Thinking about healing

Some men came, bringing to him a paralysed man, carried by four of them. 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. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralysed man, "Son, your sins are forgiven."  Mark 2:3-5
 
Over my years as a minister I've known sermons interrupted by various things - a baby starts to cry, someone is taken ill, a phone goes off, and yes, just occasionally, there's the sound of gentle snoring. But somebody dismantling the roof to let someone down on a stretcher...? Not yet, I'm thankful to say.

Of course Jesus wasn't in a church or synagogue - he was speaking in someone's home. The house was packed, which is why the four men carrying their paralysed friend decided this was the only way they could get him to Jesus. The house probably had a flat roof where you could go up to enjoy the cool of the evening, and opening it up wasn't too big a job.

I wonder, by the way, if they paid afterwards for the repairs? Whatever, what a great example they are of loyal friendship - even quite a short journey carrying such a burden in the heat of the day would have been seriously demanding. It reminds us of a really important truth: that there are times in the Christian life when we have a duty (which is also a privilege) to carry a fellow-believer by our faith and prayers when they cannot carry themselves. And, of course, times when we need to let others carry us...

It must have been one of those hold-your-breath moments - hearing scraping noises, everybody looks up to see what's going on... the hole slowly widens in the roof... a face appears, sussing out the situation... the stretcher is lowered into the middle of the room. Can you see the crowd shuffling awkwardly backwards to make space? ("Hey, you're treading on my toes!") They quickly take in what's happening - the paralysed man was probably well known in the locality, so they knew how desperate his need was.

What will Jesus do? How will he handle this odd situation? 

Total silence. And then (roll of drums) Jesus speaks... "Get up! Take up your stretcher and walk..."  

Well, no actually - that is exactly what Jesus doesn't say. Not yet, anyway. He says what must have seemed the biggest anti-climax of all time: "Son, your sins are forgiven". Oh.  

I wonder if the man on the mat was tempted to put Jesus right? "Er, Jesus, it's really nice of you to offer me forgiveness. Please don't think I’m ungrateful. But actually that isn't what I came for. You may not have noticed it, but (ahem) the fact is that my legs don't work. To be honest, it was healing I had in mind... Forgive me for pointing it out..."

But of course Jesus knew exactly what he was doing and why. He knew, putting it simply, that the healing of the soul matters far more than the healing of the body.

Oh yes, he spent a lot of time curing people's physical ailments. He obviously regarded that as important. But it was never his top priority.

He came to deal with humanity's big problem: sin, separation from God. That was why he suffered and died on the cross. And he promised that all who put their trust in him will indeed be perfected one day, even if not in this earthly life: we will have sinless souls and brand new bodies fitted for eternal life in the kingdom of God.

Not, of course, that we should drive too sharp a division between our bodies and our “souls”, because the two belong together in a unity. We all know very well that our physical condition can affect us spiritually - if we are tired or sick it can depress our spirits; and if we persist in sin of any kind, it can make us physically ill.

Indeed, you can’t help wondering if the reason Jesus spoke to the man on the mat first of all about forgiveness shows that he knew that his paralysis was the result of some suppressed sin. Quite likely, I would think.

"How are you?" we say to one another, enquiring about our health. "Oh, not too bad," we answer. But the question that really matters is different altogether: How is your spiritual health? Can you say your sins have been forgiven? Are you walking with God day by day? If our answer is "Thank God, yes!" then our physical ailments, however serious they might be, fall into their rightful place.

First things first...! 

Lord, I confess that my aches and pains can get me down. I get frustrated that my body seems sometimes to be my enemy rather than my friend. But thank you for the promise of an eternity of perfect well-being. In the meantime, help me to know that my sins are forgiven, and that my soul is in your loving hands. Amen.