Am I Clear About Who Jesus Is?
Scripture Passage: Matthew 9:1-9 (NASB)
1 Getting into a boat, Jesus crossed over the Sea of Galilee and came to His own city.
2 And they brought to Him a paralyzed man lying on a stretcher. And seeing their faith, Jesus said to the man who was paralyzed, “Take courage, son; your sins are forgiven.” 3 And some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming!” 4 And Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, “Why are you thinking evil in your hearts? 5 For which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—then He *said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, pick up your stretcher and go home.” 7 And he got up and went home. 8 But when the crowds saw this, they were awestruck, and they glorified God, who had given such authority to men.
SUMMARY
Jesus came into Capernaum, and was brought to him a paralyzed man on a stretcher. He saw the faith of those who carried the man, and Jesus told the paralyzed man to take heart, as his sins were forgiven. The scribes who heard this exclaimed Jesus was blaspheming to claim that he could forgive sins. Jesus identified the evil in their hearts that refused to believe Jesus was God, and therefore given authority to forgive sins. He then tells the paralyzed man to “Get up, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” When the crowds saw this, they were amazed and glorified God.
REFLECTION
I must be clear about who Jesus is. He is God, the Lord Almighty. He was there in the beginning, created all things for His glory, and He is still alive and working today. Yes, he is indeed a healer, but He is infinitely so much more than that. To put Jesus in a box is evil. To undermine any aspect of his divinity and ability is evil. I must correctly know Him. He is the Son of God, who is God, and given all authority. I must humble myself before him and rely on him to heal my real core issue, which is my sin issue.
APPLICATION
With this understanding that my sins have been forgiven by Jesus Christ, and I am made righteous and whole, I will “get up”. To me, this means, to go forth boldly, covered in the righteousness and renewed state in Christ. I will “pick up my stretcher”, which means to me that I will order my life, put away sin, temptations, things I don’t need anymore, put it away from my heart and my physical space. I will also “go home”, which I currently interpret in this season of life, that I must go to where I am called by my Lord, to diligently do the work I’ve been given. Namely in this season, it is to continually be an anchor of faith and encouragement in my home, and also to intercede in prayer for my family.
PRAYER
Dear Heavenly Father,
You are so gracious to forgive our sins and to heal our ailments, whether they are spiritual or physical. Lord, it is such a mystery and miracle that you forgive our sins, and we are then restored to “go home”, or go to our calling, robed in your forgiveness and righteousness. Yes, you are truly the Lord who has all authority to forgive sins, and you have all power to restore what was broken and lost.
Thank you, God! In Jesus’ name I pray.
Amen.
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