Luke 5:17-26
"And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them. And, behold, men brought in a bed a man which was taken with a palsy: and they sought means to bring him in, and to lay him before him. And when they could not find by what way they might bring him in because of the multitude, they went upon the housetop, and let him down through the tiling with his couch into the midst before Jesus. And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee. And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, Who is this which speaketh blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone? But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? Whether is easier to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee, or to say, Rise up and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God. And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things to day," Luke 5:17-26. We will pick up in verses 24 and 25.
"But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go into thine house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God," Luke 5:24-25. The religious crowds thought that Jesus was just like them, simply a mere man. They did not have a correct understanding of Scripture, therefore; they did not have a biblical understanding of the Messiah. How long has mankind not had a correct understanding of Who God is? Since Adam and Eve. "These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself: but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes," Psalm 50:21.
As soon as Christ commanded the man with the palsy to get up, the ole boy got up. This signified to all that were there that just as Christ was able to physically heal this man simply by His word, that Christ was also able to forgive sinners of their sins simply by His word. By the power of Christ, this man was forgiven of all his sins, and physically healed of his infirmities. Now this man knew and experienced these truths, and everyone else there were witnesses of the majesty, the power, the compassion, and the love of Jesus Christ. His life was radically transformed by Jesus Christ, and as a result he went home, and glorified God the whole way. "This circumstance is only mentioned by Luke, and shews the sense the man had of the great favours bestowed upon him: he glorified God, by ascribing them to his goodness and power; by offering the sacrifice of praise, or giving thanks unto him for them; by publishing them among his neighbors, to the honour of his name; and by living a holy life and conversation, to his glory, under a grateful sense of his kindness: yea, he glorified Jesus Christ as God, who he knew must be God, by forgiving his sins, and curing his disease; he proclaimed his divine power, and ascribed greatness to him: he confessed him as the Messiah, and owned him as his Saviour, and became subject to him as his Lord." John Gill.
"And they were all amazed, and they glorified God, and were filled with fear, saying, We have seen strange things today," Luke 5:26. "Amazed" in this verse is the Greek word "ekstasis" and means arising from any strong emotion, e.g. astonishment, amazement. They could not help but to glorify God for only God could do what they saw that day. This caused them to be filled with fear, which is astonishment and amazement. They could not stop thinking about these things, and they could not stop talking about these things. They called what they witnessed, "strange things". This is the Greek word "paradoxos", and means beyond opinion and expectation. Paradoxical strange. Something beyond one's expectation, a miracle. We know that a miracle is something that only God can do. They may have expected to hear great teaching, and maybe see someone healed, but they never thought they would see someone be forgiven of all their sins.
Through this passage of Scripture, we have learned much about the redemptive work of Christ. According to the Scriptures, has the Lord saved your soul; if so, then there must be fruits, evidences, springing forth from you stemming from the work Christ has done on the inside of you. If there are no evidences of salvation in your life, then we beg you to examine yourself according to the Scriptures to see if you are truly saved or not, and if not, we beg you to trust Christ alone to save you.
Lastly, we have also seen different types of people that were there watching and listening to Jesus Christ. Those who looked most religious were there to be critical. Why are you reading this? Why do you attend church? I hope you gather with the brethren because you love the Lord, and you love the brethren. Is Christ the Object of your faith or ridicule? He saves all who come to Him. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out," John 6:37. Christ also saves the worse of us. "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God," I Corinthians 6:9-11. Christ saves us, and uses us for His glory. We truly have a wonderful, merciful, Saviour.
Please send questions and comments to richardsonbaptistchurch@gmail.com. Soli Deo Gloria.
