Mark 2:1-12
"More Than A Man"
V.1-2
Why was it so crowded (See 1:45)
1. Some people were curious
2. Some were in need physically
Jesus saw their greatest need which was not physical but spiritual.
“So He preached the word”
**This was the priority of Jesus
Luke 4:18 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
What should the top priority of the church be?
This was the priority of Peter
2 Peter 1:12 So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. 13 I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, 14 because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 15 And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.
"The British Weekly"
Dear Sir:
It seems ministers feel their sermons are very important and
spend a great deal of time preparing them. I have been attending church regularly
for thirty years, and I have probably heard 3,000 of them. To my consternation,
I have discovered I cannot remember a single sermon. I wonder if a minister's time
might be more profitable spent on something else?
Response
Dear Sir:
I have been married for thirty years. During that time I have
eaten 32,850 meals - mostly my wife's cooking. Suddenly I have discovered I
cannot remember the menu of a single meal. And yet I have had the distinct
impression that without them, I would have starved to death years ago.
The preaching of God’s word will never get old if it is seen as spiritual nourishment
V.3 Who was this paralytic?
The men came only to be confronted with an overflow of people
V.4
A typical Palestinian house had a flat roof that was accessible by a stair case.
The roof itself was made with beams and then filled in with branches and clay
*Luke’s account mentions that there were tiles removed
What was it that caused these men to not give up?
V.5 Read
**True faith will always be accompanied by action
James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?...Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that-and shudder.
After lowering their friend they fade out of the narrative
*The four friends are similar to Andrew in the sense that once they present their friend or in Andrew’s case their brother to Jesus they disappear from the scene.
They have no need for the limelight, nor do they seek acclaim for their efforts
This is the nature of a true servant
V.5b Instead of healing the man, like the friends had hoped, Jesus forgives him
Which is greater?
A healthy body or a healed soul?
Mark 9:43 If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. 45 And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. 47 And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell
The greatest need of the human heart is not physical healing it is the forgiveness of sin
V.6
Their reaction was one of outrage. “Blasphemy!”
Jesus was claiming a prerogative of God alone.
**Either Jesus was God, or He was committing a very serious crime
The penalty for blasphemy was death
Lev 24:13 Then the LORD said to Moses: 14 "Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. 15 Say to the Israelites: 'If anyone curses his God, he will be held responsible; 16 anyone who blasphemes the name of the LORD must be put to death. The entire assembly must stone him. Whether an alien or native-born, when he blasphemes the Name, he must be put to death.
What’s the evidence from the text that Jesus was claiming to be God in the flesh?
1. He pardons sins
Now anyone can say, “Your sins are forgiven” It doesn’t take any great miraculous power to do that
2.He authenticates His claim
V.10-12
Jesus did the miracle they could see so He might prove the miracle they couldn't see (Forgiveness)
3. Knew their thoughts
V.8
If you’ve truly been with Jesus there will be a change