As a progressive, I believe there are many names for God and many ways to a loving God; this article reflects one of those ways. Take from here what works for you. Celebrate life with joy and peace!
We recently heard a sermon by Lyn Malone, our Minister of Congregational Care & Connection. Please enjoy this article from Lyn Malone.
For years I had a lone ranger mentality. I did life thinking I had sole responsibility for success in every situation I was involved with. Now, many years later my thinking is exactly opposite … most of the time. I believe that God is bigger than our anxiety, our grief, our wondering and our questions.
This doesn’t mean however, that I think we should all sit back in our easy chairs and wait for God to miraculously “fix” all the things happening in our lives and in our church. I believe that when it comes to miracles we must also participate!
Recall the story of the man who was let down through the roof for Jesus to heal. What do you remember about it? I see fascinating facts. We have special friends, we have a paralyzed man, we have the crowds so large there is no room to get inside, at least not through the door, and we have a very big “problem,” shall we say!
Jesus has come back to his home base of Capernaum, a rather prosperous city. He has been ministering in different places around the Sea of Galilee. Having already healed many people in Capernaum, it is not a surprise that many gather to hear Him teach. There is the curious crowd. There is also a significant group of first-time hearers. There are a number of Pharisees who have come from as far away as Jerusalem to find out just what Jesus is saying and doing.
One of the wealthier people in town has a house with the new style tile roof introduced by the Romans, who invites Jesus to use his home as a teaching and meeting place. The wealthy host feels that he has arrived. Not only does he have the man of the hour in his living room, but influential people have come from all over to enjoy his hospitality. He so looks forward to seeing the photos on the front page of the Capernaum Chronicle.
So, with all of this, can you just imagine, looking up and seeing your ceiling crumbling? Think about the scene. Everyone in the house is transfixed as the hole gets larger and larger, large enough for a bed to come through. This definitely is not a case where some repair men have come to the wrong address. This is deliberate. And it is not a quick fix. It’s not a minor, cosmetic problem. That’s a huge hole in your roof.
The men break through the tiles, attach ropes and then this first century elevator starts down as they begin to lower the bed through the opening. Finally the bed reaches the floor in front of Jesus. The meeting is totally interrupted. And Jesus takes it in stride. It does not seem to faze Him in the least.
As the bed hits ground level, Jesus sees a man who is paralyzed. No one crashes a party for important people or destroys the roof of a rich man without consequences. Jesus sees his fear. He says to the young man, “Take courage. Don’t be afraid.” Then He says, “Yours sins are forgiven.”
Now nobody, but nobody expected that! The friends are up there on the roof listening. “Hey, what did he say? Did he say take up your bed and walk? No, he said ‘Your sins are forgiven.’ Uhhh, we tore up this guy’s roof for this? Jesus could have said that through the window.” They have gone to a lot of effort to bring their friend to Jesus for healing. And Jesus goes a very different direction. But know what? They are going to have to deal with that, just as we have to deal with it when Jesus doesn’t fulfill our agendas.
It’s fascinating that Jesus forgives and heals the paralyzed man; not just on the basis of his faith but also on the basis of the faith of the four friends who were so bold and persistent to lower him through the roof. Scripture says, “Seeing their faith He said, ‘your sins are forgiven.’” The Bible does not say “seeing his faith”. Rather, “seeing their faith”.
We have a God who has built into the fabric of the universe the possibility that we can make a difference in someone else’s lives through our faith and the prayers that come from that faith. We can be thankful that others can come alongside us as stretcher bearers. Sometimes we’re the lowerer through the roof and sometimes we’re the loweree – the paralyzed person on the bed. We can be in either role and the fortunes of life shift.
The faith of the paralyzed friend is faith in the possibility that Christ can help. But it’s also faith in his friends, especially when he endures the embarrassment and potential danger of being lowered by the ropes. If one man accidently lowers his rope faster than the others this could be a disaster. So he decides in his faith not only to trust Christ, but also the skill and love of his friends. Here’s the truth, folks: the paralyzed man would have never gotten to Jesus or been healed without his friends.
We all need friends who help us move into a new future when we are paralyzed by life’s trouble and fears. We need friends who energize us and lift us up when we can’t lift ourselves. We need friends who open holes in life’s roofs for us and enable us to see new opportunities.
Whatever role we are in at any given point, we need to be friends to each other. In the words of Paul, we are to bear each other’s burdens and in that way fulfill the law of Christ.” The law to “love each other as I have loved you.” Sometimes it is not necessarily glamorous, but neither is carrying a stretcher. Yet, that is the kind of community of care which is a powerful witness to the God we serve
