hans’s living room. He smiled before he spoke. ‘It is no longer necessary for you to pray for me. Today, I would like you to pray with me.’
“The dark night of the soul had passed.”
There was a long silence before the little girl spoke. “Uncle Hans was just like the sick man in the story, wasn’t he, papa? Only instead of a mat to carry him to Jesus, his friends used prayer.”
The father nodded and kissed his daughter goodnight.
Amen.
