We’re going back to Jesus’ encounter with the paralytic. Let’s start by re-reading Luke’s account.
One day He was teaching; and there were some Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was present for Him to perform healing. And some men were carrying on a bed a man who was paralyzed; and they were trying to bring him in and to set him down in front of Him. But not finding any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher, into the middle of the crowd, in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, He said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven you.” The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?” But Jesus, aware of their reasonings, answered and said to them, “Why are you reasoning in your hearts? “Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins have been forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? “But, so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,“–He said to the paralytic–“I say to you, get up, and pick up your stretcher and go home.” Immediately he got up before them, and picked up what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. They were all struck with astonishment and began glorifying God; and they were filled with fear, saying, “We have seen remarkable things today.” – Luke 5:17-26 NASB (Emphasis mine.)
Before we go any further, I want to circle back to this phrase, “and the power of the Lord was present for Him to perform healing.”
I really want to press in to this idea. We have seen that this was the pattern of His ministry – teach/preach then heal. We’ve looked at each time in the Gospel accounts where Jesus healed everyone who needed healing.
So let’s do a little critical thinking. Do you suppose that anyone in this packed room who came to hear Jesus had any need for healing? This place was packed. There were Pharisees from every village in Galilee and Judea, and from Jerusalem – there were curious on lookers, there were His disciples and their friends and neighbors. What are the chances that no one in the crowd needed any healing of any kind? Pretty slim, don’t you think?
Just to test my theory – raise your hand if there is any area of your physical life that needs a touch from the “Power of the Lord to perform healing?”… I thought so.
I think we can agree that there was someone in the room who needed healing.
Next question. Was it the Lord’s will to heal that day?
Let’s look at a few other translations our key phrase:
And the power of the Lord was present to heal them. – KJV
Now the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal. – CEB
The Lord was giving Jesus the power to heal people. – ICB
God’s power to heal people was with him. – JBP
The healing power of God was on him. – MSG
and the power of the Lord was — to heal them. YLT
What do you think. If it was not God’s will to heal, would He have anointed Jesus with the power to heal?
Luke makes a big deal of this anointing Jesus walked in.
In Luke 4:18-19 he announces His ministry
“THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” – Luke 4:18-19 NASB
In the book of Acts, also written by Luke, he records Peter’s summary of Jesus’ ministry,
“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. – Acts 10:38 NASB
Do you think the fact that no one is healed until the sky starts falling in, is an indication of God’s will for these gathered?
What do you think is stopping them.
Unbelief?
Intimidation by the spiritual muckity mucks in the house?
Fear of what they might think?
Shame of admitting their need?
So why no healing.
Fear impedes healing.
Pride derails healing.
As we said last week, scoffers and mockers will not receive healing
I want us to get this on a deep and impenetrable level. Healing is not up to Jesus. Jesus has a part, and we have a part. Jesus is the healer, but He is greatly released or limited by our faith.
Let’s talk about the sin thing a litte further tonight, too.
Righteousness by Faith
Should it have been astounding to them that Jesus pronounced his sins forgiven? After all – how does one attain right standing with God? By faith – right? And when did that start? Was it after the cross of Jesus? Well – No – it goes back – WAY back in fact.
Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness. – Genesis 15:6 NASB
For what does the Scripture say? “ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.” – Romans 4:3 NASB
Yes – it is the shed blood of Jesus that washes us from our sins, but our rightstanding with God comes as a result of faith as it did for faithful Abraham.
Which is Easier
So Jesus poses the question – which is easier? Faith for salvation or faith for healing? Which is harder for God? Which is eaiser for us?
We’ve been thinking about faith for salvation for hundreds of years. Since the reformation, more than five centuries ago, salvation by grace through faith has been understood and taught from every orthodox pulpit all across the world. It’s no surprise that it comes easily for us. Assuming you feel that an average of 15 exposures to the gospel of grace is needed for the average believer.
Authority to forgive sins
Look how closely linked salvation and healing are. He stands before the religious leaders of the day and holds it out as proof that He has the authority to forgive since by healing the paralyzed man He demonstrates that He is in relationship with God. He continually stated that He was not doing the actually heaving lifting. He cast out demons with the “finger of God,” He did what He saw the Father doing. He was demonstrating “Thy will be done on earth as it is heaven.”
Glorifying God
And finally – when the man get’s up and walks out with the pallet he came in on, God recieved glory. In the ministry of Jesus, you will never see God getting glory from or in any sickness or disease. He recieves glory as a result of the restoration of health time after time.
Healing glorifies God. Period.
Today, when we pray for someone and they are healed – we don’t get glory from that. We are not the healer. God is. Could a person gloify God while they are suffering wtih an illness. Absolutly. We are to glorify God in every circumstance, but when we start to look at the sickness itself as a reason to glorify God, we’ve got a bit of confusion going on. God recieves glory as the works of the devil are destroyed.
Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil, as it says in 1 John 3:8, and God is well pleased with everything Jesus did.
Just a side note here. We know that without faith it’s impossible to please God and we know that Jesus was “My Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” So we know that Jesus walked by faith.
In closing
The key takeaways tonight are
Salvation is linked with healing. It’s one package, available now to anyone who comes to Him and will take hold.
Scoffers don’t get healed – be careful what you mock.
There is a link between the teaching of the Word and healing. Remember our core verse – Prov 4:20-22
My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight; Keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them And health to all their body. – Proverbs 4:20-22 NASB
Faith moves the hand of God. Yes- it pleases Him, but it also moves Him.
No healing is difficult to the Lord, just like no sin is hard for Him to forgive and take away, since they have all beem paid for in advance.
Healing glorifies God.
Check out the video. These tons of great discussion going on.
See you again soon,
Ben