Mark 2:1-12
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!”
Matthew 5:11-12
Jesus on Persecution
11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Matthew 5:27-30
Obstacles Causing Sin
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.
Matthew 10:28
The Importance of the Soul
28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
Jesus teaches us the eternities...And Jesus gives us some examples of the importance of eternal life and the eternities...After all, we only live on the earth for a short while...But an eternity, is well an eternity...Jesus teaches us the importance of the soul and the Spirit...
One time when He knew a paralyzed man needed healing, four friends carried the crippled one in...The first thing He said to the paralyzed one was, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”...He did not heal the man and then forgive Him of His sins...No, He forgave the man of His sins first, and then He healed him...Jesus shows us the importance of the value of the soul and the spirit, and seems to place lesser emphasis on the physical body...Jesus said we do not have to be afraid of those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul...Rather, we need to fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell...We see Him placing an importance on the eternal soul...He wants us to realize that the soul needs a healing process also and He does this before this man's body is healed...
And Jesus talks about sin coming upon us quickly and enter our thoughts quickly...He said, metaphorically, that if our right eye us to sin, we should gouge it out and throw it away...He does not want us to mutilate ourselves, but to reflect on our sins, and the difficulties we have with stopping our own sinning...He says, it is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell...And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away...It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell....But He is telling us that we should not sin...He is teaching us we need Him...He is of eternal life...And God is perfect, and the only Way to perfection is through Him, our Savior, Jesus Christ...And the Only Way to God is through Jesus...Sometimes to achieve victory over our own desires and hearts, we need constant prayer to Him and His help...Again, Jesus shows us the importance of the soul and the spirit, and seems to place lesser emphasis on the physical body...
And the same thing can be said for persecution and suffering...We are blessed when people insult us, persecute us and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Jesus...Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you, you will be persecuted at times when you are promoting Him and His teachings...His Word and His Ways and His Teachings are the eternities...They are of most importance...The eternities and our eternal life are very important, when compared to the flesh and body and desires of the earth...
I wonder if those around this healing and even the man who He healed gave much thought to Jesus' healing of the soul, as much as they would see the wonderment and wonderful healing of the paralyzed who they "actually saw" walking...