Matthew 5:1-12
The Beatitudes
1 Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them saying:
3"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Mark 2:1-17
Jesus Forgives a Paralyzed Man
1 A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them.4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
8 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?9 Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
13 Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. 14 As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.
15 While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. 16 When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
John 5:3-9
Struggles of the Lame Man at Sheep Gate
3Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 5One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, "Do you want to get well?"
7"Sir," the invalid replied, "I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me."
8Then Jesus said to him, "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." 9At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.
In Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, He teaches us some unorthodox lessons on being blessed...
Jesus helps a paralyzed man, saw his faith -and then forgave his sins (while teaching us another lesson)...The first thing He did was to forgive the lame man of His sins...At that point, Jesus had not healed the paralyzed man, only forgive His sins...The teachers of the law did not like this -that Jesus was going around saying to people that He could forgive sins...This group said only God can forgive sins...The people that Jesus helps in His ministry are not only ones that believe and have faith in Him, but also the ones know that they somehow are flawed, ill, and need (His) help...This paralyzed man needed help...He could not walk...Only later did Jesus tell the paralyzed man to get up, take his mat and walk, did Jesus physically heal the paralyzed one...Jesus process (in this healing) to prove a point was forgive the man first, then heal him...Jesus has the power to do both -forgive and heal...
In the Gospel of John, Jesus ask a lame man (it very well maybe the same man in the Gospel of Mark) -"Do you want to get well?"...A broader question comes out of this, "Does man want to get better?"...C. S. Lewis says “Human beings, all over the earth, have this curious idea that they ought to behave in a certain way, and can’t really get rid of it.” ...G. K. Chesterton said "The problem with the world is me."...Humans know they/we should be better...But we are not...So the question (if you believe the premise of Lewis -about we have this notion we should be better) is "Do we really want to be and get better?"...It is a very deep question...Why don't we want to be better as man and mankind?...We as mankind we do try, we often help others that need help, and then the next week or month we do not...Humanity tries to be rational, and logical, but as it turns out, the question of do we want to be better -gets delayed and put into the future...Humanity is very inconsistent...We still have wars, since the beginning of our time...
In reflecting on Jesus' teachings, first, we have to know if we are sick, ill, or flawed...Do we believe we need help?...The teachers of the law, did not think they needed help...It is often hard to ask for help...It is also sometimes hard to admit that we are weak or ill...Pride sometimes stops us...The teachers of the law may not be blessed (as the Sermon on the Mount teaches), because they thought they were righteous and well...They did not want to get well, because they thought of themselves as being well...We have to know that we need our sins forgiven...Second, we have to believe that Jesus can give us abundant life and make us better...We have to have faith in Him...
The teachers of the law failed, in a sense, to challenge what they believed...They failed to reflect on their own reality and compare it to His reality...The failed to look at themselves and ask can we (and mankind, as well) be better...But it does start with me...Each of us must look at our own inside belief, and know what we believe...And see that we are flawed...If we have no flaws, we will not need or ask for (His) help...
In the Presence of Jesus, He shows us, who we really are...If we study Him, and reflect on His teachings -He makes us examine our own personal views and our own beliefs...Jesus shows us that we are, in fact, flawed...And if you believe that, then His Sermon on the Mount and His Sermon on the Plain make more sense (at least to me)...We are blessed because we NOW KNOW WE NEED HIM...Jesus is logical, rational, and shows us where Truth and Reason and Emotion all meet...He shows us our potential...We can only get better through Him...Jesus makes sense of the deepest of our questions, because He is Truth...
After we read the Sermon on the Mount, do we know how to get better?...Do we really know what afflicts us on earth?...What are our real troubles?...