Quick Note – Mark 2:1-12 – Their Faith

Mark 2:1-12 – And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. 3 And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. 5 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12 And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

There are many interesting details and lessons about how the paralyzed man in Mark 2 was healed.  There is the lesson about how Jesus is God and has the authority to forgive sins.  There is the lesson about how Jesus knows the thoughts and hearts of all including the Pharisees who were inwardly mocking Him.  And there is the lesson about faith and how the paralyzed man trusted Jesus’ words enough to stand up, pick up his bed, and walk after Jesus told him to.  But one of the most interesting details that I noticed today was about the faith and action of this paralyzed man’s four friends.  Their faith and their action were two huge reasons as to why the paralyzed man was healed. 

When Jesus returned to Capernaum, He was surrounded by people.  The crowds were so big that there was no longer room in the house He was in and not even outside.  So there was no way for a paralyzed man to get to Him.  However, rather than giving up, the four men in vs. 3 carried their paralyzed friend to the roof of the house, made an opening, and lowered the man to Jesus.  They did not allow the obstacle of crowds to discourage them from reaching Him.  They did not allow the obstacle of the roof to prevent them from bringing their friend to Him.  They did everything they could to get their friend to the point where he could meet Jesus.  That is likely the reason why, in vs. 5 when Jesus saw the paralyzed man after he was lowered from the roof to Him, He said, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”  Vs. 5 specifically says that when He saw their faith not just his faith.  It used the plural not the singular, meaning that Christ noticed the faith of the friends as well – the faith that caused them to carry their friend to the house, the faith that caused them to climb the roof, the faith that drove to them cutting an opening on the roof, and the faith that led them to lower the friend to Jesus.  Their faith helped bring Christ into their paralyzed friend’s life, which led to his healing. 

We as Christians should take every opportunity we have to bring the friends and people we love to Christ.  We should not allow any obstacle to stand in our way, whether it seems impossible or simply inconvenient.  Like these four friends, we should do whatever we can to lead our unbelieving friends and family to Christ.  We must have the faith that when that person reaches Christ, Jesus can do anything with his or her life.  Our job is simply to bring them to Jesus and leave the miracle of salvation to Him. 

How often do we doubt that God can save our unbelieving friends?  We think to ourselves that their hearts are too hard, that they wouldn’t want us to push, that it is too much of a hassle to get them there; but look at these four men.  They didn’t let anything stop them, whether the crowd, the roof, or the potential shame they might receive for breaking the roof.  They just did whatever they could to bring their friend to Jesus Christ.  Who knows whether even the paralyzed man himself tried to stop them by telling them to just give up already or to not inconvenience Jesus?  But they didn’t give up.  They kept going. 

No matter how difficult it may be, let us do everything we can to bring others to Christ.  Paul said that he became a Jew, in order to win Jews, that he became as one under the law, to win those who were under the law, and that he became weak to win the weak.  He became all things to all people, that by all means he might save some (1 Corinthians 9:19-23).  He did whatever he could for the sake of the Gospel.  His faith that God would work in the hearts of the people, led to many churches being founded. 

Let us never give up or allow obstacles in our lives keep us from bringing those we love to Christ.  For if we have the faith to bring them to Him, He can work a miracle in their hardened hearts.  Obviously, they must still personally place their trust in Him themselves as the paralyzed man showed his trust in Christ when he obeyed the command to stand up and walk.  But that could have never happened without the faith of those four men to bring him to Jesus.  So don’t give up; keep trusting God to work in the lives of unbelievers; continue bringing them as close as you can to Him.  Then, leave the rest of the work to God.  He might just work a miracle. 

Quick Note – 1 Samuel 28:3-6 and 1 Samuel 30:3-6 – God our Comfort

1 Samuel 28:3-6 – 3 Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had mourned for him and buried him in Ramah, his own city. And Saul had put the mediums and the necromancers out of the land. 4 The Philistines assembled and came and encamped at Shunem. And Saul gathered all Israel, and they encamped at Gilboa. 5 When Saul saw the army of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 And when Saul inquired of the Lord, the Lord did not answer him, either by dreams, or by Urim, or by prophets.

1 Samuel 30:3-6 – 3 And when David and his men came to the city, they found it burned with fire, and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. 4 Then David and the people who were with him raised their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep. 5 David’s two wives also had been taken captive, Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail the widow of Nabal of Carmel. 6 And David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because all the people were bitter in soul, each for his sons and daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

Today, we are looking at two contrasting characters in the Bible during their time of distress – King Saul and David.  Each one had a different type of issue that was troubling them, and both tried to seek the LORD, but only one of them received comfort and an answer. 

King Saul was faced with an attack by the Philistines, who were coming to conquer the land of Israel.  Knowing that the army was great and would be difficult to defeat, Saul was afraid and did not know what to do, so he sought advice from the LORD.  However, because of Saul’s sin when he did not completely destroy the Amalekites as God had commanded him to do and because of his stubbornness and unwillingness to repent, God would not answer him.  It did not matter what method Saul tried to hear of God from, whether dreams or the Urim (a way answers were received at the place of worship) or prophets, none would provide him an answer.  Because he did not receive an answer, he sought a medium to call the spirit of Samuel, a prophet of God, back from the dead to give him advice.  This was another sin that was committed, because God commanded the Israelites not to perform these rituals.  Nonetheless, Samuel did appear to him and rebuked him for his sin.  Though Saul sought God, God was not found, for Saul likely was not seeking God with all his heart.  All he wanted was comfort.  All he wanted was advice.  He did not want a relationship with God – just what God could give him.  So when God did not answer, he tried to achieve the same result in an earthly way by seeking a medium.  He should have repented.  He should have turned back to God.  The lack of an answer should have made him humble himself, but instead, he rebelled even more.  Saul found no comfort in God during his time of distress because of his unrepentant heart. 

Now, let’s take a look at what happened with David.  David was living in the land of the Philistines at the same time.  He was fleeing from King Saul, who was trying to kill him.  In reality, David was supposed to fight with the Philistines against Saul during this time; however, by God’s grace, David was spared from the battle, because the Philistine commanders sent him home.  When David and his men returned to the city of Ziklag, their base in the Philistine territory, they found their city raided.  Their wives and children were captured, and their city aflame.  Due to this big loss and the distress in their souls, David’s men considered stoning him to death.  Obviously, this was hard on David.  Not only did he lose his wives and children, but now, his men were on the brink of rebellion.  However, verse 6 tells us that even during this time of difficulty, David strengthened himself in the LORD.  David found comfort in the Lord his God.  He did not seek a medium.  He did not blame God for the trouble.  Rather, he humbly came before God, looking to know Him more.  It does not say that David found comfort from the Lord his God, but in the Lord his God.  This is an important detail that we must take note of.  David did not seek the comfort alone, but he sought God, who became his comfort.  He was not looking for the result but the One who could give it. 

When we are in times of distress and trouble, where do we run to for help?  Do we go to God just to get relief?  Or do we go to Him, because He is the relief?  God is our Strength, our ever-present Help in trouble.  He is not there just to provide comfort, but He is that comfort.  Knowing who our Holy God is, a loving Father yet powerful Creator, we can strengthen ourselves in His loving arms.  We must only seek Him with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths.  We must not go to Him simply for the result, but for who He is.  Jeremiah 29:12-13 states, “12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”  Our God is a God of comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction (2 Corinthians 1:3-4).  God is ready to listen and hear us, but we must come before Him with hearts full of repentance, free from sin, and completely seeking Him. 

Are you King Saul, seeking comfort from God?  Or are you David, seeking God your comfort?

Not like an Idol – Psalm 115:4-8

Today, I just wanted to share some quick things that I was thinking about when I was reading my daily Bible reading today.  During this time, when everyone is hunkered down in their homes and the virus continues to spread, many people are wondering where God is.  It doesn’t seem like He is listening.  It doesn’t seem like He is working.  It doesn’t even seem like He is around.  But our God is not a graven image (an idol) that cannot respond, He is a great God whose ways we may not understand but can trust.  These verses in Psalm 115:4-8 talk about idols and the various body parts that are engraved upon them.  Although they have these parts, like a mouth and ears and hands, they cannot use them, for they are nothing but pieces of stone, wood, or even gold.  Our God is not like that, for He has used every part of Himself to show His love for us.  I just wanted to give you some verses that will help remind you of that.

• Psalm 115:5a – “They have mouths, but do not speak…”

Unlike an idol, our God speaks to His children each and every day through a number of ways.  He uses His Creation to speak of His power.  He used dreams to speak to the prophets.  And nowadays, He speaks to His children through His Word.  As in a relationship with a loved one, God wants to have intimate conversations with you.  Are you ready and willing to listen?

Hebrews 1:1-2 – “Long ago, at many ties and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the their of all things, through whom also He created the world.”

2 Timothy 3:16-17 – “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”

• Psalm 115:5b – “…Eyes, but do not see.”

Unlike an idol, our God sees everything that is going on around us.  He can see everything from the galaxies which we have never pictured by satellite to the thoughts and intents of our heart.  He sees us when we sin, but He also looks at us with love and desire to restore us to Him.

Proverbs 15:3 – “The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.”

Psalm 33:18-19 – “Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His steadfast love, that He may deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.”

• Psalm 115:6a – “They have ears, but do not hear…”

Unlike an idol, our God is hearing every prayer we cry out to Him.  In this time, when it seems like He isn’t answering, do not worry, for He hears.  He knows our concerns, our difficulties, and our desires.  His ears are always open to the prayers of His children.  Like a loving Father, He is always listening to us as we speak to Him.  Bring your petitions, your troubles, and especially your praises to Him today.

1 John 5:14-15 – “And this is the confidence that we have toward Hi, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of Him.”

1 Peter 3:12 – “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayer.  But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

• Psalm 115:6b – “…Noses, but do not smell.”

Although smell is not usually associated with our God (usually we talk about His ears and listening and His eyes and seeing), the Bible does also talk about God smelling the sweet aroma of a life lived for Him.  Whether it was a sacrifice in the Old Testament done exactly according to the law or the sacrifice of His Son or a Christian life given in full-service to Him, God smelled those sweet aromas offered to Him.

2 Corinthians 2:15-16 – “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life.  Who is sufficient for these things?”

Ephesians 5:2 – “And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

• Psalm 115:7a – “They have hands, but do not feel…”

Unlike an idol who can have many hands and do nothing with them, our God’s hands are always at work.  These are the hands that formed man in Creation from the dust of this earth but also forms the baby in the womb.  These are the hands that brought the plagues upon Egypt but also were nailed on the cross for us.  These powerful hands are the same hands that gently hold us and shelter us.

Isaiah 41:10 – “…Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

John 10:27-30 – “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.  I and the Father are one.”

• Psalm 115:7b – “…Feet but do not walk…”

An idol is stationary; it cannot move; it cannot go anywhere.  It is left, where it is placed by the user.  But our God is all about; He is always present and will always watch over His children.  I know His omnipresence makes Him feel less personal, so it is good to remind ourselves that His feet are also the ones of a Shepherd, who goes out of His way to look for His lost sheep as well as the feet of One who walked in the garden of Eden with Adam.

Psalm 139:7-10 – “Where shall I go from your Spirit?  Or where shall I fell from Your presence?  If I ascent to heaven, you are there!  If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!  If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.”

Luke 15:3 – “So he told them this parable: ‘What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?  And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.  And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, “Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.”  Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.’”

Our God isn’t an idol that cannot respond to our cries and pleas for help.  He is not some inanimate object that can do nothing but take up room in our house.  Our God is a great and loving Father, who is always there looking out for His children.  He uses His mouth to speak to us, His eyes to see us, His ears to hear us, His nose to smell the sweet aroma of us, His hands to care for us, and His feet to chase after us.  Our God loved us so much, He sent His Son to die on the cross for our sins and restore our relationship with Him.  He is not dead, He is surely alive and working today.

Restoring to Establishing

1 Peter 5:10 – “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”

One of the hardest things to deal with in life is suffering.  Nobody in their right mind wants to go through trouble for no reason at all.  No one wants to be stricken with a malignant tumor fighting for their life everyday while dealing with the pain and hardship of chemotherapy.  No one wants to experience the death of a loved one.  No one wants to deal with a lost job due to a difficult economy.  And the suffering only becomes harder to bear when it happens to a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ for doing what is right because he is being persecuted.

Most of 1 Peter talks about how Christians need to stand strong for what is right and to continue to live a godly life in Christ in the midst of trials, knowing that the Lord also suffered.  We will focus for the next few devotionals on the reasons why we should stand strong for the Lord.  But before going into any of that, we will jump ahead to the end of 1 Peter where Peter gives one of the most encouraging statements for a person in suffering, 1 Peter 5:10 – “And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.”  In one of the closing verses of this book, Peter reminds all the believers that God will do four things for us – restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish – as well as remind them of what Christ has called us to – His eternal glory in Christ.

One way suffering can be endured is when a person remembers that what he is suffering for is worth all the pain.  This knowledge can push people to endure the worst of conditions, like when a parent will undergo torture to protect his/her child.  For this reason, Peter first reminds all the believers to what they have already been called to – His (God’s) eternal glory in Christ.  All the pain, all the trouble, all the persecution in the end amounted to God being glorified in Christ for the world would see that the suffering was not done deservedly for sin but due to the witness of Jesus Christ.  Paul encountered persecution for the gospel of Jesus Christ and eventually the whole palace where he was a prisoner knew that he was not placed there for any other reason but for bringing glory to God (Phil 1:12-13).  Not only was Paul vindicated for his imprisonment, but his imprisonment in the end brought to more sharing of the Gospel and many more people coming to know Christ.  Paul’s suffering ended up bringing glory to God and in the end himself as well for we still remember Paul, who now is able to partake in the glory of Christ.  It is the same for each and every one of us who are disciples of Christ, for we are fellow heirs with Christ and can also partake in His glory.  We must just remember that every time we endure suffering and persecution for the sake of Christ, we are blessed, for ours is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:10).

After reminding them of what they had been called to and will experience in the future, Peter then goes through a four step process to which God would take us through after suffering – restoration, confirmation, strengthening, and establishing.  First, Peter talks about restoration.  When we experience suffering, one of the easiest things to do is to pack up our bags and give up, to lose ground in our faith in Christ, to fall back on old sinful habits that were already gone.  Peter must have intentionally started with this verb restore to remind any believer who had slipped up during suffering that God had not given up on them in any way, shape, or form, but was ready to restore them again.  Too often we feel embarrassed when we realize that we had made a mistake and doubted God in the midst of trouble and are too afraid to return to Him, fearing that He is out there to give us an “I told you so.”  But God is not looking to condemn us but is waiting to restore our relationship with Him.  Even Job though he questioned God in the midst of suffering, in the end, when he humbled himself before the Lord, was restored.   In the KJV, this verb is translated perfect, which also means complete.  This is a reminder that God will complete us fully in the last day, making us perfect before Him.  I personally lean towards the ESV translation of restore though since the Greek word is katartizo,  which means repairing something broken (http://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/greek/nas/katartizo.html), in other words, restoring.  Even if there was no backsliding, suffering can take parts of you away and strip you of yourself, your emotions, your drive, and all of these things will be restored by Christ.

The second thing Peter says God will do is that He will confirm you.  The word in the Greek throughout the Bible has been translated as the word establish or confirm, both of which seem to carry the same idea in that something is being made sure of.  Interestingly enough, it was placed right after restoration, in that, God restores you after you might have backslidden and confirms your place in Him.  The restoration alone is an act of confirmation that you are still loved and cared for by Christ, but He goes over and beyond and specifically confirms your faith once again.  You can know for certain that Christ loves you and will never leave you or forsake you.  If you were a newscaster or writer, you might be told a small piece of information from a source, but unless you trust the source completely with your whole career and life, you usually need to confirm your facts and establish that they are true.  In the same manner, Christ not only restores your position and relationship with Him, but He will then confirm it for you, so that there will be no doubt in your mind of your relationship with Christ and where it is.

Third, Peter mentions how God will not only restore and confirm you but He will also strengthen you.  After going through hardship and suffering, falling back, and now returning, one of the hardest things to do is move forward.  Yes, you know that you are now in good graces with the Lord but it is still very difficult to move forward, knowing that you had fallen before, yet in this verse we are told that Christ will strengthen you, He will provide you the ability to go on.  At the same time, even if we had not lost faith in the midst of trials, there is no doubt that suffering will easily drain your drive to go on – whether it be living or continuing in the faith or growing in your relationship with the Lord.  We definitely need to find a source of strength to go on and that source is the Lord.  Isaiah 40:31 states it best, “But those who trust in the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up on wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”  In the LORD, we can find strength that can keep us going through any type of suffering and also the strength to continue on even if we had failed before.  May we always find our strength in the LORD.

Lastly, Peter reminds the believers that God will establish them.  After strengthening them, He will establish them.  Now, this word sounds very similar to confirm and seems like it means the same thing, but although it may be related, there is a subtle difference in that this word establish in the Greek means “to settle” or “to lay a foundation.” It means much more than just establishing an idea and letting one know it is true.  It takes that truth and causes a person to build his life on and around that truth so that nothing will ever shake it.  Confirm is like checking what someone said about the land on which someone wants to build his house, while establish is actually building the house on that land.  God not only restores our faith, confirms our faith, and strengthens our faith, but He establishes it so that it can never again be moved.  Romans 5:3-5 explains the process, “More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”  Suffering led to a hope that could not be moved for it is established in the knowledge of God’s love and character.  As believers, we will no longer shift to and fro by the waves during suffering, but after a little while can find ourselves established in our faith not wavering in Christ, for our foundation is in Christ, our Rock.

1 Peter 5:10 is one of the great verses of Scripture to memorize and keep in mind in the midst of suffering, for although difficulties and persecutions arise, we can know for a fact that our Lord will in the end restore and repair where we have fallen or were hurt, confirm our faith and trust in Him as well as His Word, strengthen us to grow even farther in Him, and establish our faith so if and when another trial comes our hearts will stand even stronger in Him as our new character continues to be built to be more and more like Christ.  Remember His glory and your ability to partake in it, and remember His promise to restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.  Suffering can be endured when you know and trust the promises of God.