Luke 5:17-26 Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man
17 One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. 18 Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 19 When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
20 When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”
21 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
22 Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 25 Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. 26 Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”
I have always loved this story for several reasons. Let’s call the paralyzed man Eli. First, everybody should have friends like those men helping Eli. Even though Eli has become paralyzed, his friends have not deserted him. Eli’s friends could have deserted him as soon as they realized that the paralysis was becoming permanent, but they didn’t. Such friendship is remarkable in itself. Next, there’s the fact that these men are carrying Eli on a mat, making the effort to get him to Jesus so Jesus can heal him. Such effort demonstrates both faith and determination. These men have no guarantees that Jesus will heal their friend; yet, they are bringing him anyway.
As the men approach the house where Jesus is, carrying their paralyzed neighbor, they can already see there’s going to be a major problem. The house is jam-packed with people standing shoulder to shoulder. When the friends attempt to carry the crippled man into the house, no amount of begging or pleading works. Everybody refuses to move; after all, if they shift out of the way for a cripple, they will lose their place in the crowd and they want to watch Jesus as much as possible. Besides, old Eli has been crippled for decades; why can’t he and his friends simply give up?
Outside, Eli himself is losing hope. With no way to reach Jesus, Eli figures he’ll remain a cripple forever. But Eli’s friends are tough and determined and they aren’t about to give up. They remember that the roof on the house where Jesus is teaching is made of tiles over sun-dried bricks and thatch, not stone. Carrying Eli up to the roof, Eli’s friends remove the tiles from one section and begin digging through it. Down below, Jesus continues to teach, but now he hears noises from the roof and sees dust beginning to fall from the ceiling. Jesus smiles because he knows exactly what’s about to happen. Suddenly, there’s a loud crash and the ceiling above Jesus gives way, showering the crowd with dirt and straw. The crowd watches in fascination as Eli’s friends lower him down through the hole in the ceiling, laying him at Jesus’ feet. The people who have been standing or sitting nearest to Jesus have no choice but to shift back, stepping on other people’s feet as they do so. A few men even shake their fists at Eli’s friends for disturbing them, but Eli’s friends don’t care. They have succeeded in getting Eli to Jesus.
What happens next is shocking. Rather than reaching out a hand, praying, and healing Eli’s paralysis, Jesus tells him, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” Everyone in the crowd is horrified. Eli has been paralyzed for a long time, so how could he possibly have sinned while lying on that mat? Even before Eli was paralyzed, he was one of the most righteous men in town. How dare Jesus accuse Eli of being a sinner? But Jesus knows hearts, and Jesus knows Eli has been struggling because he feels his paralysis is a punishment from God for things he did before the paralysis. In addition, Eli has continued to struggle with rebellion and resentment; why has God allowed such a catastrophe? Doesn’t a righteous life count for anything? These questions have been tormenting Eli on the nights when his paralyzed limbs have ached, keeping him from sleeping.
When Jesus assures Eli that his sins are forgiven, Eli can feel relief and refreshing course through his body. At this point, Eli silently tells God that this is enough, that if he must remain paralyzed the rest of his life, he can do so because he knows God is not angry with him. Jesus knows that Eli’s heart has needed healing before anything else can happen.
Of course, the religious authorities in the crowd are scandalized. How dare Jesus behave as if he is God’s agent? Jesus has been waiting for this reaction, for he knows it will come, and now he can proceed with the second part of his ministry to Eli. 22 Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”
Raising his eyebrows in confusion, Eli looks at Jesus. Jesus looks back at Eli, smiles, and whispers, “Go on. You can do it.” Suddenly, Eli realizes his shrunken paralyzed legs are now normal and gets up from the mat. As the crowd stands amazed, Eli rolls up his mat and carries it out of the house, heading home to share this amazing news with his family.
Notice the heart healing, the forgiveness of sins, must take place before the physical healing. Were Jesus only to heal Eli physically, Eli would still go home believing that God hated him.
When we study this story, we need to understand Jesus’ healing ministry. Jesus never simply healed people’s physical conditions but also healed their spiritual ones, and the spiritual healing had to precede the physical healing.
Perhaps today, you are struggling with a physical problem. Perhaps God is using your ailment to get your attention that you have something in your soul that requires healing. Why not ask God to heal you spiritually before asking for a physical healing? What do you have to lose?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, many of us are struggling with physical problems that may have spiritual connections. Please heal us. Please change us into Your likeness. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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