Mark 2:8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things?
There was a revival meeting going on in Capernaum. Bible scholars believe that the venue was the house of Peter. The place was packed and there was no room even in the overflow. However there were four desperate friends who wanted a paralytic to be healed. They ripped the roof and let him in. In the meeting hall were seated some Pharisees. They were not thirsty theologians but skeptic scholars. They had come with the intention of fault finding.
Jesus was not a member of the Sanhedrin. He was not a student of any of these well experienced Rabbis yet, He taught with authority and did astounding miracles that marveled the multitude. They had come to check out the culprit who was misleading the crowd. They witnessed the whole town cramped around Jesus. Under the cynic eyes of the criticizers, Jesus decided to rattle the cage. He said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” (Mark 2:5b). Immediately the Pharisees questioned His authority and condemned Jesus in their heart.The detractors were not there to find the Messiah, they were there to charge the new Miracle Worker with blasphemy.
William Barclay in his commentary states that “The Rabbis had a saying, ‘There is no sick man healed of his sickness until all his sins have been forgiven him’… to the Jews a sick man was a man with whom God was angry.” Jesus compassionately forgave the paralytic before He healed him. Jesus was not ratifying the theology of the Jewish Teachers but He was reiterating His authority. Jesus exercised His authority and messed up the twisted theology of the theologians (Pharisees).
Salvation, forgiveness, healing or any other miracle overflows from the grace and mercy of God (Ephesians 2:8). We can never qualify to receive healing with our generosity or religiosity. Jesus said, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice’ (Matthew 9:13).
God rattles our cage of our philosophical theories, theologies and traditions to manifest His authority:
1. Traditions: Jesus rattled the cage of our traditions to reiterate His authority over religion, rituals and rites. Jesus did not come to birth a new religion. There are enough religions to cause confusion and enmity between humanity. Jesus came to break the repugnant religiosity, traditions and legalism, and reestablish our relationship with the Creator God.
2. Theology: Jesus rattled the divisional and denominational theologies to reinstate the truth. Truth had been crucified before Christ was crucified on the cross. The Pharisee enforced cutthroat legalism and perverted God’s Word to suit their convenience. The truth of the gospel is ‘love’. Any divisive theology that divides churches, communities or creed is from the devil.
- Testimony: Jesus rattled the crowd when He called out the ugly thoughts of their Rabbis. He did not do it pejoratively to expose their leaders but to terminate their wrong beliefs. Biblical testimonies reverberate the power of God not our philosophies or purity.
Jesus rattles the cage of religiosity to establish our relationship with Him.
Mark 2:10 I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.”
Prayer: Dear Jesus, let not philosophies, theories or traditions masticate my relationship with you or with people. Rattle wrong theologies out of me. Amen.
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