Nathan Brewer
Jesus knew how to draw a crowd.
He’s a busy man. After being escorted out of Nazareth by angry locals in Luke 4, He moves down the road to Capernaum and makes it His home base until He dies on the cross.
He doesn’t sit still. He continues preaching in the Jewish church buildings—called “synagogues”—in Galilee, the region where He was raised (Luke 4:44).
In Luke 5, He helps a fisherman named Simon miraculously catch so many fish that Simon’s net nearly breaks. Then Jesus heals an unfortunate man who’s suffering from a skin condition called leprosy by simply touching him. A touch and a word, and the man is instantly, completely healed.
News spreads quickly about these events, and people flock to Jesus (Luke 5:15). Sick people, and the relatives of those suffering, badly want to get to Jesus for healing.
The Scene
Now Jesus is in someone’s home, teaching, and some of the leading Jews are there from nearby towns in Galilee, towns in Judea further south, and even from the capital city of Jerusalem (Luke 5:17). Jesus’ influence has spread far and wide.
“And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” Jesus has been healing and teaching that the kingdom of God is near. The house is so full that latecomers are having a hard time getting near Him.
Four men have carried their paralyzed friend to the home, hoping that Jesus will heal him. But the house is so crowded they can’t get their friend near Jesus to ask for help.
The Work Around
They’ve got an idea. They take their paralyzed friend to the roof of the house. Homes in that place and time were relatively short, and the roofs were flat. This particular home has a roof made of tiles. They lay their friend on his bedroll and fasten cords to it somehow. Then they remove some of the roof tiles, and they lower their friend to near where Jesus is standing (Luke 5:18-19).
The Reward
Luke 5:20 says that Jesus sees their faith. The four friends and the paralyzed man have all shown that they believe so strongly in Jesus’s power to heal, they’ll go to unusual lengths to get to Him. Their faith produced action. But Jesus doesn’t immediately restore the man’s ability to walk. First, He says, “Man, thy sins are forgiven thee” (Luke 5:20).
That’s not what they came for, but it’s what Jesus first offers. Were the four friends and the paralyzed man confused at what Jesus said? Luke doesn’t tell us.
But it’s interesting that though Jesus knows this man can’t walk, and Jesus knows that the man and his friends have come for something physical, Jesus is more concerned with the man’s soul.
Know what else is interesting? How the Jewish leaders respond. It isn’t good.
The Jewish Leaders’ Reaction
“Who is this who speaks blasphemies?” they ask (Luke 5:21).
Blasphemy means to speak against that which is holy. It was actually a serious crime in the Law of Moses that guided the Jews. Someone guilty of blasphemy was to be put to death. The charge of blasphemy would be repeated against Jesus several times, and it would follow Him to the grave.
“Who can forgive sins but God alone?” they continue (Luke 5:21).
They’re right—only God can forgive sins. Knowing this is what brought the charge of blasphemy. To them, Jesus is claiming to do something that only God had the right and the ability to do.
The Lord’s Response
Jesus replies with a question of His own: “Whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk?” For Jesus, they contained the same level of difficulty, which was zero.
In Luke 5:24, Jesus says, “But that ye may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins,” and then He turns to the paralyzed man, “I say unto you, arise, take up your couch, and go to thine house.”
Jesus was compassionate, but He didn’t heal people just because He was a nice guy. There was a greater purpose behind it—to show people Who He was. The miracles He performed were divine credentials. They testified to His identity and His authority.
The Result
The paralyzed man stops being paralyzed. Luke 5:25 says he gets up, grabs his bedding, and takes off for his own house, glorifying God.
Everyone there is amazed (Luke 5:26). They do the same thing the healed man did—glorify God.
They’re also struck with fear, and they say, “We have seen strange things today!”
Jesus performed wonders to verify that what He said was true and to show that He was the Son of God. The Lord could do things no man had, before or since.
