Matthew 9:1-8
“So He (Jesus) got into a boat, crossed over, and came to His own city. Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic,“Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you.”
And at once some of the scribes said within themselves, “This Man blasphemes!”
But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, “Why do you think evil in your hearts? For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins”—then He said to the paralytic, “Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house.”And he arose and departed to his house.
Now when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power to men.”
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At the end of the previous chapter, Jesus had just released the Gadarene demoniac from a whole lot of demons. That poor man had been possessed of a legion of them. Folks, that’s between 6,000-9,000! Holy cow! But Jesus simply commanded the evil spirits to leave the man, giving them permission to possess a herd of pigs nearby. Driven mad, the entire herd ran wild, plunged off a cliff into the sea, and were killed.
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If you’d like to read all about that story, you may follow the link below:
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Jesus Was Rejected.
But instead of rejoicing that this man, who had suffered for so many years, had been delivered, the inhabitants of the area asked Jesus to leave. 😮 So, He did. He is, above all, a gentleman, and great Respector of your free will. He will never stay where He isn’t wanted. Their loss. 😞
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Let’s continue our story…..
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“He (Jesus) got into a boat and crossed over into his own city.” That was Capernaum, His home away from home, meaning Nazareth. This is the city is where He performed a number of His most famous miracles, like raising the paralytic. Peter lived here. The event in this story most likely occurred at his house.
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Overcrowded.
The house was so overcrowded because it wasn’t just the average Israelite who was present to witness this miracle. By this time, Jesus’ fame had spread far and wide. A number of the Pharisees went very curious and there to see for themselves just what in the world was going on. They were so jealous of Him. Unsurprisingly, they were looking for anything whereby they might destroy or discredit Him. 😭
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Why The Pharisees Were Jealous.
Why were they so jealous of this Man Who OBVIOUSLY did things no ordinary man could do? Because for 1500 years, they were the go-to guys. They were the center of power and attention. If anyone needed anything from God, they went to their leaders. But, where there may have been the occasional healing here or there, now there was a veritable FLOOD of people needing to be examined by them and released back into society.
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Jealous? Green with envy? You betcha! THEY HATED HIM. He stole their thunder!
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The Blessing Of Good Friends.
How blessed was this paralyzed man to have such good and loyal friends. Being disabled, he was not able to get there by himself. They were glad to carry their friend to the One they knew Who could help. But there was such a press of people, with the whole religious bunch crowding in, that they had to tear up the roof to make an opening so they could lower him down to Jesus. 😳
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Imortant Lesson.
This story is documented in all three synoptic gospels: Matthew 9, Mark 2, and Luke 5. Wherever the Holy Spirit records a story THREE TIMES, there is a VERY important lesson He wants us to learn. Let’s find out what’s on His mind.
This story is documented in all three synoptic gospels: Matthew 9, Mark 2, and Luke 5. Wherever the Holy Spirit records a story THREE TIMES, there is a VERY important lesson He wants us to learn. Let’s find out what’s on His mind.
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Right with God.
When Jesus saw THEIR {his friends} FAITH, not the man’s, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”
“Hey, wait a minute. Didn’t they bring him to Jesus for healing,” you ask? Why did Jesus say, “Son, your sins are forgiven you?” Because He knew this man felt unworthy to be healed because of his sins. He had mentally disqualified himself. Once he saw the love and acceptance in Jesus’ eyes and knew that his sins were truly forgiven, he realized he was NOT condemned. The man was not only instantly free from guilt and condemnation, IT CAUSED HIM TO RECEIVE HIS HEALING!
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For more on forgiveness of sins, past, present AND FUTURE, follow the link below:
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Imperfect Faith.
When Jesus finally said to the man, “Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house,” he did just that! He picked up and carried that which had once carried him! And look at the result: “…all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”
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EVERYONE GLORIFIED GOD!
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Perfect Faith Not Required.
Church, you don’t have to have perfect faith in order to be healed. Like this man, you also may have mentally disqualified yourself in some way.
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Well, STOP! STOP IT RIGHT NOW! Understand this: JESUS LOVES YOU and is not only able but WILLING TO HEAL YOU. Your sins are already forgiven for your entire life! This is the most crucial truth for you to understand.
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False Teachings.
Some of the preaching in the Church today might make you feel like you are not qualified to be healed because you are not right with God. They may say things like, “Nothing wrong with God, nothing wrong with His word. There is something wrong with you.”
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Heard that before? Me, too. You know what they’re implying, right? That you have sin in your life and you need to get right with God. “You’ve fallen out of fellowship with Him.” 🙄 🤦🏼♀️ THAT IS A LIE FROM THE PIT OF HELL. 👿
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Some even preach the erroneous teaching that perhaps we have sicknesses, pain and disease so that He can teach us a lesson. 🤮
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If that were true.….and it isn’t…..then why are you going to the doctor to get rid of your illness? You’re just trying to get out of God’s will when He’s teaching you a lesson. THIS IS ANOTHER LIE FROM THE PIT OF HELL. 👿
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All those assumptions are UTTERLY FALSE. God is NOT the Author of disease. For more on that topic, you may follow the link below:
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While it is true that if you are sick you can learn from it, understand this: God didn’t make or allow you to be sick to teach you a lesson.
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What Is Wrong?
If you are born again, it is lying to say that you are sick because you did something wrong. How can that be when Jesus cleansed ALL your sins for your entire life, even those in the future?
The truth is there’s nothing wrong with God, there’s nothing wrong with His word…..AND THERE’S NOTHING WRONG WITH YOU. But there is something wrong. Would you like to know what t is?
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Because of Jesus’ finished work, there’s something wrong with you believing that there is something wrong with you. That’s what is wrong. 😁
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God Wants You Well.
It isn’t His desire that we be sick. 1 John 4:17 says, “Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.”
Memorize those nine words: “AS HE IS, SO ARE WE IN THIS WORLD.” Does it say, “As He is, so will we be when we die and go to heaven?” “As He is, so will we be when He rules this earth?” No. It says, “As He is, so ARE we IN THIS WORLD.” RIGHT NOW. 🙌🏻
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Is Jesus sick? Is He depressed? Is He worried? Is He suffering lack of any kind? No, no, NO! Then, “So are we in this world.”
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Transformed By Beholding.
Church, we are transformed, healed, saved, and delivered, by beholding His glory…..not our gory. Whatever condition in which you find yourself today, your fight is not with the devil: YOUR FIGHT IS TO REMAIN IN FAITH about what the Bible says concerning you.
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Thinking that you are condemned, or somehow out of fellowship with God, hinders you from receiving EVERY BLESSING…not just healing….EVERY BLESSING FROM OUR SUPERLATIVELY GENEROUS GOD WHO DESPERATELY DESIRES TO GIVE YOU EVERY BLESSING. Romans 8:1 says, “You are (present tense) NOT condemned.” (Paraphrased). You are the righteousness of God in Christ. PERIOD.
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Whatever is holding you captive; whatever has you paralyzed, “Son/Daughter, your sins are forgiven you.” NOW…..Rise, Church: TAKE UP YOUR BED AND WALK!!!
Emmaus Road Ministries 