Mark 2: 1-12 esp. v. 5 “Seeing their faith…”

Growing up I strongly believed that one of my names was Faith. Therefore, on my school books I always wrote Faith first even though everyone called me something else. I grew up in a community where most persons had pet names so this was not unusual. Can you imagine my shock when around age 11 I discovered that Faith was not on my birth certificate? Later in life, I was told that my parents contemplated naming me Faith but later decided to call me Lois instead. My consolation is that Lois was a woman of great faith in the Bible. Nevertheless, when I look back over my life’s journey to this point, faith has been growing like a mustard seed throughout all the changing scenes of my life in circumstances such as accidents & illnesses. Once, I remember being so ill that I had to get help to do the basic functions such as walking, bathing, combing my hair and coming off my bed.

The man in today’s story was facing a similar situation of cultivating faith through a challenging circumstance. This man was paralysed and had no possibility of being able to move around. He spent his days and nights on a mat perhaps wondering if faith would ever come his way. I can just imagine him crying out to God “can you heal me , I am tired of being sick”. Then one great day, his circumstances changed. Some faith bringers -4 men- came to see him. I think their words to him would have sounded like this: ‘This is the day of your healing. Today we are going to bring you to Jesus. Jesus, the one who has been healing the sick all over the region. Even recently he healed Peter’s mother in law , it is your time now. No, don’t worry that you don’t have the faith to believe, we believe for you’. Can you imagine the excitement as they walked on the journey carrying him on the mat to the house where Jesus was staying? Can you hear them telling him about the goodness of God, speaking words of life and of encouragement and how today he would be healed?

So you know the disappointment he would have felt on reaching Jesus’ house to see it so packed with visitors that “there was no more room, even outside the door”. But these faith bringers were not perturbed. They knew that their friend would be healed if he could just get in the presence of Jesus. These faith bringers were overcomers with mountain moving mindsets. Where others saw the obstacle of the thick crowd blocking entrance, they saw the opportunity to create a new entrance by uncovering the roof. Hallelujah! What a faith in the God of gods who gives wisdom, understanding and unique insight for specific situations. By shifting the roof, they shifted the mindset of paralysis and lowered their friend right in front of Jesus overcoming the very obstacle of the thick crowd.

Jesus saw their faith of transforming difficulties into creating room in the most unlikely space. I am sure it reminded him of his own parents who did the same thing by shifting the absence of no room in the inn to creating an unusual space for his birth. This same overcoming faith brought the man before Jesus. Jesus saw that faith and used the opportunity to demonstrate his authority to heal the man mentally, spiritually and physically. He released the man from the burden of unforgiveness of sins which provided the platform for the release of his crippled mind, spirit and body. Notice that when Jesus said “Stand up, pick up your mat , and go home” the man immediately responded with faith and “jumped up, grabbed his mat and walked out through the stunned onlookers…[who] were all amazed and praised God”.

So what about us my friends? Are we faith bringers to those with paralysed minds, spirits and bodies? Are we willing to shift and overcome obstacles to create opportunities for those who need to encounter the Living God and be healed by Him? Are we willing to let Jesus lift the burden of unforgiveness from our minds, spirits and bodies? Are we willing to exercise our faith and jump up, pick up our mats and provide the platform for onlookers to praise God? Come on let us exercise our faith today.

Dear Father, we bless your name. Thank you for faith and for healing our broken bodies, minds and spirits. ‘Breathe on us breath of God and fill us with life anew, that we may love as you love and do what you would do’ (Edwin Hatch). Amen