And when he [Jesus] 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.” (Mark 2:1-5 ESV).
Yesterday I mentioned the truth of “let go and let God.” As I wrote, it is often an ineffective means of comfort in the midst of crisis; however, it does convey the truth. The point is that they we call on Jesus in every situation. Our reading today tells us the story of a man who was paralyzed. He had no way to actually get to Jesus. However, he had four faithful friends to help him do just that. Often a person feels too broken, too sorrowful, too stressed, or too sinful to reach out to Jesus for healing. I’ve known of many who were simply too battered and broken in life to feel like they could pray. This is the time when we can come alongside those who are hurting to help. Read it again. It tells of a man who couldn’t get to Jesus on his own because he was paralyzed. His friends decided to make a way through when they could find no other way to reach Jesus. So they climbed up on the roof, made a hole in it, and lowered their friend on his mat to meet Jesus.
The first thing Jesus did was to heal the man’s soul by forgiving his sins, and then he healed the man’s body so that he could walk. Jesus knows exactly what we need. When we just can’t bring ourselves to Jesus, the family of God can carry us to him in prayer. We must not underestimate the effectual value of this kind of help. It is critical in our understanding to recognize this is not someone who “pulls himself up.” It is the work of others who get them spiritually and mentally to the One who can pull them up.
I have a dear friend, Terry Westmoreland, who spends time visiting with an elderly lady in a nursing home just to read Scripture and devotionals to her as she is unable to do so for herself. That simple ministry is life-saving. I wonder if there’s not someone you could serve in their sorrow with some ministry to help them get to Jesus?