Friendly Persuasion

The Word is first...

Luke 5:18-20 (NIV)

¹⁸ Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. ¹⁹ When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. ²⁰ When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

The Holy Bible : New International Version. electronic ed. Grand Rapids : Zondervan, 1996, c1984

Everywhere Jesus went, people came. They crowded around him to hear him teach and they watched his every move hoping to see him perform some miracle. These people, and people today, are looking for signs and wonders to stimulate their minds or to add some excitement to an otherwise dreary existence. What is difficult to comprehend is the degree to which Jesus was a celebrity everywhere he went. Today, we are familiar with celebrities and it is the television and the telephone that are used to keep us up-to-date on their every move. Yet in the age of Jesus, there was neither television nor telephone and it was literally word-of-mouth that spread the news of his whereabouts.

On this particular day, Jesus is inside a house and again the throngs had gathered. The house was full and still there were people crowding the entrances and perhaps filling the courtyards and other areas around the house. Now in this same time there was a group of men who apparently had a paralytic friend. They too had heard of Jesus and the wondrous miracles he had performed. And being a friend to the paralytic they took it upon themselves to bring their afflicted friend to Jesus.

Today's study verse records that "Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus." Quite often, this verse is quickly passed over and overshadowed by the verses that follow but it deserves our study and today I wish to explore it with you.

"Some men" is an interesting opening for this verse. The men this verse refers to are unnamed and for good reason. If we were given their names, they would take on distinct personalities and would become characters in a story. But their anonymity keeps the focus off of them while at the same time creating the opportunity for us to identify ourselves with them.

These men apparently were in the habit of rendering help to a paralytic. "Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat..." Now I've never had to carry a grown person anywhere before and I can imagine that it is quite a difficult matter. Though Scripture does not reveal the true relationship between "some men" and the "paralytic" I surmise that there must have been some form of a real friendship between them. After all, who but a true friend would make such a sacrifice to put forth the effort of hauling around a man on a mat? As friends then, I further surmise that 'some men' must have felt a duty towards their helpless friend.

On that subject I offer two observations. First, these men had to work together. Hauling a man on a mat requires teamwork and no amount of individual skill can compensate for a lack of teamwork. An aspect of good teamwork as demonstrated by these men is practice and familiarity. Thus I surmise that they must have a history of doing this very thing. Secondly, though burdensome they took their duty to their friend seriously. Otherwise, they would have just left him where he lay and tried to bring Jesus to their friend.

In response to their burden or perhaps in spite of it, these men earnestly desired to bring their friend to Jesus. The work associated with such an endeavor was no obstacle to them as they were committed. Perhaps their desire was born out of love for their friend. Perhaps their desire was born out of being sick and tired of hauling their friend around. After all, if Jesus would heal him, they would be relieved of their duty! But no matter their motivation, their response was to bring their friend to Jesus no matter the cost.

And no matter their motivation, they knew that Jesus could heal their friend. Were these men disciples of Jesus? No. Were they converts and followers of Jesus? Scripture does not reveal. Yet their actions reveal quite clearly that they had faith in Jesus and his ability to perform miracles. And so they hauled their friend across town to where Jesus was, thus demonstrating their faith.

As a result of their faith, they also had expectations. That is, they brought their paralytic friend to where Jesus was teaching expecting a miracle. Through Scripture doesn't specify, I don't believe they were hoping for a miracle, they were expecting a miracle. Whether their motivation was altruistic or selfish makes no difference. They believed not only that Jesus could heal their friend but also that he would heal their friend.

As believers and followers of Jesus, we should have the same faith and the same expectations of the Risen Lord. And our faith should compel us to bring our own friends to Jesus. True enough that our friends may or may not be physically afflicted but certainly there is some number of our friends that are spiritually afflicted and in need of the healing touch of Jesus. Are we good enough friends to go to any effort required to bring our friends to Jesus? Are we to be counted among 'some men' who are committed to action in response to faith? Or are we as the gathered throng, sitting around listening? We are charged in James 1:22 "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says."

What is your response to your faith? What is your duty to your friends? Do you believe strongly enough to shoulder the burden?

Shalom,

Carl