Faith of Friends

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”  

Mark 2: 5 NIV

Can you remember a time in your  life where you needed to stand on the strong faith shoulders of friends.  Not just any friends.  Friends that have faith that can move mountains.  Do you have friends in your life like that?  Friends who have a spiritual walk and faith of giants?  Do you have friends that will take action on your behalf when you have no strength to move?  Friends that will pray for you behind your back when you don’t ask for it or know about it?  Friends that have more faith in the vision God has placed on your life than you do at times?  These are the people we need in our lives, the type of people we need to do life with on a daily basis.  There is a story in Mark chapter 2: 1-12 that is a great example of this type of friendship.  

First, let's see how four friends took action when they saw a need.

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home.  So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them.  Some men cane bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them.  Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof about Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on.  

Mark 2: 1-4

It is clear that Jesus was avoiding the streets because they had been turned into a healing fest. Everywhere He went people crowded and begged him with requests for healing and the casting out of demons, so much so, that He was unable to do what he had come to do primarily, which was to preach the Word.

We aren’t told anything about the friendship of these five men, however, we can see that they cared for each other deeply.  We don’t know if the paralytic had been praying for healing or had asked to see Jesus.  What we do know is that his friends knew he needed something and that Jesus could give him that something.  They took action and had faith.  They made a way where there seemed no way.

A home's roof was usually accessible by means of an outside stairway and was made of thatch, dirt or tile laid over beams. It could be taken apart, and the friends of the paralyzed man used this to their advantage.  This proved the determination and faith of the friends of the paralytic man. They counted on Jesus healing their friend, because it would be a lot harder to bring him back up through the roof than lowering him down. They counted on him walking out of the room.  

This brings us to our second point.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”  

Mark 2:5

It was because of the friend's faith that Jesus took notice of the paralytic.  So imagine this … Jesus was sitting there in the house, teaching those gathered around Him. The place was packed outside. You couldn't even get near the door because of all the people. And here came four guys carrying a friend who was paralyzed, sick with palsy some versions say.  The men were desperate to see Jesus. They had not seen Him before and they probably had not heard Him speak before.  They only knew what they had been told, and that was enough to acquire fierce faith which led to determined action.  

Not being able to get near the house, they probably went around back, climbed up on the roof, hoisted the guy up and began to tear off the tiles and mud.  And as Jesus is sitting there talking, suddenly here comes this guy on a pallet down in front of Him.  As He is watching this man being lowered, Jesus has to be thinking about the faith, love, determination and ingenuity of these friends.  When the paralytic man finally reached the floor, Jesus gave him what he needed most, spiritual healing, not physical healing.  

Have you ever been (or are you in) a situation where you pray and pray, even beg God to do something, and He answers in a totally different way?  It is hard to accept sometimes.  Do you ever want to say to Him, “That’s not what I needed Lord!”  Yet, as time goes by you see that what He did was exactly what you needed most.  

Jesus gave this man what he needed most, forgiveness of sins.  It was because of their faith, their complete and total belief in the power of Jesus, that caused Jesus to forgive them of their sins.  They didn’t know that is what they needed or what their faith was stirring in their souls, but Jesus did.  And that is why he took care of the spiritual need first.  I am sure that surprised  all five of them.  It sure made a stir with the teachers of the law.

Which leads us to our last point.

 Now some teachers of the law were sitting here, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that?  He’s blaspheming!  Who can forgive sins but God alone?”  Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things?  Which is easier; to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Get up, take your mat 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 tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”  He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all.  This amazed everyone and they praised God, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Mark 2: 6-12

Jesus begins to respond to the questions in their heart.  He calls himself the Son of Man and declares He has authority to forgive sins.  Jesus did not mean that the paralyzed man was especially sinful or that his paralysis was directly caused by sin. Instead, He addressed the man’s greatest need and the common root of all pain and suffering — man’s sinful condition.

He then asks, what is easier to believe; that He can forgive sins or tell this paralytic to get up and walk?  It's at that point that Jesus displays His full power. He has already forgiven the man of his sins and then tells him to pick up his mat and go home.  Jesus gave ultimate healing that day, spiritual and physical all because of the faith and action of friends.

As you take time to pray this week, thank God for the friends He has placed in your life that carry you when you are weak.  Send them a note of thanks and encouragement.  If you don’t have friends like that, pray that the Holy Spirit will open your eyes to see people in your world who can become those friends to you.  Ask for God to place people in front of you and behind you for support.  And finally, pray that God will allow you to be that friend to others.  It is amazing to see how God moves when we ask Him to move.  

Two are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.  If one person falls, the other can reach out and help.

Ecclesiastes 4: 9-10 NLT

By yourself you’re unprotected.  With a friend you can face the worst.  Can you round up a third?  A three-stranded rope isn’t easily snapped.

Ecclesiastes 4:12 MSG