Mark 2

Verses 1-12, “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!”

Consider the lengths these men would go to in order to get the paralytic to Jesus. Although works do not save you, their actions demonstrated that their faith in Him was genuine. Today we have open access to Him, yet many will make excuses why not to seek Him or spend time in His presence. Some want to indulge in their fleshly lusts and are simply unwilling to give them up. So many things take priority over Jesus, and we are ready to fight for them, but Christians make excuses daily as to why they cannot read their Bible or seek Him in prayer. Or even worse, they attempt to justify why they cannot obey His word. You might say you know Him, but what is more important is whether or not He is going to say that He knows you! After the paralytic was healed, we see the hardness of heart of the scribes who had witnessed the event. Rather than praising God, they begin questioning Jesus' authority, unable to receive the truth...that Jesus IS God.

Verses 15-17, “Then He went out again by the sea; and all the multitude came to Him, and He taught them. As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, “Follow Me.” So he arose and followed Him. Now it happened, as He was dining in Levi’s house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him. And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, “How is  it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

Jesus went to the sinners and tax collectors, but He was not their friend. On the contrary He says they are not well (not saved) and calls them to repentance. He was actually falsely accused of being friends with them, when He clearly was not. Matthew 11:19, "The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ But wisdom is justified by her children.” People today allow themselves the freedom to sin, claiming the lie that Jesus is still their friend. John 15:9‭-‬14, “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”  You cannot reach the lost by becoming just like those in need of salvation. There is no witness when you do this and you will have no true joy.

As you can see, the Pharisees were just looking for fault in Jesus so they did not have to follow Him. Whether it was healing on the Sabbath, plucking grain, eating rather than fasting...you name it, they were offended. They were not offended because Jesus was doing anything wrong; they were just upset because He would not follow their man made traditions. Their hardness of heart blocked them from seeing that He was God in the flesh. They had exalted themselves and Jesus would not respect their earthly positions. Matthew 23:9-13, "Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. 'But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.' ”  We need to enter our relationship with Him, letting go of our thoughts and our ways, allowing Him to do a work in our hearts. He does not need us to accomplish His will; but on the contrary, we need Him!