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Please turn in your Bibles to 
Mark chapter 2. While you're turning there, I want to thank 
everybody for your prayers for the wedding yesterday and for 
all those who gave us help. We really appreciated that with 
the wedding and with the reception, putting things up and taking 
them down. It was a lot simpler taking it down than it was putting 
it up. So again, we just really thank 
you for that. It was a great assistance to us. Well, Mark 
chapter 2, we're actually going to read a parallel passage to 
what Pastor Porter read in Luke 5. The synoptic Gospels are Matthew, 
Mark, and Luke. They often report the same events, 
but perhaps from a bit of a different angle. It's to bring in fullness 
the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. So I want 
to begin reading in chapter 2 of Mark's Gospel, beginning in verse 
1. And again, he entered Capernaum after some days. And it was heard 
that he was in the house. Immediately, many gathered together 
so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near 
the door. And he preached the word to them. 
Then they came to him bringing a paralytic who was carried by 
four men. And when they could not come 
near him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where 
he was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed 
on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he 
said to the paralytic, Son, your sins are forgiven you. And some 
of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 
why does this man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins 
but God alone? But immediately when Jesus perceived 
in his spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves, he said 
to them, Why do you reason about these things in your hearts? 
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, your sins are forgiven 
you, or to say, arise, take up your bed, and walk? But that 
you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive 
sins, he said to the paralytic, I say to you, arise, take up 
your bed, and go to your house. Immediately he arose, took up 
the bed, and went out in the presence of them all. so that 
all were amazed and glorified God, saying, We never saw anything 
like this. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we thank You for the Holy Scriptures. We know that You have given them 
by inspiration. We know they're profitable for 
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness. 
And we pray that by Your Spirit now You would teach us many lessons 
about the Lord Jesus Christ and about the forgiveness of sins. 
We would ask God in heaven that You would fill our hearts cause 
us to receive these things with joy, with gladness, and to bring 
glory and honor to You, our God. We ask through Jesus Christ, 
our Lord. Amen. on verses 1 to 12. We'll notice 
first the location, where this took place. Secondly, the declaration 
made by our Lord Jesus Christ. Thirdly, the examination. Christ 
begins to examine those scribes who oppose Him. And then fourthly, 
the explanation. What Jesus says is the point 
of this particular passage. It's very instructive and very 
helpful But I think at times we might miss the simple message 
here. We often focus on what God can 
do in terms of healing our bodies. We often focus on miraculous 
things like people getting up from their paralyzed state and 
walking home, praising God. And we miss the greater miracle 
that this passage sets forth. It is the miracle of the forgiveness 
of sins. That is far more excellent, far 
more to be preferred than walking or leaping or doing anything 
that we might do on a daily basis. And that's the whole point of 
the passage. The miracle of healing was simply an evidence or a confirmation 
of the greater miracle that our Lord Jesus did when He pronounced 
this man forgiven. Now, when Jesus said, your sins 
are forgiven you, it's not like me coming to a believer in Christ 
saying, yeah, your sins are forgiven you. This was a performative 
word, or a performative statement. When Jesus says, your sins are 
forgiven you, He is actually performing that act as well. 
He is removing this man's sin. He is removing from this man 
the enmity that exists between God and sinners. And so what 
Christ does in this passage is very excellent in terms of our 
appreciation for His work and ministry. and hopefully instructive 
for us as well in terms of miracles. But notice the location. Jesus 
is back in Capernaum. In Mark's Gospel up to this point, 
we notice in chapter 1 at verse 21, it says, Then they went into 
Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue 
and taught. Jesus engaged in a lot of ministry 
around the Galilean area. And then according to chapter 
2, verse 1, he comes back to Capernaum. And he is there very 
specifically to preach the Word. Go back to chapter 1 in verse 
38. You'll see that he defines his 
mission this way. He says, Let us go into the next 
towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose 
I have come forth. It is the Word of God that is 
primary. Jesus will heal. Jesus does raise 
people from the dead. Jesus feeds people who are hungry. He restores sight to the blind. 
But the primary mission for which He came in His earthly ministry 
was to preach concerning the Kingdom of God. We know ultimately 
that then He died and He rose again. And that is the way that 
He secures salvation for His people. His popularity was growing. If you look at chapter 1, verse 
28, it says, immediately His fame spread throughout all the 
region around Galilee. People were hearing about this 
even before the internet, even before email or Facebook. People 
weren't twittering at this point saying, Jesus was in our town. The word was going out because 
He was so popular and because of the mighty power that He was 
displaying and because of the authoritative word that He was 
declaring. So that fame went out such that 
when He's back in Capernaum and He's in this particular house, 
it's crowded, it's packed. People can't get in. And that 
is what brings us to these companions of this paralytic. Notice in 
chapter 2, verse 2. It says, Immediately many gathered 
together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, 
not even near the door. And he preached the word to them. 
Then they came to him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by 
four men. And when they could not come 
near him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where 
he was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed 
on which the paralytic was lying. This was an amazing scene. Now 
in Palestine at that time, there were flat roofs. There would 
be a stairway that goes up to the roof. People could sleep 
up there. It could be whatever you want 
to do up there. And the roofs were thatched and they were very 
sturdy and strong. So for these men to dig away 
the roof and remove the beams so that they can lower this paralytic 
down was quite a significant event. And it evidenced certain 
things about these men. It showed that they were seeking 
after Jesus. They had a faith, a belief that 
the Lord Jesus was able to help their friend. Also, they carry 
the paralytic. That's a blessed thing. We considered 
that yesterday, companionship. It's a good thing to have friends, 
especially friends who are concerned for you to this degree, that 
they will risk offending in social etiquette and move away a roof 
and lower you down into the presence of Jesus if necessary. Also, 
they uncover the roof, they break through the roof, and they let 
the man down. And notice what Mark tells us 
in verse 5. It says, when Jesus saw their 
faith. This was an act of faith. Their 
works manifested or gave evidence to the fact that they believed 
that Jesus could help them. And I think there includes the 
paralytic. I don't think it's simply the 
four men who are lowering this man down, but the paralytic himself 
is included in this. Now notice, secondly, the declaration. Verse 5, Son, your sins are forgiven 
you. It's an amazing thing, isn't 
it? Probably not what they were expecting. They lower this man 
down into the midst of the people. They probably expect Jesus to 
snap his fingers or to make a pronouncement and to get him up off his bed 
so that he can be healthy, happy and whole and return home. Jesus 
addresses the man at the most important level. He says, Son, 
your sins are forgiven you. Now, the paralytic was a sinner 
in need of forgiveness. The Bible tells us a lot about 
sin and sickness. It doesn't always tell us that 
sickness is directly related to a person's sin. Let me just 
say that again. It doesn't tell us that sickness 
is always directly related to a person's sin. In other words, 
if somebody's sick, don't immediately conclude that they're a gross 
sinner. Sometimes people do that in the church to the offense 
of others. Sometimes people are very unkind and very ungracious, 
and we see someone suffering or hurting, and we think to ourselves, 
boy, I bet they did something really bad to get this from God. Remember in John 9, there was 
a man who was born blind, and the disciples of Jesus said, 
who sinned, Rabbi, this man or his parents? Jesus has neither 
one. He's not denying original sin. 
He's not denying that they were sinners. He is saying this blindness 
was not connected specifically to their sin or His sin. But 
what was the purpose for this is so that Jesus could heal him 
and demonstrate the glory and the power of God Most High. Job's 
friends made this error when they were trying to help him. 
Job's friends blamed him for all of the issues and the problems 
that were going on in his life. Well, that simply wasn't the 
case. So, the Bible tells us that not all sickness is directly 
related to sin. But there are times that it is. And it seems to be the case in 
this instance. Because Jesus says to the paralytic, 
your sins are forgiven you. We don't know how long he was 
paralyzed. We don't know how long he was in this condition. 
But if you're like me at this point, you scratch your head 
and you wonder, what kind of trouble could a paralytic get 
into? He's paralyzed. He's on his bed. He has to be carried around. 
Is he out robbing liquor stores? Demugging little old ladies? 
Is he in an internet scam? Is he an identity theft sort 
of guy? What does a paralytic have the 
capacity to do in terms of sin? We might read this and say, boy, 
hasn't he suffered enough? He's a paralyzed man. He's paid for his sins. He's 
atoned for his sins. He has suffered enough. Jesus, 
just give him that reward of being able to walk and to rise. Well, I think this is an instance 
where if we ask that question, we demonstrate that we really 
don't understand sin. I remember hearing R.C. Sproul 
talking about Martin Luther. Martin Luther, of course, the 
Protestant reformer in the 16th century. Martin Luther was at 
a Roman Catholic monastery, and he used to go to the confessional, 
and he would be there for hours, several hours at a time. The 
priests would raise their eyebrows when they saw Martin coming to 
their box, because they knew they were going to be there for 
a while. And R.C. Sproul asks the question, Martin 
Luther was in a monastery. What kind of trouble do you get 
into in a monastery? In hour three, are you saying, 
dear father, I coveted brother Philip's role at the dinner table? What kind of trouble do you get 
into there at a monastery? What kind of trouble do you get 
into as a paralyzed man? The Bible highlights that sin 
primarily is a heart-related issue. Sin primarily is a mind-related 
issue. In fact, the word repentance, 
its basic meaning is to change one's mind. To have a changed 
orientation toward God and toward His law. Sins are displayed through 
our actions. But sin is first and foremost 
a matter of the heart. It is rebellion against God. It is a failure to think God's 
thoughts after Him. It is a rejection of God. It 
is a refusal of His authority. And it is an ultimate belittling 
of His person, of who He is, of what He's about. I think Paul 
makes this clear in Romans 1. You may turn there. Romans chapter 
1 for a moment. Paul's point in Romans 1-3 is 
to set forth the fact that all men everywhere are sinful. All 
men everywhere are under sin. That sets the stage, or that's 
the bad news, for the good news which is to follow. That Jesus 
Christ came, lived in obedience to the Father, and died as a 
sacrifice and a substitute so that all those sinners who look 
to Him in faith will receive the forgiveness of sins. But 
if you look at Paul's statement in Romans 1, when he begins this 
explanation of the universal condemnation of sin, he says 
in verse 18, For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against 
all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. Ungodliness there doesn't 
mean the wicked practices. It means what we think about 
God. What we think about God affects how we live in this world. In other words, when we reject 
God, when we refuse His authority, when we engage in ungodliness, 
then unrighteousness flows out from that vantage point. So when 
we look at that man paralyzed in Mark chapter 2, as pathetic, 
as weak, as helpless as he may be, he's a sinner. I have to 
remind myself of that when I go into old folks' homes to teach 
Bible study. All these dear old ladies and 
men with their blue hair and their nice words, they're sinners. I know we don't like that. I 
know we'd like to try and define it as a complex, as a problem, 
as a myth. The bottom line with man is that we're sinners. And 
in saying that, there's hope. Jesus came not to free us from 
our complexes. He didn't come to free us from 
our syndromes. He didn't come to just make us 
a better person. He came to save us from our sins. When we preach Christ as a real 
Savior for real sinners, we are telling men there is hope for 
them. Notice what Paul then says in verse 21. This is the root 
problem with man. Because although they knew God, 
they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became 
futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened." 
Again, Paul wouldn't win a popularity contest today. We try to symptomize 
all that's going on in this world. We have all these answers. Paul 
says, here's the issue. They know God, but they suppress 
that knowledge in unrighteousness. They're not thankful to Him, 
and they don't glorify Him. And based on that reality, based 
on that faith commitment, then all sorts of wickedness flows. 
That's why he goes on in verse 24, Therefore God also gave them 
up to uncleanness in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor 
their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God 
for the lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than 
the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave 
them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged 
the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, 
leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for 
one another. Men with men committing what 
is shameful and receiving in themselves the penalty of their 
error which was due. And even as they did not like 
to retain God in their knowledge. That's the problem. Christians 
are often accused of being homophobes because the Bible condemns homosexuality. We're not afraid of them. We 
want them saved by God's grace. And we ought not to be homophobes. 
The issue is a lot more serious than that. The issue is that 
they know there's a holy God and they don't like to retain 
the knowledge of Him. They shut Him out. They defy 
Him. They refuse Him. That's what 
sin is all about. What we see in terms of expression, 
it's going to differ and vary from man to man, to woman to 
woman, or whatever. But the root cause is always 
defection from the living and true God. And for this cause, 
it says, God gave them over. But it's not just homosexuality 
that's condemned in this passage. Notice what he says in verse 
28. God gave them over to a debased mind to do those things which 
are not fitting. God's giving them over here is 
a sign of His justice, is a sign of His judgment. It's as if God 
is saying, you want your sin? You can have it. That's the worst 
place any one of us can be. Praise God that in your sinfulness 
He frustrates you at times. Praise God that in your sinfulness 
at times you get caught. Praise God that He has not handed 
you over because that is the last place you want to be. Notice 
what he goes on to say. Being filled with all unrighteousness, 
sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness. See what Paul is 
saying? Homosexuality is a sin, but so 
is your covetous heart. So is your desire for those things 
that are not yours. That doesn't mean you see something 
nice. Well, that's pretty cool. It means you just secretly wish, 
and you've got enmity and desire, and it just goes unchecked. Well, 
that springs from that same idea that we didn't glorify God as 
God, nor were we thankful to Him. These are all symptoms of 
a much larger problem. As the Puritan John Owen says, 
we try to convince men of a particular sin, when the problem is they're 
nothing but sin. Your issue is not that you do 
this. Your issue is not that you do that. Those are symptoms 
of the issue that you don't glorify God as God or are thankful to 
Him. The only way that you get to 
that place of glorifying God and being thankful to Him is 
through the cross. It's through coming to Jesus. 
It's through believing the Gospel. That's the whole point of the 
Bible, that we cannot do it on our own. Jesus came to save us 
from our sins. He goes on to describe maliciousness, 
full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness. They 
are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, 
inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents. Children, ever think 
about that? That Paul in the same breath 
as he's condemning homosexuality, as he's condemning murder, as 
he's condemning all these things, says that disobedience to parents 
is an offense to the triune God? Again, it's a symptom of a bigger 
issue, that you don't glorify God as God, nor are you thankful. You see, so when Jesus says to 
this paralytic, your sins are forgiven you, this paralytic 
stood in great need. And it was all of his sins. It's 
the beauty of Christ in the Gospel. He doesn't just forgive some 
of our sins and leave the rest up to us. He doesn't atone for 
90% and then say, go out and figure it out for the rest of 
the 10%. It's not a sort of a you do your 
part and I'll do my part. Jesus doesn't say, you know, 
I'm OK, you're OK. We just add it together and we'll 
avail with God. No, the gospel is that God reconciles 
the world to himself through Jesus Christ. It's not through 
our efforts, it's not through our works, it's not through our 
devices. That's what he's saying to this 
paralytic. Son, your sins are forgiven you. Now, notice the examination in 
verses six to nine. These four men, Mark likes to 
use a lot of verbs. He likes to use the word immediately. 
In fact, if you read the Gospel of Mark, you'll see his use of 
immediately. What is he doing but displaying 
Jesus as a hero? He's writing primarily to a Roman 
audience who liked their hero stories, much like today. Everybody 
wants the hero. Mark writes like that. He carries 
the narrative along with the Word immediately. You go from 
event to event to event to event, carried by these verbs, so that 
you can see Jesus doing, Jesus obeying, Jesus serving the Father, 
and ultimately Jesus dying. And so he uses these verbs of 
these men. These four men were coming. They 
were carrying. They were digging. They were 
lowering down their friend while these scribes are sitting there 
reasoning in their minds, stroking their beards, wondering who this 
man thinks he is that he should ever pronounce forgiveness for 
sins. C.H. Spurgeon comments here, 
when the roof is being dug away and the dust, no doubt, is falling 
down upon the audience, Spurgeon said, I always feel pleased at 
the idea of the dust and debris of the roof coming down upon 
the heads of the Pharisees and the doctors of the law. I think 
that's a good observation. He said, it always delights me 
to think that those gentlemen would have dust on their heads 
for once. Since they were there, they were 
bound to have a little of it. It would be the only time they 
would repent in dust and ashes. When this roof was carved away 
and the dust would fall on their heads. But look at what they're 
doing. They're reasoning in their hearts. They're thinking to themselves, 
wait a minute. You know, what they're thinking 
is accurate. There is only one who can forgive sins. I may tell 
you, when you believe the gospel, you'll be forgiven of your sins. 
But that's not a performative act. That's not a performative 
statement. I can't absolve you from your sin. No priest, no 
man, no agency can absolve you from your sin. God alone forgives 
sins. So in this they were right. Who? 
But God alone can forgive sins. They have Exodus 34 on their 
side. They have 2 Samuel on their side. They have the Psalms that 
declare that forgiveness is a prerogative of God alone. I just want to 
read a couple passages out of the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah 43, 
25. The Lord God says, I, even I 
am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake, and I will not 
remember your sins. Isaiah 44, verse 22. I have blotted out, like a thick 
cloud, your transgressions, and like a cloud, your sins. Return 
to Me, for I have redeemed you. And then perhaps one of my favorite 
statements in the Old Testament is in Micah 7. Micah chapter 7. The prophet 
highlights this act of God in the forgiveness of sins. The 
name Micah means, who is a God like you? That's what Micah means. Who is a God like you? Not in some speculative, atheistic 
sense, but in an adoring and worshipful sense. Be like if 
you did something nice for your child that no other father or 
mother ever did, and they would say to you, who is a mommy or 
a daddy like you? It's a confession of happiness 
and of complacency in this person. And notice what it is that elicits 
this in terms of Micah's confession of his own name. In Micah 7, 
in verse 18, he says, Who is a God like You, pardoning iniquity 
and passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? 
He does not retain His anger forever because He delights in 
mercy. That's a picture of the God of 
heaven that we need to preach as the church. God doesn't just 
dole out mercy because He has to. God doesn't go to work in 
saving souls because He has to. God's not like us. Sometimes 
we go about our tasks sort of half-heartedly. We go about it 
without great joy. Not so with God. He delights 
in mercy. He delights in pouring out kindness. 
He delights in giving us grace. That's why the prophet says, 
who is a God like you? Pardoning iniquity. passing over 
the transgression. He does not retain His anger 
forever because He delights in mercy. He says He will again 
have compassion on us and will subdue our iniquities. You will 
cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. The most blessed 
statements in terms of sin in all of the Bible. Our God goes 
deep sea fishing with our sin. He doesn't throw it into a shallow 
pond. Yesterday we were at the Coast Hotel for that reception 
and they got that pond out there. Praise God he doesn't throw our 
sins in there. Because those ducks would bring it up to the 
surface. Those ducks would bring it up there and it would continually 
haunt us. God takes our sin and He casts 
it into the depths of the sea so that it doesn't come back 
up. It doesn't bob its ugly head back up. It doesn't rise up and 
condemn us. God in justification takes our 
sin away. That's the idea behind the prophet 
Isaiah. I am he that what? Blots out your sin. I don't just 
put it in my back pocket when I'm really angry, pull it out 
and look at it and then yell at you. God's not like us. We've got to get that in our 
heads. So these men, in one sense, are right. Who can forgive sins 
but God alone? Now, they rejected the idea that 
Jesus was the second person of the triune God, that Jesus was 
God incarnate, that Jesus was from the bosom of the Father, 
The only begotten Son. So it left them with the only 
conclusion that they had. That He was blaspheming. That 
He was arrogating or taking to Himself a position of authority 
that belongs to God alone. So what does Jesus do here? Jesus 
confronts them. Notice in verse 8. It says, but 
immediately when Jesus perceived in His Spirit, some try to Say, 
well, he probably saw them, you know, agitated. He probably saw 
them getting a little bit irritated with him. No, he perceived it 
in his spirit. He's the searcher of hearts. He knows the inner 
man. Jesus didn't have an identity crisis when he was on earth. 
He was fully God, fully man. When men sat in his presence, 
questioning his authority, he points it out. Notice, he says, 
why do you reason about these things in your hearts? Who can 
do that but God alone? I may suspect you're unhappy 
with me. I may suspect you're happy with me. But I really don't 
know what's in your heart. You may have a smile on your 
face while you're saying, I hate your guts. But I'm looking at 
that smile saying, boy, they really love me. They just think 
I'm peachy, or to use Pastor Tan's word, they think I'm swell. 
Swell's such a great word. We need to pull that out of the 
past and bring it into the present. Jesus knew their hearts. There 
was no question here. They're not saying, oh, you misjudge 
us. Oh, you've wrongly accused us. You've impugned evil where there 
is none. No, He perceived it, He knew it, and He investigates 
it now. And He asks this question. He 
says, which is easier, to say to the paralytic, your sins are 
forgiven you, or to say, arise, take up your bed and walk? Now, 
I don't know if you've actually ever asked yourself, what is 
easier? Sometimes we read our Bibles and we're happy and we 
check off our list that we read Mark 2, or Luke 5, or Matthew 
9. Those are the other places where 
this passage is. But do we really stop and think about Jesus' Word 
there? Which is easier? To say to the 
paralytic, your sins are forgiven you, or to take up your bed, 
rise and walk? What is easier? There's two approaches 
to this question. The first is this, that it's 
easier to say your sins are forgiven you. We can't quantify that. We can't demonstrate that. We 
can't falsify that. We can't verify that. If I say 
to you, your sins are forgiven you, it's not like you're now 
wearing a big badge or your heart is opened up for everybody sort 
of to examine. We don't know. The physical eye 
cannot see it. But if you tell a man to take 
up his bed, rise, and walk, well, we can see that. We can touch 
it. We can taste it. We can feel it. We see it with 
our eyes. We can verify it. We know it's 
not falsifiable. So which is easier? The one approach 
says that. It's easier to say your sins 
are forgiven you. The other approach might be this. 
These were doctors of the law. These were teachers of the Old 
Testament. They knew that God alone could forgive sins. So 
maybe in their mind it was easier to tell a paralytic to take up 
his bed and walk before you can forgive him of his sins. You 
see that? Which is easier? Well, whatever 
the answer is, I think it's somewhere in there. I leaned one way and 
now I'm sort of leaning the other way. Whatever the answer is, 
I think what Jesus goes on to tell us is the main point. And 
that brings us to his explanation. Notice verse 10. He says, but 
that you may know. That's a purpose clause. He is 
telling us this is the purpose for this event. Up until this 
point in Jesus' ministry, recorded in Mark's Gospel, He has engaged 
in authoritative teaching, verses 21 and 22 of chapter 1. He has 
cast out demons, chapter 1, verses 23 to 28. He healed Peter's mother-in-law. Peter was married, he had a mother-in-law, 
she was sick, and Jesus healed her. He healed multitudes, according 
to chapter 1. He preached and cast out demons, 
chapter 1. And He healed a leper, chapter 
1, verses 40 to 45. Here, the scribes are questioning 
His authority to forgive sins. That's the point. That's what 
Jesus wants to display. That's what Jesus wants to demonstrate. 
That the Son of Man has power. He has authority to forgive sin. And by doing this, he is putting 
himself on equal footing with God the Father. He is asserting 
His divinity. He is asserting His deity. He 
is demonstrating the fact that He is very God of very God. That this man who stands in this 
little place in Palestine, as this paralytic is lowered into 
the room, is God Himself. That's why in Luke's Gospel it 
says they were afraid. Later on in Mark's Gospel, Jesus 
calms the wind. He calms the sea. And it says 
that His disciples, those closest to Him, were exceedingly afraid. Why is that? They said, what 
manner of man is this? We're standing in the presence 
of One who shares our body. He shares our blood. He has a 
respiratory system. He has eyes. He has a nose. He 
has ears. But He stops the wind. He raises paralytics up from 
their beds. He forgives sin. So the point 
of the passage is to declare that Jesus not only has ability 
over the physical man, but He has authority to forgive the 
sin of the inner man. That's why he said, that's where 
this narrative is moving. But that you may know, he says, 
that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. He 
said to the paralytic, I say to you, arise, take up your bed 
and go to your house. Here's the point. I want you 
to know that I have the ability and the power and the authority 
to do the invisible. And I'm going to prove it by 
doing the visible. When I tell this man to take 
up his bed, to rise and to walk out of here, when I heal him, 
it confirms and evidences the fact that when I declared, your 
sins are forgiven, it was a reality. The miracle in the passage is 
the forgiveness of sins. The demonstration or confirmation 
of that miracle is this paralytic rising, taking his bed and walking. 
We miss that. We focus on the outer man. I 
remember several years ago going to a healing service at a charismatic 
church, me and a few brothers of mine. And the healing man 
looked in our direction and he said, I've been in other countries. 
I've been in other continents. And when people come here, they 
don't want doctrine. They want a healing. That's bad 
doctrine. That is damnable doctrine. If 
they don't get the doctrine that God is in Christ, reconciling 
the world to Himself, and all who look to Jesus in faith will 
live, they aren't learning anything of biblical religion. See, we 
want the physical. We want the healing. We want 
the health. We want our arms to work and 
our feet to work. And I'm not saying that's bad. Brethren, if I got my arm lopped 
off in a piece of farm machinery, I'd want it back. I'd want a 
prosthesis. I'd want a bionic arm. I'd want 
all my limbs. I'd want all my digits. I'd want 
a healthy respiratory system. But more importantly is peace 
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. What did Jesus say? It's better to enter into eternal 
life maimed and lame than into hell with all your digits. That's 
the point of the passage. Christ raises the man up. The physical healing was a demonstration 
of the spiritual power of the Word of Jesus Christ to forgive 
a sinner of all of his sins. Let's not miss that. We hear 
it today. Oh, we need to return to the 
book of Acts. We need to see those miracles. We need to see 
the healings. We need to see the tongues. We 
need to see the miraculous. We need to see sinners converted 
by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. We need a revival 
and a reformation of justification by faith alone. It's every bit 
as miraculous when a young man, a young woman, a boy or a girl 
in this place believes the Gospel and that grace transforms their 
lives as if their arms grew back. We are carnal people that are 
pleased and spectacularized by the parlor tricks of our age. That's not how Jesus operates. 
That's not what Jesus is about. Jesus is about healing the inner 
man. Now, that's not to deny. Jesus doesn't heal people. It's 
not to deny. God, in His grace and in His 
mercy, blesses a medical procedure. God, in His grace or in His mercy, 
takes away a tumor. God, in His grace or in His mercy, 
restores a man to health. I'm not denying that. But I'm 
suggesting that to put down the miracle of forgiveness is to 
do damage to the text of Scripture. You may not read this literature, 
brethren, but there's a whole group, a whole whack of people. 
We've got to get back to the book of Acts. I say, yeah. We've 
got to go preach justification by faith alone. No, we've got 
to have prayer cloths, and we've got to have handkerchiefs. We've 
got to lay them on people. And we've got to see people get 
up from their wheelchairs. And again, if people get up from 
their wheelchairs, praise be to God Almighty. But I've got 
to tell you, and I hope as God is my witness and you people 
as well, I would rather be in a wheelchair with my sins forgiven 
than running marathons dead in trespasses and sins. And I think 
any thinking man, woman, boy or girl who's come to the Scripture, 
who's wrestled with sin as it's biblically defined, would say 
the very same thing. Yeah, it'd be nice to be whole, 
healthy and strong. But it's nicer to be forgiven. It's nicer 
to be cleansed. It's nicer to see God take that 
pile of sin and throw it into the depths of the sea. It's nicer 
to see God use that sin as bait for rock pot. It's nicer to see 
God take that sin and obliterate it, remove it for all eternity, 
never to rise against me. That is much to be preferred 
by those who have come face to face with a holy God and with 
the fact of their own sinfulness. It is much to be preferred to 
believe the Gospel and to have everlasting life. Brethren, the 
implication of our passage is this, that miracles, the signs 
and the wonders, they continue through the preaching of the 
Gospel, through belief in the Gospel. You believe God is doing 
a miracle. It is an extraordinary event. 
I went to dictionary.com. What's a miracle? It's an extraordinary 
event manifesting divine intervention in human affairs. An arm growing 
back is a great thing. But a sinner like me, a sinner 
like you, somebody's offended that holy God. I mean, I just 
read a portion of Romans 1. You're there. You may not be 
the homosexual. You may not be the murderer. 
You're there, though. In the military, in the United 
States, there's a general article, UCMJ, the Uniform Code of Military 
Justice, Article 134, is a catch-all. If you didn't get caught somewhere 
in Articles 133, 134 is going to get you. You're done. You've done something. And they 
will apply that. We read Romans 1. We read these 
vice lists. We go through the Scriptures. 
We find ourselves. We see that Paul is absolutely 
correct. There is none righteous. No, 
not one. There is none who seeks after 
God. There is none who wants God. God in His grace seeks us 
out. God in His grace finds us. God 
in His grace removes our transgression. God in His grace forgives us 
through Jesus Christ the Lord. This was a message that was picked 
up by the apostles in the early church in Acts chapter 13. We'll 
close in just a minute. Acts chapter 13. The apostle 
Paul is preaching in a synagogue in Pisidian, Antioch. Again, 
a synagogue. They would associate the forgiveness 
of sins with Jehovah, with Yahweh of Israel, with God. And notice 
what Paul says in this synagogue in Acts chapter 13. He has highlighted 
the death. The resurrection of the Lord 
Jesus Christ. And he gets to application. He 
brings his message home. He doesn't want to just inform 
his hearers. He doesn't want them to just 
say, boy, that was a good Bible lesson. Now let's go home and 
do whatever we want. He wants them to be affected 
with the truth. He wants them to come face to face with God. 
He wants them to believe the gospel of Jesus Christ. Notice, 
we'll go to Acts 13, verse 33. picking up the resurrection. 
God has fulfilled this for us, their children, in that he has 
raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the 
second psalm, you are my son, today I have begotten you. And 
that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, 
he has spoken thus. I will give you the sure mercies 
of David. Therefore, he also says in another psalm, you will 
not allow your Holy One to seek corruption. For David, after 
he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, 
was buried with his fathers, and saw corruption. But he whom 
God raised up saw no corruption." Talking about Jesus. Therefore, 
he says, let it be known to you. Remember, Paul's in a synagogue 
of the Jews. They characteristically rejected 
Jesus. He's taking a big chance here. He's not concerned about the 
delicate sensitivities of His hearers. Well, they might reject 
this. They might not like this. They 
might not want me to associate forgiveness with Jesus. He wants 
them to be saved. So, He tells them the truth. 
He says that through this man, Jesus Christ, is preached to 
you the forgiveness of sins. And by Him, everyone who believes 
is justified from all things from which you could not be justified 
by the law of Moses. This is a recurring theme in 
the book of Acts. Preaching forgiveness through 
Jesus Christ the Lord. That's the emphasis of Mark chapter 
2. And then when we ask the question 
by way of closing, which is easier to say? Your sins are forgiven 
you. We look at that and we say on 
the one hand, forgiveness is easy. Isn't it? That was something else Luther 
found, Luther learned. Luther tried to deal with his 
sin in a whole host of ways. Luther used to make treks and 
journeys and pilgrimages on his knees until they bled. Luther 
tried to atone for his sin. When did paradise open up for 
Luther? When he understood Romans 1, 16 and 17. I'm not ashamed 
of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation for 
everyone who believes. To the Jew first and also to 
the Greek, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith 
to faith." Luther found that statement to be peace because 
he understood the righteousness of God there was not necessarily 
the rightness of God, the justice of God, but the righteousness 
that God demands and that God gives. That's what the gospel's 
all about. God gives us what we don't have. 
God takes away our sins and he gives us the righteousness of 
Jesus. It was then that paradise opened up. I've talked to people, 
I said, you mean all you got to do is believe the Bible, believe 
the gospel and go to heaven? Yes. That just sounds too easy. 
It's just too easy. Don't have to do something? Your 
doing got you into the mess. Believe on him and he'll get 
you out. Well, if you preach that, then people will be unholy 
and live like the devil. No, because when they believe 
that, God the Holy Spirit takes up residence and sanctifies them. 
Beautiful system. So on the one hand, it's easy 
to believe. But on the other hand, it's difficult 
when we consider the rest of Mark. Which is easier? He said that to a bunch of scribes, 
reasoning in their heads. What would it take for the Son 
of God to secure our salvation? It would take Him, again, meeting 
those scribes, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, all the religious 
leaders in Israel, in Jerusalem, rejecting Him, trying Him, sending 
Him over to Pontius Pilate, sending Him over to Herod, belittling 
Him, treating Him like garbage, spitting on Him, slapping Him, 
putting a robe on Him and mockery, taking a crown of thorns and 
embedding it into His head. Which is easier? Well, for the 
Son of Man, it cost a lot. It cost Him everything. never 
mind the ultimate banishment from His Father. Remember on 
the cross, He said, Why hast thou forsaken Me? Why did the 
Father forsake the Son for our sin? Jesus said, Why hast thou 
forsaken Me? So that all those who believe 
in Him will never have to say that. God will not forsake those 
who look unto Jesus in faith. On one hand, it's easy. On the 
other hand, it cost Jesus His blood. But praise be to God. 
He rose again. He ascended on high. He led captivity 
captive. He gives gifts to men. One of 
those gifts is faith. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ 
and you shall be saved. Well, let us pray. Father, we 
thank you for this account in Mark chapter 2, and we pray that 
you would help us to understand these things, help us to understand 
the miracle in this passage is not that this man rose up and 
walked, but the miracle is that he was restored with you, that 
he was reconciled unto God through Jesus Christ. And I pray that 
this gospel would be preached throughout the world. We pray, 
Father, that the nations that are steeped in false religion 
would hear the truth of Jesus Christ and many would come to 
know Him as Lord and Savior. We thank You for this beautiful 
day. We thank You for Your grace displayed in our lives. We thank 
You for the mercy that has brought us together. We would ask now 
that You would go with us and watch over us and protect us. 
And we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.