Bible Studies for Life: September 14 -

The Greatest Need • Luke 5:17-26

By Melody Mercer

Have you ever thought to yourself, “I’m not taking NO for an answer,” then you pulled up your bootstraps and faced the situation? I think this is exactly how the friends of the paralyzed man felt. The Pharisees and Scribes were all crowded in Simon Peter’s house, so there was no way the friends were getting him through the front door. I can imagine them going through multiple scenarios before deciding on the roof. Their faith and determination were unwavering even though they came up against a big obstacle and had to get creative. We can only hope that our friends would go that extra mile for us. I still have so many questions for Dr. Luke. How did they get their friend and the mat on the roof? How did they lower him down into the house? Did they have to pay for the roof repair? Inquiring minds want to know.

Whenever there is an outreach opportunity or ministry outside the church, we’ve always been told to meet the physical need first. There is the old cliché of, “people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” The physical need must be met before you can even think of talking to anyone about a spiritual need. To the friends, the man’s immediate need was the healing of his body. However, Jesus knew the greatest need was his forgiveness of sins. Jesus could see that the man’s friends had tremendous faith just to get him there. Don’t miss that at the end of verse 17 it says, “And the Lord’s power to heal was in him” (CSB). In the KJV, it says, “and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” The power was in the room even before the friends got there with the paralyzed man.

Unfortunately for the Pharisees, they couldn’t see it or feel it. Just because we don’t feel or see God’s power, doesn’t mean it’s not there. The friends were filled with faith. They believed Jesus would heal their friend. They weren’t passively waiting. They didn’t wait for Jesus to find them. They were actively pursuing the power and a miracle. This is exactly what the woman with the issue of blood did. (Luke 8:43-48). She sought Jesus out and took the miracle. She went to Jesus and knew it would only take a touch of His garment to be healed. God supplies the power. Our job is to supply the faith.

When Jesus saw their faith, He told the man that his sins were forgiven. Now this got the Pharisees’ attention. They started asking the questions that had them there in the first place. “Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (v. 21 CSB)

I wish I could have seen their faces when Jesus asked them, “Why are you thinking this in your hearts?” (v. 22 CSB) BUSTED! Yes, it would have been easier for Jesus to tell the man to “Get up and walk” (v. 23 CSB), but instead, He healed his heart first by telling him that his sins were forgiven. That’s exactly why the teachers of the law were there. They knew about Jesus’ preaching and power to heal, and decided he needed to be watched. Jesus demonstrated that he had the power to do the invisible miracle of forgiving the man’s sins, and the visible miracle of healing his body.

No doubt the Pharisees were ready to argue against the fact that Jesus claimed He could indeed forgive sins. However, once Jesus told the man to take his mat and go home, scripture says, “Then everyone was astounded, and they were giving glory to God” (v. 26 CSB). The “everyone” included the scribes and the Pharisees. No one could deny what they had just seen. They could join with everyone else as they praised God for the incredible miracle they had just witnessed, but they weren’t ready to believe Jesus was truly man and truly God.

Remember, our greatest need is forgiveness for our sins. God loved us so much that He sent His only son to die for us. Even if it had just been YOU, Jesus still would have gone to the cross. He loves us that much.

Mercer is a member of First Church, Jackson.