Mark 2:1-12 — “Which is easier, to say…”

Gospel for Today = Mark 2:1-12 
Do we pray with expectation? Jesus spoke simply and yet profoundly. Will we pray the same way? Or will we settle for the ruins of unbelief like these ruins at Capernaum?

Ruins of Ancient Capernaum

And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay.

And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts,  

“Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming!

Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

(v.8-11) And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic— “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.”

And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying,

     “We never saw anything like this!”

  

Comments:

Ruins believed to be Simon Peter's house 
excavated beneath a church in Capernaum

Cue the Jeopardy theme music... for our questioning hearts.
Today, out of this pericope, I wanted to focus specifically on v. 8-11. I have heard this passage explained a number of different ways. But the ESV Study Bible makes an excellent point. It is easier to say to a paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven,” than it is to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’ because the first has no immediate outward requirement on the speaker. The forgiveness or lack of forgiveness of sins is not readily apparent to the audience. Jesus used the second statement, the harder one, to prove that he had the authority to speak the easier statement. He used the “pick up your bed” statement to prove he actually had the authority to forgive sins. 

When we pray do we pray so generically, dare I say “spiritually” that there is no need to expect any specific, tangible, measurable effect as an answer to our prayer? 

Don’t get me wrong, I am not advocating the kind of prayer that is basically telling God what he should be doing and doing RIGHT NOW! However, there is an element of faith/trust that listens to the Spirit for direction and then prays specifically and persistently with a sense of expectancy in cooperation with God’s plans and purposes. Are we...

• too protective of God’s seemingly inconsistent answering of prayer, 
• too accepting of our own unbelief that doubts prayer makes a difference, or 
• too uncaring towards the needs of others that we won’t climb the back stairs and dig a hole in the roof to get them to Jesus in desperately specific prayer?

Let's carry our friends and neighbors to Christ in prayer... no matter what stands in the way be it questions, crowds, or roofs.